Patent ID: 7983175

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for simultaneously reporting a failed communication and identifying a faulty node in a communication path to a sender and a recipient, said method comprising: detecting, by a computer, a failed communication that fails to reach said recipient after attempting to be transmitted from said sender to said recipient over said communication path comprising a plurality of nodes; issuing, by said computer, a first diagnostic call, using an Internet Protocol, from said sender upon detection of said failed communication, said first diagnostic call comprising testing how far a first test communication can travel from said sender to said recipient along said communication path; issuing, by said computer, a second diagnostic call, using said Internet Protocol, from said recipient upon said detection of said failed communication, said second diagnostic call comprising testing how far a second test communication can travel from said recipient to said sender along said communication path; using results of said first diagnostic call and said second diagnostic call to determine, by said computer, which of said nodes in said communication path are not forwarding said first and said second test communications to identify at least one faulty node before reporting said failed communication to said sender and said recipient; and simultaneously reporting, by said computer, said failed communication and an identification of said at least one faulty node to said sender and said recipient.