ENGINE METHODOLOGY

01. THROUGHPUT ARCHITECTURE

The Flux Network engine bypasses traditional HTTP latency by establishing 6 concurrent TCP streams directly to the Cloudflare Edge network.

  • Multi-Threading: We utilize the fetch API in parallel workers to saturate the available bandwidth, compensating for TCP slow-start protocols.
  • Cloudflare Anycast Routing: We do not rely on a single central server. Instead, our engine utilizes Cloudflare's global Anycast network. This technology automatically routes your connection to the physically closest of 330+ data centers worldwide. This is intentional: it ensures we measure your "Last Mile" connection speed (ISP capacity) rather than the latency of the open internet.
  • Server Verification: During the diagnostic process, we query the cdn-cgi/trace endpoint to cryptographically verify exactly which Colocation Center (Colo) you are connected to (e.g., IAD for Ashburn, LHR for London), providing total transparency on the test target.
  • Overhead Compensation: Results include a 1.05x multiplier to account for IP/TCP header overheads, providing a more accurate representation of Layer 1/2 capacity.

02. LATENCY & JITTER (RFC 3550)

Responsiveness is measured using high-frequency probes (~200ms interval) to the edge. We calculate Jitter using the standard Real-time Transport Protocol (RTP) formula defined in IETF RFC 3550.

J(i) = J(i-1) + (|D(i-1,i)| - J(i-1)) / 16

Where D(i-1,i) is the difference in packet arrival timing. This provides a exponentially weighted moving average that accurately reflects network stability for VoIP and Gaming.

03. BUFFERBLOAT & PACKET LOSS

Bufferbloat occurs when routers buffer too much data, causing high latency during transfers. We measure this by comparing Idle Latency vs. Loaded Latency (during max speed).

Grade A+
Delta < 5ms
Grade A
Delta < 30ms
Grade B
Delta < 60ms
Grade C
Delta < 150ms

Packet Loss is monitored via WebRTC Data Channels. If WebRTC is blocked, we use a heuristic based on failed HHR requests.

04. QUALITY OF EXPERIENCE (QoE)

Raw metrics are synthesized into application-specific scores (0-100).

  • Gaming Score Weighted blend: 50% Latency (<20ms ideal), 20% Jitter, 30% Throughput.
  • Video Score Evaluates buffering risk (Jitter) and HD capacity (Speed > 25Mbps).
  • Web Score Focuses on page load time simulation, rewarding low latency and moderate speed (>10Mbps).