This tutorial explains the major differences between Throughput vs. Bandwidth along with the list of the best tools to monitor Bandwidth and Throughput:
Professionals often use terms such as bandwidth and throughput to refer to communication systems. Although these terms are used interchangeably, they have some subtle differences.
Generally, bandwidth refers to the amount of data transmitted over a particular channel. In this context, bandwidth indicates data transfer speed over a network.
On the other hand, throughput corresponds to how much data can be transmitted in a given period. It is also known as the “effective data rate” or the “payload rate.” So, each network connection has a throughput, which identifies the maximum amount of data that can be transmitted.
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Throughput Vs. Bandwidth: Key Differences
So, have you ever been confused about the meaning of bandwidth or throughput? Can they be used identically?
Let’s find out what caused this confusion. This article on Throughput Vs Bandwidth aims to help you understand the difference between Bandwidth and Throughput.
What Does Network Bandwidth Mean
Bandwidth refers to how much data can be transmitted over a given channel. Bandwidth indicates the speed at which data can be communicated, which is the maximum speed at which a network device can send data.
However, there is no guarantee that the network will operate at this speed. A large amount of data can be transferred and received with high bandwidth. It is also defined as the frequency range between the lowest and highest possible frequency. A digital signal has a bandwidth of one Hertz.
Bandwidths are theoretical units, and they are not affected by physical obstructions. In computing, bandwidth is measured in bits per second (bps), and it can also be measured in megabits per second (Mbps) and gigabits per second (Gbps).
For example, when we say that the bandwidth of a network is 60Mbps, it means that the network cannot transfer data faster than 60Mbps under any given circumstances.
The OSI model specifies the bandwidth of each physical layer. The network is considered more robust whenever bandwidth exceeds or equals throughput. Since wide bandwidth allows more users/subscribers to access the network at the same time with less traffic, it’s always better.
How do You Optimize Bandwidth
Having poor bandwidth optimization can slow down your network, giving users a bad experience using apps.
Here’s how to make your bandwidth work efficiently:
- Do you use QoS settings? You can use Quality of Service settings to help networks support essential applications. Using traffic policies, you can prioritize traffic, so critical applications will not experience bandwidth limitations.
- Do you use cloud-based applications? The use of cloud-based applications can enhance network performance. By outsourcing some traffic to public or private clouds, you will reduce the strain on your network. This will also improve the performance of your frequently accessed applications.
- Is all non-essential traffic eliminated? You should not deny employees access to YouTube videos at all times, but you would be surprised how much non-essential traffic occurs even in the most productive office. You should only use your bandwidth during business hours if certain traffic is maintained.
What is Network Throughput
Generally, throughput refers to the amount of data transmitted within a given period, and throughput is a measure of packet delivery rather than a theoretical one.
Every layer in the OSI model can be measured throughput. Bandwidth is the theoretical metric, whereas throughput is the empirical metric, and the numbers differ for each. For throughput, bandwidth is the limiting factor.
For example, if a data packet with a size of 500 kilobits takes 1 second to flow from Device_A to Device_B, then we can say that the throughput between the two devices is 500kbps.
Throughput measurements are useful in identifying the cause and effect of poor or slow connections and troubleshooting them. A network with high throughput can transmit much data per second, respond to user requests efficiently, and perform well overall. Networks with low throughput cannot deliver large amounts of data in a timely manner.
It indicates poor network performance caused by packet loss, latency, and jitter. Latency affects throughput. In measurement, latency is used to describe delay. It takes time for a packet to reach its destination after being transmitted.
Throughput equation: You can calculate throughput by using the equation below:
Throughput = Amount Of Transferred Data / Duration
How Can You Optimize Throughput
The most important factor to consider when optimizing throughput is minimizing network latency. In turn, latency affects throughput, resulting in poor network performance. Generally, you should monitor endpoint usage and address network bottlenecks to avoid lag.
When too many people connect to a network at once, the network may perform sluggishly. The risk of the problem occurring increases if multiple people are downloading simultaneously.
Thus, when looking at the endpoint usage of employees, an IT manager can determine which employees are causing non-work-related applications to run slowly. Even if you are not a system administrator, you may find it helpful to be informed about which applications are causing issues since ignorance leads to inaction.
Basically, a bottleneck on a network is the same as a traffic jam. Traffic gets backed up for various reasons throughout the day, slowing down the network. Large organizations generally experience slow network performance after lunch when everyone returns to work.
If you want to fix bottlenecks, there are many things you can do, starting with upgrading your router. You can also reduce the number of nodes on your network to reduce congestion, which reduces packet travel distance.
You can reduce latency with the following tips:
- Connect with a wire: A wireless connection can fail when it’s sent over the air. You need to resend the information if that happens. Your wireless signal will be stronger, but you’ll still have some latency since all wireless signals suffer from this issue. A network cable can help. Moreover, fiber optic technology is another option.
- Restart your network: It’s possible your network hardware was faulty and causing lag. Reboot your router and modem after unplugging them for a few moments.
- Close bandwidth-hogging apps: If you use more bandwidth than you should, latency will spike. Stop using those bandwidth-intensive apps.
- Turn off your firewall: The idea may sound crazy, but firewalls filter all network traffic, and a corrupt firewall can slow down your network. If you run multiple firewall programs at the same time, you’ll experience the same problem. Disabling the firewall will help you figure out if it’s causing your current slowdown.
- Fix faulty network hardware: You can see how your network changes when certain equipment isn’t connected. You can figure out if any network hardware is making your network lag.
How Do You Define Latency
The term latency refers to how long it takes for a packet of data to reach its destination after it was sent. In general, we measure network latency as a roundtrip, but it can also be measured in one direction.
Most devices must wait for the destination device to acknowledge before sending data, which is why round-trip measurements are common. Once the destination device receives this acknowledgment, it is confirmed that it is connected to the device at the origin.
You can use latency to indicate slow network performance. The higher your network delay and latency, the longer it will take for data packets to reach your destination. Latency causes services to feel choppy and jerky. In some cases, VoIP calls are of poor quality, with speech missing or significant lags.
How Important are Network Bandwidth and Throughput
Network professionals measure bandwidth, throughput, and latency to monitor network performance. A network professional can determine the capabilities of their network by measuring its bandwidth.
The network’s throughput can be used to determine if the network is performing in accordance with the standard. There is also the possibility that the latency of the network can affect the bandwidth and throughput numbers.
Difference Between Throughput Vs Bandwidth
Are you seeking information about “what is the difference between bandwidth and throughput”? Having high bandwidth and throughput is essential for the smooth functioning of your network and data transmission system.
Here’s how both of them differ:
#1) Meaning: When it comes to bandwidth vs throughput, data throughput is a performance metric that measures network transmission capacity.
Although it is similar to bandwidth, it differs in that it pertains to the amount of data transmitted from point A to point B in a defined period of time. Unlike bandwidth, throughput refers to actual performance, whereas bandwidth refers to a theoretical peak.
#2) Purpose: Basically, data is measured by throughput, while bandwidth measures network capacity. Imagine water flowing through a tunnel. Tunnel throughput is how much water passes through per second, while bandwidth is the width of the tunnel.
Water may flow more freely through wider tunnels, and more data may travel faster across networks. Wider tunnels may prevent slow water streams and leaks, but higher bandwidths may still have packet loss.
#3) Unit: Bandwidth is usually measured in bits per second, kilobits per second, megabits per second (Mbps), or gigabits per second (Gbps). Most often, throughput is measured in bits per second, but sometimes it’s another metric.
Throughput refers to how many information systems a network can process in a given amount of time. Lowercase ‘b’ stands for ‘bits,’ and uppercase ‘B’ stands for ‘bytes.’
#4) Transmission of actual data: Bandwidth and throughput are both measured in bits per second, but throughput measures actual packet delivery. Bandwidth doesn’t measure potential packet delivery, and it measures theoretical packet delivery.
For example, suppose you need to transport soil for planting. You may carry up to 10 pounds of soil in your bag, and it is similar to a bag’s capacity or bandwidth. Planting the garden requires only five pounds of soil, so you bring only that amount. This represents your throughput or the actual volume delivered.
Let’s say you’re preparing to plant some soil. The bag allows you to carry 10 pounds of soil, equivalent to the bag’s bandwidth. You need five pounds of soil to plant the garden, so that’s all you bring. This represents your throughput or your actual volume delivered.
If you use your bag to its maximum capacity and transport 10 pounds, you have 10 throughput, which is your bandwidth. A 15-pound bag will provide you with a 15-foot bandwidth.
#5) Data transmission speed: Speed is how fast you can travel a distance in a short amount of time. So, data transmission speed is how far data is transmitted in a second across a network. In IT, speed is often used interchangeably with “throughput” or “data transfer rate”.
Last but not least, latency is how long it takes a data packet to reach its destination. Having high throughput means the network operates quickly since the users receive a large amount of data per second. High bandwidth allows the network to handle a large amount of data at once, making it possible to maintain a high speed.
Comparison Table of Throughput Vs Bandwidth
The table below compares throughput vs bandwidth.
| Throughput | Bandwidth | |
|---|---|---|
| Foundation | Analogically, it is defined as an array of frequencies used to transmit signals within a band. | Network throughput is calculated by dividing the file size by the upload/download time. A common method of measuring throughput is by uploading or downloading large files and noting the duration of the process. |
| Definition | There is a maximum amount of data that can be sent on a channel (wired or wireless). DSL, ADSL, fiber optics, etc., are all wired media, while WiFi, satellite links, GSM, CDMA, LTE (4G), and 5G are all wireless media. | It is a measure of the actual amount of data which can pass through a channel (wired or wireless) in a fixed interval of time. |
| Concerned with | Transmitting data over a network. | Interaction between two parties |
| Layer relevance | A property of the physical layer. | You can work at any layer of the OSI model. |
| Dependence | Depending on latency is unnecessary. | It is influenced by latency. |
| Measured in | Analog units are expressed in MHz/KHz/Hz, while digital units are expressed in Mbps/Kbps/bps (bits per second). | An average rate is determined by the available bandwidth, measured in bits per second (bps). |
| Effect | It is theoretical in nature, so it is not affected by physical obstructions. | It is susceptible to interference, traffic in the network, network devices, transmission errors, and other factors. |
| Real world Analogy (Vehicle) | This is the exact number of vehicles passing through a four-lane highway under low traffic conditions. It’s typically less than the maximum bandwidth. | Number of vehicles that can pass through a four-lane highway under heavy traffic conditions (like rush hour). |
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Best Tools to Monitor Bandwidth and Throughput
#1) Paessler PRTG Network Monitor (Free Trial)
The PRTG Network Monitor system consists of several “sensors” that monitor network activity. PRTG comes with the same large software package, but users can select which sensors to use. There is an automatic scan of all devices, an inventory of the network, and a topology map. If you use device sampling sensors, you will receive a traffic analyzer.
The sensors include Ping monitors, packet capture tools, NetFlow, sFlow, J-Flow, and IPFIX systems. These tools help keep track of and analyze network traffic in real-time.
It is a Windows application that monitors and controls the network using NetFlow, sFlow, SNMP, and WMI. To set it up, there is a wizard and a video available.
Key Features:
- Utilizes NetFlow and sFlow
- Function for capturing packets
- Graphs of live traffic flow
- Checks for overloaded links
Website: Paessler PRTG Network Monitor
#2) Solarwinds Netflow Traffic Analyzer
The SolarWinds NetFlow Traffic Analyzer lets you manage bandwidth and uses protocols created by manufacturers to communicate with routers and switches.
The SolarWinds NetFlow Traffic Analyzer does more than sample NetFlow. Some manufacturers integrate NetFlow functionality into their appliances, but NetFlow is proprietary.
The SolarWinds system supports sFlow, NetStream, J-Flow, and IPFIX communication so you can complete network analysis in a multi-provider network. This tool can analyze traffic patterns from end-to-end over a network or one link, preventing packets from being lost because of overloaded equipment.
The Networking package is flexible and can be adapted to any hardware.
Key Features:
- Flows, J-flows, IPFIX, and NetStream
- Analyses of traffic
- Page views by link
- IP address or application data
- Create a traffic-shaping strategy
Website: Solarwinds Netflow Traffic Analyzer
#3) RMM
The N-able N-sight RMM is a remote monitoring and management tool for managed service providers. N-able N-sight is similar to NinjaOne.
A GUI simplifies remote device management, so no technical skills are needed. Users can find devices and start monitoring them with prebuilt monitoring templates. The N-able cloud platform offers two RMM packages, one for MSPs and one for business operations teams.
The endpoint detection and response solution lets you detect and deal with threats across remote environments. For example, you can scan files in real-time, so no malware gets on your network.
NetPath shows network performance on a map, so you can see where connectivity problems are and find them. It’s like a traceroute tool for pinpointing issues.
Key features:
- Identify network devices
- The generation of reports
- Controlling patches
- Monitoring via SNMP
- Access via remote access
Website: RMM
Frequently Asked Questions
Latency and delay are closely related and almost interchangeable terms. Delays prevent packets from getting to their destinations quickly.
Therefore, they’re like a slowdown in front of packets and can be determined by measuring the time it takes the first bit to get there. In this context, latency refers to the time it takes for a packet to reach its intended destination.
Bandwidth refers to the number of bits that can be transmitted over a link per second. Throughput is the amount of data sent, and this must be subtracted from bandwidth to determine the throughput. Therefore, the throughput cannot exceed the bandwidth.
The bandwidth tells you how much data can theoretically be transferred over a network, but the throughput shows how much data was transferred. Data latency is the time it takes for data to reach its destination through a network.
Measuring throughput involves dividing the file size by time to obtain megabytes, kilobytes, or bits per second.
A high bandwidth connection does not guarantee high network performance. If your network is experiencing packet loss, network latency, or jitter, you will experience delays, even if you have sufficient bandwidth.
Generally, the throughput of a system can be described as the number of units of information that can be processed in a given amount of time. The theory can be applied to computers, networks, and organizations.
Goodput means good data, not bad stuff such as retransmissions. The amount of bandwidth wasted on the retransmission of data that was not successfully transmitted in the first place is considered bandwidth.
Throughput refers to the amount of data received by users over a high-speed network per second. High-speed networks are characterized by the ability to move considerable amounts of data at once due to their high bandwidth.
Usually, a network connects several endpoints via common links, or through routers and switches. Each time a signal travels a distance, it passes through more network devices, which introduces a slight delay since data has to be copied from one port to another. Therefore, the longer it takes for data to transmit, the more links it has to cross.
Wires that run long distances but don’t serve branch connections have speed problems, too. Electrons send pulses of data through wires. Although an electric charge owns the entire thing instantly, long wires are more susceptible to interference due to their large surface area and plenty of surrounding space filled with conflicting noise.
Thus, a transmission medium is limited in its capacity to carry a signal for a short period of time. Distance gets wider as the medium quality gets better. Repeaters on long stretches get rid of noise and boost the signal. Repeaters slow down long-distance transmissions because they introduce delays.
Conclusion
There’s a difference between Throughput Vs Bandwidth, but they’re closely related. In other words, throughput is the rate at which data is transmitted from one source to another, while bandwidth is the amount of data that can be transmitted.
A measurement of speed is its throughput, while the measurement of bandwidth is indirectly related to it. Bandwidth contributes to the appearance of faster internet speeds, but it does not represent the actual speed of your internet connection.
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Monitoring Throughput Vs Bandwidth at the same time will provide you with a complete understanding of your network’s performance. When these two factors are combined, you can ensure that network resources are used efficiently. It also enables you to prepare for issues such as latency and packet loss from the beginning.