subject: Why Run A Website Trace [print this page] A website trace is a tool that allows you to get the physical location of a server that operates a website, and more. These tools are used for several different reasons and by many different agencies. Running a website trace is very fast and the information usually flows back quickly, provided that it is not being concealed somehow by the owner of the website.
What Kind of Information?
A website trace will first tell you where the server that hosts a website is located. It will also usually tell you the route it took to get there and how many hops were required before it reached the destination IP address. The website trace can provide information that is useful for troubleshooting routers and problems with infrastructure for this reason. By running a trace from a remote location, for example, a company can determine whether or not their infrastructure is functioning correctly and can isolate any problems that may be going on with routers along the way.
The website trace will also typically give information such as what operating system the server is running and other technical details. This information can be complied by programs that make it easy to read and to understand. These programs are used by everyone from law enforcement to marketing experts, so there are really no limits on who might find them to be useful for their purposes.
Using the Information
The good tracing programs out there make it very easy for someone to locate where a server is actually stationed. This is sometimes a valuable tool for law enforcement. If they detect an attack site and want to know who's hosting it and where it's hosted, a trace can give them that information, which may allow them to take action and to take down the site, if necessary.
For some individuals, the reason behind running the trace is simple curiosity. It's sometimes interesting to know where a site is coming from and, for that reason, people sometimes use these tools to learn more about their favorite websites.
If content is hosted in many different locations, a trace can be used to make sure that traffic is being routed properly. With this tool, administrators can make sure that they're not being routed to the wrong location if there's one closer where they should be getting information.
Traces provide a lot of information and, like all information, it can be used for many different purposes.
