A method for mapping a network, in accordance with the present invention, includes providing distance measurements between tracers in the network, determining routes along which the distance measurements are made, and creating a system of equations which links the distance measurements between the nodes with a sum of the delays between the nodes which comprise the routes. Additional information is extracted about distances of subpaths of the routes to provide additional details to a map of the network. The additional information provides a capability of estimation of distances between nodes without tracers.