Packet Loss

I have a networked printer that used to be ok but recently I have had problems with packet loss if I ping the IP of the printer I get a 50% loss of packets.

Can anyone explain pack loss and how to troubleshoot problems with packet loss.

thanks

Is this printer within the same network as your workstation?
If so, are you both connected to a switch or hub ?

A 50% packet loss is unacceptable in the case we are talking about a local network printer.

It could be a hub/switch problem even thought chances for this are minimal.

You can try to sniff packets and see what your workstation is send and receiving from the printer. Also, if your printer is a HP, there is a fine utility called "HP WebJet Admin" that allows you to administer the printer via your web browser, it might prove useful for diagnosing possible problems with your printer.

Packet loss basically means that somewhere along the network path between your computer and the printer, the packets are being dropped. This can happen for a variety of reasons, and as Chris already said, you should begin your analysis of the problem by looking at your network infrastructure (switches, hubs, routers)

What I would also recommend is that you try pinging a few other hosts in the same network as the printer, this will help you isolate if this a problem with the route to that particular network or some other problem.

You can use the 'pathping' command from the command line in windows xp / 2k, this will ping all the hosts along the route to the printer and will let you see where packet loss is occuring.

Perhaps if you post the results of the pathping, we can help you out a bit more.

Thanks for your speedy replies, I have now solved the problem.

After using ethereal to trace the packets and check the hubs and switch I have now been told that a firmware upgrade will solve the problem which it has, I guess a bug in the printers tcp/ip software.

many thanks