Re: [bug-inetutils] ping feature request: timestamps for ping replies AND ping outages

[Simon Josefsson]

tMH <address@hidden> writes:

> Hello everyone!
>
> I would like to ask you all to enhance code of ping so it will be able to
> show timestamps for each reply - positive or negative, this time stamp
> option should use the same algorithm as program 'ls':
>        --time-style=STYLE
>               with -l, show times using style STYLE: full-iso, long-iso,
> iso,  locale,  +FORMAT.   FORMAT  is  interpreted  like
>               'date';  if  FORMAT is FORMAT1<newline>FORMAT2, FORMAT1
> applies to non-recent files and FORMAT2 to recent files; if
>               STYLE is prefixed with 'posix-', STYLE takes effect only
> outside the POSIX locale
>
> I think it will be useful to show negative ping replies only when
> --timestamp option is used.

Thanks for sharing your idea.  However, how would this work?  As you may
be familiar with, ICMP is a not a reliable protocol and after sending a
request you don't keep track of that particular request anymore.  So you
only know the reply was positive when you receive it.  If you haven't
received a reply for some request yet, you don't know when it might
arrive and can only wait.  How would you handle that?  What would the
ping output actually be with your idea?

/Simon