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Explain ping in Linux - How to ping an IP address in Linux?

Linux ping Command

Ping stands for Packet Internet Groper. This is a Linux terminal command, which is used to check network connectivity.

It will work for all networks like: LAN, MAN, WAN etc.

Ping command uses ICMP protocol to check particular node is reachable or not.

Linux Ping Command Syntax

$ping  -<options>  <hostname>

Linux Ping Command Example

$ping  192.168.10.105
or
$ping  www.google.com

If network is reachable, then output of ping command:

linux~# ping 192.168.10.105 
PING 192.168.10.105 (192.168.10.105 ) 56(84) bytes of data. 
64 bytes from 192.168.10.105 : icmp_req=1 ttl=64 time=0.477 ms 
64 bytes from 192.168.10.105 : icmp_req=2 ttl=64 time=0.157 ms 
64 bytes from 192.168.10.105 : icmp_req=3 ttl=64 time=0.284 ms 
64 bytes from 192.168.10.105 : icmp_req=4 ttl=64 time=0.285 ms 
64 bytes from 192.168.10.105 : icmp_req=5 ttl=64 time=0.288 ms 

If network is not reachable, then output of ping command:

linux~# ping 192.168.10.105 
PING 192.168.10.105 (192.168.10.105) 56(84) bytes of data. 
From 192.168.10.17 icmp_seq=1 Destination Host Unreachable 
From 192.168.10.17 icmp_seq=2 Destination Host Unreachable 
From 192.168.10.17 icmp_seq=3 Destination Host Unreachable

Options of Linux ping Command

These are some of the important options, which is used with ping command:

1. -d
   This option is used to set socket option SO_DEBUG
2. -l
   When source route was lost then we use this option in our IP header to send the packet to the given host.
3. -n
   It shows network addresses as numbers. Normally when we use ping command, it displays addresses as host names.
4. -I (interval)
   It specifies the interval between two transmissions. By default, it is one second.