Trace (traceroute)

What it does: shows the step-by-step path your traffic takes to reach a destination — every router ("hop") in between, in order. It's how you answer "where does the connection break down on the way there?" It uses the same IPv4/IPv6/Auto picker as Ping — handy when a site works over one and not the other (some ISPs tunnel IPv6, which can make plain IPv4 traceroutes to the open internet fail even though your connection is fine).

What you need: a destination (name or IP). It pre-fills your gateway like Ping; type any target over it.

Safe to run: yes — passive, changes nothing.

What to expect / reading results: a numbered list, one router per line, with its address and response time. A line of * means that hop chose not to reply — often normal (many routers de-prioritize it), not a failure by itself. The useful signal is WHERE replies stop, or where the response time suddenly jumps: that's near where the trouble starts. Reaching the destination on the last line = the path is complete.