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Microsoft Using Linux To Optimize Skype Traffic

Posted by samzenpus on from the strange-bedfellows dept.

An anonymous reader writes "A security researcher believes that Microsoft has overhauled Skype, with thousands of Linux boxes serving as the 'supernodes' that route calls between users of the voice-over-IP service. Kostya Kortchinsky of Immunity Security 'discovered the Linux supernodes using a Skype probing technique he and colleague Fabrice Desclaux first demonstrated in 2006,' according to Ars Technica. The drastic infrastructure change doesn't affect the peer-to-peer nature of the calls between Skype users."

5 of 396 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Eh? This is how Skype works? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Because they switched from client supernodes to dedicated supernodes. Those of us interested in p2p architectures are interested. Go back to drooling on yourself.

  2. That's nice and all... by ZackSchil · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Good to hear that Skype will be a bit less fly-by-night and will have better call performance. But for two years now, the interface has been getting progressively worse and Skype credits have been exchanging for fewer and fewer minutes. The current version has no compact buddy list, requires a subscription for multiparty video, has giant ads on a useless "home" screen, and wants me to issue facebook updates of some shit. I have never uninstalled anything so fast in my life.

    Balance the traffic all you want, Microsoft. Skype is a sinking ship if you don't make it lighter, prettier, and cheaper.

    1. Re:That's nice and all... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      requires a subscription for multiparty video

      Google Hangouts. Generally provide equal or higher video resolution and audio quality and is free.

      Seriously folks, Skype sucks. It has sucked for a long time. There are better solutions available. And if you care, the last time I compared prices, Google's offerings were cheaper on all but one country I checked. Not trying to be a Google cheerleadering, but seriously, you can easily do better than skype.

      Hell, my brother is deployed overseas in a country I'm not supposed to name. We tried Google Hangouts for the first time two weeks ago. Keep in mind he's been raised on skype and that that was the cat's meow. After one 40-minute session between me and my two brothers, he said he'll be converting his wife next time he rotates home. Share videos? Share scribbles? Share desktop? All with hangouts. Its pretty fucking sweet - and free. And if you're wondering, the call quality, the one time he called me via Google's services was superior to skypes too.

      Seriously, finding a better solution than skype isn't hard. Its right in front of your face.

  3. Re:Eh? This is how Skype works? by CriticalAnalysis · · Score: 1, Interesting

    You mean like Xbox360, the winner of current console generation, Azure, used by Apple, Netflix and tons of other large companies for hosting their services in the cloud, having 32% of internet search market (DuckDuckGo and Yahoo included), relaunching of tons of great game franchises (Flight Simulator too), having the planet's best programming IDE (Visual Studio), closely working and owning large share of earth's largest social network Facebook and having the worlds largest mobile phone manufacturer Nokia by the balls?

    Yeah, seems quite irrelevant to me.

  4. Re:Eh? This is how Skype works? by Eponymous+Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    They aren't irrelevant, but they don't have the influence they once did. XBox hasn't made them much money, but it's probably their most respected consumer product. Microsoft is really just an Office + Windows company selling to corporations these days. They are interesting in the same way that Oracle or Cisco are interesting.

    They have a huge pile of cash, so you can never count them out, but I would say their bullying is over (except for patent trolling) because they have lost their best talent. They are trying to compete with a B-level team.