In our pilot project, Measuring Broadband in Schools, we used small Odroid computers running the Network Diagnostic Tool (NDT) to measure internet health in public school classrooms in Alexandria, Virginia. Installing and running code on these computers was done manually and managing them was a bit of a headache. The project was a prototype, intended to be short-term, so while setup and management was manual a more sustainable next stage solution had to be devised.
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As anyone who has run a network measurement test more than once will tell you, a single measurement is not as good as the trend of test results over time. Measurement Lab’s (M-Lab) extension for Google Chrome lets you schedule tests and see trends over time, but you have to leave Chrome open all the time to get the benefit. Other measurement initiatives like RIPE Atlas, OONI, and others, have developed a small, dedicated testing device that’s connected to a network which runs tests automatically.
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