Traceroute is a network diagnostic tool used to determine the path taken by packets across an IP network. It operates by sending a series of packets to a specified destination host, each with a different IP time to live (TTL) value. As the packets traverse the network, each router decrements the TTL field by one. When the TTL reaches zero, the router sends an ICMP Time Exceeded message back to the source host. By analyzing the sequence of ICMP messages, traceroute can determine the route taken by the packets and identify any network problems along the way.
Traceroute is an important tool for network administrators and engineers. It can be used to troubleshoot network connectivity issues, identify network bottlenecks, and map the topology of a network. Traceroute can also be used to identify security vulnerabilities, such as open ports or misconfigured routers.