Methods and devices for validating a video connection or other types of communication sessions over a computer network

A computer-implemented method of claim, comprising:

• receiving, over a computer network, a request from a computing device of a user accessing a page of a website;
• responsive to receiving the request, accessing the computing device and
• testing a physical configuration of the user's computing device to determine the computing device's ability to support communication sessions of different types;
• testing a software configuration of the user's computing device to determine the computing device's ability to support communication sessions of different types;
• testing and determining a bandwidth available between the user's computing device and one or more servers configured to enable communication sessions of different types;
• testing security software and devices configured to protect the computing device of the user against threats to determine whether communication sessions with the user's computing device will be allowed;
• and
• responsive to results of the testing, displaying an invitation, on the accessed page of the website, for the user to participate in a communication session that is appropriate to the physical configuration of the user's computing device, to the software configuration of the user's computing device, to the determined bandwidth between the user's computing device and the one or more servers and to the security software and devices protecting the computing device of the user.

A website accessed over a computer network, configured to:

• test a physical configuration of the user's computing device to determine the computing device's ability to support communication sessions of different types;
• test a software configuration of the user's computing device to determine the computing device's ability to support communication sessions of different types;
• test and determining a bandwidth available between the user's computing device and one or more servers configured to enable communication sessions of different types;
• and
• test security software and devices configured to protect the computing device of the user against threats to determine whether communication sessions with the user's computing device will be allowed,
• wherein the website is configured to, responsive to results of the testing, display an invitation, on the accessed page of the website, for the user to participate in a communication session that is appropriate to the physical configuration of the user's computing device, to the software configuration of the user's computing device, to the determined bandwidth between the user's computing device and the one or more servers and to the security software and devices protecting the computing device of the user.