To perform a Traceroute (tracert) in Windows 10 using the Command Prompt, follow these steps:
1. Open Command Prompt: Press the `Windows` key, type "cmd", and press `Enter` to open the Command Prompt.
2. Run Tracert Command: Type the following command and press `Enter`:
```
tracert <destination>```
Replace `<destination>` with the domain name or IP address of the target server or website you want to trace the route to.
3. View Traceroute Results: The Traceroute command will begin tracing the route to the specified destination. It will display each hop along the way, showing the IP address, hostname (if available), and response time of each intermediate router or server. The results will include information on the number of hops, as well as any timeouts or errors encountered.
4. Analyze Results: Review the Traceroute results to identify the path taken by your network packets to reach the destination. Look for any high latency or packet loss at specific hops, which may indicate network congestion or connectivity issues.
5. Optional Parameters: You can customize the Traceroute command by adding optional parameters:
- `-d`: Performs a trace without resolving IP addresses to hostnames.
- `-h <max_hops>`: Sets the maximum number of hops to search for the target.
- `-w <timeout>`: Sets the time, in milliseconds, to wait for each reply.
6. Save Results: If needed, you can save the Traceroute results to a text file for further analysis by appending `> filename.txt` to the end of the Traceroute command. For example:
```
tracert <destination> > trace_results.txt```
This will save the output to a file named "trace_results.txt" in the current directory.
7. Exit Command Prompt: Once you've completed the Traceroute, you can close the Command Prompt window by typing `exit` and pressing `Enter`, or simply clicking the close button.
By following these steps, you can effectively perform a Traceroute in Windows 10 using the Command Prompt to diagnose network connectivity issues and troubleshoot routing problems.