tracert:tldr:01712

The command "tracert /4 ${IP}" is used to trace the route that packets take to reach a destination IP address.

Here's an explanation of each component of the command:

• "tracert": This is the command used to initiate the trace route process. It is short for "trace route".
• "/4": This is an optional switch that specifies the use of IPv4 addressing. By default, the command uses IPv6 addressing. The "/4" switch ensures that the trace route is performed using IPv4.
• "${IP}": This is a placeholder for the destination IP address you want to trace the route to. You need to replace "${IP}" with the actual IP address you want to trace.

When you run this command, the trace route process begins. It sends a series of packets with increasing time-to-live (TTL) values to the destination IP address. Each packet is sent with a small incremental TTL value, starting from 1.

As the packets travel through different network devices, such as routers, each device decrements the TTL value. When the TTL reaches 0, the device discards the packet and sends a Time Exceeded message back to the source. This allows the trace route process to identify the IP address of each device along the route.

By analyzing the series of IP addresses received from the Time Exceeded messages, the command provides a list of each hop (router or device) the packets go through, until they reach the destination IP address. This helps troubleshoot network connectivity issues and identify any bottlenecks or problem areas in the network.