On Feb 8, 2008, after 10 years of data collection and 4TB of data,
we deactivated skitter data collection and transitioned to our next
generation topology measurement infrastructure named
Archipelago (Ark). We already perform
large-scale topology measurements on Ark, and we recommend researchers
use this new dataset, which employs an improved measurement methodology.
The new IPv4
Routed /24 Topology Dataset collected on Ark extends back
to Sep 13, 2007 and overlaps with the last five months of skitter data.
Skitter Goals
Sample Visualization from skitter Data
The research goals of this project are described on our Macroscopic Topology Measurements page. Specific data collection goals include:
Measure Forward IP Paths
skitter records each hop from a source to many destinations.
by incrementing the "time to live" (TTL)
of each IP packet header and recording replies from each
router (or hop) leading to the destination host.
Measure Round Trip Time
skitter collects round trip time (RTT) along with path (hop) data.
skitter uses ICMP echo requests as probes to a list of IP destinations.
Track Persistent Routing Changes
skitter data can provide indications of low-frequency persistent routing changes.
Correlations between RTT and time of day may reveal a change in either forward or
reverse path routing.
Visualize Network Connectivity
By probing the paths to many destination IP addresses spread throughout the IPv4
address space, skitter data can be used to visualize the directed graph from a source to
much of the Internet.
Acceptable Use Agreement
All skitter data are publicly available since February 2014.
