pppstats

pppstats [ -r ] [ -v ] [ -z ] [ -c ] [ -d ] [ -p ] [ -l ] [ ]

-r
    
Resets statistics after printing them.

-v
    
Enables verbose mode, displaying protocol statistics in more detail.

-z
    
Resets statistics to zero only, without printing. This option must be used in conjunction with -r.

-c
    
Displays compression statistics for the PPP link.

-d
    
Displays packet counts in addition to the default byte counts.

-p
    
Specifies the PPP device to monitor (e.g., ppp0). By default, pppstats will attempt to use the first active PPP device.

-l
    
Displays raw LCP (Link Control Protocol) statistics.


    
An optional numerical argument specifying the interval in seconds between updates. If provided, pppstats will run continuously, updating the display every seconds.

The pppstats command provides a real-time or snapshot view of the statistics for an active Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) link. It displays comprehensive data related to the PPP connection, including total bytes transmitted and received, number of packets, error counts (such as bad packets, lost packets), and details about compression and protocol statistics.

This utility is particularly useful for monitoring the health and performance of dial-up connections, DSL, or other network links that utilize the PPP protocol. It can run continuously, updating the display at specified intervals, or provide a single summary report. Administrators and users can use pppstats to diagnose network issues, identify bottlenecks, or simply observe data transfer rates over a PPP interface.

• Requires an active PPP link to report meaningful statistics.
• The command typically needs root privileges or be run via sudo to access PPP device statistics from the kernel.
• The displayed statistics reflect kernel-level PPP driver data and may not always align perfectly with application-level data transfer figures due to protocol overheads or filtering.
• Availability and specific features might vary slightly depending on the Linux distribution and pppd version.

When run without an interval, pppstats provides a single line of summary statistics. When an interval is specified, it runs continuously, typically clearing the screen or overwriting the previous output to provide a real-time update. The columns usually include IP bytes transmitted and received, IP packets, compression statistics (if enabled), and various error counts. The exact column layout can vary based on the options used.

Accessing pppstats typically requires elevated privileges (e.g., using sudo) because it needs to read kernel-level network device statistics. These statistics are often protected to prevent unauthorized access or manipulation of network interfaces and data.

pppstats is an integral part of the ppp package, which provides the Point-to-Point Protocol daemon (pppd) and associated utilities for Linux and other Unix-like operating systems. The ppp project has been a cornerstone of Linux networking since its early days, facilitating dial-up and broadband connections. pppstats has been a consistent utility within this package, offering essential monitoring capabilities for PPP links and evolving alongside pppd itself to support various PPP features and extensions. Its core functionality has remained focused on providing clear, accessible statistics for diagnosing and observing PPP connection performance.

pppd(8), ifconfig(8), ip(8), netstat(8)