In various embodiments, methods and systems are disclosed for the real time detection of network conditions in conjunction with a remote presentation protocol. The link quality may represent the quality of the end-to-end connection between client and server with upper and lower bounds on the injection of additional traffic used for measurement. In some embodiments, the measurement technique may be selected based on the type of measurement that is desired. Accuracy may be maintained by selecting the type of measurement used based on current and previous network conditions. In one embodiment, a state model is used to determine the frequency of measurement and to determine when the measurements have produced a stable estimate of the link quality.