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Author here. I guess if there is enough interest from users, we could look into adding a full mesh mode. It's been a year so far with group calls and no one h

Author here. I guess if there is enough interest from users, we could look into adding a full mesh mode. It's been a year so far with group calls and no one has asked for it, probably because there isn't really much to be gained. Even 1:1 calls, which are p2p, sometimes need to be relayed through a TURN server.

1vuio0pswjnm7 5y ago
"Even 1:1 calls, which are p2p, sometimes need to be relayed through a TURN server." What percentage is "sometimes". For example, maybe it is only where two callers are behind the same NAT or some other situation that could be rare relative to the majority of calls. In any event, it sounds like TURN is not used unless it is needed. The same idea could apply with server forwarding, where forwarding is only used if it is needed. For a small group call, forwarding might not be necessary and full mesh might suffice. As one user, I would be interested in a full mesh option alongside a server forwarding option. There is P2P software for small groups I have always used that has a traffic forwarding (relaying) option after the peers are connected, but the default is direct connection, with no need for a relay. The forwarding option is useful for situations where it is needed, but it is not the default. Personally, I have never had to use it.
- pthatcherg 5y ago
  We don't have a percentage because for 1:1 calls, we don't even know how many calls there are (it's completely p2p), but I've ofte heard quoted somewhere between 5-10% of calls. Yes, TURN is only used if needed in those cases, and, yes, you could use a forwarding server instead of a TURN server (although with different tradeoffs). I'll add the full mesh option to our list of options for future work that we discuss regularly.
  - DarylZero 5y ago
    > We don't have a percentage because for 1:1 calls, we don't even know how many calls there are (it's completely p2p) Don't the clients have to coordinate through the server to share IPs? (One side at least.)
    - pthatcherg 5y ago
      Yes, that's called "signaling". In the case of Signal, it's done through Signal messages, which pass through a server. But the server doesn't know they are calling related messages. They could be any message.

1vuio0pswjnm7 5y ago

"Even 1:1 calls, which are p2p, sometimes need to be relayed through a TURN server." What percentage is "sometimes". For example, maybe it is only where two callers are behind the same NAT or some other situation that could be rare relative to the majority of calls. In any event, it sounds like TURN is not used unless it is needed. The same idea could apply with server forwarding, where forwarding is only used if it is needed. For a small group call, forwarding might not be necessary and full mesh might suffice. As one user, I would be interested in a full mesh option alongside a server forwarding option. There is P2P software for small groups I have always used that has a traffic forwarding (relaying) option after the peers are connected, but the default is direct connection, with no need for a relay. The forwarding option is useful for situations where it is needed, but it is not the default. Personally, I have never had to use it.

pthatcherg 5y ago
We don't have a percentage because for 1:1 calls, we don't even know how many calls there are (it's completely p2p), but I've ofte heard quoted somewhere between 5-10% of calls. Yes, TURN is only used if needed in those cases, and, yes, you could use a forwarding server instead of a TURN server (although with different tradeoffs). I'll add the full mesh option to our list of options for future work that we discuss regularly.
- DarylZero 5y ago
  > We don't have a percentage because for 1:1 calls, we don't even know how many calls there are (it's completely p2p) Don't the clients have to coordinate through the server to share IPs? (One side at least.)
  - pthatcherg 5y ago
    Yes, that's called "signaling". In the case of Signal, it's done through Signal messages, which pass through a server. But the server doesn't know they are calling related messages. They could be any message.