Consider SIP Protocol for Voice Communications
Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) is the transmission protocol for person-to-person voice data over the Web. Its technical specifications come from the SIP working group of the Internet Engineering Task Force. SIP gives access to the public switched telephone network for voice data at 3 kHz bandwidth and common number dialing using Voice over IP (VoIP). It can also be expanded to handle IP telephony combined with video and instant messaging. Forthcoming enhancements will enable SIP applications such as video conference calls, application sharing, home monitoring, and interactive gaming for businesses in Milton.
Producers of SIP hardware are quickly crafting innovative hardware and software to get the upper hand in this new Internet communications method. SIP telephones, PC client programs, SIP servers, routers, and firewalls are now on the market from companies such as Ingate Systems and Cisco.
Prior to implementing a SIP solution in your business, you should consider the appropriate configuration of your corporate firewall to support SIP. Many of the common firewalls already deployed in business offices are not designed to support the SIP protocol. First, SIP media streams are transmitted over dynamically assigned UDP ports that are usually closed on firewalls. Second, SIP clients within a firewall can not be accessed using IP addresses since these addresses are local and private to the LAN. Third, you need to ensure that either your T1 line provider or Ethernet fiber service is able to support the SIP protocol from your internal network to the outside world. Your IT manager will need to evaluate how to correctly support SIP to overcome these technical issues. By adding a SIP proxy and registrar for controlling the firewall, it is possible to deal with complex SIP situations for reliable and confidential communications.
