Packet loss occurs when some data packets fail to reach their intended destination. It can be caused by a variety of factors, including network congestion, hardware failures, and software bugs. Packet loss can have a significant impact on network performance, causing applications to freeze, stutter, or even crash.
There are a number of ways to check for packet loss. One common method is to use the ping command. Ping sends a series of packets to a specified host and measures the time it takes for each packet to be returned. If any packets are lost, ping will report the percentage of packets that were lost.