Network Testing

As a user, a stable network connection is vital to ensure a quality experience using itracks tools. In some cases, network conditions may be tested in advance of gaining access to an activity. This short guide will describe how to launch a test, what is being measured, and what it means. 

Getting Started

Using a supported browser, visit itracks.testrtc.com. Please use the same browser for this test and GO activity access.

After entering an email address, click START to begin the test.
Note: Please enter the email address that corresponds with your GO login

Be sure to Accept and Allow camera and microphone access when prompted by the browser. 

The test will begin once permissions are granted and it may take a few minutes to complete. 

What Is Being Measured?

The following categories are evaluated and measured as part of the network test. It is important to consider that estimates are based on the browser used and that results can vary dramatically based on network infrastructure.

Video Bandwidth
Video Quality
Turn Connectivity
Location
Bandwidth Speed
DNS Lookup

 

Video Bandwidth

The Video Bandwidth test measures video throughput as a ratio of total bandwidth available for an outgoing video feed. This is done by sending video through the connection and reporting back what the estimated bandwidth is.

Bandwidth Estimate	The outgoing bandwidth estimation.
Jitter	How stable the connection is. The lower the number the better.
Round Trip Time	The round trip time reported. The lower the number the better.
Packet Loss	Packet loss percentage observed during the test.

 

Video Quality

The Video Quality test measures video throughput when connecting to a media server. This is done by establishing a connection, sending a video, and then receiving the same video back to evaluate the incoming bitrate. The results can be used to understand connectivity and quality that can be achieved on connections that require video.

Estimated	The estimated bitrate capacity for outgoing media streams.
Bitrate	The observed video bitrate during the test.
Round Trip Time	The round trip time for media, as calculated on the incoming stream.
Packet Loss	Packet loss percentage observed during the test.

 

Turn Connectivity

The Turn Connectivity test measures the connection time of TURN servers over UDP, TCP, and TLS. The time it takes to establish a connection accounts for gathering the candidate, connecting to it, and negotiating any necessary certificates. If any connectivity checks fail, they will be denoted by a red "X".

UDP	Connection time to the TURN server using UDP (User Datagram Protocol)
TCP	Connection time to the TURN server using TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)
TLS	Connection time to the TURN server using TLS (Transport Layer Security)

 

Location

The Location test attempts to establish an accurate geolocation for the user completing the test. It does this by analyzing the public IP address being used by the browser. 

IP	The public IP address of the browser completing the test.
City	An approximate geolocation based on the public IP address.
Country	An approximate geolocation based on the public IP address.
Org.	The organization/carrier/service provider who owns the IP address.

 

Bandwidth Speed

The Bandwidth Speed test performs a HTTPS speed test to evaluate connection speed. This test provides a general indication of link quality and also provides clues relating to connection type (i.e. DSL, Fiber, etc) by estimating the upper limits of the connection. A high uplink and downlink with low jitter is ideal.

Best Region	The speed test server that is selected automatically based on latency.
Uplink	Reports the uplink speed of the connection (client to server).
Downlink	Reports the downlink speed of the connection (server to client).
Jitter	Calculated by pings in quick succession and measuring delay variation.

 

DNS Lookup

The DNS Lookup test evaluates the reachability and connectivity to servers that are used for ongoing operation to ensure that they are accessible by the browser. In addition to connection status, connection times are also evaluated. 

Connected	Number of connected addresses out of the total that were attempted.
Average Connection Time	The average time it took to connect to the servers.
Highest Connection Time	The highest time it took to connect to one server.
Shortest Connection Time	The shortest time it took to connect to one server.