SUMMARY STUN, Was: Re: [GnomeMeeting-devel-list] Again: STUN

[Jan Schampera <jan schampera web de>]

Hello!

This thread did what I actually wanted it to do. Discussion,
statements, possible new ways. This is an overall summary, to not have
to view the whole thread, in case we really want to change something.


PROBLEM
The problem described basically was, that a down STUN server and a
blocked client have the same effect in Ekiga: It thinks it is blocked
from the Internet. For the latter case this is okay, as it is the
truth. For the first case, it means kind of a false positive. Several
SIP providers (including Ekiga.NET) will refuse registration.

SUGGESTED SOLUTION
The suggested solution for this problem was to introduce a kind of
"secondary STUN server", which is used to double-check the NAT test
result, in case the client gets "blocked" as result.
For the argument "every service can fail" I have to answer, that STUN
is not only some service, it's in this case a very critical service.
Regardless of the possibilities to improve redundance on server-side, I
stay at my position. In our case, it is similar critical to your one
and only DNS server failing: everything is okay, the lines are up and
running, you have the best broadband internet access you were able to
find, but your functionality is near -273 degrees because somebody
pulled the cable out of the DNS server.

OPINIONS, UNSORTED
- keep everything like it is at the moment
- if implemented, invisible for the user (and thus not configurable by
  the user)
- define a STUN server for each account

IDEAS OF IMPLEMENTATION, UNSORTED
- hardcode a fallback STUN
- fallback STUN "hardconfigured" in the Ekiga config
- possibility, to enter more then one servers (e.g. comma separated)
  into the UI (but allow also only one, that would allow to let it look
  like it is now)
- the config druid or the preferences dialog should contain a list of
  STUN servers, which can also hold user-defined STUN servers (similar
  to the URL history functionality of a browser, user entry field and
  a drop down list)
- (related to above) get a list of STUN servers from a DNS RR
- add an entries "primary STUN", "secondary STUN" in the preferences

Jan

-- 
Live as if your were to die tomorrow.
Learn as if you were to live forever.