Cisco Technology, Inc.

Jayesh Chokshi

Vinay Jayant Pande

Parameswaran Kumarasamy

Kaushik Pratap Biswas

Anantha Narayanan Seetharaman

Mohammed Taher Shaikh

Jennifer Blatnik

Daniel George Wing

Kavithadevi Parameswaran

Vikas Butaney

Arthur Gerald Howarth

Siva S Jayasenan

Geng Chen

Roland Arthur Saville

Bruce D Moon

Sabita Jasty

Rajiv Singhal

Sandeep Singh Kohli

Vijay Arumugam Kannan

Paul R P Chu

Sunila R Ainapure

Michael De Leo

Tuan Q Le

Shyam Patnam

In accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention, a communication apparatus includes a communication unit configured to send and receive messages on a network. Each message has a message header configured to include a plurality of header fields, where the message header includes a suppression header field that indicates a request to suppress at least one header field in at least one subsequently sent or received message. The communication apparatus is configured to establish a suppressed header field message exchange session with a peer on the network so that at least one subsequent message exchanged between the communication apparatus and the peer is free of at least one suppressible header field.

Method and system to enhance performance of a session initiation protocol network and its elements

Computer systems and logic are operable to establish a local network connection to a network device; establish a remote network connection to a network service provider; create and send a message to the network service provider that requests the network service provider to provide configuration data for the network device; receive from the network service provider a network location identifier specifying a location in a network of the configuration data; download the configuration data from the network service provider by accessing the network location identifier; and install the configuration data in the network device. In one embodiment, VoIP trunk information is provisioned to an IP-PBX across a network without manual entry or long time delays.

Dynamically provisioning digital voice trunks

In an example embodiment, a method for dynamically troubleshooting voice quality. The method comprises generating a request to intercept a predetermined data stream on a network, acquiring a replicated copy of the intercepted data stream responsive to the request and analyzing the replicated copy of the intercepted data stream.

Dynamically troubleshooting voice quality

In one embodiment, a device comprises an input port for receiving network packets that are being communicated via a computer network. A processor is in communication with the input port. The processor is configured to facilitate dynamic monitoring and updating of port addresses assigned by at least one non-ALG PAT router so as to facilitate communication of packets that are exchanged between an inside user agent and an outside user agent in a manner that mitigates a likelihood of communication interruption during a VOIP session. An output port is in communication with the processor for transmitting packets via the computer network.

Mechanisms for session border control of VOIP communication from non-symmetric port address translation device

In one embodiment, a first end device associated with a first user and a second end device associated with a second user may be participating in a call. During the call, the second user may wish to transfer the call to a third user. The second user has the choice of using a blind transfer or a consult transfer. In one embodiment, a gateway determines interworking information that is needed to interwork an H.450.2 message for the H.323 protocol to a SIP REFER message, and vice versa, to allow the call transfer.

H.323 to SIP interworking for call transfers

In a particular embodiment, interworking between an H.323 protocol and SIP protocol for a call forward/redirection is provided. A first user may call a second user. The second user may have set preferences that cause a call redirection/forward to another end device. The end device may be associated with the second user or another user. Different preferences for the call forward/redirection may be provided. For example, a call may be forwarded all the time, when the second end device is busy, when there is no answer, etc. The redirection may then be performed using a gateway. When end devices communicate using SIP and H.323, the gateway provides interworking to provide the call forward/redirection. For example, the gateway maps a 3xx message in SIP to an H.450.3 message in the H.323 protocol, and vice versa, to provide the call forward/redirection.

H.323 to SIP interworking for call forward/redirection

A method for interworking supplementary call services between different VOIP protocols is provided. The method comprises receiving, during a call between a first end device and a second end device, a first message in a first protocol format for the second end device to transfer the call to a third end device; determining interworking information to interwork the first message to a second message in a second protocol format; generating the second message based on the interworking information, such that the second message initiates the call transfer to the third end device.

Interworking supplementary call services between different communication protocols

In one embodiment, a signaling message is received from an endpoint. It is determined from the signaling message whether, prior to sending the signaling message, the endpoint performed network address translation on the body of the signaling message. If it is determined from the signaling message that, prior to sending the signaling message, the endpoint did not perform network address translation on the body of the signaling message, application layer gateway functionality is applied to the body of the signaling message such that a modified signaling message is generated.

Intelligent ALG functionality in networks supporting endpoints performing network address translation

Disclosed are apparatus and methods for managing session data in a session border controller (SBC), where the session data is sent from a first node, such as a first phone, to a second node, such as a registrar or second phone. In one example embodiment, the following operations are performed in a first intermediary node that is configured to provide network address translation (NAT) for both a header and payload of a session packet and has an inside interface coupled with a second intermediary node that is configured to perform NAT for only a header of session packets. It is determined whether an end node is sending session packets that are not used to set up a session and that result in a binding that was formed by the second intermediary node being retained. The binding associates inside and outside addresses of the end node, and an end node is defined as a node that originates a session packet. It is determined whether to inhibit a registration throttling process from being performed by the first intermediary node, that results in the binding being retained, based on whether it is determined that the end node is sending session packets that are not used to set up a session and that result in the binding being retained.

Mechanisms for providing intelligent throttling on a NAT session border controller

Disclosed are apparatus and methods for managing session data in a session border controller (SBC), where the session data is sent from a first node, such as a first phone, to a second node, such as a registrar or second phone. In general, embodiments of the present invention support SBC functionality by managing sessions through the SBC without implementing a terminate and regenerate of the sessions, but rather by intercepting packets destined to the second node and efficiently handling such functionality in the forwarding-path. Also in deployments where the endnodes require NAT (network address translation), mechanisms are provided in the SBC to perform NAT on the addresses embedded in the payload of the session data. In other aspects, mechanisms for keeping the sessions or NAT entries alive are facilitated at the SBC, even when an endnode has a expiration time that differs an expiration time of another device, such as a registar device. Other embodiments allow the actual media packets to flow through the SBC (e.g., for security, accounting, etc) while allowing two endnodes to utilize a same private address or domain.

Mechanisms for using NAT at a session border controller

Techniques for providing a bulk refresh of sessions in a network are provided. A plurality of session identifiers for sessions that were created are determined. These session identifiers may be included in a bulk refresh message. The bulk refresh message is sent to a device configured to determine if sessions associated with the plurality of session identifiers are active or inactive. The device then sends a response to the refresh requestor. The response can be used to determine which sessions are active or inactive. After the determination, actions can be taken in order to clear the hanging session. For example, the session may be torn down or a BYE message may be sent to end the session on a peer device.

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Cupertino, CA, United States of America

Jayesh Chokshi