To view Protocols statistics in a hierarchy view, choose the Hierarchical display type in the header of the Protocols view. In the Hierarchy view, subprotocols are nested under more fundamental protocols such as TCP or UDP and IP. The root of each hierarchy is the base protocol (the one closest to the physical layer).

When the Hierarchy view is collapsed, the utilization statistics show the sum of all subprotocols within that protocol. When the Hierarchy view is expanded, utilization statistics are broken out by individual subprotocol. The top-level protocol then shows statistics only for itself and for any subprotocols that seem to be a part of the top-level protocol, but that are not uniquely defined by ProtoSpecs™. Statistics that do not belong to any of the recognized subprotocols are added to the totals for the parent protocol. This allows statistics for unrecognized subprotocols to be included in the totals with as much precision as possible.