How to use StarLeaf with Skype for Business Online

Integrating Microsoft Skype for Business
Last updated April 20, 2021

This topic describes how to integrate your StarLeaf Cloud account with a Microsoft Skype for Business Online deployment.

Step one: Configure Skype for Business Online in the cloud

For your own StarLeaf organization, and for all other StarLeaf organizations with which you want to communicate, you need to ensure that Skype for Business Online (Office 365) allows communication as follows:

  1. Log in to portal.microsoftonline.com as an administrator for the Skype for Business organization.
  2. Click on the Admin tile. This takes you to the Admin center.
  3. Click on Admin centers > Skype for Business in the left-side panel. This takes you to the Skype for Business admin center.
  4. Click on Organization then click on the external communications tab. Either:
    1. Configure external access to On except for blocked domains and ensure <organization name>.call.sl is NOT present in the blocked or allowed domains table.
      or
    2. Configure external access to On only for allowed domains and ensure <organization name>.call.sl IS present in the blocked or allowed domains table.
      or
    3. Configure external access to Off completely. However, StarLeaf does not recommend this option as it is a security risk.

You must allow up to 24 hours for the changes to the external communications settings to take effect before you contact StarLeaf technical support.

Step two: Configure firewall for communication with StarLeaf

For each StarLeaf domain you wish to call, ensure your firewall allows traffic to/from the organization’s <organization name>.call.sl domain on the following in the following tables. If your firewall requires you to use IP addresses rather than DNS names, contact StarLeaf Support for the IP addresses. The following requirements are for outbound connections. Your firewall should also allow packets to flow inbound on established and related connections.

Outbound port requirements

From 365 Client To StarLeaf Cloud Reason
UDP 50000-50059 UDP 50000-59999 Audio/video media
TCP 50000-50059 TCP 50000-59999 Screen-share media

This configuration allows media to flow directly to StarLeaf Cloud to provide the best experience for the end user. If this configuration isn’t applied, you need to follow step three carefully to allow media to flow via the 365 servers . If you opt to follow step three without also following the instructions in step two, be aware that the quality may not be as good.

Step three: Configure firewall for communication with 365 servers in the cloud

Successful communication between your Skype for Business Online (Office 365) clients and the StarLeaf Cloud also relies on your firewall being correctly configured for communication between the clients and the 365 server in the cloud. This is extensively documented at:

https://support.office.com/en-gb/article/Office-365-URLs-and-IP-address-ranges-8548a211-3fe7-47cb-abb1-355ea5aa88a2?ui=en-US&rs=en-GB&ad=GB#BKMK_LYO

Ensure that both UDP and TCP connectivity is allowed.

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