[Linphone-users] Common sources of errors

[Kentaro YAMAMOTO]

Hello linphone-users,

Is there a list of common source of errors or a recommended set of
configuration for the use of Linphone between hosts that are behind
NATs?

The background is that I and my wife, who are behind different NATs,
used to be able to use Linphone to communicate with each other for a
while although after she switched to a newly-obtained account at
sip.linphone.org from an old one at the same server we are unable to;
for instance, initiating a phone call from my client does not ring my
wife's, and sending an instant messaging ends up with a ! sign in a
red circle. Since she's not physically present, I cannot provide
accurate technical details, so I thought that there might be a general
list of things to check that I could use.

Thank you for your help in this matter.

Best,

[Stuart D. Gathman]

Post by Kentaro YAMAMOTO
Is there a list of common source of errors or a recommended set of
configuration for the use of Linphone between hosts that are behind
NATs?

If you are on real computers, I recommend getting *out* of IP4 NAT jail.
You can join the everyday clearnet IP6 internet via a tunnel broker
at he.net, provided you have a semi-permanent IP4 at each location.

Otherwise, you'll need an overlay network. I use linphone over
Cjdns to call my wife and to keep in touch with my Dad, who is also in IP4
NAT jail. Cjdns gives each device a permanent crypto-allocated IP6
address that stays the same even if it gets assigned a new IP4 (e.g.
a laptop that moves around).

Here is an article I wrote for Fedora Magazine that will illustrate
connecting Cjdns to the global mesh and how to directly call another IP
without a 3rd party (details will vary for other distros):

https://fedoramagazine.org/decentralize-common-fedora-apps-cjdns/

If you are on smartphones, then things are much more restrictive, but
any kind of VPN that you are both on should allow you to call each
other directly with linphone (even an IP4 VPN). Using IP address
instead of phone numbers is no big deal, since you just add it to your
phone book.

[Kentaro YAMAMOTO]

At Sat, 3 Nov 2018 19:47:23 -0400 (EDT),

Post by Stuart D. Gathman

Post by Kentaro YAMAMOTO
Is there a list of common source of errors or a recommended set of
configuration for the use of Linphone between hosts that are behind
NATs?

If you are on smartphones, then things are much more restrictive, but
any kind of VPN that you are both on should allow you to call each
other directly with linphone (even an IP4 VPN). Using IP address
instead of phone numbers is no big deal, since you just add it to your
phone book.

My wife indeed uses linphone on an iPhone (and her laptop behind a
NAT). Your idea of using a VPN (or a global IP address) never
occurred to me, and I appreciate it. Being unfamiliar with VPNs, I
wonder if setting up a VPN on a smartphone (or behind a NAT) is easier
than getting linphone to work behind NATs.