The engin VoIP chat transcript

This week the top techs from Aussie VoIP company engin jumped into Atomic IRC for a special chat session.

engin talks to #atomicmpc

The following is the transcript of events (log) of a talk (question and answers), Steve and Ruud of Engin, had with the users of #atomicmpc and the readers of Atomic Maximum Power Computer Magazine, on October 25th.

We would like to thank both Steve and Ruud for giving up their free time, to answer those VOIP questions that atomicans really want to know the answer to.

Welcome to the latest special Atomic chat session! For tonights session we have Ruud and Steven from engin. These guys have been kind enough to give us an hour of their time, so make the most of it and ask them anything! Their special subjects are VoIP, Linux, security and networking.
We can't promise your question will make it through if there's a massive response, but make it a good question and your chances are good.

saponification. There's a few issues with VoIP. The biggest one I see is the need for power. What if the power is down, say in a storm, and you need to make an emergency call?

enginsteve. Well, one of the solutions we have is our Voice Box 2 which allows you to use a PSTN line with your box. So, with that, if the power goes down, it will automatically reroute your call back through PSTN. Also, with some of our call routing features, we can detect if your boradband connection is up, and if it isn't, reroute it to another number.

ChaosLady. VOIP tech is rather notorious for the amount of bandwidth it uses. Is there R&D in the works to make it more bandwidth (or rural Australia) freindly?

Ruud. We're actually running tests with the iLBC codec which handles latencies better.

ni. The common protocols used to implement VoIP support various layers of security, but I believe that most current implementations are very poor with regard to security. Is this true? What protocol does your solution(s) use, and how are security issues addressed?

enginsteve. well, with regards to actual box configuration info, we send this encyrpted.
In terms of the actual voice traffic, we are looking at using vpns with ipsec as one solution as well as other protocols such as tls.

Calabrese`. Seeing as VoIP is a fantastic new technology, do you think you will ever see big companies such as Telstra and Optus employing the technology? And if so, do you think the whole VoIP thing will become on par with existing technologies? (becoming the same price etc)

enginsteve. Well, in terms of Optus, for example, if I remember a few years ago, there was a big announcement made about how they are using voip internally. For Telstra, they have been using voip with their international connections for years and offer it for large corporates also. As to whether they go down the route of offering it to consumers and small businesses, who knows?

ni What is the underlying protocol you're using to initiate conversations, SIP? If so, is the SIP currently sent across the 'net with no security layer, but you are looking at vpn/tls in the future, or..?

Ruud. Yes we're using SIP, currently without tls but are looking into that. There is a lot of discsuuion in the industry on TLS and. We are alos considering offering a vpn solution

neophyte. Given the current climate for internet access and speeds in Australia, how do you see VOIP being rolled out to the average aussie?

enginsteve. well, I think we are already doing that. Based on our last public announcement, we have connected over 10,000 customers in a isp neutral setup. As broadband penetration increases and bandwidth increases, I feel that you will see a faster takeup with more "next generation" services offered.

ChaosLady. How is VOIP dealing with the problem of companies based on 13XXXX numbers that go to the nearest store (like pizza delivery) and 000 calls?

Ruud. We do have smart routing in our network however it not always possible yet to get the call to the closest pizza store. Regarding 000 routing there are actually discussion with ACIF to standardize the way for VoIP providers to send the call to the correct emergency services

Gramyre-Nam. with the measure of "voice quality" being a purely subjective test, do you think VoIP will allow a further decrease in voice quality expectations like the mobile phone has done?

enginsteve. Voice quality in theory is not purely a subjective test. There are new standards coming out to assist with better reporting on call quality from the Customer end.
Also, with some of the surveys from a subjective point of view, we have found that some customers have reported call quality as being better on engin than on PSTN.
So, I think what we will see is a trend where voip will have call quality better than PSTN as newer technologies with QoS and better reporting coming out of the deivce assisting in this.
Also, as bandwidth increases on the ISP ends and with more peering arrangements happening, this will only support increases in quality of voice.

ChaosLady. Given that we can now get viruses in our mobile phones, how long will it be, do you think, before we start to see a proliferation of viruses and malware that effects VOIP? Is anything being done to counter this?

enginsteve. the vulnerabilities will be in the implementation of the protocol per se versus the actual protocol itself. So, the pressure needs to be towards vendors building devices which comply with the protocol to its strictest standards.
Ruud. If you compare it to http for example the virus attack the server and browsers rather then the protocol.

ni. Thanks for your responses so far. Are you aware that most implementations of SIP can easily be fooled with spoofed packets, so that a malicious party can hijack one end of a conversation without the other end realising, and can become a man in the middle and monitor a conversation simply by announcing that the proxy gateway has changed?

enginsteve. well, in trying to attempt this, someone would have to break into the isp routers which in its own right is a difficult but not impossible task to achieve.
So we aren't denying that this can't happen, but can be very difficult to achieve but with respects to this, you have to start questioning some of the security policies of the isp.

tantryl. What is the biggest setup/support barrier you have found with the average home user? What would be the most common reason people quote as why they cancel their accounts?

enginsteve. the main issue is that there are many different setups happening at the customer end so because of this, it can be difficult to find a solution that will work with those customers. (eg, older routers with non-voip firmware). So, the major reason for customers disconnecting is usually at the beginning and its due to older hardware.

ChaosLady. Is VOIP still very much dependent on the computer processor being used? For example, how badly is a call affected if someone starts up a heavy resource program? Similarly, what if they begin downloading a large file?

enginsteve. well, it depends on which product from engin that you choose. If you chose our VB line, its an independent box but our softphone product is very much reliant on your pc's performance. With our new Linksys and Netgear partnership, we now offer routers which assist in managing your bandwidth and giving priority to your voice calls.

stefan. As an ISP netural provider are you happy with the way these ISPs are managing your ip traffic? With some of the questionable business tactics from some major telecommunications providers have you come across any providers that are making things difficult? Do you expect to see any more issues arising as more of these providers start offering VoIP themselves?

enginsteve. Well, right now, our strategy has been to try to work with ISPs to try to eliminate these type of problems. Also, we have ISPs who are now our wholesale partners.

Urbansprawl. Do you have an access server in each STD zone? or do you terminate calls on a capital city basis and rely on the fact that most calls will not be regional?


ChaosLady. Are VOIP companies looking to integrate with other appliances that use the phone lines? For example, anyone with Foxtel needs a phone connection to enable Box Office etc.

enginsteve. currently I think in australia, the major push right now is to try to offer a quality phone service first. in the future, there are a lot of potentials for these type of integrated services.

Urbansprawl. Do you have any concerns about the incumbent carriers using technologies like those developed by Narus to interfere with VoIP (given the risks it poses to their revenue)?

enginsteve. Regarding Narus, we are still analysing the potential impacts it may have to us.

neophyte. Do you see VOIP penetrating the mobile market, with wifi enabled areas being enabled, handsfree VOIP could become a serious competitor to companies like Vodafone, etc?

enginsteve. With voip penetrating the mobile market, I don't feel that it will have an immediate impact as the standards in this area of wifi to voip convergance has only been recently agreed upon based on ims and uma.

Flouncy. Where did you experience as Unix gurus come into the job? How do you use your knowledge to create/keep the network running?

Ruud. All our backend systems are running on Unix of some description, furthermore we utilize both commercial and open source solution which are not always easy to integrate.

ChaosLady. I believe in the US, the FCC is trying to work out how to regulate VOIP. Is Australia also working on these regulatory issues? If so, what are they doing?

enginsteve. Australia is looking into various regulatory issues and engin works closely with the ACIF and various other telco and regulatory bodies.

And it's a wrap! Thanks so much Steven and Ruud for jumping into our chat room and having fun with us. You're welcome to come in anytime if you want, I know you'll be welcome.

Thanks to the channel ops and Praetorian especially for helping organise and run this event. And thanks Atomicans for good questions and I hope you got something good from tonight.