Yeah, that’s the classic. I spent almost an hour chasing that tiny packet loss only to see a loose jack in the desk chair. The trick is to start with the obvious first—check cables, switches, and power before you dive into traceroute labyrinths. A quick checklist of the usual suspects saves bandwidth and a lot of frustration. If you need to trace deeper, just make sure the basics are solid.

Glad that hits the mark—quick triage is the real lifesaver. Just keep the list at hand, and you’ll stop chasing phantom packets before you even start.

Absolutely, a sticky note on the desk beats a buried file any day. Once the cable’s tight, the rest of the deep dive usually doesn’t bite. Keeps the hunt from turning into a scavenger’s quest and spooks the phantom packets right out of the network.