What Is SIP?
Session Initiation Protocol – SIP for short – is a modern communication protocol, which is widely used in audio and video communications. SIP can happen over a computer, mobile phone, or any other digital communication device that has access to the internet. By defining certain primitives, SIP can control a variety of multimedia sessions involving two-way sessions and larger group sessions.
SIP Protocol Features
The SIP protocol includes the following features:
- SIP invitations are used to create sessions and carry session descriptions that allow participants to agree on a set of compatible media types. In this way, SIP is not limited to any particular media type, and can therefore handle the expanding range of media technologies.
- SIP enables user mobility through a mechanism that allows requests to be proxied or redirected to the user’s current location. Users can register their current location with their home server.
- SIP supports end-to-end and hop-by-hop authentication, as well as end-to-end encryption using S/MIME.
- Members in a SIP session can communicate using multicast or unicast relations, or a combination of these. In addition, SIP is independent of the lower-layer transport protocol, which allows it to take advantage of new transport protocols.
- Software implementing the basic SIP protocol can be extended with additional capabilities and is actively being exploited for many media applications.
How Does SIP work? What is SIP Protocol Addressing?
To make a phone call or set up a video call using SIP, first an identifier or specific address needs to be generated. This identifier is referred to as a SIP Uniform Resource Identifier (SIP URI). Resources that might need to be identified during this type of communication process include a user of an online server, a mailbox on a messaging system, an organizational group, or a phone number for a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) destination, which has to be sent to a gateway service. This SIP URI is like an email address and contains two parts, a username and hostname, like sip:[email protected]. Your SIP address will be your contact’s point of reference as to how or where fellow SIP users can reach you.
Next, you need to have a SIP client before you can use SIP. A SIP client is a virtual telephone program that provides you an avenue for communicating with fellow SIP users, which can easily be downloaded from developers. Once you have equipped yourself with an SIP client, all you have to do is to weigh for the Setup wizard to work its magic, and you’re all set.
What is SIP Used For?
SIP has a wide range of applications across many different industries and personal settings. Some of these include:
- Video conferencing
- Gaming
- Phone and computer messaging
- File exchanges and…
SIP is beneficial for companies that have employees working in many separate locations. The reason is that leadership and employees may have to communicate for business transactions, projects and other collaborative efforts over long distances. SIP facilitates fast and powerful multimedia sessions. As a result, it is the perfect solution for companies that recruit remotely or use multiple locations in various states or countries.
Conclusion
Businesses often implement SIP to increase efficiency and ROI within their networks. For example, if your company uses a VoIP system, you may use SIP to transmit phone calls or integrate other forms of communication with your system. Instead of using several platforms to manage video, telephony and other services, you can use SIP to manage them all with one interface.
AminSoft offers custom development services in VoIP related fields like custom features, SIP stack development, RTP mixers, WebRTC, CRM integration and any SIP related development. If you need help with building your VOIP network or selecting the best VoIP equipment for your requirements, feel free to contact us. Our experts provide VoIP consultancy for SIP, WebRTC related projects and VoIP network planning services.