Voice over IP (VoIP) and
Unified Messaging (UM) -NETS testing update
NCAB Presentation
19-Dec-2001
Jeff Custard
Teresa Shibao
Jim VanDyke
Outline for today’s presentation
Current System


Phone
Voice Mail
VoIP


Review
Compare current system to VoIP
Messaging


Review voice messaging and unified messaging
Compare current VM to new VM/UM options
Futures


Deployment
Remaining tests, etc.
Review of current phone and
voice mail system
Current telephone system


5 systems with over 2500 active ports
(phones, trunks)
Siemens 9751 v6.4
–


Components and software are proprietary
Redundant telephony processors at ML
and FL only
Using “Classic” ROLM phones from
previous systems, some purchased
w/original system in 1984
Current system life

Current PBXs scheduled
replacement for FY‘04, ‘05, ‘06, and
‘07
– Next generation traditional?
– VoIP solution?
– Telephony vendor’s platforms are
hybrid VoIP/traditional systems
Current voice messaging

ROLM PhoneMail v6.3
– PC/DOS-based systems
– 386/33mhz processors
1200 subscribers
 Backups only save database tables,
no messages/greetings
 ML and FL purchased 1991, due for
replacement this year

Voice over IP (VoIP)
VoIP
review
Phone basics
Data port on phone
Data port included on phone, keeps
port count down
 Changed physical infrastructure
requirements
 Two VLANs—1 for data; 1 for voice
 10/100 port; auto-negotiate or hardset

VoIP – a typical migration
Our deployed VoIP

NETS configuration
– Cisco Call Manager
– Cisco Unity
– IP Phones
– PBX connectivity

Marshall Field Site (MFS) production
network
Marshall Field Site (MFS)
4 analog lines on FXS ports on a
Cisco 3640
 2 Cisco 7960 IP phones

– 1 in data closet
– 1 over MFS WLAN

Current diagram:
Lessons learned so far
FXS ports only “drive” (i.e., ring) one analog
phone (with mechanical ringer)
 Echo cancellation settings require some tweaking
 We’ve learned a lot about dial-peers and call-legs
(VoIP call troubleshooting)
 For better perceived voice quality, turned “Voice
Activity Detection” (VAD) off
 QoS testing
– Early Field Test code is risky business!

IP phones tested
7910 (2x24 LCD display) “lobby phone” –
can get with or without switch
 7935 (conference phone) – initial test
results unsatisfactory

– Will try again on ISDN PRI PBX connection to
see if perceived voice quality improves
Cisco “Soft Phone”
 7960 (6 line phone with larger LCD screen)

– will soon be testing a 7914—14 line expansion
module
Call Manager
Compaq Proliant DL380 server
 Windows 2000 Server
 Internet Information Server 5
 Cisco Call Manager software

VoIP vs. traditional PBX

What’s the difference?
System administration
System administration
System redundancy
CM administration

Done via web interface
7960 user interface
Basic interaction with phone menus
 User configuration option on CM web
page

– Speed dial button updates
– Password changes
– Service subscription
– Personal directory (links to this in next
release of CM)
Phone feature comparisons
Voice Mail (VM)
and
Unified Messaging (UM)
Unified Messaging (UM)
– what is it?

“Converged” email, voice, and fax messaging
– email, voice and fax messages accessed from PC or
telephone


Text-to-speech module can read email over the
phone
Fax server allows centralized fax management
– view, print, or forward via email client

Browser-based personal administration
– allows users to make their own customizations
UM benefits:
Centralized communications control
 Browser-based administration
 Decentralized routine administration
 Scalable, redundant, fault-tolerant
system tools

Cisco Unity overview

Cisco Unity (formerly Active Voice)
– Compaq Proliant DL380 server
– Windows 2000 Server
– Exchange 2000 mail store
– SQL 2000 data store
– Internet Information Server 5
Cisco Unity

Heavily reliant on Microsoft products
(Windows 2000 server, Exchange 2000,
SQL 2000 server, Outlook client, Internet
Explorer for maintenance, etc.)
 Would need to purchase anti-virus
software for email server(s)
 Would need to purchase backup software
for server(s)
 Current vendor (Siemens) uses same
setup
Unity user interface overview

Basic voice-mail functionality (via the
phone)
“Active Assistant” web interface to
change phone mail options
 Email send/receive for voice mail
messages
 Outlook available via Exchange web
interface (not the same feature set as standard

Outlook client)

Fax send/receive
 LDAP server connectivity
Unity admin overview
Web interface for most tasks
 Standardized “digit interfaces”
coming

– numbers used for various functions will
change
Next testing steps

Install/test ISDN PRI T-1
– Digital lines between gateway and PBX
will replace current E&M analog lines

Continued CM and UM testing
– interaction with existing email servers
Continued QoS investigation/testing
 Continued fax server testing

Future
“Proof of concept” complete
 Should we work toward a deployment
phase now?

– Implies additional redundancy requirements
not present in our test bed

Traditional PBX
– “forklift” upgrade of everything at once

VoIP
– Incremental upgrade as ready
Future

Various approval processes (for which
options)?
– Voice-mail only (already approved and
budgeted)?
– Unified messaging?
– Fax server?

If done separately now, may not merge
well later—proceed now with unified
solution?
 What is the next step?
Wrap-up
NETS VoIP project page
 Cisco 7960 IP Phone tutorial
 Questions?
