Unlock Efficient Network Troubleshooting with Trace Route in Azure

Trace Route in Azure is a powerful tool that helps you identify and troubleshoot network connectivity issues between your Azure resources and the internet. It works by sending packets of data to a destination and tracking the route they take.

The tool is particularly useful for diagnosing problems with Azure Virtual Network (VNet) peering, as it can help you identify issues with connectivity between VNets. This can save you a lot of time and frustration in the long run.

To use Trace Route in Azure, you'll need to have the Azure Network Watcher feature enabled in your subscription. This feature provides a centralized platform for monitoring and troubleshooting network issues.

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To choose the right IP address for tracing, consider testing the default gateway, which can be found on the Advanced Networking blade on the Azure Stack Edge (ASE) local UI.

You can access the local UI by following the tutorial in Tutorial: Connect to Azure Stack Edge Pro with GPU.

The ping and traceroute tools can be used to check the reachability of any IP address over the specified interface, making it a common choice for testing the default gateway.

If you're unsure about the default gateway address, you can use the Azure Stack Edge (ASE) local UI to find it, as mentioned in Tutorial: Connect to Azure Stack Edge Pro with GPU.

Tracing the default gateway IP address can help you identify any issues with connectivity and ensure that your network is functioning properly.

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The Traceroute tool is used to map the hops between the end user and the destination server. This can help determine where any issues may lie on the network.

A good Traceroute result will show each hop in the route, giving you a clear picture of where data is traveling.

Looking at hop 3, we can see that it's a critical point in the route, as issues here can cause problems for the entire network.

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A good Traceroute result shows the hops between the end user and the destination server, helping to determine where any issues may lie on the network.

The Traceroute tool can map up to 30 hops, which is the maximum number of hops shown in the examples.

Looking at a good Traceroute result, you'll see each hop with its corresponding time to live (RTT) and the address of the hop.

In some cases, a hop may fail, which can be identified by a missing or incomplete entry in the Traceroute result.

A routing loop is another issue that can be detected with Traceroute, where the tool shows a hop that is not the actual destination server but rather another hop in the route.

Looking at hop 3, you'll see the RTT and address of the hop, which can help you identify any issues with that particular hop.

Looking at hop 4, you'll see the RTT and address of the hop, which can help you identify any issues with that particular hop.

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Looking at hop 9, you'll see the RTT and address of the hop, which can help you identify any issues with that particular hop.

To perform a Traceroute, you can use the Tracert command, but be aware that Tracert over UDP may not be allowed in some environments, such as Azure.

To get around this limitation, you can use a tool like NMap, which can perform a Traceroute over TCP.

Here are the key differences between a good and bad Traceroute result:

PathPing is a tool that offers advantages over Ping and Traceroute, such as studying the behavior of nodes over an extended time period.

Each node is pinged as the result of a single command, which is a key difference from Ping and Traceroute. The PathPing command was used to check the connection to device 192.168.1.6, over a maximum of 30 hops.

The default Ping sample is four messages, while Traceroute takes a single route trace. However, this comes at a cost, as it takes a total of 25 seconds per hop to show the PathPing statistics.

To get the most out of PathPing, it's essential to understand its results.

Path Analysis is a crucial step in understanding the network connectivity between your web app and remote endpoints in Azure. You can view a detailed analysis report by clicking on any of the nodes for the remote endpoints in the Analysis Report.

The Analysis Report presents a comprehensive network trace analysis graph, which highlights potential red flags that could be causing network-related issues on your web app. It also provides recommendations on how to resolve them, simplifying the troubleshooting process.

You can also use Traceroute output to analyze the data path from on-premises locations to virtual networks in Azure. For example, the Traceroute output from on-premises Location 2 to a VM in the hub virtual network is available, and so is the output to a VM in the spoke virtual network.

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Interpreting the network trace analysis graph is a crucial step in understanding the connectivity between your web app and remote endpoints.

The graph provides a comprehensive view of the current state of network connectivity, allowing you to identify potential issues.

By clicking on any node for a remote endpoint, you can view a detailed analysis report that summarizes the most pertinent information in the network trace.

The report highlights potential red flags that could be the root cause of network-related issues on your web app.

This report also provides recommendations on how to resolve these issues, making it easier to troubleshoot network-related problems.

With this information, you can take targeted steps to resolve connectivity issues and ensure your web app is running smoothly.

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The traceroute output from on-premises Location 1 to a VM in the hub virtual network shows a data path that includes the primary MSEE interface, the ExpressRoute gateway, and the destination VM.

In this traceroute, the first two hops are part of the on-premises network. The third hop is the primary MSEE interface that faces the CE router. The fourth hop is the ExpressRoute gateway of the hub virtual network. The IP range of the ExpressRoute gateway of the hub virtual network isn't advertised to the on-premises network. The fifth hop is the destination VM.

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Network Watcher provides only an Azure-centric view, but Azure Network Performance Monitor offers an on-premises perspective for data path analysis.

The test setup uses a site-to-site VPN as backup connectivity for ExpressRoute between the on-premises Location 1 and the hub virtual network. To test the backup data path, an ExpressRoute link failure was induced between the on-premises Location 1 primary CE router and the corresponding MSEE.

The topology view of the on-premises Location 1 VM connectivity to the VM on the hub virtual network via site-to-site VPN is shown in a figure. This connectivity is established when ExpressRoute connectivity is down.

Traceroute output from on-premises Location 1 to a VM in the spoke virtual network shows a data path that involves the site-to-site VPN.

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To understand the data path in Azure, let's start with the basics. The data path from on-premises Location 2 to a VM in the hub virtual network is shown in the traceroute output.

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The traceroute output from on-premises Location 2 to a VM in the hub virtual network is a crucial step in understanding the data path. There are two different types of virtual networks involved: the hub and the spoke.

A VM in the hub virtual network is the destination of the traceroute output from on-premises Location 2. This indicates that the data path is going through the hub virtual network. The hub virtual network acts as a central point for data transfer between different virtual networks.

The traceroute output from on-premises Location 2 to a VM in the spoke virtual network is also an important consideration. This output shows a different data path, one that involves the spoke virtual network. The spoke virtual network is a separate entity from the hub virtual network and handles data transfer independently.

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The path to the hub virtual network is a crucial aspect of understanding trace routes in Azure.

The first hop in a traceroute from a spoke virtual network to a VM in the hub virtual network is the VPN gateway of the hub virtual network.

This is a key difference from the path to the branch virtual network, where the first hop is the VPN gateway of the branch virtual network.

The second hop in the path to the hub virtual network is the VPN gateway of the branch virtual network, which isn't advertised within the hub/spoke virtual network.

The third hop is the VM on the branch virtual network.

This path shows that the hub virtual network is acting as a central hub for connectivity to other networks.

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