Nils Andreas Svee
39cbf7b6b5
8.0 KiB
irtt-tui
NAME
irtt-tui - IRTT-compatible terminal UI client
SYNOPSIS
irtt-tui [OPTIONS] [LABEL=]TARGET...
DESCRIPTION
irtt-tui is a live dashboard over the same probing engine as
irtt-client(1): a graph and status view instead of a printed event stream.
At least one target is required.
Target syntax, multiple targets, and pacing are identical to
irtt-client(1) — see that manual for [LABEL=]TARGET syntax and the
--pacing staggered|burst option. The full set of negotiation flags
(--interval, --length, --hmac, --clock, --tstamp, --stats,
--sfill, --dscp, --ttl, --loose) is shared with irtt-client as
well; consult that manual for their meaning.
Address-family controls are shared too: -4 / --ipv4 uses IPv4 only,
-6 / --ipv6 uses IPv6 only, and --dual-stack gives each available family
of a hostname its own measurement row and graph series. These switches are
mutually exclusive. Explicit IP literals remain single targets; a literal
conflicting with -4 or -6 is rejected before the dashboard starts.
irtt-tui -4 uk-cov1.irtt.lochnair.net
irtt-tui --dual-stack cov=uk-cov1.irtt.lochnair.net
The second command creates cov/v4 and/or cov/v6 according to the system
resolver's initial results, letting you compare the two paths directly.
See the client manual's address-family section for discovery errors and labels.
CONTINUOUS DEFAULT
Unlike irtt-client, the TUI defaults to continuous mode
(--duration 0): it runs until you quit. Pass an explicit --duration for
a finite run:
irtt-tui <server> --duration 30s
Continuous runs reconnect after target-local failures, peer closure, or a session completing because the server restricted its duration. After a 1.5-second delay, one coalesced retry reopens completed targets while healthy sessions continue undisturbed. Even if every target fails, the TUI stays alive until you quit. Explicit stops, removed or replaced targets, and no-test completion do not trigger retries. Quitting cancels pending retry work.
With --dual-stack, a failed family reconnects independently while its healthy
sibling continues. Reconnect resolves the original hostname again within the
target's family. It does not discover additional families or pin the address
returned by initial discovery.
Each reconnect keeps the same logical target row. Statistics reset when a new session generation is accepted, including attempts that fail before opening. Retained graph history and the age of the last actual reply remain; the graph leaves a gap between generations instead of connecting their samples.
DASHBOARD
One dashboard is used for every target count and terminal size. It shows:
- Run status, elapsed time, and finite duration or continuous mode.
- The selected target's label and remote address, plus latest signed
client-to-server and server-to-client delays (
-means unavailable). - Target rows with latest effective RTT, cumulative loss percentage, jitter (standard deviation of round-trip IPDV), and age of the last primary reply.
- A graph overlaying all targets, with matching target colors and a visible live/history indicator and window size.
An active session with no primary replies shows waiting. Reply age makes a
stale RTT distinguishable from a fresh measurement. Loss follows the shared
statistics collector: outstanding sends can temporarily contribute to the
cumulative loss estimate. Jitter is - until an IPDV pair is available.
Tab / Shift-Tab selects a target, bringing its row into view when necessary.
Up to six target rows are shown; smaller terminals show fewer. Selecting a target
changes the identification, one-way summary and details; the graph continues to
compare every target.
d opens a details sheet in the graph's space. It contains the selected target's
session and negotiation, packet counters, progress, latest timing sample, full
timing statistics, warnings, and recent events from all targets. Scroll it with
the arrows or page keys. Long lines and timing columns can be read with horizontal
scrolling, including full labels and remote addresses that do not fit in the
header. d or Esc returns to the graph, preserving its metric and viewport.
The former large/compact Dashboard screens have been replaced by this sheet;
g remains an alias for d.
The minimum terminal size is 56 columns by 18 rows. Below that size the UI asks for a resize and continues acquiring measurements. Resize and important status redraws still work while the display is paused.
CONTROLS
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
q, Ctrl-C |
Quit |
p |
Toggle display pause (probing and acquisition continue) |
Tab / Shift-Tab |
Select next / previous target |
d, g |
Toggle target details |
Esc |
Close target details |
r |
Clear graph history for all targets; keep latest samples and statistics |
m |
Cycle graph metric (graph visible) |
← / → |
Pan graph; scroll columns in details |
↑ / ↓ |
Scroll details |
PageUp / PageDown |
Page-pan graph; page-scroll details |
Home / End |
Oldest / live graph; top / bottom of details |
+ / = |
Zoom graph in (graph visible) |
- |
Zoom graph out (graph visible) |
0 |
Reset graph window and zoom, keeping live/history position (graph visible) |
The six graph metrics are effective RTT, raw RTT, adjusted RTT, client-to-server delay, server-to-client delay, and server processing time. Signed effective/adjusted RTT and one-way values are preserved. Graph windows range from 5 seconds to 24 hours and default to one minute. The footer shows controls appropriate to the currently open graph or details sheet.
RETAINED HISTORY
The TUI keeps its own bounded presentation state on top of the statistics
retention described in irtt-client(1):
- Up to 500,000 graph samples per target.
- Up to 80 recent status/log messages.
At 500,000 replies per target, retention is approximately 13h53m20s at 100ms intervals, 27h46m40s at 200ms, or 5d18h53m20s at 1s. Retained graph samples store both clocks, six graph-ready values, and a session-boundary flag; latest details keep the full typed timing values and sequence number. On 64-bit macOS, an 88-byte retained sample gives about 42 MiB per target at the cap, excluding statistics and temporary rendering buffers. Histories grow on demand and reserve exactly to the cap on their final growth step; they do not preallocate the full history for every target at startup.
r clears graph history for all targets and returns the viewport to
live; it does not change the 500,000-sample cap itself. These are
presentation bounds on top of the client's own statistics retention (see
irtt-client(1) MEASUREMENTS AND MEMORY) — a long continuous TUI session's
total memory is dominated by whichever of the two is larger for your target
count.
A finite --duration TUI run retains exact statistics samples exactly as
irtt-client(1) does in finite mode, so its retained state grows with the
probe count rather than approaching a bound. Unlike irtt-client, the TUI
prints no memory warning when that estimate gets large: it owns the
alternate screen, and a stderr warning there would be invisible or would
corrupt the display. Size a long finite TUI run from the figures in
irtt-client(1) MEASUREMENTS AND MEMORY, or use the continuous default.
EXIT BEHAVIOR
Quitting with q or Ctrl-C is an interrupted, successful exit. In continuous
mode, peer closure and target failures trigger reconnect rather than ending the
run. A managed driver failure or an unexpected reconnect-update failure still
ends the TUI with an error.
Finite runs do not reconnect. They complete after their target sessions end; a peer closure is a normal session ending, while a run whose targets all fail exits with an error.
EXAMPLES
irtt-tui host.example
irtt-tui eu=host.example
irtt-tui eu=host-a.example us=host-b.example --pacing burst
irtt-tui host.example --duration 30s
SEE ALSO
irtt-client(1) for target syntax, pacing, negotiation flags, and
finite/continuous memory behavior; irtt-server(1); irtt-rs(1).