Cisco Unified Communication Manager Part-2

We are going to cover step by step configuration & integration of Cisco Unified Communication Manager with others Cisco Unified Communication portfolio products.

CUCM Initial Configuration

Once the CUCM installation has been completed, some initial configuration has to be done in the preparation of endpoint provisioning.

Network settings: Basic network settings including Network Time Protocol (NTP), Domain Name System (DNS), and DHCP should be addressed before initial endpoint deployment.

Network and feature services: CUCM servers run network services (automatically activated) and feature services (activated by the administrator). After installation, network services should be checked and desired feature services should be activated. A CUCM cluster can consist of up to 20 servers. Each server can fulfill different tasks, such as running a TFTP or DHCP server, being the database publisher, processing calls (subscribers), and providing media resources. Depending on the usage of a server, different services have to be activated on the system.

There are two types of services on CUCM servers

Network services: Network services are automatically activated and are required for the operation of the server. Network services cannot be activated or deactivated by the administrator, but they can be stopped, started, or restarted from the Cisco Unified Serviceability web interface. Choose Tools > Control Center > Network Services.

Network services are the operating system services that CUCM relies on. Network services are summarized as follows:

•  Performance and monitoring services: Cisco CallManager Serviceability RTMT,Cisco RTMT Reporter
•  Backup and restore services: Cisco DRF Master, Cisco DRF Local System Services:       Cisco CallManager Serviceability, Cisco CDP, Cisco Trace Collection Service
•  Platform services: Cisco Database, Cisco Tomcat, SNMP Master Agent
• DB services: Cisco Database Layer Monitor
• Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) services: SOAP Real Time Service APIs and so on
• CM services: Cisco CallManager Personal Directory, Cisco Extension Mobility Application,    Cisco CallManager Cisco IP Phone Services
• CDR services: Cisco CDR Repository Manager, CDR Agent
•  Admin services: Cisco CallManager Admin

Feature services: Feature services can be activated or deactivated on a per-server basis to assign specific tasks or functions (call processing, TFTP, DHCP) to a certain server. Feature services can be activated and deactivated by the administrator from the Cisco Unified Serviceability web interface (Tools > Service Activation). Feature services can be started, stopped, or restarted from the Cisco Unified Serviceability web interface (Tools > Control Center > Feature Services).

Feature services are the CUCM-related services that run on top of the operating system and database. Feature services are summarized as follows

• Database and admin services: Cisco AXL Web Service, Cisco Bulk Provisioning Service, Cisco     TAPS Service
• Performance and monitoring services: Cisco Serviceability Reporter, Cisco CallManager SNMP Service
• CM services: Cisco CallManager, Cisco TFTP, Cisco CTIManager, Cisco Extension Mobility
• Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) services: Cisco CallManager Attendant Console Server, Cisco IP Manager Assistant, Cisco WebDialer Web Service
• CDR services: Cisco SOAP, including CDRonDemand Service, Cisco CAR Scheduler, Cisco CAR Web Service
• Security services: Cisco CTL Provider, Cisco Certificate Proxy Function
• Directory services: Cisco DirSync
• Voice quality reporter services: Cisco Extended Functions

Enterprise parameters: CUCM has some cluster-wide configuration settings called enterprise parameters. Some enterprise parameters will be modified in most deployments

Service parameters: CUCM services have configurable parameters that are set on a per-CUCM server. Some service parameter default values will be modified in a standard deployment.

 

Let's start with Cisco Unified CM  Administration configuration menu. following snapshot showing the configuration option available in each menu bar.

 

 

I will start with overview of each option and then we will move to configuration part to get to know how to use these options in different deployment and scenario.

 

SYSTEM Menu

 

Server: Use the server configuration to specify the address of the server where Cisco Unified Communications Manager is installed. If your network uses Domain Name System (DNS) services, you can specify the host name of the server. If your network does not use DNS services then you must specify the IP address of the server

Cisco Unified CM: Use Cisco Unified Communications Manager configuration to specify the ports and other properties for each Cisco Unified Communications Manager that is installed in the same cluster. A cluster comprises a set of Cisco Unified Communications Managers that enables redundancy. For the first node in a Cisco Unified Communications Manager cluster, the server gets automatically added as part of the installation. To add additional Cisco Unified Communications Managers to a cluster, the administrator must configure a server (by using Server Configuration) and then add the Cisco Unified Communications Manager (by using Cisco Unified Communications Manager Configuration). This procedure repeats for each Cisco Unified Communications Manager that is in the cluster

Cisco Unified CM Group: A Cisco Unified Communications Manager Group specifies a prioritized list of up to three Cisco Unified Communications Managers. The first Cisco Unified Communications Manager in the list serves as the primary Cisco Unified Communications Manager for that group, and the other members of the group serve as secondary and tertiary (backup) Cisco Unified Communications Managers. Cisco Unified CM Groups provide important features for your system:

• Redundancy—this feature enables you to designate a primary and backup Cisco Unified Communications Managers for each group.

• Call processing load balancing—this feature enables you to distribute the control of devices across multiple Cisco Unified Communications Managers.

Phone NTP Reference: You can configure phone Network Time Protocol (NTP) references in Cisco Unified Communications Manager Administration to ensure that a phone that is running gets its date and time from the NTP server. After you add the phone NTP reference to Cisco Unified Communications Manager Administration, you must add it to a date/time group. In the date/time group, you prioritize the phone NTP references, starting with the first server that you want the phone to contact.

Date/Time Group Configuration: Use Date/Time Groups to define time zones for the various devices that are connected to Cisco Unified Communications Manager. Each device exists as a member of only one device pool, and each device pool has only one assigned Date/Time Group.

Presence Group Configuration: When you configure Presence in Cisco Unified Communications Manager Administration, an interested party, known as a watcher, can monitor the real-time status of a directory number or SIP URI, a presence entity, from the device of the watcher. Cisco Unified Communications Manager controls which destinations a watcher can monitor with presence groups. A presence group contains watchers and the destinations that can be monitored by the watchers in the group. To allow watchers in one group to monitor directory numbers in other groups, you specify permission settings to allow or block (disallow) the presence request. Presence authorization works with the presence groups that are configured to ensure that a watcher has permission to monitor the status of a destination.

Region Configuration: we use regions to specify the bandwidth that is used for audio and video calls within a region and between existing regions.

Device Pool Configuration: Device pools define sets of common characteristics for devices. The device pool structure supports the separation of user and location information. The device pool contains only device and location-related information. Like Region, Date/Time Group, CM Group and SRST information for respective site or location. Ensure that each device is associated with a device pool and with a common device configuration for user-oriented information

Device Mobility: Device mobility groups represent the highest level geographic entities in your network. Depending upon the network size and scope, your device mobility groups could represent countries, regions, states or provinces, cities, or other entities. For example, an enterprise with a worldwide network might choose device mobility groups that represent individual countries, whereas an enterprise with a national or regional network might define device mobility groups that represent states, provinces, or cities

DHCP: You can configuration Cisco Unified Communication Manager as DHCP as well to assign the IP addresses to IP Phones.

LDAP: We can this option to integrate the Unified CM with external Directory services server like Windows Activity directory services to use ADS user credential for unified Communication services. So users don’t have to memories separate credential for each service.

Location: Use locations to implement call admission control in a centralized call-processing system. Call admission control enables you to regulate audio quality and video availability by limiting the amount of bandwidth that is available for audio and video calls over links between the locations.

Physical Location: Physical locations provide a means of distinguishing the parameters that relate to a specific geographical location from other parameters. For example, a media resources server may serve a specific office or campus within the enterprise. When a device roams to another office or campus and reregisters with Cisco Unified Communications Manager, you want to have the media resources server at the roaming location serve the device. By defining the physical location according to availability of media services, you can assure efficient and cost-effective reassignment of services as devices move from one physical location to another.

SRST: A survivable remote site telephony (SRST) reference comprises the gateway that can provide limited Cisco Unified Communications Manager functionality when all other Cisco Unified Communications Manager servers for a device are unreachable. Typically assigned to device pools, SRST references determine the gateways where calling devices search when they attempt to complete a call if Cisco Unified Communications Manager is unavailable

MLPP: An MLPP domain specifies the collection of devices and resources that are associated with an MLPP subscriber. When an MLPP subscriber that belongs to a particular domain places a precedence call to another MLPP subscriber that belongs to the same domain, MLPP service can preempt the existing call that the called MLPP subscriber is on for a higher precedence call. MLPP service availability does not go across different domains.

Enterprise Parameters: Enterprise parameters provide default settings that apply to all devices and services in the same cluster. (A cluster comprises a set of Cisco Unified Communications Managers that share the same database.)

Service parameters: Service parameters for Cisco Unified Communications Manager allow you to configure different services on selected servers. You can view a list of parameters and their descriptions by clicking the question mark button in the Service Parameter Configuration window. You can view the list with a particular parameter at the top by clicking that parameter.

Security Profile: Security Profile includes security-related settings such as device security mode, SIP Trunk, CUMA server, CAPF settings, digest authentication settings (only for phones that are running SIP), and encrypted configuration file settings.

Application Server: You can use the Application Server in Cisco Unified Communications Manager Administration to maintain associations between the Cisco Unified Communications Manager and off-cluster, external applications, such as Cisco Unity Connection and Cisco Unified Presence, and to synchronize Cisco Unified Communications Manager systems and other applications.

Licensing: You can install the license and get the license unit report to display the total license capacity and the number of licenses in use. This tool generates a report that lists the total number of available licenses. The license unit report also displays the software license version that is installed on the Cisco Unified Communications Manager.
 

Call Routing Menu

AAR GROUP: Automated alternate routing (AAR) provides a mechanism to reroute calls through the PSTN or other network by using an alternate number when Cisco Unified Communications Manager blocks a call due to insufficient location bandwidth. With automated alternate routing, the caller does not need to hang up and redial the called party. The AAR group represents the dialing area where the line/directory number (DN), the Cisco voice mail port, and the gateway are located.

Dial Rule: The administrator uses dial rules configuration to add and sort the priority of dialing rules. Dial rules for applications such as Cisco Unified Communications Manager Assistant automatically strip numbers from or add numbers to telephone numbers that a user dials. For example, the dial rules automatically add the digit 9 in front of a 7-digit telephone number to provide access to an outside line.

Route Filter: Route filters, along with route patterns/hunt pilots, use dialed-digit strings to determine how a call is handled. Route filters only apply when you configure a pattern that contains the at (@) wildcard. When the route pattern/hunt pilot contains the @ wildcard, Cisco Unified Communications Manager routes calls according to the numbering plan that is specified in the Numbering Plan drop-down list box. The route filter window that Cisco Unified Communications Manager displays varies according to the numbering plan that you select.

Route Hunt:  Route hunt having key role in Unified communication Manager dial-plan configuration in form of Line-group, Hint-List, Hint-Pilot, Route Group, Route List and Route Pattern.

SIP Route Pattern: Cisco Unified Communications Manager uses SIP route patterns to route or block both internal and external calls

Class of Control: Partition and Calling Search Space important part of class of control. A partition contains a list of route patterns (directory number (DN) and route patterns). Partitions facilitate call routing by dividing the route plan into logical subsets that are based on organization, location, and call type A calling search space comprises an ordered list of route partitions that are typically assigned to devices. Calling search spaces determine the partitions that calling devices search when they are attempting to complete a call

Translation Pattern: Cisco Unified Communications Manager uses translation patterns to manipulate dialed digits before it routes a call. In some cases, the system does not use the dialed number. In other cases, the public switched telephone network (PSTN) does not recognize the dialed number.

Meet-Me Number: Meet-Me conferences require an allocation of directory numbers. Cisco Unified Communications Manager Administration provides the Meet-Me conference directory number range to users, so they can access the feature.