Reading the network map
What the Status tab is telling you
The Status tab shows your network as a chain of links, from your PC to the internet. When something breaks, the broken link turns red so you know exactly where to look.
The links in your chain
Device
This is your PC. It's almost always green unless your network hardware is off or broken.
Connection
Your link to the router. On WiFi, it shows:
- How strong your signal is (in dBm, a unit for signal strength; closer to zero is better)
- What channel and channel width your router uses
- What WiFi generation you're on (WiFi 4, 5, 6, 6E, or 7), pulled from the radio's capability fields
- The security type (WPA2, WPA3, WPA3 transition, Enterprise)
- The access point you're connected to, handy on mesh WiFi
If you're plugged in with an Ethernet cable, it shows a wired connection with link speed instead.
See WiFi signal and radio for what each radio detail means.
Cable Modem
If your network uses a separate cable modem behind the router, it gets its own segment so problems on the modem (e.g., bad SNR, T3/T4 timeouts) don't get confused with router or ISP problems.
Home Network / Gateway
Your router and local network. If the app recognizes the brand (UniFi, Netgear, ASUS, TP-Link, Linksys, Eero, and others), it shows the vendor and model. On UniFi networks with a stored login, it can also show client lists, port mappings, and WAN status.
You can log in to your router to unlock more detail.
VPN
This link only appears when an active VPN is detected (Tailscale, WireGuard, Cisco AnyConnect, Zscaler, GlobalProtect, ProtonVPN, etc.). The app verifies the VPN client process is actually running before showing the segment, so it won't mislead you with leftover virtual adapters.
It sits between ISP and Services so you can tell whether the VPN itself is the bottleneck or your underlying connection.
Transit
Hops between your ISP and the destination service. Often invisible when everything is fine, but when transit gets bad you'll see it called out so you know it's not your ISP and not the service.
ISP
Your internet provider's network. Three numbers matter:
- Latency is how long a round trip takes, in milliseconds. Under 20ms is great.
- Packet loss is data that never arrives. Even 1% causes trouble on video calls.
- Jitter is how much the latency jumps around. Steady is good. Jumpy is bad for calls and games.
Services
Websites and apps you're keeping an eye on. Cloudflare comes pre-loaded as a basic internet check. You can add your own like Zoom, your work VPN, or anything else you depend on.
What the colors mean
| Color | What's happening | What to do |
|---|---|---|
● Green (#22C55E) |
Working fine | Nothing! |
● Yellow (#F59E0B) |
A bit slow | Keep an eye on it. |
● Red (#EF4444) |
Something's broken | Click it for details. |
● Grey (#6B7280) |
Still gathering data | Give it a few minutes. |
The Status tab in the sidebar shows the same color as a small dot, so you can see overall network health without opening the tab.
What the numbers mean
| What | Good | OK | Bad |
|---|---|---|---|
| Latency | Under 20ms | 20-80ms | Over 80ms |
| Packet loss | 0% | Under 1% | Over 1% |
| Jitter | Under 5ms | 5-15ms | Over 15ms |
| WiFi signal | Above -50 dBm | -50 to -70 dBm | Below -70 dBm |
These are rough rules. What matters more is how your numbers compare to your own baseline. The app watches for deviations, not just absolute thresholds.
The culprit callout
When something goes wrong, the app doesn't just say "your network is slow." A callout below the topology rail names the responsible link and what changed:
- "ISP is degraded: latency 142ms (baseline 18ms), confidence 87%" tells you the problem is your internet provider, not your WiFi.
- "Connection: weak signal -78 dBm" tells you to move closer to your router, not call your ISP.
The confidence percentage reflects how sure the app is, based on sample count and how consistent the measurements are.
Banners above the map
When applicable, banners appear above the topology with things you can act on:
- Captive portal — You're on hotel/airport/coffee shop WiFi and need to log in. The banner links you straight to the login page and tells you how aggressive the portal is (Mild, Moderate, or Brutal).
- Update available — A new version of Network Weather is ready to download.
- Flight info — When you're on in-flight WiFi (United, Delta, ViaSat, Gogo, Starlink Aviation), the banner shows flight number, route, altitude, ETA, and destination weather.
Network fitness grades
Below the topology, the Status tab shows letter or readiness grades for common activities — Email, Video, Gaming, Streaming. Each grade is Ready, Marginal, or Poor, with a one-line explanation of which metric is the limiting factor (latency, loss, jitter, bufferbloat, or download speed).
Phone hotspots
When you're tethered to your phone, the map labels the connection accordingly. (Detailed phone-side info such as battery and cell signal isn't yet exposed on Windows; this matches the macOS Phone Hotspot view and is on the roadmap.)