Bandwidth

Bandwidth is the maximum quantity of data a link can carry per unit of time, commonly expressed in Mbps or Gbps. It describes capacity rather than the speed perceived by an application. Actual throughput also depends on latency, packet loss, jitter, protocol overhead, congestion, Wi-Fi conditions, remote servers and sharing among users. Capacity may be asymmetric and vary across a path, so one speed test does not represent an entire working day. Network sizing should use representative measurements, peak and percentile demand, growth and degraded-operation needs. Quality of service can prioritise selected traffic but cannot create bandwidth. Any result should identify source, destination, time, method and whether the tested segment was wired, wireless or an internet service.