Bandwidth is the maximum rate of data transfer across a given path, measured in bits per second (bit/s). In web hosting, the word often means the total data sent to or from a site in one month.
History of Bandwidth
Creator: No single creator. S. Bradner and J. McQuaid wrote RFC 2544 (1999). Phil Edholm proposed Edholm's law (2004). Year: 1999.
Signal processing uses bandwidth for a range of frequencies, measured in hertz. Computer networking uses the same word for a different idea. In networking, bandwidth is the maximum rate of data transfer across a given path. Wikipedia notes that these two meanings differ. A network link still needs one number for how much data it can move. That number is measured in bits per second.
In March 1999, the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) published RFC 2544. RFC means Request for Comments. The title is Benchmarking Methodology for Network Interconnect Devices. The authors are S. Bradner and J. McQuaid. The document defines tests that describe the performance of a network device. It also gives a format for reporting the results.
In 2004, Phil Edholm proposed Edholm's law. The law says that telecommunication bandwidth doubles about every 18 months. Wikipedia reports that this trend has held since the 1970s. It applies to the Internet, cellular networks, wireless local area networks (LANs) and personal area networks. The metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) was invented at Bell Labs in 1959. Wikipedia names the MOSFET as the factor that enables this growth.
In web hosting, bandwidth has a different meaning. Hosts use the word for the amount of data sent to or from a site in a set period. The usual unit is gigabytes per month. Wikipedia says the more accurate term is monthly data transfer. Internet service providers (ISPs) also use the word when network capacity is limited, such as in areas with slow connections or on wireless networks.
Changelog and latest update
RFC 2544 gave network testers a shared method in 1999. It defines tests for network devices, and it sets a format for reporting results. Test results from different vendors could then be compared with the same rules.
In August 2011, RFC 6349 added a framework for TCP throughput testing. TCP means Transmission Control Protocol. The framework measures end-to-end TCP throughput in a managed Internet Protocol (IP) network. Its stated goal is a better view of user experience.
Edholm's law followed in 2004. Wikipedia lists link rates from 56 kbit/s dial-up to 100 Gbit/s Ethernet. The list shows the same growth that the law describes.
In 2021, RFC 9004 updated one benchmark in RFC 2544. It changes the procedure for the Back-to-Back Frames benchmark, based on further experience. The memo updates Section 26.4 of RFC 2544. It is an Informational document, so it does not set an Internet standard.
Latest update: RFC 9004: Updates for the Back-to-Back Frame Benchmark in RFC 2544, 2021
The latest update found for this term is RFC 9004. Its copyright year is 2021. The author is A. Morton. It changes the test procedure for one benchmark, the Back-to-Back Frames benchmark. The change follows further experience with RFC 2544. The memo is Informational, so it describes a method rather than a standard. Read the document for the exact steps. The RFC Editor page lists the full history of the document.
Usage examples
Bandwidth appears in network tools, shell commands and server settings. The examples show a speed test, a monthly transfer total, a percentile check and a download limit. Each example is a short sample. Replace the example host name with a file on your own server before you run it. Units matter. One byte equals eight bits, so bytes per second and bits per second differ by a factor of eight. Check the unit in each tool before you compare two numbers. Hosts usually bill in gigabytes, while links are rated in bits per second.
# Download speed in bytes per second
curl -o /dev/null -s \
-w "%{speed_download}\n" \
https://example.com/testfile.binThe curl command downloads a file and discards the data. The -w option prints the average download speed in bytes per second. Multiply the result by 8 to get bits per second. Use a test file on a server you control, so the result shows the transfer speed.
# 5 Mbit/s for 8 hours a day, 30 days
echo "5 * 8 * 3600 * 30 / 8 / 1000" | bcThe expression multiplies the rate by the seconds in the period. That gives megabits. Dividing by 8 converts bits to bytes. Dividing by 1000 converts megabytes to gigabytes. The result is 540, so a link at 5 Mbit/s for 8 hours a day moves about 540 GB in 30 days.
# Sample values in Mbit/s
samples = [12, 40, 7, 95, 33]
ranked = sorted(samples)
index = int(len(ranked) * 0.95) - 1
print(ranked[index]) # 40The script sorts the samples and removes the top 5 percent. It prints the 95th percentile value. Wikipedia says carriers often bill bandwidth with this method. Five samples is too few for a bill. A billing period uses many more samples, so the result follows actual usage.
server {
listen 80;
server_name example.com;
location /downloads/ {
limit_rate 500k;
}
}The limit_rate directive caps the speed of each connection in this location. The value 500k means 500 kilobytes per second. Files under the downloads path send at that rate. This setting keeps one visitor from using all of the server bandwidth for large files.
References
These sources are outside Websnoogie and were checked on 2026-10-12.
Bandwidth (computing)
Wikipedia
Encyclopedia article that defines bandwidth as the maximum rate of data transfer. It covers network capacity, consumption, throughput, multimedia, web hosting and Edholm's law. It lists its sources at the end of the article.
Bandwidth - Glossary
Mozilla Developer Network (MDN)
Short glossary entry that defines bandwidth as the amount of information that passes through a data connection in a given time. It gives units such as Mbps and Gbps and links to the Wikipedia article for more detail.
Benchmarking Methodology for Network Interconnect Devices (RFC 2544)
RFC Editor (IETF)
Informational RFC dated March 1999 by S. Bradner and J. McQuaid. It defines tests that describe the performance of a network interconnecting device. It also gives a format for reporting the test results.
Framework for TCP Throughput Testing (RFC 6349)
RFC Editor (IETF)
Informational RFC dated August 2011 by B. Constantine, G. Forget, R. Geib and R. Schrage. It describes a method for measuring end-to-end TCP throughput in a managed IP network. The goal is a better view of user experience.
Updates for the Back-to-Back Frame Benchmark in RFC 2544 (RFC 9004)
RFC Editor (IETF)
Informational RFC by A. Morton with a 2021 copyright year. It updates Section 26.4 of RFC 2544. It changes the test procedure for the Back-to-Back Frames benchmark, based on further experience with the test.
HTTP Semantics (RFC 9110)
RFC Editor (IETF)
Internet Standard that defines the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and its overall architecture. Web servers send site data to browsers under these rules. The size of each transfer therefore sets how much bandwidth a site uses.
Transfer limits, explained before you pay
We do not promise that your site will never slow down, and we cannot name a fixed number of visitors. No host can honestly promise either one. What we do instead is size your plan to the pages you really run, explain each number in plain words, and keep our servers built for 99.999% uptime.
Bandwidth reaches your site with every visit. Each page, photo and file a visitor loads moves data from our server to their screen. Hosts add those amounts up for the month. Before we choose a plan, we look at what your pages hold, so you can see what drives the total.
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