Install a Session Initiation Protocol proxy server

The Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) proxy server for WebSphere Application Server initiates communication and data sessions between users. It delivers a high performance SIP proxy capability used to at the edge of the network to route, load balance, and improve response times for SIP dialogs to backend SIP resources. The SIP proxy provides a mechanism for other components to extend the base function and support additional deployment scenarios. This topic provides information to install a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) proxy server. Ensure that you have a SIP application installed. The SIP container will not listen on a port without a SIP application installed. For a proxy server to be useful, you should have a cluster of SIP application servers.

Overview

The SIP proxy design is based on the WebSphere Application Server HTTP proxy architecture and can be considered a peer to the HTTP proxy. Both the SIP and the HTTP proxy are designed to run within the same WebSphere Application Server proxy server and both rely on a similar filter-based architecture for message processing and routing.

A SIP proxy serves as the initial point of entry, after the firewall, for SIP messages that flow into and out of the enterprise. The SIP proxy acts as a surrogate for SIP application servers within the enterprise. In fact, the nodes that host the SIP proxy servers host the public SIP domain of the enterprise. As a surrogate, you can configure the SIP proxy with rules to route to and load balance the clusters of SIP containers. The SIP proxy is capable of securing the transport, using secure sockets layer (SSL), and the content, using various authentication and authorization schemes.

The SIP proxy is also responsible for establishing outbound connections to remote domains on behalf of the back-end SIP containers and clients that reside within the domain that is hosted by the proxy. Another important feature of the SIP proxy is its capability to protect the identity of the back-end SIP containers from the SIP clients. Attention: If you created a cell, deployment manager, and node when you installed WebSphere Application Server, the first five steps do not apply and you can skip to step six.

Procedure

1. Optional: Launch the profile creation wizard and create a profile.

2. Optional: Launch the profile creation wizard and create a deployment manager profile.

3. Optional: Start the deployment manager.

4. Optional: Federate the node that contains your newly-created profile into the deployment manager cell. You can federate the node in one of the following ways:

   • Type <WAS_home>profiles/<name_of_profile>/bin/addNode <deployment_manager_host_name> 8879

     8879 is the default bootstrap port. The server that is being federated should not be running when completing this task from a command line.

   • From the deployment manager administrative console, click Application Servers > Nodes and adding the node.

   The server in the node that is being federated needs to be running when federating through the deployment manager administrative console.

5. Optional: Create a cluster in the administrative console by clicking Servers > Clusters > New. Add the federated server to the cluster.

   Be sure that the default cluster that is defined in the SIP proxy settings points to a valid cluster. Do not use none, which is the default.

6. Create a proxy server on the node that you just federated, or on another node in the cell that contains the cluster that the proxy will sit in front of by clicking Servers > Proxy Server > New.

   Be sure to select SIP protocol. You do not have to install the proxy server on a machine that also includes one of the servers in the cluster.

Results

The virtual host for your SIP container ports must be defined, and the SIP container(s) must be restarted after adding the new virtual host.

Related tasks

Related Reference