An Analysis of the Skype Peer-to-Peer Internet Telephony Protocol

Skype is a peer-to-peer VoIP client developed by KaZaa in 2003. Skype claims that it can work almost seamlessly across NATs and firewalls and has better voice quality than the MSN and Yahoo IM applications. It encrypts calls end-to-end, and stores user information in a decentralized fashion. Skype also supports instant messaging and conferencing. This report analyzes key Skype functions such as login, NAT and firewall traversal, call establishment, media transfer, codecs, and conferencing under three different network setups. Analysis is performed by careful study of Skype network traffic. Categories and Subject Descriptors C.2.2 [Computer-Communication Networks]: Network Protocols—Applications General Terms Algorithms, Design, Measurement, Performance, Experimentation, Security, Keywords Peer-to-peer (p2p), Voice over IP (VoIP), Super Node (SN), Internet telephony, conferencing

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2006
• Where: INFOCOM
• Authors: Salman Baset, Henning Schulzrinne
• Keywords: Communications, INFOCOM 2006, Key Skype Functions, Skype, Skype Network Traffic