Support

Call End Reasons Explained

 

Do you want to know…

What really happened when you received "Error ###: Your call was unable to be completed."?

This post is intended to give you a better idea of why a call ended / failed and what the error number at the end of a call means.

Overview

Dell Video Chat is SIP based (http://www.voip-info.org/wiki/view/SIP) and at the end of every call it receives a SIP Response Code. SIP predefines most of these response codes (#100 - #699). A response code outside of this range (#0-#99) is used when SIP lacks the richness that Dell Video Chat requires. This response code is used as an "end call reason".

At the end of every call, Dell Video Chat writes the end call reason to the debug log. The code below is an example of what might be recorded to the log as an "end call reason".

Code: Gui: Sip call end: ### id: SOMELONGSETOFCHARACTERS
The "end call reason" is also the error number used if a call ends in a non-specific or erroneous state ("Error ###: Your call was unable to be completed.").

Below is a listing of some of the "end call reasons". If the "end call reason" you’re looking for is not below, you should be able to find out more about the underlying response code here:
http://www.voip-info.org/wiki/view/SIP+response+codes
or in RFC 3261 -Section 21 here:
http://www.faqs.org/rfcs/rfc3261.html

Generally, the "end call reasons" fall into the following categories:

• 000-099 - Dell Video Chat Specific
• 100-199 - SIP 1xx - Provisional (Failure)
• 200-299 - SIP 2xx - Successful
• 300-399 - SIP 3xx - Redirection (Failure)
• 400-499 - SIP 4xx - Request Failure
• 500-599 - SIP 5xx - Server / Service Failure
• 600-699 - SIP 6xx - Global Failure

Specific call end reasons and what they mean:
• 000-099 - Dell Video Chat Specific

• 0 - User Hang-up
• 5 - Peer to Peer Connection Failure (Could not negotiate firewall. See support site about opening ports 9000-9005.)
• 10 - Codec Negotiation Failure
• 11 - Size Negotiation Failure
• 12 - Discovery Failure (Could not negotiate firewall. See support site about opening ports 9000-9005.)
• 13 - Media Negotiation Failure
• 14 - Media Start Failure
• 16 - Media Timeout
• 17 - Media Timeout (During downsize to accommodate network conditions)
• 97 - Initiator cancelled call before recipient answered
• 99 - Call Timer Expired (Allotted amount of time for this call has been exceeded.)

• 100-199 - SIP 1xx - Provisional (Failure)

• 200-299 - SIP 2xx - Success list
• 200 – OK (Either the call is in progress or both parties ceased their network connection to the Dell Video Chat servers.)
• 202 – Accepted

• 300-399 - SIP 3xx - Redirection (Failure)

• 400-499 - SIP 4xx - Request Failure
• 400 - Bad Request
• 401 - Unauthorized
• 402 - Payment Required PSTN/Phone Call - Insufficient funds exist to make a call of at least 2 minutes.
• 403 - Forbidden
• 404 - Not Found
PSTN/Phone Call - The requested number could not be routed to its destination. Verify the number is valid and in the proper format.  Video Call - The requested user is offline

• 408 - Request Timed Out - A timeout occurred while attempting to contact the next "hop". This could be between:
   The initiator and the Dell Video Chat servers
   The Dell Video Chat Servers and a partner (PSTN)
   A partner and their partners
   The destination server and the destination client
   This is often caused by the other party's Dell Video Chat being forcibly taken   offline without a chance to send out notification it went away. This may be caused by the other party's computer going to sleep, shutting down, or by Dell Video Chat being force quit.
• 416 - Unsupported URI
• 480 - Temporarily Unavailable (The other party did not answer the call.)
• 482 - Loop Detected
• 484 - Address Incomplete
• 486 - Busy Here - The recipient is busy and unable to take the call.
• 487 - Request Terminated
• 488 - Not Acceptable Here   One of the parties has blocked receiving calls from the other.

• 500-599 - SIP 5xx - Server / Service Failure
• 500 - Internal Server Error
PSTN/Phone Call - [Usually] A partner is unable to handle the call properly.
Video Call - The call entered a problematic state. Try again in a few minutes.

• 502 - Bad Gateway
• 503 - Service Unavailable
Can be caused by some firewalls. Specifically CA's ZoneAlarm or ETrust software firewalls. If you encounter this message regularly when making a call, try using the built in Windows Firewall instead.

• 600-699 - SIP 6xx - Global Failure
• 600 - Busy Everywhere

 

 

Contact Status set to Do Not Disturb

 

Your video call could not be completed because the contact you are trying to reach wishes not to be disturbed.

 

Dell Video Chat Server Issues

 

Your video call could not be completed because the Dell Video Chat Service is currently experiencing issues.  Please try again later.

 

 

Error 408

 

The 408 error means that the call attempt received no response and while waiting for a response it timed out.  These are normally temporary errors that will usually resolve themselves.  You may need to attempt the call at another time.  If, however, you find that the problem persists, contact Dell Video Chat Support. Include the contact you were attempting to call, when you last attempted to call and how many times you attempted to call this contact.

 

Error 500

 

The usual culprit is a firewall interfering with SIP communication.  If you encounter this message regularly when making a call, try using the built in Windows Firewall instead.

 

Diagnosing:

    o Turn off your Software firewalls and if possible, directly connect to the internet connection (cable, DSL, etc). Try running Dell Video Chat again;

   if your problem clears up, it was caused by a firewall and you may need to implement a special firewall configuration.  Visit the firewall configuration pages and follow the instructions there.
   If not, Contact Dell Video Chat Support.    Include the contact you were attempting to call, when you last attempted to call and how many times you attempted to call this contact.

 

Error 503

 

The 503 error means that somewhere along the line in the call you reached a destination that is not available.   You need to determine where this happened.

If you were attempting to make a Video chat/call:

• Try calling yourself (add yourself to your contact list). If you can successfully do this then the problem is not local to you.   If not...
  Check your internet connection plugs or wireless router and make sure all are in place and undamaged.
  Make sure you are indeed receiving internet service.
  Check your firewall settings as they may be blocking Dell Video Chat.
• Also, try calling the Fish Tank demo and another contact or two.   If you can successfully do this then the problem is with the callee as you are able to make calls successfully.  If not, Contact Dell Video Chat Support.    Include the contact you were attempting to call, when you last attempted to call, and how many times you attempted to call this contact.

If you were attempting to make a voice call…

• Try calling the number from a regular phone line. If you’re unsuccessful the problem is not Dell Video Chat related.  If not, contact Dell Video Chat Support.  Include the phone number you were attempting to call, their state and country, when you last attempted to call and how many times you attempted to call this contact.

Firewall Problem

Your call could not be completed because Dell Video Chat has detected that you are unable to connect due to firewall configuration.
A firewall is blocking this conference from starting.
If you have made successful connections before this, then it is most likely a firewall problem with the other party. If you have not been successful at making connections, your firewall is either not configured or configured incorrectly. Please see the Firewall Section of our Support Pages for help.

Return Call

 

Your video call could not be completed because the other party is not on your contact list.

 

Video Card Hardware Error

 

Your video card does not support hardware acceleration or is currently set in software mode.
Dell Video Chat detects when a video card is not supported. Dell Video Chat, like other multimedia applications, needs certain features from a video card for optimal performance.

Dell Video Chat will display the above error with the following scenarios:

    A. The video card and drivers have the necessary features installed, but they are turned off in the Window settings.
    B. The video card does have the supported features, but the drivers installed with the video card do not have these features turned on.
    C. The video card does not support certain features needed by Dell Video Chat to perform optimally.

 

Scenario A - The video card and drivers have the necessary features installed, but they are turned off in the Window settings.

 

Tips:
Your video hardware acceleration level is not set to full.
By default, Windows sets your video hardware acceleration to full. This is the default optimal setting, and allows Windows applications to fully utilize your video card's capabilities. Certain situations can occur in Windows that will set the acceleration to a lower level, preventing Dell Video Chat and other multimedia applications to perform correctly.

To reset your video hardware acceleration back to full, perform these steps:

1. Right-click on any open area on your desktop.
   
2. From the resulting menu, select Properties.
   
3. In the resulting Display Properties window, select the Settings tab
   
4. Click on the Advanced tab in the lower right hand corner.
   
5. In the Advanced menu, click on the Troubleshooting tab.
   
6. In the Troubleshoot window, set the Hardware Acceleration Slider all the way to the right (Full).
   
7. Click OK.
     

Display Settings are set to 16 bit color mode.
Dell Video Chat needs to be run in 32 bit color mode for optimal performance. To change these settings, follow these steps:

1. Right-click on any open space on the Windows Desktop.
   
2. From the menu, click on Properties.
   
3. In the Display Properties window, select the Settings Tab.
   
4. You will see a slider bar labeled "Screen Resolution". You can change the resolution of your desktop here.
   
5. You will see a drop down list labeled "Color Quality". You can change your display colors here.

 

Scenario B - The video card does have the supported features, but the drivers installed with the video card do not have these features turned on.
Note: Drivers that are packaged with Windows XP do not have full support.

 

Tips:
Find your video card manufacturer's website, and ensure you have the latest drivers installed.
Older driver versions may not have certain features Dell Video Chat and other multimedia applications need to display video properly.
You can find out your video card name and manufacturer by using these steps:

1. Right-click on any open area on your desktop.
   
2. From the resulting menu, select Properties.
   
3. In the resulting Display Properties window, select the Settings tab
   
4. Your video card will be listed under the Display Section in the Settings Section.
   Once you have identified the name of your video card, contact the manufacturer or visit their web page to obtain the latest video card display drivers.

 

Scenario C - The video card does not support certain features needed by Dell Video Chat to perform optimally

 

Tips
To use Dell Video Chat, or other multimedia applications, you will need a video card that supports features of Direct X 7 or above... You can contact your video card manufacturer to inquire about your video card's Direct X 7 capabilities, or upgrade to a video card that has Direct X 7 support.

 

Your Multi-Party Call could not be completed

 

This is often due to low or disrupted internet connection speed.