P2P Chat and VoIP Application using UDP in Java

This repository contains the codebase of the Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Chat and VoIP application which will be developed as the main assignment for the Computer Networks II course. This course is taught as part of the curiculum of the Electrical and Computer Engineering department of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH) during the 2024-2025 academic year.

📚 Project Overview

The purpose of this project is to create a simple Peer-to-Peer (P2P) application that enables real-time chat and Voice over IP (VoIP) communication utilizing the UDP protocol in Java. This application will be based on java.net to handle network communications, providing a foundational understanding of network programming, concurrency, and instant messaging and multimedia dataexchange between two peers.

🛠️ Technologies Used

• Programming Language: Java
• Libraries & Frameworks:
  • java.net for networking
  • javax.sound for audio capture and playback
• Protocols:
  • UDP (User Datagram Protocol) for communication
• Tools:
  • Git for version control
  • Maven for build automation and project management for Java projects

✨ Features

• Instant messaging and voice data exchange using UDP
• Simplistic Graphic User Interface (GUI) instead of command line implementation
• Multithreaded architecture to enable concurent instant messaging and VoIP functionalities

🛠️ Pre-requisites

Please consider installing and using the following applications and tools for the assignment:

• Git: link
• Java 23 (although it is expected to work with any version from 1.8 and beyond): link
• Eclipse IDE for Enterprise Java and Web Developers: link
• Apache Maven: link

🚀 Installation

1. Clone the Repository:

   git clone https://github.com/siavvasm/CN2_AUTH_ChatAndVoIP.git

2. Import the code into the ECLIPSE IDE:

• In ECLIPSE IDE select File -> Import
• In the displayed Window select "Existing Maven Projects" anc click Next
• Them click on the Browse button and navigate inside the CN2_AUTH_ChatAndVoIP folder and click on the "Select Folder" button
• Check the checkbox with the "pom.xml" file and click Finish
• The CN2_AUTH_ChatAndVoIP application must be visible in the Navigation Pane of the ECLISPE IDE

📖 Assignment Instructions

Inside the codebase there is a single Java class named "App.java". This will be the central class of the Chat and VoIP application in which the main() method will reside.

In order to compile and execute the code you need to select the App.java class and click on the Run As option of ECLIPSE IDE and then select the "Run as Java Application" option. This will compile and run the source code. If the compilation is successful the GUI of the application will be displayed on your screen. The GUI is presented below:

As can be seen by the figure above, the application contains a Text Field that is used for writing the messages that need to be sent to the other peer, a Text Area for displaying the messages that have been sent or received, and two buttons. The "Send" button is responsible for sending the messages that are typed into the Text Field. The "Call" button is responsible for initiating a VoIP call with the remote peer (i.e., for starting listening for voice packets and sending voice packets captured from the computer's microphone).

As part of the assignment, you will need to implement the functionalities of the "Send" and "Call" buttons (as at the moment they are doing nothing).

Inside the codebase of the application, there are specific spaces in which you will need to complete by writing the appropriate source code. These are designated with the //TODO: comment tag. For example, you should search for parts of the following form:

// TODO: Your code goes here...
// TODO: Please define and initialize your variables here...

• This README file will be updated with additional instructions and hints in the upcoming days...

⚠️ ATTENTION:

• You must use the UDP protocol both for the Chat and for the VoIP implementations.
• You must utilize the native libraries that are provided by Java (java.net and javax.sound *).
• You cannot use any external dependency for this assignment.
• Firewall and Network Configuration: Ensure that your firewall settings allow UDP traffic on the specified ports. Incorrect configurations may prevent peers from connecting.
• Java Version: This application requires Java 1.8 or higher. Ensure that your JAVA_HOME environment variable is correctly set to the installed Java version.
• Audio Hardware: Proper functioning of VoIP features depends on the availability and correct configuration of audio input/output devices (e.g., microphone and speakers).

📄 Useful Material

• The original description of the assignment can be found here
• Additional content for the assignement will be uploaded here

📫 Contact:

For any questions, suggestions, or contributions, feel free to reach out:

• Email: [email protected], [email protected]