TeleDynamics Think Tank

Routing is a vital part of network operations, and employing it correctly is of utmost importance for any enterprise network.

In the context of networking, routing is the process by which data packets are directed to their final destination as they travel from node to node.  There are many aspects of routing design that can affect general network traffic patterns and particular network services. UC and VoIP services can be adversely affected if routing design does not take into account their special characteristics.

This article examines various aspects of routing implementation to see how it can potentially affect real-time services. We also look at what specific design aspects you should consider to ensure the proper operation of such services.

DHCP is best known as the protocol that automatically assigns IP addresses to hosts that connect to a network. It is one of those protocols that we don’t often think about because it functions in the background — users are completely oblivious to its operation, just enjoying its convenience and flexibility.

However, DHCP is about more than automatic address allocation, especially for VoIP and UC devices such as IP phones and video terminals. In this article, we explore the operation of DHCP and the specialized options it provides for VoIP and UC applications, some of which you might not know about!

Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is the successor to the well-established IPv4 network layer protocol. It is slowly but surely gaining ground worldwide on both internal corporate enterprise networks and on the internet at large.

But what does this mean for real-time audio and video communications applications such as VoIP and unified communications (UC)? How are VoIP and UC leveraging IPv6, and are there any issues that network admins must be aware of in this process? In this article, we answer these questions by examining the benefits and challenges of deploying such applications over an IPv6 network.