Survivable phone behavior using SIP signaling in a SIP network configuration

• US 8,018,848 B2
• Filed: 03/26/2008
• Issued: 09/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arlington Technologies, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Inventors: Brunson, Gordon, Boyle, Frank J., Petsche, Thomas A., Lauber, Pamela J., Baker, Al, Jenkins, Benjamin, Balasaygun, Mehmet C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sefcheck; Gregory B
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shivers; Ashley L
• Application Number:
  US12/056,250
• Publication Number:
  US 20090245492A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,266 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/230
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1045 Proxies, e.g. for session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1046 Call controllers; Call servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/40 for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity, e.g. service redundancy protocols, protocol state redundancy or protocol service redirection management of faults, events, alarms or notifications in data switching networks H04L41/06

Abstract

Provided are methods, devices, and systems for maintaining a SIP survivable User Agent. The present invention is adapted to allow the User Agent to detect the status of the network, thus providing the User Agent to perform failover/failback operations. The User Agent may be adapted to determine the status of the network based on its own monitoring mechanisms and/or based on messages received from other network components.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

triggering a User Agent to monitor a status of at least one component in a communication system, wherein the at least one component comprises a controller of the User Agent, wherein the controller of the User Agent provides Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) functionality to the User Agent, wherein the User Agent is triggered to monitor the status of the at least one component by receiving a notification message;

referencing a list of controllers upon receiving the notification message;

identifying, from the list of controllers, at least one controller for which a status check will be performed, wherein the at least one controller includes the controller of the User Agent;

in response to the trigger to monitor the status of at least one component, sending, by the User Agent, a SIP message to the at least one component associated with the at least one controller; and

determining, by the User Agent, a status of the at least one component based on a response received at the User Agent.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the response comprises at least one of (i) a SIP message transmitted by the at least one component and received at the User Agent and (ii) a lack of a response message being received at the User Agent within a predetermined amount of time.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification message comprises a standard SIP NOTIFY message and wherein all controllers in the list of controllers are included in the identified at least one controller.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification message comprises an extended SIP NOTIFY message and wherein the identified at least one controller comprises fewer than all controllers in the list of controllers.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the extended SIP NOTIFY message comprises a set of instructions for execution by the User Agent and wherein the set of instructions identifies the at least one controller for which a status check is to be performed.

6. A tangible, non-transit computer readable medium comprising processor executable instructions operable to perform the method of claim 1.

7. A communication endpoint, comprising:

a memory operable to store computer-executable instructions;

a processor in communication with the memory, the processor operable to read and execute the computer-executable instructions, the computer executable instructions causing the processor to execute a discovery module, the discovery module operable to;

upon being triggered, monitor a status of at least one component in a communication system, wherein the at least one component comprises a controller of the communication endpoint, wherein the controller of the communication endpoint provides Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) functionality to the communication endpoint, wherein the communication endpoint is triggered to monitor the status of the at least one component by receiving a notification message;

reference a list of controllers upon receiving the notification message, identify, from the list of controllers, at least one controller for which a status check will be performed, and send a SIP message to a component associated with the at least one controller, wherein the at least one controller includes the controller of the communication endpoint; and

determine a status of the at least one component based on a received response.

8. The communication endpoint of claim 7, wherein the response comprises at least one of (i) a SIP message transmitted by the at least one component and received at the endpoint and (ii) a lack of a response message being received at the communication endpoint within a predetermined amount of time.

9. The communication endpoint of claim 7, wherein the notification message comprises a standard SIP NOTIFY message and wherein all controllers in the list of controllers are included in the identified at least one controller.

10. The communication endpoint of claim 7, wherein the notification message comprises an extended SIP NOTIFY message and wherein the identified at least one controller comprises fewer than all controllers in the list of controllers.

11. The communication endpoint of claim 10, wherein the extended SIP NOTIFY message comprises a set of instructions for execution by the endpoint and wherein the set of instructions identifies the at least one controller for which a status check is to be performed.

12. A communication system, comprising:

means for triggering a User Agent to monitor a status of at least one component by causing the User Agent to send a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) message to the at least one component, wherein the means for triggering is activated to monitor the status of the at least one component by receiving a notification message; and

means for determining a status of the at least one component based on a response received at the User Agent, wherein the at least one component comprises a controller, wherein the controller provides SIP functionality to the User Agent, wherein the means for determining is further operable to reference a list of controllers upon receiving the notification message, identify, from the list of controllers, at least one controller for which a status check will be performed, and send a SIP message to a component associated with the at least one controller, wherein the at least one controller includes the controller that provides SIP functionality to the User Agent.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the response comprises at least one of (i) a SIP message transmitted by the at least one component and received at the User Agent and (ii) a lack of a response message being received at the User Agent within a predetermined amount of time.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the notification message comprises a standard SIP NOTIFY message and wherein all controllers in the list of controllers are included in the identified at least one controller.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the notification message comprises an extended SIP NOTIFY message, wherein the identified at least one controller comprises fewer than all controllers in the list of controllers, wherein the extended SIP NOTIFY message comprises a set of instructions for execution by the User Agent, and wherein the set of instructions identifies the at least one controller for which a status check is to be performed.