network response time (NRT)

The Network Response Time (NRT) is the response time of the network. It is the time required for a data packet in a packet-switched network to travel from the sending station to the destination station.

Delay times are caused by the runtimes in the transmission links and above all by the latency times of nodes, routers and gateways. Network response time can also be affected by server overload, protocolincompatibilities, and syntax errors in application programs.

The response time of a network can bechecked by the response time behavior. The NRT time is an important parameter for real-time applications such as Internet telephony and Internet television, since delays have a detrimental effect on speech intelligibility, especially in VoIP. For this application, the International Telecommunication Union( ITU) specifies delay times that cannot be exceeded.