What is packet loss, and how do you fix it?

There are few things more frustrating than trying to work, game, or stream a movie and experiencing stuttering, pausing, and other unstable behavior due to a dodgy internet connection. Even if your Wi-Fi signal is strong or you’re using a wired connection, you can still experience hiccups due to the irritating phenomenon of packet loss.

If you’re wondering what packet loss is and how to fix it, we’re here to help explain the issue and show you how you can mitigate it.

What is a packet?

Think of a single email as a convoy of buses taking the class to Disney World. Each bus carries a portion of the overall student body — your email — along with information about where it’s going, where it’s from, and who is riding in the seats.

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Networks essentially break your email — and all other data — down to these buses, or packets. In turn, the email you send to mom is not just one large file crammed through the internet pipes. Instead, it is a convoy of little data bits so everyone else can simultaneously send emails to mom too.

Once all buses reach the set destination, their payloads unload to recreate your message in Mom’s email client.

A single packet contains three main components:

Header

Source IP address
Destination IP address
Packet type
Packet number

Payload

Part of your overall data

Trailer

Error correction
End of packet info

The typical packet size is around 1,500 bytes, though the actual size may be circumstantial.

What is packet loss?

This is when one of our metaphorical buses does not reach Disney World.

Keep in mind that the bus convoy does not take a straight shot from your PC to the destination using a single freeway. Instead, the convoy takes the best route through multiple small towns. For instance, your browser’s connection may travel through 20 “stops” before reaching Digital Trends’ closest host server. That