An App Store for OCS? Great Idea!

Recently The VAR Guy blog announced that an OCS app store was in the works. Not by Microsoft though - by Evangelyze Communications, an OCS channel partner (like us!).

(There's a nice write-up on No Jitter too. Eric asked some good questions.)

I find this idea very interesting. Honestly, I hadn't figured OCS as the type of platform for an app store. But as I think about what these posts have covered, it makes more sense. Let me explain what I'm thinking here.

As Companies Grow, Communication Needs Change

The larger a company grows, the more complex its communications needs become. Communications Server is quite flexible enough to handle more complexity (especially with OCS 2010 coming). But there's no shame in getting help. By building onto OCS, you can customize its setup toward more specific customer needs.

We've done that ourselves with the Dialogic VoIP gateway. No reason someone can't do it with apps in an app store.

Say one company needs video conferencing between interstate offices. Another doesn't care about conferencing, but wants VoIP on all their phones. Two different priorities. Two different OCS setups. Perfect opportunity for custom developers.

Advantages of an OCS App Store to Developers

A Showcase
Enterprise-level apps aren't always easy to market. (Not to mention custom development services!) You're mostly marketing direct to companies, without always knowing where they are in their buying cycle. Your marketing could arrive too early - or too late.

Contrast that with a profile in an app store. Then the customers come find you when it's time to buy. All you have to do then is make sure you have a solid product, and you deliver content that addresses their communications needs.

IP Security
Safety of your intellectual property, that is. Since this would be run by a Microsoft partner and not Microsoft itself, Evangelyze has a vested interest in keeping such a store buttoned down and protected. (I'm sure Microsoft will help at some point too.)

Project Focus
You can focus on one endpoint (Polycom desk phones, smartphones, laptops/netbooks) instead of trying to develop a big huge solution for everyone. The customers who want apps for that endpoint will come find you. We already see this kind of specialization in the Apple store.

Some OCS App Ideas

I'm throwing out some ideas for apps here, off the top of my head. If you want to use one (or you're already working on the same idea), email me.

1. Social media inter-communication. Plug in Facebook Chat and Twitter.
   • A LinkedIn chat module? Maybe create an app that bridges two (or more) LI profiles via OCS IM, letting them chat in real-time after connecting? You could even leapfrog LinkedIn development here.
2. Office Communicator versions for all smartphones. Maybe a wrapper for the Communicator client, or a duplicate (better?) app for each interface - Droid, Blackberry, iPhone/iPod, etc.
3. Video Conferencing add-ons.
4. Remote server access. Maybe turn OCS into a command prompt for Telnet or SSH?
5. Translation. Auto-translate Instant Messages into a different language, and back again.
6. Software Gateway. Hey, might as well aim high. I'm sure this is possible. Someone's already working on it, I'll bet.

Call me crazy, but I like the idea of a channel partner building an OCS app store. They have a different perspective from the team who made OCS. And it's also different from developers who'll be working on custom apps for OCS. That sort of “midway” perspective should translate to a platform everybody can take advantage of for better communications technology.

What do you think? What kind of apps would you like to see in an OCS app store? Shoot me a comment; let's talk about it.

Will the New Small Business Server Help Out OCS?

A few days ago Microsoft announced two new SBS previews. Named “SBS 7″ and “SBS Aurora” for now, their preview releases will be available at the end of summer. (But only to those who sign up to participate - sign up here if you want to try them out.)

Here's what I can glean from the information out there now. SBS 7 works much like 2008, with new software versions and management/security improvements. Exchange 2007 moved up to Exchange 2010 R1, for example.

Aurora is designed for a smaller user base (25 users max), and is cloud-ready. There's fewer details about the software included, but Microsoft did mention an automated backup/restore and an SDK meant for partners to build add-ins into Aurora.

Now, this is pretty big news by itself. But what I'm wondering is, what does this mean for OCS?

Will We Have Office Communications on Aurora?

From the initial news, it looks like more attention has been paid to remote access on these new versions. SBS 7 is promised a “richer remote access experience;” Aurora is described as delivering “traditional and cloud capabilities.”
Since much of OCS' capabilities are dependent on server access on- and off-site. So I'm not worried.

In fact, Aurora sounds like a great help to small-business OCS use. Think about this…

• It's designed to support up to 25 users. This means a lighter stack, easier to run and to manage (even on older equipment).
  
  

• Since Aurora can be accessed as a cloud-based service, building a hosted OCS solution with it becomes that much easier. It may even help with simplifying out-of-the-office connections.
  
  

• Presumably, Aurora will be priced lower than SBS 7.
  
  

• The software is in development now - during/after primary development on OCS 2010. So you could take advantage of both Aurora's cloud services and OCS 2010's virtual server needs all at once. Small, zippy OCS platform.

There's another article on SBS 7 and Aurora at MCP Magazine, if you want to read more.

We're signing up for the Aurora preview. If you're signing up too, please email us or leave a comment. I'd like to hear you about your Aurora experiences, with and without OCS. This one could be a big help for small businesses considering OCS.

A Peek at Next Year's Model - More Features of Communications Server 14

I'm back! I'd talk about my trip, but it's not OCS-related.

However, we did get a few responses to last week's query. The majority were questions about Communications Server “14.”

And as luck would have it, we have something to discuss along those lines!

Brent Kelly of the “No Jitter” blog posted a VERY thorough overview of Communications Server 14 on Sunday. (With pictures!)

He obviously gleaned much from the TechEd conference. The six-page article is a comprehensive discussion of CS14's capabilities, changes from OCS 2007, and so on. Read it for yourself here (but after you finish this post!):
Under the Hood of Microsoft Communications Server 14 - NoJitter.com

Really, I can't do a better job. All I want to do today is give a thumbs-up to Brent for his good work. And highlight a few of the points from his article here.

Four More CS 14 Features to Note

1. The “physical server requirement” that hampered OCS 2007 has been removed. CS14 allows you to host many of its servers on one physical server. Instead of four.
• (This is a separate consideration from the virtualization I mentioned last time. Virtualization is not necessary in this case - but you can still use it.)
2. CS 14 will support E911.
3. You'll be able to control the whole CS 14 from its new Silverlight-based Control Panel Interface. Configuration, routing, and policy rules are all accessible from there.
4. The “contact card” that shows a person's information has been expanded. It also comes up when you hover over the contact's name, instead of hitting Alt+Enter as in OCS 2007.

Finally, just something for OCS fans to remember. An official name for the next version of OCS has not been officially announced yet. So far, all the names by which this version's going are:

• OCS 2010
• Communications Server 2010
• Communications Server “14″
• “CS 14″

When the official name is announced, you'll see it right here!

Rename and a Revamp - New Features of Communications Server 14

Last week at TechEd, Microsoft announced the new features of Communications Server 14. Frankly, I”m not sure why the new version is named “14.” But that's not what I wanted to write about anyway.

What I'm blogging about today is a few of the features announced. More specifically, how those features translate into new benefits for small business OCS users.

Many of 14's updates focus on simplification: Easier administration, more unified front-end interface (Unified Communication - get it?). The main small-business advantage comes from a more comprehensive client application. All communication channels ready and waiting for you.

1. The Rise of Communicator 14

Every service goes through the Communicator 14 client. Live Meeting was originally separate from the Office Communicator 2007 client. (They were developed separately at first.) Communicator 14 has it built in. All conferencing capabilities, in fact…along with IM, voice calls, Presence, even a visual Voicemail menu.

2. More Roles Virtually Capable

In 14 there's support for virtualizing almost all OCS server roles (AV Conferencing, Archiving, Edge Mediation, etc.). Putting in a new Communications Server 14 setup becomes more appealing if there are fewer physical servers needed than for OCS.

3. Web Client Following You Around

14 includes a new Silverlight-based web client version of Communicator. Very handy if you have people who live on netbooks or smartphones. I've played with Silverlight a little too; this client is almost guaranteed to be much faster than CWA.

4. Avoid the Media (Server) and Still Call the Office

There's a new media bypass, reducing the need for a mediation server. It allows a front-end server to go “direct SIP,” meaning you can call into (supported) PBX phone systems without mediation. In other words, simpler setup, and you can still call non-VoIP phones.

5. Alert! Call #2467 is Failing!

I really like this one. There's a new Monitoring Pack in Communications Server 14. If calls are failing or their quality drops, alerts will show in the Monitoring Pack. You can even boost the audio quality if it’’s degrading!

6. SQL Backend Moved to Express Lane

The Director server role will include a SQL Express database in 14. So there's no more need for a separate SQL backend. That means even fewer servers running.

There's even more features than these too. A very thorough overview is on the “Inside OCS” blog.

A smaller, more streamlined communications system. Appealing to small business cost and space concerns, wouldn't you say?

What are you looking forward to in Communications Server 14? Drop us a comment and let's talk.

When Support Calls Go Awry!

Or, The Many Components Involved in Running OCS-Based VoIP

A client of ours had lots of trouble getting Conferencing to work lately. We put in OCS for them only 4-5 months ago. Naturally, they called us and said,

“Your OCS is broken! We can”t conference now!”

“Quick, Fix It!” “Which Part?”

Of course we sent an engineer out at once. He quickly determined that the problem was not OCS by communicating with our office from it. But he COULD reproduce the conferencing problem.

So what was causing it?

It’’s times like this when we all remember that OCS is one part of a VoIP phone system. A critical part, but a part nonetheless. It’’s just the part that faces the user every day, in form of the Office Communicator application. So it gets the blame when another system component won”t behave.

And that’’s what happened with our client. After some investigation, it turns out the phone company providing SIP lines to their office was having issues. They told our engineer it would be fixed by the next day. It was.

To check, we conferenced with the client a day later. Sure enough, they heard us just fine.

Glad to Help, Once We Find the Problem

OCS has multiple components - servers (Standard, Edge, Mediation and CWA), SIP Trunking, IP-PBX Gateway, Internet connections, and Office Communicator. And sometimes it only takes one breaking to mess up the others. Aggravating, I know.

I figured this was a good opportunity to remind everyone about the many things involved in running VoIP. Every IT system has components. And they do their jobs for us. Most of the time.

Yes, OCS Works for the Small Business Market

Microsoft recently announced that they are discontinuing the Response Point small-business VoIP system.
They decided that while demand was encouraging, it wasn't enough to sustain Response Point as a standalone business. The Response Point Team suggests Microsoft OCS as an alternative.

This announcement was written about on several other websites, including ZDNet. Commenters on these posts had basically two things to say:
1. Response Point was a nice solution and they're sad to see it go.
2. A full OCS VoIP system is overkill for small businesses.

Is it? That's a question worth exploring. Does OCS actually work as a VoIP phone system for the small business market?

Frankly? Yes, it does. Very well in fact.

Hosted OCS Has an Easier Small-Business Setup

The key to this is in what kind of infrastructure a small business uses. In the past, there was pretty much one way to build an infrastructure - install servers in-house, wire a network and set up the workstations to use its capabilities.

Now with cheap broadband and hosted/cloud-based IT services gaining popularity, we have a viable middle-ground. One where up-front cost is low and competitors can offer more affordable pricing structures.

Microsoft said that Response Point didn't have high enough demand as a standalone business. Maybe an in-house OCS system might seem like overkill. But nobody said a hosted OCS solution wouldn't fit the small-business bill in Response Point's place.

Voice Over IP In the Coming Years

Response Point was a VoIP replacement for a small business PBX. Technologically, this can be done in OCS 2007 as well. OCS 2007 just needs phones.

Any good OCS partner worth their salt should have a VoIP option available. Suited for small business needs and budget.

With all that said, we can give a couple responses to the main question.

• VoIP options are growing all the time. Certainly small-business options will grow as well.
• With OCS 2007 R2 out for a couple years now, manufacturers have been creating more VoIP phone systems.
• There will be more VoIP emphasis in OCS 2010. This has been known for a while now.
• A small business communications system using OCS does work. Here are two examples, one using VoIP and one not:
• WITH VOIP
• Hosted OCS 2007 R2 for Instant Messaging, Conferencing and Voice over IP
• VoIP Phones
• WITHOUT VOIP
• Hosted OCS 2007 R2 for Instant Messaging and conferencing
• Cellphones for Voice

Were I to speculate on this, I'd say Microsoft folded some of its Response Point team into OCS 2010 development. I fully expect OCS 2010 to have full VoIP capability and then some. At a level small businesses can use easily.

A Basic Plan for Unified Communications User Adoption

Last week I said I'd go into more detail about UC user adoption. In keeping with that, I thought I'd write out an adoption plan from some of our OCS/Exchange deployments.

As you probably know by now, user adoption is the other half of a successful server installation. It’’s one thing to get new systems up & running. And another thing entirely to convince/persuade/poke people into using them.

One way to push user adoption is, as I mentioned last time, to take away the users' existing option. I discuss this in Step 6 below. But if you do that, you have to give them something else. (It's kind of required.) That's what the rest of this plan is for.

Note: Technical specifications on implementing UC components (Exchange 2010, OCS 2007) will not be included here due to their length. Full implementation processes can be found in the following Microsoft resources.
Deploying Exchange Exchange Server 2010: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd351084.aspx
Deploying Office Communications Server 2007 R2: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd425168(office.13).aspx

Step 1 - Sketch out implementation plan.

Essentially, “plan out Steps 2-6 ahead of time.” Also, consider file transfer times. Factor out any offline time needed to build the new UC servers. Check on the Web for any possible hardware issues before and during implementation.

Step 2 - Determine a Switchover Point. Announce it.

Send 2 emails and make an internal communications post (forum, intranet, whatever you use). Announce a point at which the company will switch to Unified Communications. Make this unavoidable. (Someone WILL claim they didn't hear about it when it's too late.) Provide a brief how-to and benefits statement, so they know they're getting something good out of it.

Step 3 - Implement UC technology at server-level.

Self-explanatory. Refer to the above URLs for documentation.

Step 4 - Invite a group of users to test it.

Deploy all UC tools to a select group of people who are technically savvy. Preferably people from multiple departments and/or branch offices. Having them test for system errors accomplishes two things.
One, it tests the UC technology in real-time from different physical locations.
Two, testing creates a small group of advocates within the organization. (Make sure to tell the group ahead of time that people may ask them for assistance during adoption. And get their OK.)

Step 5 - Furnish all users with a training kit.

Instruct them to familiarize themselves with the new UC interface. Here's an OCS 2007 R2 Adoption and Training Kit from Microsoft. You'll probably want to add information about your organization's specific setup to this too.

Step 6 - Evaluate alternatives.

I refer to two things here when I say “alternatives.” One is your existing communication options. Which of these options should you phase out? When should you do it?

The following can usually be phased out following Unified Communications implementation:

• Non-OCS desktop phones
• Third-party IM clients
• Fax machines
• Voicemail systems
• Third-party conferencing solutions

Two is Communicator Web Access (CWA). Will you need to implement CWA? I would say yes, as it makes a good backup when someone can't access their own system or is having trouble connecting with Office Communicator. CWA should be in place at switchover.

Step 7 - Remind users of Switchover Point.

Email all users again. Make it a short interval - 7 days, for example. Mention your advocates as people to ask if someone has a quick question. (This way people don't all hound one person–namely you.)

Step 8 - Switch Over to UC!

On the appointed day…
–Deploy the Unified Communications technology for all users.
–Deactivate the communication options being phased out. See previous post.

And prepare for the inevitable grumbling that comes with change.

Have you used a user adoption plan like this? Planning to use this one in future UC upgrades? Please let a comment and let us know. Same if there's something you think should be added here. I have an Edit button and everything.

How to Use OCS 2007 on Your Mobile

I'm still amazed at how many people use their phones for–well, everything! We've reached the point where almost anything you can do on a computer, you can do on a mobile phone.

So it's no surprise that we've received requests for using OCS on mobiles. Some companies want their employees to still have access to OCS functions while out & about. Sure, why not? We have the tech to do that. In fact, it's now possible to put an OCS client on all major phones out there.

Let me list the clients I know about. (If I miss one and you know it, leave a comment and share it with us!)

If You Have…

a. An iPhone
Use the “iDialog” iPhone OCS client. Ironically, this app is not made by Microsoft or Apple. It was released in 2009 by Modality Systems, a UC consulting firm.
Find iDialog in the App Store. Documentation and links are available on Modality's website here.

b. A Droid (Google Android Phone)
Right now the best way to use OCS on Droids is Communicator Web Access (CWA). Like Outlook Web Access, this framework allows web-based use of a Microsoft app - in this case, Office Communicator.
The Communicator Team blog has an overview on CWA here.
(I mentioned the Web Scheduler component in February, too.)

c. A Windows Mobile Phone (Palm Pre, Nokia)
Those of you on Windows Mobile phones luck out here. There's a mobile OCS client available straight from Microsoft: Communicator Mobile 2007 R2.

d. A Blackberry
There is no native Blackberry OCS client to my knowledge. You can use the Communicator Web Client though, like you would on a Droid phone. However, if your company limits Web access on Blackberries, you're stuck. (Maybe this can help you successfully argue in favor of Web access…?)

I should note that in terms of capabilities, OCS mobile clients and CWA are practically identical to Office Communicator. Aside from screen size and a couple formatting differences, you won't lose out on anything by using OCS 2007 on your mobile.

Do you use OCS 2007 on the go? What mobile phone do you use? How's it been working for you? Let us know in the comments.

Introducing New Employees to OCS 2007: 4 General Rules on How to Use It

We brought a new network engineer on board this week. I didn't give him “the tour,” but apparently he breezed through all of it and got to work right away.

Then he had a question about OCS.

He just wanted to know who to add to Office Communicator's contact list. Easy answer. But this pointed out something important regarding new employees. He already knew how OCS worked technically; he just wanted to know our policies around it.

What are the Rules for Using OCS Around Here?

That sparked a little discussion (and this blog post). Do we have any rules in place for how we use OCS? If so, what are they? How did they come about?

Turns out we did have several rules in place. They came into existence by the whim of a nutty systems administrator who journeyed to the Forbidden Server Room–

Okay, we just used common sense when it comes to business communication.

4 General Rules for OCS Use

These are 4 of the rules we came up with. I included questions our newest employee asked.

Who Do I Add to My Contact List? Why?
Add everyone you'll communicate with regularly. Use Contact List Groups or Access Levels to group people by priority and/or proximity to you. My first group is “Team,” direct co-workers in the same department. Another group is “Company,” which holds people I don't regularly talk to, but who need to talk to me now & then.

How Often Should I Update My Status (Presence)?
Rule of thumb for us: Update Presence once a day or when you change projects, whichever is more frequent. Above all, keep it up-to-date. Avoid what happens when you don't change your Presence status.

When Is it Okay to IM People?
Depends on the severity and length of the request you have. If you have a problem that can be answered quickly, then go for IM. If the problem is more extensive, and you may need input from more than one person, then use email.

Should I Use OCS to Answer the Phone?
Yes. Our phone system runs through OCS first and cellphones second (OCS is set to auto-forward). So we answer phones via OCS whenever possible. That's what the VoIP is there for, after all.

Does your company use OCS 2007? What are your rules concerning office use? Do you have different rules than ours? Let us know in the comments.

Technorati Tags: Microsoft business technology OCS 2007 OCS 2010

Remember: With VoIP, Wait for the Line to Connect Before Talking

In recent client discussions, we've observed communications going awry. Our clients, when calling us, start talking immediately upon the line connecting.

Now this is pretty normal. The line connects and you start talking. Pretty basic.

But! Here comes VoIP to make this parade turn down a side street.

We're bringing this up because several of our clients are getting cut off at the start of their conversations. They'll start talking immediately, but the first few words will never reach us. And we'll have to ask them to repeat. Naturally, this gets a little frustrating now & then.

This is one of those little kinks in new technology we have to work past. It happens because the tech is still relatively new, and disparities between data and voice are still being worked out.

Call Routing and Why You Should Be Aware Of It

The thing with VoIP is that it takes a second or two to connect to a regular POTS phone line. This is because the VoIP gateway must route the call between data and voice. Bridging the two networks, essentially. Here's an overview on VoIP gateways from TopBits.com to help explain.

If you're talking during the few seconds while the call is still being routed, those words won't make it through. They vanish. You'll be rambling on in mid-sentence by the time the other person is able to hear you.

Start the Conversation with a Breath

The way to prevent this little communication mishap? Take a breath before speaking. That's all. The amount of time it takes to route a VoIP connection is the same as how long it takes to breathe once.

And since breathing is good for you, it's an easy tip to remember. Relax, breathe, and then say Hi.

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