Common Causes of Network Latency | Johor Web Design

In today’s hyper-connected world, the performance of applications, websites and online services depends on more than just internet speed. Another important piece of the puzzle, but less well know by people is network latency. Whether you’re streaming video, playing an online game, or simply loading a webpage, latency plays a key role in how quickly data moves from point A to point B. In this post, we’ll unpack what network latency is, what types of latency have, common causes of network latency.

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What Is Network Latency?

At its core, network latency is the time delay experienced as data travels across a network from a sender to a receiver. It’s typically measured in milliseconds (ms). If you imagine data as a series of cars on a highway, latency would be the travel time between two exits, regardless of how wide or fast the highway (bandwidth) is.

• One Way Latency: Time for a packet to travel from a sender to receiver.
• Round Trip Time (RTT): Time for a packet to travel from a sender to receiver and back again. Tools like ping report RTT.

Types of latency

1. Propagation Delay:

   Caused by the physical distance data must travel. Signals through fiber optic cables move at roughly two-thirds the speed of light, so every extra kilometer adds microseconds of delay.

2. Transmission Delay:

   The time needed to push all the packet’s bits onto the wire. Larger packets or slower link speeds increase this delay.

3. Processing Delay:

   Routers and switches need time to inspect packet headers, make forwarding decisions, and perform error checking.

4. Queuing Delay:

   When network devices become congested, packets queue up in buffers waiting to be forwarded, adding unpredictable delay.

Common Causes of Network Latency

• Distance: Longer routes mean higher propagation delays.
• Network Congestion: Heavy traffic leads to queuing delays.
• Routing Efficiency: Suboptimal paths or frequent route changes add hops and processing time.
• Hardware Performance: Older or overloaded routers/switches introduce more processing delay.
• Transmission Media: Fiber, copper, and wireless each have different characteristics. Wireless links often have higher error rates and retransmissions.

Real World Examples

• Online Gaming:

  A shooter game might feel unplayable with latency above 100 ms, whereas competitive players aim for sub 30 ms.

• Video Conferencing:

  Latency above 150 ms can cause noticeable delays in conversation, leading to crosstalk or awkward pauses.

• Financial Trading:

  Companies place servers close to exchanges to shave off microseconds, as even a tiny delay can affect the execution of a trade.

Conclusion

Network latency is an ever present factor shaping the performance and user experience of digital services. By understanding propagation, transmission, processing, and queuing delays and employing strategies like CDNs and edge computing, you can significantly reduce latency and deliver snappier, more reliable applications. Whether you are a network engineer, developer, or IT manager, keeping latency in check is crucial for success in today’s fast paced, connected world.