INTERNET LATENCY HIGH

Symptoms: Internet access slowing or halting.

Impact: Medium

This metric measures latency between the agent’s server and the internet as a general gauge of user’s access to the internet in user functions that depend on external processes via the internet ( for example credit card authorization, credit checking, blockchain operation, etc. ) and users accessing the local domain from mobile devices via VOIP. See also internet jitter.

Threshold settings:

Metrics are set in milliseconds over a specified time span.  Default settings are:

Expected behavior :

There is no standard metric for latency. Many aspects of the environment will affect latency.

Reliable connections consistently report back the same latency over and over again. Using AimBetter’s algorithm, the alert displays when average internet latency deviates more than the threshold level for longer than the designated time window.

Possible causes of network latency

Inaccessible target   Priority: High
There is an extremely low probability of such a universal website becoming inaccessible as a source.
Recommended action :
The first check is to identify the viability of the target website.  Check is to see whether the same target can be reached from a different testing point in another domain. If not accessible externally then this is not able to be addressed by any local action.  If the website can be accessed, then follow the steps below. If accessible, basic tests of speed should show any persistent problems.

ISP errors  Priority: High
Access to the internet from the AimBetter agent’s server depends on the availability of your specific service provider.
Recommended action :
The first check rules out whether the problem is coming from the standard target website (google.com).  See whether a different common target can be reached from inside the corporate domain.  If not accessible then this is not able to be addressed by any local action.  If the website can be accessed, then follow the steps below.

Network errors or inefficient network structure  Priority: Medium

Recommended action :
Investigate all hardware components, with your Network Management team.
See our recommendations regarding network levels here.

Background

This alerts measures the latency time for accessing a reliable external web site (in the current version, we use google.com) and high reading means that the response is taking longer times to complete. The alert displays when average latency exceeds the threshold you have set for longer than the designated time span. Latency depends on the speed of the transmission and is affected by the delays in the transmission by devices along the way (e.g., routers and modems). Low latency indicates high network efficiency.

There are two main dependencies for internet access.

External applications:

In many applications, there is a need to interact with external resources over the internet and latency can have a strong effect on performance experienced by users. Typical dependencies include financial activity such as payment gateways for banking, credit card validation and transactions, ERP processes integrating stock movement with outside suppliers/distributors, blockchain and many more.  The more the business is integrated with the outside world, the more dependent it becomes on dependable and efficient internet connectivity.

Remote devices:

Mobile devices such as phones and tablets may be connecting to local resources via ( VOIP ) public channels and as such are dependent on the internet.

Inability or latency in the connection between the local network and the public internet can disrupt or delay individual operations.  These typically do not affect all users, being felt directly by individual users involved in the interaction between internal and external sources/destinations. For this reason, it is important to have this metric in order to have an overall view of the performance without having to rely on user reactions to slow or disrupted access.