What is Packet Loss?

Let us look at several factors that can cause packet loss:

This is the most common cause of packet loss. Network congestion, as its name implies, is like congestion you would find on a highway. Cars on an eight-lane highway might be traveling at normal speeds, but during peak times, the number of cars on the same highway could triple, even quadruple, preventing them from traveling at their normal speeds and slowing everyone down. An exit, or when lanes merge, could cause further slowdowns.

It is the same with network traffic. When network traffic reaches maximum capacity, some packets will invariably need to wait. Unfortunately, a connection can only handle so much, and packets are the first things to get abandoned when a network plays catch-up. Fortunately, software today is programmed in such a way that it tries to go back for "lost" packets by resending the data or reducing transfer speeds in order to give each packet an opportunity to travel through the network.

Aging, outdated hardware in the form of firewalls, network routers, and switches could affect network performance and cause packet loss. Older endpoints, including older models of smartphones and laptops used by employees, can also cause packet loss. Older devices, with outdated chipsets, could hog power and cause bottlenecks in the network.

Bugs might also cause packet loss. They usually appear in older versions of software and can cause issues with file transmission. For example, the size of a Word document created with an older version of Word might be larger than it would be had the creator used a newer version of the application. This could slow the document's transfer and cause packet loss.

Packet loss can also occur as a result of a security breach. Cyber criminals have figured out a way to launch something called a packet drop attack. In this type of breach, a cyberattacker takes control of a router and sends instructions that drop packet data into a stream. When an organization experiences an unusually high rate of packet loss across a network in a very short amount of time, it is possible that a packet loss attack is underway.

With so many online services running and apps launched simultaneously, a device might simply be overloaded. At scale, with hundreds, if not thousands, of devices connected to the network all at the same time, the entire network might be operating at a capacity level it was not initially designed to accommodate.

Packets on overstressed devices sometimes arrive at their intended destinations. But by then, the network might already be too vulnerable to process the packets and send them back out. Many devices have temporary storage to keep packets in a holding pattern until they can be sent out. Of course, even this resource can quickly get overwhelmed, leading to excess packets being dropped.

Data traveling over a Wi-Fi connection can suffer from packet loss much more frequently than that via a wired connection. Unfortunately, with so many remote employees working from home and from disparate locations, data that once was shared via a wired corporate local-area network (LAN) or wide-area network (WAN) is now entering the corporate network via a wireless connection to the public internet. As such, networks can quickly become overwhelmed, leading to packet loss.

Something as simple as a faulty network configuration can cause packet loss. As companies merge and divest assets, and as full-time IT staff positions become outsourced, network configurations may fall by the wayside. It may also be that aging network equipment cannot handle more modern network management protocols, such as network automation and software-defined wide-area networking (SD-WAN).

It is important to note that there is no options for 100% prevention of packet loss, meaning there can only be a reduction of packet loss stemming from preventative measures, but zero packet loss is impossible. This is because the causes of packet loss, such as an overloaded system, can never be completely eliminated. Systems and networks keep growing larger and larger, so engineers and IT staff can only do their best to address the increasing problem.

Rebooting not just employee devices or endpoints but also the routers can help. Often, when a system reboots, software is updated, temporary files are deleted, and additional memory becomes available.

Make sure that your network is configured properly. Even a single cable that is not plugged in correctly can cause packet loss. Further, another look at the network's multiprotocol label switching (MPLS), which is a protocol designed to get data packets to their destinations quickly, might be necessary.

Since packets are more likely to get lost via Wi-Fi, check whether a wired, Ethernet connection will fix the issue, but it's a temporary solution at best.

Updating your operating system (OS) and your most used programs will also help. The most recent version of an OS is less likely to have bugs, which means there is a lower likelihood of packet loss. Lean on the hard work of the dozens, if not hundreds, of engineers working for software vendors such as Apple, Microsoft, and Mozilla, who fix errors on an ongoing basis to improve your computing experience.

Sometimes older hardware can be an issue. This goes for employee endpoints as well as the firewalls, network switches, and routers that make up your network infrastructure. Determine whether an older and possibly faulty piece of hardware on the network is causing packet loss and replace it with a new one.

Quality of service (QoS) settings help manage packet loss by organizing network resources. QoS settings will assign more network traffic to the places that can best accommodate more resource-intensive data, such as voice and video.

As mentioned above, a security threat can cause packet loss. As a preventative measure, organizations and certainly remote employees working from home can strengthen their security posture to prevent a cyberattacker from taking control of a router and carrying out a packet drop attack. Updating the security settings on a router, using a virtual private network (VPN), turning on encryption, and using strong passwords—and changing them frequently—can help.