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| Thread ID: 85290 | 2007-12-05 20:24:00 | Skype for business? Run from a network? | Oggy (5399) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 618204 | 2007-12-05 20:24:00 | We are a non-profit org with 3 locations around the country. It has been suggested that we could use Skype for communication between the three locations to keep our costs down. Questions: 1) Is Skype allowed to be used 'commercially' or is it just for private individuals? 2) Would it be practical to use it in a business sense including conference calls? (I've never used it so don't really know how it performs) 3) Can it be run on a network (we use Windows 2000 Server) or is it a separate install for each PC wishing to use it? 4) Is there a performance hit involved? I remember reading somewhere that your own PC's performance may be affected when other people are using Skype (or I may have mis-understood ... I do that a lot you know) |
Oggy (5399) | ||
| 618205 | 2007-12-05 20:55:00 | Hi, I wouldnt use skype in a business environment.....however maybe for non profit org, could be different. Skype may use 1 or more of your pc's as relays, which will both use your adsl data cap and\or slow down your machines. I think traffic on standard VoIP is about 64k per conversations. Video would be at least 3 times that. With ADSL, your upload would be 128k, so unless you have max\max broadband video is out of the question. I havent used skype before but believe both parties need the application installed, so you would only use it for like minded business. If you want it to run on your network, you would need proper VoIP services and the PABX would have to have an IP card (5K) in to work. I dont think skype is a network application. Basisly, i would stay clear of it unless you are calling overseas, then it would have a business case. Otherwise talk to Telstra\Vodaphone and say you are a non profit org, they will give you a better deal.... |
SolMiester (139) | ||
| 618206 | 2007-12-05 21:16:00 | if you are looking at VoIP for this then there are plenty of options available. The commercial option as above. is each location connected to each other directly or via the internet? You could use a VoIP service similar to skype, which with any of them you should be able to use hardware handsets that plug into your PC www.voipproviderslist.com is a list of NZ VoIP providers. have not checked them all out but they should have a free service option, where you may or may not need a call in number, which is what costs you. If you had the know how, you may even be able to run your own SIP server, although it is much easier if you use a provider, that way you can get a call in number for low cost. |
Cho (12330) | ||
| 618207 | 2007-12-05 22:58:00 | If you want it to run on your network, you would need proper VoIP services and the PABX would have to have an IP card (5K) in to work. I dont think skype is a network application. I thought that the PABX wouldn't be involved as the traffic would only be from my headset, thru my PC then via our ISP to a PC in one of our other two locations therefore bypassing the PABX? |
Oggy (5399) | ||
| 618208 | 2007-12-05 23:10:00 | I thought that the PABX wouldn't be involved as the traffic would only be from my headset, thru my PC then via our ISP to a PC in one of our other two locations therefore bypassing the PABX? You want free 1 phone to 1 other phone calls, the use Jaja. Skype is a security hole. |
pctek (84) | ||
| 618209 | 2007-12-06 00:49:00 | Skype is a security hole. Can you briefly explain why and how easy or practical it would be to exploit? |
Oggy (5399) | ||
| 618210 | 2007-12-06 01:16:00 | 1 Article here (www.heise-security.co.uk) Another Here (kylemanning.com) | wainuitech (129) | ||
| 618211 | 2007-12-06 01:33:00 | Opening Pandora's Box - Skype includes the ability to send and receive files similar to other peer-to-peer (P2P) programs and services. - Because the file transfers are over a proprietary encrypted channel (similar to HTTPS) the inbound file transfers can effectively bypass security mechanisms in the same way P2P networks do. - In this manner, confidential data could potentially be sent out over a Skype encrypted channel. Dousing Firewalls Yet another disturbing aspect of Skype is its ability to tunnel though firewalls without the user ever having to write a single line of code. Some products have begun adopting the use of Skype for its firewall-piercing capability, such as the Timbuktu Pro operating system which uses a Skype tunnel via the Skype API to automatically navigate through firewalls and routers to provide remote access and control to a workstation or home PC. The tunnel is created without the need for an active Skype call. To the hacker, this convenience also creates a myriad of opportunities for abuse. Botnets are a collection of compromised zombie computers running malicious programs under a common command and control infrastructure. - Its firewall piercing capability - With more than 5,000,000 Skype users typically on line at any one time, the traffic from a botnet herder to the individual zombie computer he/she controls via Skype will simply blend in with the other "normal" internet traffic Skype-related Malware Over the past six months, two different worms/Trojans associated with Skype have emerged and been documented. - A variant of the MyTob Trojan (AKA FanBot) disguised as a copy of Skype version 1.4 was being distributed via spam email across the internet. Any email recipient who clicked on the attachment was quickly compromised. - A Skype-specific Trojan, Warezov, appears as a chat message with the text "Check up this". If clicked by the user, additional malware is downloaded to the PC, installing a keylogger and sending the same message to each person in the user's Skype address book. Skype Supernode Skype's official End-User Licence Agreement (EULA) no longer mentions supernodes, but now says merely: "4.1 Permission to utilise your computer. In order to receive the benefits provided by the Skype Software, you hereby grant permission for the Skype Software to utilise the processor and bandwidth of your computer for the limited purpose of facilitating the communication between Skype Software users. " When a computer goes into supernode mode, Skype opens up a great number of network connections over TCP (Transmission Control Protocol, part of the Internet Protocol suite). In a posting on the Skype user forum bulletin board, a user describes how his Linksys router was overwhelmed by over 1,500 TCP connections being opened in supernode mode. So even though the bandwidth needed is quite small, the effect is that internet access grinds to a halt with DNS and web timeouts. |
pctek (84) | ||
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