Multimedia communication control unit as a secure device for multimedia communication between lan users and other network users

A multimedia communications control unit configured to facilitate multimedia communication to a first endpoint on a first network secured by a firewall, comprising:

• a first logical port communicatively coupled to the first network;
• a second logical port communicatively coupled to a second network, the second network external to the firewall;
• and
• one or more processors, wherein the one or more processors are configured to:
• receive, at the second logical port, an indication of multimedia data streams between a second endpoint on the second network and the first endpoint on the first network, the multimedia communications control unit communicatively coupling the first and second network with a secure communication path that does not go through the firewall;
• select a multimedia data stream received at the second logical port that conforms to a multimedia communications protocol;
• provide the selected multimedia data stream to a common interface of the multimedia communications control unit, the common interface communicatively coupling the second logical port and the first logical port of the multimedia communications control unit;
• and
• initiate transfer of the selected multimedia data stream via the first logical port to the first endpoint via the secure communication path.

A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising instructions stored thereon to configure a processor to facilitate multimedia communication between a first endpoint on a first network secured by a firewall and a second endpoint on a second network external to the firewall, the instructions that when executed by the processor cause the processor to:

• receive, at a second logical port communicatively coupled to the second network, an indication of multimedia data streams between the second endpoint and the first endpoint;
• select a multimedia data stream received at the second logical port that conforms to a multimedia communications protocol;
• provide the selected multimedia data stream to a common interface communicatively coupling the second logical port and a first logical port, the first logical port communicatively coupled to the first network;
• and
• initiate transfer of the selected multimedia data stream through the first logical port to the first endpoint via a secure communication path that does not go through the firewall.