Lucent Technologies 101-1620-005 User Manual
Octel Unified Messenger
Concepts and Planning Guide
101-1620-005
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Unified Messenger Documentation Team
Lucent Technologies, Octel Messaging Division
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USA
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http://www.octel.com/um
E-mail: unified.messenger@octel.com
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right to copy this document is granted to authorized resellers and customers for their use and the use of their
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Copyright 1996-1999 Octel Communications Corporation, a subsidiary of Lucent Technologies. All rights
reserved.
TM
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or ® symbol are trademarks or registered trademarks, respectively, of Octel
Communications Corporation, a subsidiary of Lucent Technologies. All other trademarks belong to their
respective owners. Printed in the USA.
U.S. Government Restricted Rights Notice
This software is provided with RESTRICTED RIGHTS. Use, duplication, or disclosure by the Government is
subject to restrictions as set forth in subparagraphs (c)(1) and (2) of the Commercial Computer Software Restricted Rights clause at FAR Section §52.227-19, in the applicable software license agreement pursuant to
DFARS §227.7202-3(a) (1995), or in (c)(1)(ii) of the Rights in Technical Data and Computer Software clause at
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laws of the United States. Contractor/Manufacturer is Octel Communications Corporation, a subsidiary of
Lucent Technologies, 1001 Murphy Ranch Road, Mi l pitas, CA 95035-7912, US A.
Overview
Preface
This guide provides:
n Guidelines for planning and sizing a new installation.
n A descript ion of the hardware and software comp onents of Octel
Unified Messenger.
n The concepts underlying Octel Unified Messenger, including
voice mail domai ns, addressing, client and serv er ope rat io ns, and
telephony concepts.
Audience
This guide is intended for use by anyone recommending, purchasing, or
installing Octel Unified Messenger. Readers should be familiar with the
concepts and operation of Windows NT and Microsoft Exchange.
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Octel Unified Messenger Concepts & Planning Guide
Octel Unified Messenger documentation
See the following documentation for more information about Octel
Unified Messenger:
Installation Guide, 101-1621-005
Provides information on the installation process.
Available on the Octel Unified Messenger CD-ROM.
Administrator’s Guide, 101-1618-005
Provides information on ad ministering the Octel Unified Messenger
system.
Available on the Octel Unified Messenger CD-ROM.
Subscriber’s Reference Guide, 101-1619-005
Provides information on using Octel Unified Messenger client
applications.
Available on the Octel Unified Messenger CD-ROM.
Unified Messenger At-A-Glance, 101-1622-004
Provides at-a-glance information on using Octel Unified Messenger from
the telephone user interface.
Configur ati on No te s
Provides integration information for types of PBX and fax devices.
Available from your Octel Unified Messenger support representative.
Rhetorex User’s Guide for AccuCall+ for Windows 95 and Windows NT,
Revision 1.0, 201-0048-000
Provides information on configuring the voice board driver software to
communicate with a PBX.
Available on the Octel Unified Messenger CD-ROM.
Rhetorex Hardware and Software Installation Guide for Windows 95 and
Windows NT, 201-0050-000
Provides information on installing a Rhetorex Voice Processing board,
and on installing and configuring Rhetorex driver software and firmware.
Available on the Octel Unified Messenger CD-ROM.
iv 101-1620-005
Unified Messenger Online Support
For Octel Unified Messenger support, contact your Octel Unified
Messenger support representative.
For important, up-to-date information on Octel Unified Messenger, see
the Readme file available on the Octel Unified Messenger C D-ROM.
Conventions
The following conventions are used in this guide:
Convention Description
Preface
ALL
CAPITALS
Initial Capitals Names of applications, programs, menu items, and
italic type Book titles.
Filenames and extensions, directory names, paths,
and acronyms.
dialog boxes.
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Contents
Chapter 1 Introducing Octel Unified Messenger
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-2
Product features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-3
The unified mailbox. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-4
Telephone user interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-5
PC user interface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 -5
Networked components. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-6
Microsoft Exchange Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-6
Voice server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-7
Tracing server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 -7
Fax server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-8
PBX. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-9
TUI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-9
LAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-10
PC user interface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 -10
Benefits summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-11
Subscriber convenience. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-11
Ease of administration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-11
Send messages near and far . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-11
Chapter 2 Sizing the system
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-2
Design rules for voice mail domains. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-3
Sizing ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-4
Calculating the number of voice servers required. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-9
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Hardware and software requirements for Octel Unified Messenger servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
Evaluating the additional load on Microsoft Exchange servers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Evaluating the additional network traffic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Using Octel Unified Messenger via slow network connections. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Using multimedia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
ConfigurationUsing the telephone. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
The effect of slow network connections on Octel Unified Messenger applications . . . . . . 2-19
Octel Unified Messenger interoperability with third-party fax servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Requireme nts for third-p arty fax server interoperability with Octel Unified Messenger . . 2-2 1
Enabling Octel Unified Messenger subscribers for fax. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-21
Routing inbound fax calls to the third-party fax server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-22
Chapter 3 System architecture
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Voice mail domain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Addressing messages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
System components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Client components. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Server components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8
PBX integration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10
Audio encoding formats. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12
Chapter 4 Designing addressing schemes
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2
Local mailbox numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3
Dial-by-Name. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
Numeric addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-5
Chapter 5 Providing interoperability with existing Octel servers
Introduction to OctelNet ™ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
OctelNet Messaging Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Designing an OctelNet addressing scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Prefix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Additional digits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Mailbox length. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
OctelNet addressing scheme design rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Addressing OctelNet messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Addressing OctelNet messages from Octel Unified Messenger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
viii 101-1620-005
Addressing OctelNet messages to Octel Unified Messenger recipients. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-7
Providing single-site interoperability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 -8
Automatic mailbox forwarding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-8
Chapter 6 Connecting with the PBX
and establishing security rules
Connecting with the PBX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-2
Establishing security rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-3
Access to voice mail domain administration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-3
Access to subscriber accounts administration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-3
Access to subscriber mailboxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-3
Appendix A Appendix A - Sizing for ports
Calculating the number of supported subscribers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-2
Appendix B Appendix B - Grade of service
Contents
Calculating busy hour traffic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-2
Glossary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GL-1
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .IN-1
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PART 1
CONCEPTS
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1
Introducing Octel Unified Messenger
This chapter introduces Octel Unified Messenger and discusses the
following top ics:
n Octel Unified Messenger product features.
n The “unified mailbox” concept.
n Networked components of the Octel Unified Messenger
environment.
n Benefits of using Octel Unified Messenger.
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Octel Unified Messenger Concepts & Planning Guide
Introduction
Today e-mail, voice mail, and fax are established as strategic, enabling
technologies at companies large and small. As a result, people are
receiving both a larger volume and more types of messages than ever
before.
However, each kind of mes sag e typically requires its own access medium
(telephone, personal computer, or fax device) and support structure
(capital equipment, management tools, and service procedures). The task
of retrieving, prioritizing, and storing messages can be inconvenient,
complex, and time-consuming, even though messaging should enhance
and streamline the communications process.
To make this task easier, Octel Unified Me ss enger provides the follo w i ng
features:
n Messaging con venience
Octel Unified Me ssenger enables everyone to view, listen to,
send, store, and retri eve all their messages from one mailbox (the
“unified mailbox”) with whatever access tool is the most
convenient at any particular time: telephone, desktop computer,
portable computer, or fax device.
n Simplified messaging management
With Octel Unified Messenger, organizations can simplify
communications administration, maintain accurate messaging
directories, and reduce communication costs.
n Interoperability
Utilizing OctelNet, Octel Unified Messenger systems
interoperate with other Lucent Technologies Octel Messaging
Division (OMD) voice messaging systems. This means that
subscribers can exchange voice messages with users on other
Octel messaging servers t hat support O ctelNet.
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Product features
OMD uses th e next-generation client/server messaging system Microsof t
Exchange Server to deliver a truly unified messaging architecture that
meets the mission-critical demands of even the largest organization.
Specific features of Octel Un ified Messenger include:
Introducing Octel Unified Messenger
n A single unified view of messages using the Exchange Server
mailbox.
n Telephone access to the Exchange Server mailbox.
n Fax, voice, and e-mail management using personal folders in
Microsoft Exchange or Microsoft Outlook.
n A single data store for all messages in the Microsoft Exchange
Server.
n A common, enterprise-wide directory for all messages.
n A single point of administration through enhanced Microsoft
Exchange Server administration.
n Text-to-speech (TTS) delivery of e-mail and fax subject headers
or the entire body of text messages.
n Fax delivery of e-mail messages (including attachments) using
third-party fax servers.
n Voice message playback through multimedia equipment or a
telephone.
n Voice messages addressed using the Microsoft Exchange
directory.
n Ability to send, forward, or reply by voice across a local area
network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), or the Internet.
n Voice object embedding in OLE 2.0 and ActiveX compliant
documents.
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Octel Unified Messenger Concepts & Planning Guide
The unified mailbox
For each Octel Unified Messenger subscriber, all voice mail, telephone
answering, e-mail, fax, and data messages (including documents and
forms) are stored in the unified mailbox. Messages can be viewed,
listened to, stored, or retrieved using either telephone, PC, or fax.
Figure 1-1 shows the concept of the unified mailbox.
Figure 1-1. Unified mailbox
1PC
2 Telephone
3Fax
21 3
1-4 101-1620-005
Telephone user interface
Subscribers can access their unified mailbox from a telephone user
interface to do the following:
n Send and receive voice messages.
n Play back voice messages.
n Listen to e-mail messages, using TTS conversion.
n Forward fax messages to other recipients or to a fax device for
n Store, delete, reply to, or forward e-mail, voice, or fax messages.
n Print e-mail messages on a fax device.
PC user interface
Introducing Octel Unified Messenger
printing.
Subscribers can access their unified mailbox from a PC to do the
following:
n Send and receive voice messages.
n Play back voice messages through the telephone or through PC
multimedia equipment.
n Send and receive e-mail messages.
n Send and receive fax messages.
n Store, delete, reply to, or forward e-mail, voice, or fax messages.
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Octel Unified Messenger Concepts & Planning Guide
Networked components
Figure 1-2 shows the networked components of the Octel Unified
Messenger environment.
Figure 1-2. Octel Unified Messenger networked components
1
4
8
5
7
2
1PBX
2 Telephone user interface
3 Fax (optional)
4 Octel voice server
5 Fax server (optional)
6 PC user interface
7LAN
8 Octel tracing server
9 Microsoft Exchange server
Microsoft Exchange Server
The Microsoft Exchange server is a Windows NT-based system that
contains all user mailboxes and all directory information. It
communicates with other Exchange servers on the LAN, with Exchange
servers on remote sites via WAN or network dial-up, and through
gateways with other e-mail systems across the Internet. The Exchange
server provides a single point of administration for subscriber mailboxes.
3
9
6
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Voice server
Introducing Octel Unified Messenger
The voice server is a Windows NT-based system that is the integral link
between the LAN and the telephone network. It performs the following
functions:
n Answers PBX-forwarded telephone ca lls.
n Plays personalized greetings.
n Records messages.
n Sends compressed message files to subscriber mailboxes for
storage.
n Retrieves stored messages for playback through the telephone or
through multimedia.
n Provides the capability for TTS conversion of e-mail messages.
n Detects incoming faxes and forwards them to third-party fax
servers.
Multilingual
text-to-speech
The voice server includes a speech synthesis device that allows
subscribers to hear their e-mail messages over the telephone. This feature
is also used for name confirmation when a record ed name is not availa bl e.
Organizations that receive e-mail in more than one language can enable a
multilingual TTS. This identifies the language of the e-mail message and
reads the message in that language.
The following languages are available:
n English
n French
n German
n Spanish
n Dutch
n Italian
n Russian
Tracing server
The tracing server is a separate system that records operational
information about activity in the v oice mail domain. Events, for example,
port acti vity, are stored in an ope rati on hist ory dat abase. An a dmin istrato r
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Octel Unified Messenger Concepts & Planning Guide
can generate reports summarizing voice mail activity using the Octel
Unified Messenger Reporting Tool application.
Fax server
The fax server is a third-party component to which the voice server
delegates all functionality related to sending and receiving faxes. For
more inform ation on thir d-party fax server compatibil ity with Octe l
Unified Messenger, see “Octel Unified Messenger interoperability with
third-party fax servers” on page 2-20.
Octel Unified Messenger, in conjunction with a com patible fax server,
offers the following fax features:
n Fax messages can be received and stored in a subscriber’s
mailbox.
n Subscribers can send fax messages and e-mail messages to fax
devices for printing.
n A copy of a subscrib er’s Inbox listing can be fax ed to a f ax de vice
through the telephone user interface.
For more information on how to set up fax servers, see “Octel Unified
Messenger interoperability with third-party fax servers” on page 2-20.
Incoming faxes Incoming faxes may be received in two ways, depending on whether the
system is set up with Direct Inward Dialing (DID):
n On systems with DID, callers call int o a subscriber’s mailbox and
press Start on their fax device.
n On systems without DID, callers call the subscriber’s automated
attendant from the fax machine’s telephone, select the
subscriber’s extensions by using either Dial-by-Name or by
entering the subscriber’s extension number, and press Start on
their fax device.
Once fax calls are received, Octel Unified Messenger transfers the call
from the voice server to the fax server. When the fax server answers the
call, the v oice ser ver identif ies the in tended r ecipien t and swit ches the call
to the fax server to receive the fax. The fax server then delivers the fax
message into the recipient’s mailbox.
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Introducing Octel Unified Messenger
Access to faxes
using the TUI
PBX
The telephone user interface recognizes messages of the message type
IPM.NOTE.FAX. If a fax server doe s not support thi s message type, Octel
Unified Messe nge r does not classify messages as faxes but only as e-mail
messages with TIFF attachments.
Subscribers can send fax messages to other recipients or to a fax device
for printing. They can also send e-mail messages to a fax device for
printing.
E-mail messages that have attachments, for example, a document in
Microsoft Word or Micros oft Exc el f ormat c an be converted to f ax for mat
by the fax server and can be printed to a fax device. Which types of
attachments can be printed to a fax device depends on the capabilities of
the fax server.
The PBX or s witch transfers calls from within the enterprise or from the
outside telephone network to the OMD voice server. This capability can
also be provided by the service provider’s central office equipment,
known as Centrex.
TUI
An Octel Unified Messenger voice server includes a “PBX integration”.
This is a specialized connection to the PBX that provides information
about calls as they are routed, such as:
n Who the call was originally intended for (called party).
n Who placed the call (calling party).
n What caused the call to be directed to the voice server (for
example, there was no answer or the telephone was busy).
Subscribers can use a touchtone telephone to do the following:
n Record voice messages.
n Listen to voice and e-mail messages.
n Reply to voice, e-mail, or fax messages.
n Instruct the system to store, forward, or dele te messages.
n Send fax and e-mail messages to a fax device for printing.
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Octel Unified Messenger Concepts & Planning Guide
LAN
The LAN provides a high-speed (minimum 10 Megabit per second
switched) connection between servers and client systems. Octel Unified
Messenger supports Ether net and tok en ring ba sed LAN topologi es. Octel
Unified Messenger takes advantage of the file streaming capabilities of
Windows NT to transfer voice files across the network. This minimizes
network traffic congestion and provides speedy message playback and
navigation.
PC user interface
The PC user interf ace can be a portable or deskt op c ompute r that is either
connected by a LAN or part of a re mote netwo rk. This co mputer e x e cutes
Octel Unified Me ssenger clien t software that manages th e display of al l
messages contained in the subscriber’s mailbox, facilitates and controls
the recording and playback of voice messages, and interacts with the
Exchange client.
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Benefits summary
Octel Unified Me ssenger provides the following benefits to your
organization.
Subscriber convenience
With Octel Unified Messenger, subscribers can:
n Store all messages in one place, regardless of the message type.
n Access voice , e-mail, and fax messages from e it her t he telephone
n Reply to messages in one medium (for example, voice) with
n Send voice messages with the same ease and convenience as
Introducing Octel Unified Messenger
or PC user in terface.
another medium (for example, e-mail).
sending e-mail messages.
n Use TTS con ver sion to liste n to e-ma il messag es when access to a
PC is not possible.
Ease of administration
Octel Unified Me ssenger offers adm inistrators the following cap abilities:
n All messaging administration can be handled by a single
administrator.
n Management tools are combined into one application.
n A single directory for voice, e-mail and fax messages makes
system management easier.
n PC user interface tools make it easy to create or update mailbox
information.
Send messages near and far
Octel Unified Messenger systems can utilize OctelNet to connect to
existing Octel voice messaging systems at the same location or at remote
locations. Subscribers can send and receive messages from remote
subscribers as easily as if they were all using the same local system.
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PART 2
PLANNING
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2
Sizing the system
This chapter discusses the main points to consider when sizing the
hardware for Octel Unified Messenger. It contains information about:
n Voice mail domain design rules.
n Establishing the number of voice ports required.
n Calculating the number of voice servers required.
n Hardware and software requirements.
n Evaluating the additional load on the Microsoft Exchange server.
n Evaluating the additional network traffic.
n Using Octel Unified Messenger via slow network connections.
n Enabling fax servers to comm unicate with Octel Unified
Messenger.
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Octel Unified Messenger Concepts & Planning Guide
Introduction
Sizing the hardware for Octel Unified Messenger involves the following
steps:
1. Designing the voice mail domain structure for the organization.
2. Calculating the number of voice ports required.
3. Calculating the number of OMD voice servers needed.
4. Designing fax server and voice server communication.
5. Evaluating the additional load on Microsoft Exchange.
6. Evaluating the additional network traffic that must be handled.
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Design rules for voice mail domains
Designing voice mail domains (VMDs) is very similar to designing
domains in Microsoft NT.
When designing Octel Unified Messenger voice mail domains, the
following rules must be observed.
n Each voice server can belong to one voice mail domain only.
n Each voice mail subscriber can belong to one voice mail domain
only.
n Each voice server has a single peer Exchange server.
n Different voice servers in a voice mail domain can have different
peer Exchange servers, provided that those Exchange servers are
in the same Exchange site.
n An Exchange server ca n be a pe er ser ver for more than one voice
server.
Sizing the system
n An Exchange server can be a peer server for voice servers from
different voice mail domains. However, the voice mail domains
must be located in the same Exchange site as the Exchange
server.
n A Microsoft Exchange site can contain more than one voice mail
domain.
n In a voice mail domain, there can be one tracing server only.
n Voice mail domains cannot spread across multiple Exchange
sites.
n There is only one PBX integration link per voice server. This
means that if yo ur PBXs a re int egrat ed, you need one vo ice serve r
per PBX.
n There can be several PBX types in one voice mail domain.
However, each PBX must be linked to its own voice server and
the voice mail domain properties must match every PBX type.
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Octel Unified Messenger Concepts & Planning Guide
Sizing ports
Accurate port sizing is critical to the successful implementation of any
voice processing application. A careful analysis of system traffic patterns
must be made. Specifically, the volume of calls generated by internal
subscribers and external callers to the system during the busiest hour of
the day must be determined.
Busy hour traffic is used in the calculation to determine the number of
ports needed to provide an acceptable level of service to the users. Most
newer PBXs provide traffic statistic reports that can provide an accurate
picture of traffic patterns on the switch. When preparing the
implementation of a messaging system, the planner should study a
minimum of one week’s traffic data to determine daily and hourly call
volumes.
How to determine
the busy hour
Most PBXs can generate tra ff ic reports t hat pro vide stat istics on a weekly,
daily, or hourly basis. Usually these reports break out the traffic statistics
by type of call, for example, incoming calls, outgoing calls, and calls to
specific hunt groups. These reports can be used to determine specific
traffic patterns and when the busy hour occurs.
Suppose that during the course of a typical business week the traffic
report indicates that Monday is the busiest day for incoming calls. On
Monday a total of 3,500 calls are received, and the hourly statistics show
that the busiest hour of the day occurs between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m., with
350 incoming calls. Therefore 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. is the customer’s busy
hour.
Another way of expressing busy hour traffic is as a percentage of total
daily traffic. In the example above, 350 busy hour calls is 10% of the
3,500 total calls received for the day. If traffic statistics are not available,
then an educated guess at busy hour traffic is required. The tables in
Appendix A, “Sizing for Ports” can be used as guidelines for estimating
how many users can be supported with a given number of ports based on
some assumptions about average daily port usage per subscriber. These
tables also provide for traffic patterns of 10%, 14%, or 18% busy hour
traffic.
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