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Wireshark-dev: Re: [Wireshark-dev] Global conversation

From: Stephen Fisher <steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 7 Oct 2011 09:31:30 -0600
On Fri, Oct 07, 2011 at 02:51:35PM +0200, Anders Broman wrote:

> Perhaps it could be done if we had a Global conversation to which you 
> cold add a List of per protocol conversations.

We could create a new set of conversation functions, such as:

	global_conversation_new()
	global_find_conversation()
	global_conversation_add_proto_data()

(Although using "global" makes them a bit long)

> One problem is to make it generic enough and in this particular 
> scenario the subscriber number or similar would be the thing gluing 
> the conversations together and that would only be Available in some 
> messages. Another problem is when to create the global conversation 
> e.g. what is the start.

Using a unique piece of information, such as the phone number, would 
allow each dissector that is capable of working with that global 
conversation to look up if it has already been created.  Perhaps two 
pieces of informatino would be needed: a type of information and the 
information, e.g. PHONE_NUMBER and "+11111111111" or something more 
generic like passing a string "phone-number" and then the number itself.  
It sounds like a good idea, but would just need a few decisions to be 
made first.