An App Store for OCS? Great Idea!
Filed under: Conferencing, Instant Messaging (IM), OCS 2007 R2, OCS 2010, Reference, Unified Communications, Voice over IP
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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Video Conferencing add-ons.
- Remote server access. Maybe turn OCS into a command prompt for Telnet or SSH?
- Translation. Auto-translate Instant Messages into a different language, and back again.
- 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.
A Basic Plan for Unified Communications User Adoption
Filed under: Exchange Server 2007, Exchange Server 2010, Instant Messaging (IM), OCS 2007, OCS 2007 R2, OCS 2010, Reference, Unified Communications, Voice over IP
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 Fix a “CertEnroll” Certificate Private Key Error in OCS 2007 R2 and SharePoint
Microsoft Office Communication Server 2007 R2 servers require certificates for several authentications between servers. SharePoint servers do too. These certificates require keys in order to maintain their security.
Today's post will give a solution for a cert error that pops up occasionally: When OCS or SharePoint fails to detect your cert's private key.
- When setting up a new certificate for Office Communication Server 2007 R2 or SharePoint, you may receive this error.
“CertEnroll::CX5090Enrollment::p_Install Response: ANS1 bad tag value met. 0×8009310b (ASN: 267)”
This error is most likely caused by a missing Private Key on the certificate you're attempting to install. - In order to resolve this issue, access the MMC for certificates.
Select the certificate you are trying to install and view its Properties. Select the Details view and copy the Serial Number you find there to Notepad.
- Once you have it in Notepad, remove the blanks between the numbers. So it looks like this:
- Once that's done, run the command certutil to append this now-corrected Private Key to the certificate. Enter the command as follows:
“certutil –repairstore my (insert serial Number)“
An example screenshot is below.
- Once this repair finishes running, the certificate will be ready to use in your installation.
Save this private key, along with its relevant cert name, in another location. Just in case OCS or SharePoint prompts you for it again.
Did you encounter this error? Under what circumstances? Tell us in the comments if this solution worked for you.
Observations from the 2010 Cloud Connect Expo
Filed under: Conferencing, OCS 2007, OCS 2007 R2, Reference
I attended the Cloud Connect Expo in Santa Clara yesterday. (It's still going today; check www.cloudconnectevent.com if you haven't attended yet!) I like heading to events like that - I can get an idea of industry direction, see new technologies coming out, make some new connections and so on. Cloud Connect was no different.
Before I go add my connections on LinkedIn, here's a few observations of the Cloud Connect events.
Most of the attendees were from tech companies. Like me! I spoke with a few of the wandering fellow techies about why they'd come. Their reasons were either to check out the cloud computing industry's status (like me). Or they were looking for cloud-based services they could add to their own products & resell.
A few vendors seemed surprised when I told them about our Hosted OCS. What? Running OCS in a cloud-computing type of setup? Why, that's a novel idea! (Yes, we thought so too.)
Marketing tactics were a bit behind the times. Oh, they had a Twitter event hashtag (#ccevent) and a dedicated social network up. That's great. But some of the booths had vague promotional language, and/or their reps used hard-sell tactics. Nobody's fault, but it was a little too pushy for such new services. Hopefully this will smooth out by the time the cloud reaches more common understanding. And speaking of that…
People are already talking about cloud standards. I think this is a big help for cloud computing overall. Defining standards early on, especially for such an open-purpose technology model as cloud computing, should help us all avoid confusion over things like “What's this cloud stuff going to DO for us?” in the future.
Dave at IBM had a presentation on current efforts to produce open standards for the cloud. I'll repost a couple links they gave:
www.cloudusecases.org - A Google Group for defining use cases of cloud computing. There's a group-composed white paper on such use cases too (available on Scribd here: http://bit.ly/1FXRAH).
www.Cloud-standards.org - The Cloud Standards Wiki. Many more links to standards organizations and contributing groups are here.
www.Opencloudconsortium.org - One of the current contributing groups to cloud standards.
No Microsoft reps. Nobody showed up for the Microsoft booth yesterday! What's up with that? Even the IBM guys next door boggled. Hopefully someone's there today.
Technorati Tags: 
Microsoft 
business 
technology 
OCS 2007 
Cloud Computing 
Cloud Connect
Hosted Exchange VS. Google Apps: Which Works Better for Small Business?
Filed under: Exchange Server 2007, Exchange Server 2010, Reference, Unified Communications
I saw a great discussion thread on LinkedIn today (view the thread here) - about whether a consultant’’s client should move to Hosted Exchange or Google Apps.
The replies leaned a bit more toward Google Apps than Exchange. Many good points about how much IT help is available/budgeted, “getting what you pay for,” simplicity of Google, familiarity of Exchange/Outlook, etc.
You'd think I would weigh in on the side of Hosted Exchange. It is one of our services (and a very popular one at that), but even we recognize that at times something simpler, like Google Apps, makes for a better solution.
See, when we get a client who wants to move to hosted services, there's a lot of factors to consider. Many of them are addressed in the thread: mobile users, growth potential, available budget, available IT expertise/extra support hours needed, and the client's needs for the service.
We weigh these between two prime factors: The size of the business, and what their day-to-day practices are surrounding email.
Can A Business Outgrow Google?
Let's divide up some factors between size and daily practice here. Under size, we can list things like:
- How many mobile users a company has - iPhones, Blackberries, Android, etc.
- How many Outlook users there are (and how often they use it).
- What amount of on-site IT is in place, or do they rely on contracted IT support?
Both systems - Google Apps and Hosted Exchange - can sync with iPhones and Blackberries. (Androids MIGHT prefer Google, but I can't imagine why.) Outlook however leads more people to Exchange than away from it. One big intangible with email is how many users “live in” Outlook. True, Google Apps Premier Edition will sync with Outlook, but the difference is that those Apps accounts are on Google's servers, not hosted servers you contract. Which leads to the question of IT support. Who do you want to support your email? How fast of a response time do you need?
Under day-to-day email practices, we'll put these factors:
- What are users' preferred communication methods?
- How much email storage is needed?
- How often do users share calendars?
- Who's administering?
If email is the big communication tool (and it is for most businesses), then even a smidge of downtime is potentially catastrophic. We admit it, Exchange isn't perfect here…but then, nobody is. Google Apps does beat Exchange on default account space (25GB against 5GB). But shared calendaring brings us back to Outlook and its rich invite features.
We're back at the administration question. Many LinkedIn posters recommended contract IT support, especially if you're a smaller company. Of course Google provides support for Apps…but interfacing with other systems? Not so much.
What's the Verdict?
So where did we end up? When is Hosted Exchange a good choice, and when is Google Apps better? I'll give my answers in terms of the two prime factors I mentioned.
IN TERMS OF BUSINESS SIZE: For startup-level businesses, Google Apps makes more sense. Little infrastructure is needed, and it’’s easier for a few people to adapt (they probably use Google already). Generally, the larger the business, the more likely Exchange will better suit them.
IN TERMS OF DAY-TO-DAY EMAIL PRACTICES: If a company already uses Outlook, we recommend they go Hosted Exchange. If they have an IT department already, so much the better. If not, and they don't want to spend much, then go Google Apps and get some local support in case integration hits a snag.
Of course, this is just one blog post. Do your research before contacting suppliers.
Which do you use, Google Apps or Hosted Exchange? Let me know in the comments.
OCS and Windows 7: Problems to Watch Out For
Filed under: OCS 2007, OCS 2007 R2, Reference, Unified Communications
It's bound to happen. New systems, hundreds of possible configurations…bugs will pop up. Today I've collected four bugs found when you put OCS 2007 R2 and the Windows 7 OS together. We've run across a couple of them ourselves. I'm including source links for all of them, since we definitely weren't the only ones!
Office Communicator Client Won't Open on Windows 7
On some Windows 7 PCs, the Office Communicator client application won#039;t open. This is due to a registry bug. To fix it, open RegEdit and navigate to this entry:
[HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwarePoliciesMicrosoftCommunicator]
Change the PreventRun key value to 0 instead of 1. Apparently it works like a charm.
OCS Doesn't Inventory All Applications on a Windows 7 PC
This is something that didn't show up during Windows 7 Beta testing. It came about as a weird fluke after RTM. OCS 2007, while inventorying local software on a Windows 7 machine, will miss certain applications. These applications work just fine; OCS can”t see them.
The bug originates in the storage methods used by the Windows 7 registry governing 32-bit and 64-bit applications. In other words, a 64-bit Windows 7 PC's registry stumbles on reporting some applications to OCS.
As of yet there is no fix. However, since this bug doesn't interfere with running any applications, it's not a big reason to worry.
(Source: http://forums.ocsinventory-ng.org/viewtopic.php?id=5198 )
OCS Stops Working on a Windows 7 Beta PC
A funny thing can happen if you run OCS 2007 on a Windows 7 Beta PC - the Office Communicator client may stop working. Poof. Just like that. The event log will show a faulting module in KERNELBASE.dll.
An inventive solution comes from the LCSKid MSDN Blog: He recommends installing a patch that's actually intended for interfacing between Office Communicator and older versions of Windows (Vista, XP, 2000). Inventive! Points to “The LCS Kid” for sniffing this out.
Download the patch from Microsoft.com.
(By the way, this Windows 7/OCS 2007 only works for testing. Use Windows Server 2008 for running OCS in your office.)
(Source: http://blogs.msdn.com/jasonward/archive/2009/03/16/windows-7-and-office-communicator-2007.aspx )
Address Book Sync Error on Windows 7 PCs
Is your Office Communicator client showing a red exclamation point on its icon? When you click it, do you see this error message?
“Cannot synchronize with the corporate address book. This might be because the proxy server setting in your web browser does not allow access to the address book.”
The problem isn't with a proxy server though. It's with, of all things, Internet Explorer 8. Try unchecking the “Check for server certificate revocation” box in IE's options to fix this.
Never let it be said we aren't open about bumps in the OCS road. Thanks to everyone who documented their own encounters with these bugs.
Have you encountered a Windows 7/OCS 2007 bug (or just a weird problem that had a simple fix)? What was it? How”d you arrive at a solution?
Technorati Tags: Microsoft business technology OCS 2007 
Windows 7 
Bugs
Got Enough Bandwidth for OCS R2?
Filed under: Conferencing, OCS 2007, OCS 2007 R2, OCS 2010, Reference, Unified Communications, Voice over IP
One quick point for today. When implementing an OCS 2007 R2 setup, make sure there's plenty of bandwidth available. Standard or Enterprise edition. With or without VoIP built-in.
One of our clients (a nationwide energy firm) uses OCS to communicate between branches. Initially this was facilitated by T1 lines. However a few weeks ago, we upgraded them to a DS3 line.
They'd had some issues beforehand - garbled calls, lost IM transmissions, general stability. Most of it came from problems the Unified Messaging server had.
That all vanished when the DS3 line was put in. Poof. More bandwidth = no more connection troubles. Just like that.
Not sure how much bandwidth you have available? Use Speakeasy's Bandwidth Speed Test. Compare the results to the Three UC Amigos' OCS 2007 Bandwidth Requirements . (Alternate reference: Mark Garcia's OCS Web Conferencing Bandwidth Charts.)
Four Predictions on OCS in 2010
Filed under: OCS 2007 R2, OCS 2010, Reference, Unified Communications, Voice over IP
Welcome to 2010! Are we back to scrambling already?
Before we get too crazy, let me make a few predictions about OCS. (It’’s the thing to do this time of year.) We”re headed for another year of big shake-ups and racing towards better-priced options. I”m sure Office Communications Server will be involved in some of it. Though I”ll freely admit, I may deny one or two of these by the time 2011 rolls around.
Prediction #1: OCS 2010′’s release will come with calls to end the PBX. It won”t…not yet.
Office Communications Server 2010 is slated for release either in Q2 or Q3 2010. We”ll hear a lot of buzz beforehand, along with calls to 100% replace PBX phone systems with OCS. (I”m not actually the first to say this.)
If it truly is a PBX-killer - and I”m hopeful it is - then these calls will be justified. However, OCS adoption over PBX won”t begin in earnest until 2011. It takes time to make such a big change - time to get used to the idea, and time to plan the change itself. Smaller companies will get a jump on OCS 2010 instead. They don”t always have a PBX to replace.
Prediction #2: OCS 2007 R2 will grow as a hosted service, even with OCS 2010′’s release.
I”m no economist; I won”t even try predicting what the markets will do this year. What I will say is that more companies will look for more ways to save. Startup costs, trying to grow without much budget, no desire to buy all-new servers…these factors will push more companies toward hosted services as a lower-cost option. Judging from the adoption rates and interest we”ve received, I”m expecting companies in the mid-to-upper range of SMBs to take the most advantage here.
Prediction #3: We”ll see a growing comfort with VoIP as a phone system.
Voice over IP is becoming a more accepted alternative to regular phone lines. In a way, we have Google and Skype to thank for this. The rampant popularity of Google Voice, and the popularity of Skype (even in business use) shows people are more comfortable with the idea of using the Web for voice communication now.
When OCS 2007 first came out, many people didn”t trust its VoIP capability as a reliable phone system. That was just 2 years ago. Now that technology has caught up and social adoption is higher, that lack of trust won”t be applied to OCS 2010.
Prediction #4: OCS 2010′’s 64-bit structure may discourage some from upgrading.
There is a problem in all this. OCS 2007 R2 is available only in 64-bit. Exchange 2010 just shipped with a 64-bit version. It’’s not hard to imagine that OCS 2010 will be 64-bit only. This will cause some sticking for those companies who haven”t moved to 64-bit servers yet; upgrading to OCS 2010 would mean buying new 64-bit servers. For those companies looking to SAVE on communications, spending extra is a contradiction. And a big upgrade objection.
(There’’s always the hosted option though!)
A few things to think about. Overall I think OCS” prospects are good, even with the 64-bit snag. Some will say the new smartphones coming out are a danger to OCS, but I think they have a more complementary role than a competitive one. We”ll have to see where 2010 takes us, won”t we?
Technorati Tags:MicrosoftbusinesstechnologyOCS 2007
VoIP
OCS 2010
Top 3 Questions People Ask Us Re: Exchange 2010
Filed under: Exchange Server 2007, Exchange Server 2010, Reference, Unified Communications
Sorry about not posting this yesterday. We”re embroiled in a big new client website (yay for that!).
Last week I blogged about the 3 most frequently-asked questions we get on OCS 2007. I promised I”d do the same for Exchange Server 2010, so here you go. We get easily the same amount of questions on Exchange 2010 as OCS. More sometimes. But far and away, these are the most common.
1. Is it out yet?
Yes it is. Exchange 2010 has been available in full release since November 9th. The RC has been out for a while now; if you run it, best to switch to full version ASAP. (Luckily the RC can auto-upgrade to RTM.)
Here’’s Microsoft’’s Licensing and Pricing FAQ for some help on that.
2. Does the Exchange 2010 Standard Edition support Archival and discovery?
It’’s recommended that you use the Enterprise Edition if you want Archival and discovery. Archival for Enterprise has been delayed until Q1; I believe to test some additional workloads. But once it’’s finalized, that’’s a more secure, better-running bet.
3. What do we need for the upgrade?
- A 64-bit-capable server. If you don”t already have one, that is.
- Windows Server 2008 (or 2008 R2).
- Backups of your existing mailboxes.
- A day or two. (Really; it’’s a fast upgrade.)
Pretty simple huh? All too often we skip over simple things though, assuming everyone else “gets it” right away. Dangerous assumption. Someone else may be distracted, or too busy, and they miss the obvious. So it pays to remind.
(By the way, another reminder - Exchange 2010 also works great as a hosted option. Email me if you want to hear about that!)
Next week, Top 3 questions we get on VoIP.
Got a question of your own on OCS 2007 or related technology? Leave a comment or email me.
Technorati Tags:MicrosoftbusinesstechnologyOCS 2007
Exchange 2010
The Top 3 Questions People Ask Us Re: OCS 2007
Filed under: Conferencing, Instant Messaging (IM), OCS 2007, Reference, Unified Communications, Voice over IP
When you”re experts in something, people ask you questions. The same questions. Over & over again.
I”ve blogged about many of the things our customer ask us in the past. Still, a recap now and then doesn”t hurt. And since we”ve had several sales meetings that were almost cookie-cutter when it came to the questions they asked, I figured now’’s the time.
This is a trio of very common questions we get asked about Office Communications Server. (There’’s actually about 6 or 7, but I”ll save the rest for a later post.) If you”ve had a burning questions about OCS but thought it was too basic to ask? It’’s your lucky day.
1. What can we use it (OCS) for?
Use it to communicate with co-workers, clients and partners. Via text, voice or video. It runs all of that through the Office Communicator client on your desktop or mobile.
2. Does it work like a regular phone?
Yes, but not 100% the same. There are handsets you can use with OCS; that’’s pretty much a regular desktop phone for you. Otherwise, you can use the mic & speakers in your computer to have a voice conversation. Kind of like Skype, except OCS is more secure and incorporates tool for sharing business information while you chat.
Note: When people ask us about this, they”re also curious if OCS lets you talk with regular desk and cell phones too. The answer to that is yes, if you have an IP-PBX gateway installed. (We use gateways from Cisco, Aculab and Dialogic.)
3. Will it work with our phones?
Unless your phones are SIP-capable , no. Regular phones use standard telephone lines. OCS 2007′’s voice capabilities run through VoIP, which uses Internet connections. The tech’’s too new for the older phones to use. You”ll have to make some changes.
Any other OCS questions you”d like an answer to? Leave a comment, or email me. Next week I”ll post the Top 3 Questions we get about the new Exchange Server 2010.
Technorati Tags:MicrosoftbusinesstechnologyOCS 2007
SIP
