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Wondering if I can get some opinions on this.

I'm trying to debug a problem with getting email hosted at Rackspace using IMAP over SSL, which has been sporadically crazy-slow and sometimes times out and becomes completely unreachable. They helpfully suggested I run pathping, which is a Windows app that combines ping and traceroute. I couldn't log into a Windows box in the office, but I used mtr, which seems to be equivalent for Linux.

Here's what mtr is reporting. Note the packet loss numbers in the first column:

/usr/sbin/mtr --report --report-cycles 1000 secure.emailsrvr.com

HOST: cocoa Loss% Snt Last Avg Best Wrst StDev
1. gateway.office.agos.co.jp 0.0% 1000 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.3 0.0
2. 124x39x186x17.ap124.ftth.uco 0.0% 1000 0.4 0.4 0.4 9.9 0.8
3. 221x112x12x97.ap221.ftth.uco 1.5% 1000 0.7 0.9 0.4 51.9 3.5
4. 221x112x21x77.ap221.ftth.uco 0.2% 1000 0.8 0.7 0.6 44.5 2.1
5. 221x112x16x53.ap221.ftth.uco 0.0% 1000 0.7 1.5 0.4 27.7 3.2
6. 61.122.113.121 1.2% 1000 16.5 23.5 0.7 53.0 9.7
7. usen-61x122x114x82.gate01.co 0.1% 1000 1.1 1.2 0.8 22.6 1.7
8. as6461.ix.jpix.ad.jp 17.6% 1000 15.7 22.6 1.7 60.9 8.8
9. so-7-0-0.mpr1.sjc2.us.above. 17.1% 1000 127.6 141.3 121.6 191.5 7.9
10. ge-9-2-9.er2.sjc2.us.above.n 20.6% 1000 124.8 134.3 114.7 231.2 9.7
11. xe-1-3-0.cr2.sjc2.us.above.n 17.5% 1000 128.9 143.5 121.2 214.0 11.7
12. ae3.cr2.ord2.us.above.net 18.5% 1000 185.7 185.7 160.7 226.4 9.5
13. xe-2-1-0.mpr2.ord6.us.above. 19.7% 1000 189.9 188.9 165.4 278.1 11.1
14. xe-0-2-0.mpr1.ord5.us.above. 21.8% 1000 184.3 188.0 163.5 268.3 12.6
15. 208.185.125.6.IPYX-076520-ZY 19.2% 1000 189.1 195.5 174.7 304.5 8.0
16. corea.ord1.rackspace.net 16.9% 1000 180.0 186.3 165.8 214.1 6.8
17. Core3-CoreB.ord1.rackspace.n 87.1% 1000 181.9 194.1 177.8 205.5 7.2
18. aggr601a-3-core3.ord1.racksp 99.7% 1000 211.2 203.9 189.3 211.3 12.7
19. secure.emailsrvr.com 15.5% 1000 177.0 187.0 156.8 214.1 9.1

By contrast, from home (which is on a different ISP to the one shared by the main office and a satellite office that have both reported problems), the same thing gives me hardly any packet loss (I think the ??? one is my cable router that doesn't accept pings):

HOST: beech Loss% Snt Last Avg Best Wrst StDev
1.|-- 192.168.1.1 0.0% 1000 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.6 0.0
2.|-- ??? 100.0 1000 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
3.|-- 10.202.113.3 0.0% 1000 9.9 11.6 8.2 42.9 3.1
4.|-- 172.25.106.229 0.0% 1000 10.9 12.7 7.8 84.3 5.5
5.|-- 10.1.1.249 0.0% 1000 11.0 13.5 9.0 117.6 5.9
6.|-- 203-165-18-217.rev.home.n 0.0% 1000 11.3 16.2 9.4 89.3 11.9
7.|-- 203-165-18-218.rev.home.n 0.0% 1000 13.8 16.1 9.2 114.8 6.8
8.|-- c1-t0-2-0-6.kdd1.nap.home 0.0% 1000 17.4 15.2 10.0 75.2 4.9
9.|-- 124.211.14.13 0.0% 1000 16.4 14.5 9.7 77.9 6.5
10.|-- otejbb206.int-gw.kddi.ne. 0.0% 1000 13.8 21.4 9.1 118.2 24.2
11.|-- pajbb002.int-gw.kddi.ne.j 0.0% 1000 131.8 134.4 126.8 239.9 12.9
12.|-- ix-pa9.int-gw.kddi.ne.jp 0.0% 1000 123.5 128.9 119.8 307.0 23.3
13.|-- 64.125.12.61 0.0% 1000 123.2 127.5 118.4 220.0 13.8
14.|-- xe-3-1-0.cr2.sjc2.us.abov 0.0% 1000 134.6 143.5 131.5 206.3 9.1
| `|-- 64.125.31.70
15.|-- ae1.cr2.lax112.us.above.n 0.0% 1000 140.4 141.7 134.4 224.6 10.4
16.|-- ae4.cr2.iah1.us.above.net 0.0% 1000 135.7 172.2 133.3 258.8 18.7
| `|-- 64.125.30.233
17.|-- ae1.cr1.iah1.us.above.net 0.0% 1000 178.0 183.4 175.5 264.3 10.3
| `|-- 64.125.25.46
18.|-- ae3.cr1.dfw2.us.above.net 0.9% 1000 175.1 176.1 167.3 223.8 8.6
19.|-- ae4.er1.dfw2.us.above.net 2.4% 1000 172.2 177.0 170.9 227.2 6.4
20.|-- 128.177.70.86.IPYX-076520 0.0% 1000 179.0 185.2 178.8 278.3 10.5
21.|-- corea.dfw1.rackspace.net 0.1% 1000 186.3 190.9 183.0 262.1 8.9
22.|-- core5.dfw1.rackspace.net 0.1% 1000 172.1 175.9 169.4 230.8 4.0
23.|-- aggr921a-10-core5.dfw1.ra 0.9% 1000 213.9 213.5 194.8 291.7 7.8
24.|-- secure.emailsrvr.com 0.1% 1000 172.3 180.0 169.2 254.6 6.8

Rackspace then apparently chose that precise moment to outsource their support operations to a brick wall, so I'm trying to figure out whether I should be arguing with them, arguing with my ISP USEN, fixing something myself, or forgetting about network issues and tinkering with anti-virus software and mail clients and things instead.

So I'm wondering:

- Where I see a fair bit of packet loss before I get to the US, is that something exceptionally bad that shows there's already a problem at my end / with USEN, or is it par for the course?

- When it gets to the Rackspace systems and we start getting 99.4% packet loss listed, does that pretty much conclusively show there's a problem at their end, or could that show up as the result of failures closer to me? Alternatively, is it something that could happen with a normally-functioning system for whatever reason?

Any thoughts?

Edmund Edgar

Founder, Social Minds Inc (KK)
Twitter: @edmundedgar

Linked In: edmundedgar

Skype: edmundedgar

http://www.socialminds.jp

Reality Keys

@realitykeys

support@example.com

https://www.realitykeys.com

[tlug] Packet loss: How much is normal, and who should I talk to