NAPT IP Address Allocation for Session Border Controllers
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Solution Overview
Problem
The scarcity of Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, particularly public/routable IP addresses, poses challenges in managing communication sessions efficiently, especially in cloud deployments and Session Border Controller (SBC) systems, leading to inefficient use of IP addresses and increased broadcast traffic in large networks.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that utilize Network Address and Port Translation (NAPT) devices and Internet Protocol Multiplexer entities to efficiently manage public IP addresses by allocating and releasing IP address and port pairs dynamically, allowing multiple media sessions to share a single public IP address through a Network Address and Port Translation (NAPT) entity, and using private IP addresses for media packet routing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If a single public IP address is used for all signaling and media sessions, then IP address conservation is improved, but the system cannot support multiple simultaneous media sessions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the IP address space into public IP addresses for signaling and private IP addresses for media sessions. The Session Border Controller uses private IP addresses (from a private address space) for media packet routing while maintaining a single public IP address for signaling communications. This segmentation allows multiple media sessions to occur simultaneously without requiring additional public IP addresses.
Solution Approach 2:
The Session Border Controller acts as an intermediary between the signaling plane and media plane. It receives signaling packets containing private IP addresses, determines the actual remote IP addresses through learning mechanisms, and uses these determined addresses for media packet routing. This intermediary function enables the system to support multiple media sessions while conserving public IP addresses.
2Reliability
If multiple Virtual Machine instances are created for redundancy, then system reliability is improved, but the number of public IP addresses required increases
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple Virtual Machine instances share a single public IP address for signaling communications. Each VM instance can handle media sessions using private IP addresses, allowing the system to achieve redundancy and fault tolerance without requiring each VM to have its own public IP address. This multi-functionality approach enables a single public IP address to serve multiple VM instances simultaneously.
3Quantity of substance
If private IP addresses are used for media sessions, then public IP address conservation is improved, but the system complexity increases due to address translation requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The Session Border Controller performs self-learning of remote IP addresses by examining incoming signaling packets. It automatically determines the actual remote IP addresses used for media sessions without requiring complex manual configuration or external address translation services. This self-service mechanism simplifies the overall system by embedding the address determination logic within the SBC itself.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to communications methods, apparatus and systems for efficiently managing NAPT bindings and mappings. An exemplary embodiment of operating a communication system includes the steps of (i) receiving, at a real-time communications entity, a media session offer from a device, (ii) transmitting, from the communications entity to a Network Address and Port Translation entity (NAPT), a request signal to allocate a public Internet Protocol (IP) address and port number pair corresponding to an interface on the NAPT for the session; (iii) determining, at the communications entity, a remote IP address and port number pair corresponding to an interface on the device to be used for communicating media of the media session; (iv) transmitting, from the communications entity to the NAPT, a signal identifying the determined remote IP address and port number pair; and (v) releasing, at the NAPT, the allocated public IP address and port number pair.