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1). Introduction 2). 3). 4). 5). Background Requirement VOIPs Implementation Classification of Connection
6). Basic System Component of VOIP 7). Protocols of VOIP 8). VOIP & FOIP The Story So Far 9). Benefits of VOIP 10). Applications of VOIP 11). Development Challenges 12). VoIP Solution
1). Introduction:
This document explains about VoIP systems. Recent happenings like Internet diffusion at low cost, new integration of dedicated voice compression processors have changed common user requirements allowing VoIP standards to diffuse. This how to tries to define some basic lines of VoIP architecture. What is VoIP? VoIP stands for ' Voice over Internet Protocol. As the term says VoIP tries to let go voice (mainly human) through IP packets and, in definitive through Internet. VoIP can use accelerating hardware to achieve this purpose and can also be used in a PC environment. How does it work? Many years ago we discovered that sending a signal to a remote destination could have be done also in a digital fashion: before sending it we have to digitalize it with an ADC (analog to digital converter), transmit it, and at the end transform it again in analog format with DAC (digital to analog converter) to use it.
VoIP works like that, digitalizing voice in data packets, sending them and reconverting them in voice at destination. The past: For the past 100 years people have relied on the PSTN for voice communication. The two parties using the line. No other information can travel over the line, although there is often during a call between two locations, the line is dedicated to plenty of bandwidth available. Later, as data communications emerged, companies paid for separate data lines so their computers could share information, while voice and fax communications were still handled by the PSTN.
More than 30 years ago Internet didnt exist. Interactive communications were only made by telephone at PSTN line cost. Data exchange was expansive (for a long distance) and no one had been thinking to video interactions (there was only television that is not interactive, as known). The present: Today we can see a real revolution in communication world: everybody begins to use PCs and Internet for job and free time to communicate each other, to exchange data (like images, sounds, documents) and, sometimes, to talk each other using applications like Net meeting or Internet Phone. Particularly starts to diffusing a common idea that could be the future and that can allow real-time vocal communication: VoIP. Today, with the rapid adoption of IP, we now have a far-reaching, low-cost transport mechanism that can support both voice and data. A VOIP solution integrates
seamlessly into the data network and operates alongside existing PBXs, or other phone equipment, to simply extend voice capabilities to remote locations. The voice traffic essentially "rides for free" on top of the data network using the IP infrastructure and hardware already in place.
The future: We cannot know what is the future, but we can try to image it with many computers, Internet almost everywhere at high speed and people talking (audio and video) in a real time fashion. We only need to know what will be the means to do this: UMTS, VoIP (with video extension) or other? Anyway we can notice that Internet has grown very much in the last years, it is free (at least as international means) and could be the right communication media for future.
3). Requirement:
Hardware Requirement: To create a little VoIP system you need the following hardware: 1. PC 386 or more 2. Sound card, full duplex capable 3. A network card or connection to internet or other kind of interface to allow communication between 2 PCs Software requirement: We can choose what O.S. To use: 1. Win9x 2. Linux
The IP Phone: The IP phone implements the same technology, packet zing voice data and transmitting it over data signaling lines; but it combines this technology with the features of an office phone network in one platform. The primary advantage to the phone is having IP capability without having to add any hardware to the communication chain. It appears in an office environment as a standard desktop phone, but delivers the functionality and savings of IP technology.
The VoIP connection can be classified by the type of devices performing an Internet call. Please note that the term PC can be applied to any device capable of transmitting voice over data network. It does not necessarily have all the features of a standard computer. It could just look like a traditional telephone with the basic elements of a computer to execute an Internet call. We have the following generic classifications. PC to PC:
Figure 1 PC-to-PC Scenario For users who already have an Internet access and an audio-capable PC. This scenario can take advantage of integration with other Internet services such as World Wide Web, instant messaging, e-mail, etc. PC to telephone or telephone to PC:
Figure 2 PC to Phone or Phone to PC Scenario In this scenario, PC-callers may reach also the PSTN users. A gateway converting the Internet call into a PSTN call has to be used. Traditional telephone users also can make a call to a PC going through the gateway that connects the IP network with PSTN. Telephone to telephone:
Figure 3 Phone-to-Phone Scenarios The IP network can be a dedicated backbone to connect PSTN. Gateways should connect PSTN to the IP network.
packetize and transmit outbound voice information from the users microphone and receive, decode and play inbound voice information through the users speaker or headsets. The other type of client, known as a virtual client, does not have a direct user interface, but resides in gateways and provides an interface for users of POTS. Servers: In order for IP Telephony to work and to be viable as a commercial enterprise, a wide range of complex database operations, both real-time and non-real-time, must occur transparently to the user. Such applications include user validation, rating, accounting, billing, revenue collection, revenue distribution, routing (least cost, least latency or other algorithms), management of the overall service, downloading of clients, fulfillment of service, registration of users, directory services, and more. Gateways: Void technology allows voice calls originated and terminated at standard telephones supported by the PSTN to be conveyed over IP networks. VoIP "gateways" provide the bridge between the local PSTN and the IP network for both the originating and terminating sides of a call. To originate a call, the calling party will access the nearest gateway either by a direct connection or by placing a call over the local PSTN and entering the desired destination phone number.
S/MGCP: The S/MGCP is the text base protocol as the other IETF protocol. The S/MGCP has the different model from the H.323. On the S/MGCP is only recognized the two elements that are the Media Gateway and the Media Gateway Controller as discussed. The Media Gateway is the end point of the conversation on the S/MGCP equal to the terminal on the H.323 protocol. SIP: The other signaling protocol from IETF is the SIP, which is text base. The used model on SIP is the same as the model that used on H.323, but it is simpler. On the SIP is recognized the terminal, the proxy server that occurred as the gatekeeper on H.323 and the gateway. The call procedure is also take the same model, between the terminal can make the direct call setup or through the proxy server. MEGACO: MEGACO is the future VoIP protocol that the result of cooperation between MEGACO working group on IETF and H.GCP group in ITU-T. By the MEGACO protocol availability, it is to be hope that the interoperability level between the VoIP equipment is growing better, so that can be equal to the interoperability level of the circuit switch network.
2. Transport Media Protocol: The protocol on this step is defined the VoIP quality since it was used during the communication. By this time the RTP/RTCP is the defector protocol.
RTP/RTCP: The RTP protocol responsible to control the voice packets consecutively and then run through the IP network. Then on the receiver side responsible to re-arrange those packets to the form of the voice signal. On this receiver side the RTP protocol become the most important part in the VoIP system. Has the different taken time that caused the jitter? Missing along the way Come on the wrong sequence
The buffer solves the first problem, so that will decrease the jitter effect. As bigger the buffer as decreased the jitter effects but will increase the delay time of the signal to the listener. If there is the missing packet on the way, so that packet will be replaced by the previous packet but with the deducted volume. On this circumstance the packet that comes lately, that packet was ignored and assumed as the missing packet.
Low cost: By avoiding traditional telephony access charges and settlement, a caller can significantly reduce the cost of long distance calls. Although the cost reduction is somewhat related to future regulations, VoIP certainly adds an alternate option to existing PSTN services. Network efficiency: Packetized voice offers much higher bandwidth efficiency than circuitswitched voice because it does not take up any bandwidth in listening mode or during pauses in a conversation. It is a big saving when we consider a significant part of a conversation is silence. The network efficiency can also be improved by removing the redundancy in certain speech patterns. Simplification and consolidation: An integrated infrastructure that supports all forms of communication allows more standardization and reduces the total equipment and management cost. The combined infrastructure could support bandwidth optimization and a fault tolerant design. Universal use of the IP protocols for all applications reduces both complexity and more flexibility. Directory services and security services could be more easily shared. Even though basic telephony and facsimile are the initial applications for VoIP, the longer-term benefits are expected to be derived from multimedia and multiservice applications.
Create Off-Premise Extensions: Extend the reach of your PBX into home office locations. Simply connect a VOIP solution to the PBX at the corporate office, and another VOIP solution at the remote office. Now, anyone can place calls to the remote office by simply dialing an extension number. Replace Expensive Tie Lines: A corporation that utilizes Tie lines to connect branch office PBXs to the corporate PBX can now use the company's IP-based Wide Area Network to complete the call. Enterprise Environment Application: Communication is the key to big businesses performance. Without a good communication system, an organization can fall quickly behind from repetition, poor service, and missed opportunities. Another example is the combination of voice mail and email systems. In a VoIP network it is possible to have voice mail transmitted to a users email box and then played on the recipients PC or to have email retrieved by a voice mail system and read back over the phone. The Enterprise IP Solution: A large organization with multiple offices located in different areas can stay connected through an IP system with any arrangement of endpoints. One option is the desktop IP phone solution. The desktop IP phone can take the place of any traditional office phone, without having to maintain the traditional connection. The existing phone lines can be physically removed from an office because the IP phone only requires a computer connection. Calls can be made between offices or between continents
with no difference in cost, while retaining access to the same voicemail, email, and other office systems. In the same situation, gateways can be installed at individual workstations to IP enable specific departments, using the phones and extension systems that are already in place. Enterprise IP Solutions:
The Residential Application: The residential application represents the final implementation of IP technology. In the future, IP systems will be present in every household, providing reliable service around the world, minimizing cost, and tying together all available media. But when considering the residential application, it is possible to get a clear picture of its future and current benefits.
The Residential Solution: The benefits of a residential IP system are quickly becoming apparent as it is applied in a small environment that is meted by tight budgets and monthly bills. Currently a household can only gain access to Internet calling through an Internet Service Providers (ISP's); but both parties are rewarded from this symbiotic relationship. Subscribers can purchase blocks of long distance calling each month for a static base rate, dramatically reducing the cost of typical long distance communication; while the ISPs only have to pay for the local charges incurred before gateway-to-gateway transmission.
appended to the subsequent packet. Through these techniques, and at some cost of bandwidth efficiency, good sound quality can be maintained even in relatively high packet loss scenarios. As techniques for reducing sensitivity to packet loss improve, so a new opportunity for the achievement of even greater efficiencies is presented. This refers to the suppression of the transmission of voice packets whose loss is determined by the encoder to be below a threshold of tolerability at the decoder. This is particularly attractive in the packet based networking world where statistical multiplexing favors the reuse of freed-up bandwidth. Delay: Two problems that result from high end-to-end delay in a voice network is echo and talker overlap. Echo becomes a problem when the round-trip delay is more than 50 milliseconds. Since echo is perceived as a significant quality problem, VoIP systems must address the need for echo control and implement some means of echo cancellation. Talker overlap (the problem of one caller stepping on the other talkers speech) becomes significant if the one-way delay becomes greater than 250 milliseconds. The end-to-end delay budget is therefore the major constraint and driving requirement for reducing delay through a packet network.
Jitter: Jitter is the variation in inter-packet arrival time as introduced by the variable transmission delay over the network. Removing jitter requires collecting packets and holding them long enough to allow the slowest packets to arrive in time to be played in the correct sequence, which causes additional delay. The jitter buffers add delay, which is used to remove the packet delay variation that each packet is subjected to as it transits the packet network. Overhead: Each packet carries a header of various sizes that contains identification and routing information. This information, necessary for the handling of each packet, constitutes overhead not present with circuit switching techniques. Small packet size is important with real-time transmissions since packet size contributes directly to delay and the smaller the packet size, the less sensitive a given transmission would be to packet loss. Various new techniques such as header compression are evolving to reduce the packet overhead in IP networks. It is likely that packet based networks, of one form or another, will eventually approach the efficiency, with respect to overhead, of circuit-based networks. User friendly design:
The user need not know what technology is being used for the call. He should be able to use the telephone as he does right now. Easy configuration: An easy to use management interface is needed to configure the equipment. A variety of parameters and options such as telephony protocols, compressing algorithm selections, dialing plans, access controls, PSTN fall back features, port arrangement etc. are to be taken care of. Addressing/Directories: Telephone numbers and IP addresses need to be managed in a way that it is transparent to the user. PCs that are used for voice calls may need telephone numbers. IP enabled telephones IP addresses or an access to one via DHCP protocols and Internet directory services will need to be extended to include mappings between the two types of addresses. Security issues: VOIP networks introduce some new risks to carriers and their customers, risks that are not yet fully appreciated. Responding to these threats requires some specific techniques, comprehensive, multi-layer security policies, and firewalls that can handle the special latency and performance requirements of VoIP. It is important to remember that a VoIP network is an IP network. Any VoIP device is an IP device, and it's therefore vulnerable to the same types of attacks as any other IP device. In addition, a VoIP network will almost always have non-VoIP devices attached to it and be connected to other mission-critical networks. Billing issues: VOIP gateways must keep track of successful and unsuccessful calls. Call detail records should be produced. But the major issue is the suitable billing model selection. The following billing models can be applied. 1.Time based: Metered by flow duration, time-of-day, time-of week. 2. Destination, Carrier based: Rated by called and calling station IDs associated with the sequence of stages used to support the call. 3. QoS based: rated by established service parameters such as priority, selected QoS, and latency
Routers: Router solutions usually replace an existing network router and keep voice and data all in a single box. However, this solution requires networking expertise, and can be costly to install, while placing network services at risk during deployment and maintenance. VoIP server cards: VOIP server cards can be an economical VOIP solution. However, they must be compatible with the server and operating system and installations can be complex. IP-Based PBX: The IP-based PBX is usually software running on a computer-based server. However, it often requires a forklift upgrade of the existing PBX or, at a minimum, an extensive software and/or hardware upgrade. An IP-based PBX is typically marketed to new installations where no legacy system is in place. PC-Based telephony: PC-based telephony software is by far the cheapest VOIP solution, but it is also the clumsiest. It requires users to make phone calls using their PC instead of a phone. This usually requires user training and an investment in speakers and microphones for each PC. Plus, many users complain that voice quality for this solution is not adequate for business communications. IP Gateway: An IP gateway, like Multi-Tech's MultiVOIP, is often the most suitable VOIP solution for small to midsize businesses and remote sites. It does not disturb your existing data infrastructure because it simply drops into the Ethernet network. Furthermore, it operates alongside existing PBXs or other phone equipment to extend voice capabilities to remote locations or users. An IP gateway requires only a minimal investment in product, installation, and user training.
networks are significantly less capital intensive to construct and much less expensive to maintain and upgrade than legacy networks (traditional circuit-switched networks). Since VoIP networks are based on Internet protocol, they can seamlessly and cost-effectively interface with the high technology, productivity-enhancing services shaping today's business landscape. But when will it be available?
14). Conclusion:
The applications presented in this paper focused on the possibilities that become available to the user of an IP system. As discussed, the advances made in Voice over IP field stand to revolutionize the communications industry as new products are developed. Interest has grown in recent years as Telecom industry reports announced data transfer surpassing voice transfer usage in 1997, increasing demand and fuelling the search for successful standardscompliant IP platforms. Since its inception, e-tel Corporation has been working to develop H.323 standards based platforms that present viable IP solutions for most applications. Shortly after the successful release of its Free Ride Gateway, e-tel announced the completion of one of the first standards-compliant IP phone.