SIP: Understanding the Session Initiation Protocol - Chapter 2: Introduction to SIP

If your work involves the development and operation of voice or data networks, SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) is beginning to change the way you do business. Here's a ground-breaking book that quickly gives you a thorough understanding of this revolutionary protocol for IP Telephony. It shows how SIP provides a highly-scalable and cost-effective way to offer new and exciting telecommunication feature sets, helping you design your "next generation" network and develop new applications and software stacks.

Discussions include SIP as a key component in the Internet multimedia conferencing architecture, request and response messages, devices in a typical network, types of servers, SIP headers, comparisons with existing signaling protocols including H.323, related protocols SDP (Session Description Protocol) and RTP (Real-time Transport Protocol) and the future direction of SIP. Detailed call flow diagrams illustrate how this technology works with other protocols such as H.323 and ISUP.

Chapter 2 introduces the SIP protocol. The best way to learn a protocol is to look at examples of its use. The example message flows included in this chapter will help you grasp some key SIP concepts. After reading this chapter, you will better understand SIP terminology, structures, and format.

Chapter 2 from SIP: Understanding the Session Initiation Protocol, second edition by Alan B. Johnston is published with permission of Artech House, Inc., Norwood, MA 02062.

Artech House is a leading publisher of high quality professional books for engineers and managers in some of today's hottest technologies, including: mobile communications, intelligent transportation systems, networking, software engineering, computer security, software quality, process improvement, microwave technology, sensors, antennas and other cutting-edge areas. For more information visit www.artechhouse.com.