mid_registrar Module


Table of Contents

1. Admin Guide
1.1. Overview
1.2. Working modes
1.2.1. Contact mirroring (default)
1.2.2. Contact throttling
1.2.3. AOR throttling
1.3. Insertion modes
1.3.1. Insertion by Contact (default)
1.3.2. Insertion by Path
1.4. Dependencies
1.4.1. OpenSIPS Modules
1.4.2. External Libraries or Applications
1.5. Exported Parameters
1.5.1. mode (integer)
1.5.2. insertion_mode (integer)
1.5.3. min_expires (integer)
1.5.4. default_expires (integer)
1.5.5. max_expires (integer)
1.5.6. outgoing_expires (integer)
1.5.7. contact_match_param (string)
1.5.8. default_q (integer)
1.5.9. tcp_persistent_flag (string)
1.5.10. realm_prefix (string)
1.5.11. case_sensitive (integer)
1.5.12. received_avp (string)
1.5.13. received_param (string)
1.5.14. max_contacts (integer)
1.5.15. retry_after (integer)
1.5.16. disable_gruu (integer)
1.5.17. gruu_secret (string)
1.6. Exported Functions
1.6.1. mid_registrar_save(domain[, [flags][, [aor][, [outgoing_expires]]]])
1.6.2. mid_registrar_lookup(domain[, [flags][, [aor]]])
2. Contributors
2.1. By Commit Statistics
2.2. By Commit Activity
3. Documentation
3.1. Contributors

List of Tables

2.1. Top contributors by DevScore(1), authored commits(2) and lines added/removed(3)
2.2. Most recently active contributors(1) to this module

List of Examples

1.1. Setting the mode module parameter
1.2. Setting the insertion_mode module parameter
1.3. Setting the min_expires module parameter
1.4. Setting the default_expires module parameter
1.5. Setting the max_expires module parameter
1.6. Setting the outgoing_expires module parameter
1.7. Setting the contact_match_param module parameter
1.8. Setting the default_q module parameter
1.9. Setting the tcp_persistent_flag module parameter
1.10. Setting the realm_prefix module parameter
1.11. Setting the case_sensitive module parameter
1.12. Setting the received_avp module parameter
1.13. Setting the received_param module parameter
1.14. Setting the max_contacts module parameter
1.15. Setting the retry_after module parameter
1.16. Setting the gruu_secret module parameter
1.17. Setting the gruu_secret module parameter
1.18. mid_registrar_save usage
1.19. mid_registrar_lookup usage

Chapter 1. Admin Guide

1.1. Overview

The mid_registrar is a mid-component of a SIP platform, designed to work between end users and the platform's main registration component. It opens up new possibilities for leveraging existing infrastructure in order to continue to grow (as subscribers and as registration traffic) while keeping an existing low-resources registrar server.

Acting as a registration front-end to the main SIP registrar, the mid-registrar is able to:

  • convert incoming high-rate registration traffic into a low-rate variant, towards the main registrar layer. With proper configuration, it can absorb over 90% of existing registration traffic while preserving the back-end's user location state, effectively reducing resource usage at the respective layer.

  • stay synchronized with the main registrar (from a user location perspective), by properly accepting the contact states and expirations it decides.

1.2. Working modes

The mid_registrar may function in one of several modes:

1.2.1. Contact mirroring (default)

In "contact mirroring" mode, the mid-registrar will insert itself in the registration flow between end user and main registrar only as a simple proxy registrar, without any other contact processing. The incoming REGISTER requests will be proxied further to the main registrar; the registered contact will be stored in the mid-registrar only on 2xx replies, according to the information returned by the main registrar.

A possible usage of this mode, for example, would be to clone registrations on a SIP front-end that extends the main platform with new services (like adding IM/messaging routing).

1.2.2. Contact throttling

In "contact throttling" mode, the mid-registrar can significantly reduce the registration rate on the main registrar side (between mid-registrar and main registrar), while coping with a high registration rate on the end-user side (between end-user and mid-registrar). This is useful in scenarios were the end-users are very dynamic and short-lived (like on mobile devices), but the main registrar cannot cope with large traffic.

Traffic conversion is done in a "per-device" manner, according to each unique SIP Contact header field value. It is achieved by increasing the "expires" parameter value of each contact, when relaying registrations to the main registrar. Once such a registration is completed, subsequent registrations for the same SIP Contact header field value will be continuously absorbed by the mid-registrar until, eventually, the lifetime of the remote registration will have decreased enough that a refresh (i.e. simply forwarding the next REGISTER request) is mandatory.

A common occurence is for some SIP User Agents to lose their network connection (especially when dealing with mobile devices), hence they do not properly de-register from the mid-registrar. In this case, in order to avoid stale registrations on the main registrar (which contains SIP contacts with greatly extended lifetimes!), the mid-registrar will appropriately generate De-REGISTER requests and remove these contacts from the main registrar's location service as soon as it considers them to have expired.

The main practical use for this mode is registration traffic conversion. By minimizing the strain of processing registrations on the main registrar, we allow it to dedicate more system resources to critical areas of the platform, such as advanced SIP calling features and/or media handling.

1.2.3. AOR throttling

In "AOR throttling" mode, the mid-registrar helps with handling multiple registrations per user/AOR. This is done by aggregating all the end-user registered contacts from a single AOR under a single registration into the main registrar. This can dramatically reduce the incoming rate of registrations (to a single registration per AOR), but also helps in dealing with registrar servers which are not able to implement parallel forking/ringing.

Traffic conversion is done in a "per-user" manner, according to each unique SIP AOR. It is achieved by providing a contact with a large "expires" parameter value, when relaying registrations to the main registrar. Once such a registration is completed, subsequent registrations to the same Address-of-record will be continuously absorbed by the mid-registrar until, eventually, the lifetime of the remote registration will have decreased enough that a refresh (i.e. simply forwarding the next REGISTER request) is mandatory.

A common occurence is for some SIP User Agents to lose their network connection (especially when dealing with mobile devices), hence they do not properly de-register from the mid-registrar. In this case, in order to avoid stale registrations on the main registrar (which contains SIP AORs with greatly extended lifetimes!), the mid-registrar will appropriately generate De-REGISTER requests and remove these contacts from the main registrar's location service as soon as it considers them to have expired.

Of all three modes, "AOR throttling" potentially offers the best reduction in traffic on the way to the main registrar. By aggregating contacts, it also has the added benefit of reducing the number of contacts that the main registrar must handle.

Regarding SIP request mangling in this mode, the module will always replace all Contact header field values with a single Contact header field value when proxying registrations to the main registrar, indicating that the AOR is local to the front-end, and its contacts can be found there.

The main practical uses for this mode are registration traffic conversion towards the main registrar, as well as taking over its call forking duties. By minimizing the strain of processing registrations / forking calls on the main registrar, we allow it to dedicate more system resources to critical areas of the platform, such as advanced SIP calling features and/or media handling.

1.3. Insertion modes

A defining feature of the mid-registrar is that it must be easy to integrate, ideally a "plug-and-play" SIP component. It should not impose any "outbound-proxy" configurations on any of the platform's layers and automatically insert itself on the call flow of successful registrations.

The script writer can choose between two SIP insertion mechanisms: either by having the module modify Contact headers when forwarding registrations, or instruct it to make use of a Path header (RFC 3327).

1.3.1. Insertion by Contact (default)

This insertion mode will mangle the Contact header field values of all forwarded registration requests, by replacing any original IP and port of a Contact URI with those of one of the mid-registrar's listening interfaces.

The mid-registrar will also append a parameter to each Contact URI ("rid" by default, can be changed through the contact_match_param module parameter) This URI parameter allows reply contacts to be matched with request ones. This same parameter will also be used when routing calls to the users. In this case, it will be taken from the INVITE's Request-URI.

1.3.2. Insertion by Path

Instructs the module to append a "Path" header field to each forwarded registration request. By recording itself between each user and the main registrar, the mid-registrar allows subsequent calls to be properly routed to the called party.

1.4. Dependencies

1.4.1. OpenSIPS Modules

The following modules must be loaded before this module:

  • usrloc

  • signaling

  • tm

1.4.2. External Libraries or Applications

The following libraries or applications must be installed before running OpenSIPS with this module loaded:

  • None

1.5. Exported Parameters

1.5.1. mode (integer)

Working mode of the module. Refer to Section 1.2, “Working modes” for more details.

The following is true for all working modes:

  • when a REGISTER is received, the script writer must call mid_registrar_save()

  • the mid-registrar will insert itself on the call flow of all registrations according to the insertion_mode.

  • registrations handled by the mid-registrar will transparently result in a user location update if their reply status is 2xx.

Each working mode behaves differently, as follows:

  • 0 (Contact mirroring mode)

    The module will only insert itself on the call flow. Contact expirations are left unchanged.

  • 1 (Contact throttling mode)

    Contact throttling is a first step in lowering registration traffic rates. This is possible through the use of the outgoing_expires module parameter or the corresponding parameter to mid_registrar_save(), which allow the script writer to prolong the life of the registrations on the way to the main registrar.

    In this mode, the mid-registrar may alter Expires header field values or "expires" Contact header field parameters found in the initial request when forwarding registrations, according to outgoing_expires

  • 2 (AOR throttling mode)

    AOR throttling is a step beyond "Contact throttling", as the main registrar is made aware of the network presence of AORs, rather than Contacts. This behaviour is also made possible through the outgoing_expires module parameter or the corresponding parameter to mid_registrar_save(), which allow the script writer to prolong the life of the registrations on the way to the main registrar.

    In this mode, the mid-registrar will fully replace the Contact set of all forwarded registrations with a single Contact, advertising that the AOR is available to the main registrar. The expiration value for this Contact is given by outgoing_expires.

Default value is 0 (contact mirroring mode)

Example 1.1. Setting the mode module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "mode", 2)

1.5.2. insertion_mode (integer)

SIP insertion mode of the module. Refer to Section 1.3, “Insertion modes” for more details. Possible values are:

  • 0 (Insertion by Contact)

  • 1 (Insertion by Path)

Default value is 0 (route by Contact)

Example 1.2. Setting the insertion_mode module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "insertion_mode", 1)

1.5.3. min_expires (integer)

The minimum expires value of a Contact, values lower than this minimum will be automatically set to the minimum. Value 0 disables the checking.

Default value is 10 (seconds)

Example 1.3. Setting the min_expires module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "min_expires", 600)

1.5.4. default_expires (integer)

If the processed message contains neither Expires HFs nor expires contact parameters, this value will be used as the expiration interval of any newly created usrloc records.

Default value is 3600 (seconds)

Example 1.4. Setting the default_expires module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "default_expires", 1800)

1.5.5. max_expires (integer)

The maximum expires value of a Contact, values higher than this maximum will be automatically set to the maximum. Value 0 disables the checking.

Default value is 3600 (seconds)

Example 1.5. Setting the max_expires module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "max_expires", 7200)

1.5.6. outgoing_expires (integer)

Only relevant in Contact/AOR throttling modes. Sets a minimal value for the expiration intervals of egressing contacts.

Default value is 3600 (seconds)

Example 1.6. Setting the outgoing_expires module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "outgoing_expires", 3600)

1.5.7. contact_match_param (string)

Only relevant in "Contact throttling" mode. Specifies the name of the Contact URI parameter which is used by the module in order to match contacts and route calls.

Default value is rid

Example 1.7. Setting the contact_match_param module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "contact_match_param", "regid")

1.5.8. default_q (integer)

Sets the default "q" value for new contacts. Because OpenSIPS does not support floating point module parameters, the supplied "q" value must be multiplied by 1000. For example, if you want default_q to be 0.38, set this parameter to 380.

Default value is 0

Example 1.8. Setting the default_q module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "default_q", 380)

1.5.9. tcp_persistent_flag (string)

Specifies the message flag to be used to control the module behaviour regarding TCP connections. If the flag is set for a REGISTER via TCP containing a TCP contact, the module, via the mid_registrar_save() function, will set the lifetime of the TCP connection to the contact expire value. By doing this, the TCP connection will stay up as long as its contacts are valid.

Default value is -1 (not set)

Example 1.9. Setting the tcp_persistent_flag module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "tcp_persistent_flag", "TCP_PERSIST_REGISTRATIONS")

1.5.10. realm_prefix (string)

In multi-domain user location scenarios ("use_domain" usrloc module parameter set to "1"), this parameter denotes a prefix to be automatically stripped from the hostname part of To header field URIs when doing a save, or Request-URIs when doing a lookup.

It is meant as an alternative to DNS SRV records (not all SIP clients support SRV lookups), a subdomain of the master domain can be defined for SIP purposes (like "sip.mydomain.net" pointing to same IP address as the SRV record for "mydomain.net"). By ignoring the realm_prefix "sip.", at registration, "sip.mydomain.net" will be translated to "mydomain.net".

Default value is NULL (none)

Example 1.10. Setting the realm_prefix module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "realm_prefix", "sip.")

1.5.11. case_sensitive (integer)

If set to 1, then AOR comparison will be case sensitive (as RFC3261 instructs), if set to 0 then AOR comparison will be case insensitive.

Default value is 1 (true)

Example 1.11. Setting the case_sensitive module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "case_sensitive", 0)

1.5.12. received_avp (string)

The module will store the value of the AVP configured by this parameter in the received column of the user location table. It will leave the column empty if the AVP is empty. The AVP should contain a SIP URI consisting of the source IP, port, and protocol of the REGISTER message being processed.

Note

The value of this parameter should be the same as the value of corresponding parameter of nathelper module.

Default value is "NULL" (disabled)

Example 1.12. Setting the received_avp module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "received_avp", "$avp(rcv)")

1.5.13. received_param (string)

The name of the parameter that will be appended to Contacts of 200 OK replies if the received URI is set by nathelper module.

Note

The value of this parameter should be the same as the value of corresponding parameter of nathelper module.

Default value is "received"

Example 1.13. Setting the received_param module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "received_param", "rcv")

1.5.14. max_contacts (integer)

This parameter can be used to limit the number of contacts per AOR (Address-of-Record) allowed at mid-registrar level. A value of 0 disables the check.

This is a global value and will only be used if no other value (for max_contacts) is passed as parameter to mid_registrar_save() (i.e. a "max_contacts" function flag will override this parameter)

Default value is 0 (disabled)

Example 1.14. Setting the max_contacts module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "max_contacts", 10)

1.5.15. retry_after (integer)

The mid-registrar can generate 5xx replies to registrations in various situations. It could, for example, happen when the max_contacts parameter is set and the processing of REGISTER request would exceed the limit. In this case, OpenSIPS would respond with "503 Service Unavailable".

If you want to add the Retry-After header field in 5xx replies, set this parameter to a value greater than zero (0 means: do not add the header field). See section 20.33 of RFC3261 for more details.

Default value is 0 (disabled)

Example 1.15. Setting the retry_after module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "retry_after", 30)

1.5.16. disable_gruu (integer)

Globally disable GRUU handling.

Default value is 1 (GRUUs will not be handled)

Example 1.16. Setting the gruu_secret module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "disable_gruu", 0)

1.5.17. gruu_secret (string)

The string that will be used in XORing when generating temporary GRUUs.

Default value is "0p3nS1pS"

Example 1.17. Setting the gruu_secret module parameter

modparam("mid_registrar", "gruu_secret", "my_secret")

1.6. Exported Functions

1.6.1.  mid_registrar_save(domain[, [flags][, [aor][, [outgoing_expires]]]])

Function to be called when handling REGISTER requests. This function decides if a REGISTER should be forwarded to the main registrar and performs all the necessary changes over the registered contacts. The function is also covering the handling of the 2xx REGISTER replies - the contacts confirmed by the main registrar will be automatically saved in the local user location (without any additional scripting).

In Contact/AOR throttling modes (more info about working modes in Section 1.2, “Working modes”), the return value of this function indicates whether the script writer must forward the REGISTER request to the main registrar, or just wrap up any left-over processing and exit script execution, as the current REGISTER request has been answered with 200 OK (absorbed at mid-registrar level).

Depending on the current working mode and insertion_mode, the function may additionally perform the following series of transformations when relaying REGISTER requests:

  • in "Contact throttling" mode

    • change the value of the Expires header field to the value of outgoing_expires, if given, otherwise the value given by the outgoing_expires module parameter. The same applies to any ";expires" Contact URI parameter.

    • replace the "host:port" part of all Contact URIs of the incoming REGISTER request with an OpenSIPS listening interface

    • append a parameter to each Contact URI, which will allow the module to match the reply contacts and also route calls. The name of this URI parameter is configurable via contact_match_param

    • append a "Path" header to the current REGISTER request

  • in "AOR throttling" mode

    • change the value of the Expires header field to the value of outgoing_expires, if given, otherwise the value given by the outgoing_expires module parameter.

    • replace all Contact header fields of the request with a single Contact header field, which will contain the following SIP URI: "sip:address-of-record@proxy_ip:proxy_port"

    • append a "Path" header to the current REGISTER request

Meaning of the parameters is as follows:

  • domain - logical domain within the registrar. If a database is used, then this must be name of the usrloc table which stores the contacts

  • flags (optional) - string of the following flags:

    • 'm' (Memory only) - save the contacts only in memory cache without no DB operation;

    • 'r' (no Reply) - do not generate a SIP reply to the current REGISTER request.

    • 'p0' (Path support - 'off' mode) The Path header is saved into usrloc, but is never included in the reply.

    • 'p1' (Path support - lazy mode) The Path header is saved into usrloc, but is only included in the reply if path support is indicated in the registration request by the path option of the Supported header.

    • 'p2' (Path support - strict mode) The path header is only saved into usrloc, if path support is indicated in the registration request by the path option of the Supported header. If no path support is indicated, the request is rejected with 420 - Bad Extension and the header Unsupported: path is included in the reply along with the received Path header. This mode is the one recommended by RFC-3327.

    • 'v' (path receiVed) if set, the received parameter of the first Path URI of a registration is set as received-uri and the NAT branch flag is set for this contact. This is useful if the registrar is placed behind a SIP loadbalancer, which passes the nat'ed UAC address as received parameter in it's Path uri.

    This parameter is a string composed of a set of flags.

  • aor (optional) - variable holding a custom Address-of-Record. If not given, the AOR will be taken from the To header URI

  • outgoing_expires (optional, only relevant in Contact/AOR throttling modes) - custom value for the contact expiration interval of the outgoing REGISTER request, which overrides the default outgoing_expires module parameter.

Return value

  • 1 (success) - current REGISTER request must be dispatched by the script writer over to the main registrar

  • 2 (success) - current REGISTER request has been absorbed by the mid-registrar; a 200 OK reply has been sent upstream

  • -1 (error) - generic error code; the logs should provide more help

This function can only be used from the request route.

Example 1.18. mid_registrar_save usage

...
if (is_method("REGISTER")) {
	mid_registrar_save("location");
	switch ($retcode) {
	case 1:
		xlog("L_INFO", "forwarding REGISTER to main registrar...\n");
		$ru = "sip:10.0.0.3:5070";
		if (!t_relay()) {
			send_reply("500", "Server Internal Error 1");
		}

		break;
	case 2:
		xlog("L_INFO", "REGISTER has been absorbed!\n");
		break;
	default:
		xlog("L_ERR", "mid-registrar error!\n");
		send_reply("500", "Server Internal Error 2");
	}

	exit;
}
...

1.6.2.  mid_registrar_lookup(domain[, [flags][, [aor]]])

Function to be called when receiving requests from the main registrar (to be routed to the end-user). It performs the local lookup (in user location) and the necessary RURI processing in order to route the requests further to the end-user registered contacts (note that multiple branches/destinations may result after the lookup).

Depending on the current working mode, the function will behave as follows:

  • in "mirror" mode

    • extract the username (Address-of-Record) from the Request-URI and look up all of its contact bindings stored in the user location. The Request-URI ($ru variable) will be overwritten with the highest q-value contact, with additional branches for each contact being optionally created. (depending on the flags parameter)

  • in "Contact throttling" mode

    • extract the contact_match_param from the Request-URI, derive the actual SIP URI of the destination from it and set it as the new Request-URI of the INVITE ($ru variable).

  • in "AOR throttling" mode

    • extract the username (Address-of-Record) from the Request-URI and look up all of its contact bindings stored in the user location. The Request-URI ($ru variable) will be overwritten with the highest q-value contact, with additional branches for each contact being optionally created. (depending on the flags parameter)

Meaning of the parameters is as follows:

  • domain - logical domain within the registrar. If a database is used, then this must be name of the usrloc table which stores the contacts

  • flags(optional)

    • 'b' (no Branches) - this flag controls how this function processes multiple contacts. If there are multiple contacts for the given username in usrloc and this flag is not set, Request-URI will be overwritten with the highest-q rated contact and the rest will be appended to sip_msg structure and can be later used by tm for forking. If the flag is set, only Request-URI will be overwritten with the highest-q rated contact and the rest will be left unprocessed.

    • 'r' (bRanch lookup) - this flag enables searching through existing branches for aor's and expanding them to contacts. For example, you have got AOR A in your ruri but you also want to forward your calls to AOR B. In order to do this, you must put AOR B in a branch, and if this flag enabled, the function will also expand AOR B to contacts, which will be put back into the branches. The AOR's that were in branches before the function call shall be removed.

      WARNING: if you want this flag activated, the 'b' (no Branches) flag must not be set, otherwise the lookup function will be unable to add new branches

    • 'm' (Method filtering) - this flag tells if the contact filtering based on supported methods should be performed during lookup.

    • 'u' (User-Agent filtering) - this flag enables regexp filtering by user-agent. It's useful with enabled append_branches parameter. Regexp must follow the 'u' flag and must use format like 'u/regexp/'.

    • 'i' (Case insensitive search) - this flag enables case insensitive filtering for the 'u' flag.

    • 'e' (Use extended regexp) - this flag enables using of extended regexp format for the 'u' flag.

  • aor (optional) - variable holding a custom Address-of-Record. If not given, the AOR will be taken from the Request-URI

Return value

  • 1 (success) - branch set successfully built

  • -1 (error) - generic error code; the logs should provide more help

This function can only be used from the request route.

Example 1.19. mid_registrar_lookup usage

...
	# initial invites from the main registrar - need to look them up!
	if (is_method("INVITE") and $si == "10.0.0.3" and $sp == 5070) {
		if (!mid_registrar_lookup("location")) {
			t_reply("404", "Not Found");
			exit;
		}

		if (!t_relay())
			send_reply("500", "Server Internal Error 3");

	    exit;
	}
...

Chapter 2. Contributors

2.1. By Commit Statistics

Table 2.1. Top contributors by DevScore(1), authored commits(2) and lines added/removed(3)

 NameDevScoreCommitsLines ++Lines --
1. Liviu Chircu (@liviuchircu)32786133687584
2. Chad Attermann (@attermann)75195
3. Bogdan-Andrei Iancu (@bogdan-iancu)3111
4. Razvan Crainea (@razvancrainea)3111
5. Italo Rossi2150

(1) DevScore = author_commits + author_lines_added / (project_lines_added / project_commits) + author_lines_deleted / (project_lines_deleted / project_commits)

(2) including any documentation-related commits, excluding merge commits. Regarding imported patches/code, we do our best to count the work on behalf of the proper owner, as per the "fix_authors" and "mod_renames" arrays in opensips/doc/build-contrib.sh. If you identify any patches/commits which do not get properly attributed to you, please submit a pull request which extends "fix_authors" and/or "mod_renames".

(3) ignoring whitespace edits, renamed files and auto-generated files

2.2. By Commit Activity

Table 2.2. Most recently active contributors(1) to this module

 NameCommit Activity
1. Liviu Chircu (@liviuchircu)Jul 2016 - Oct 2018
2. Italo RossiJul 2018 - Jul 2018
3. Bogdan-Andrei Iancu (@bogdan-iancu)Jun 2018 - Jun 2018
4. Chad Attermann (@attermann)Jun 2017 - Jul 2017
5. Razvan Crainea (@razvancrainea)Apr 2017 - Apr 2017

(1) including any documentation-related commits, excluding merge commits

Chapter 3. Documentation

3.1. Contributors

Last edited by: Bogdan-Andrei Iancu (@bogdan-iancu), Liviu Chircu (@liviuchircu).

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