Rename and a Revamp - New Features of Communications Server 14
Filed under: Conferencing, OCS 2007 R2, OCS 2010, Unified Communications, Voice over IP
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.
6 Things to Check Before an OCS Conference
Filed under: Conferencing, OCS 2007, OCS 2007 R2, Unified Communications, Voice over IP
You”re about to have your first full-on Live Meeting conference with a client! OCS is all set up; you”ve got the cameras ready in case they want to jump to video. VoIP is set up, Mediation server is a go, Edge server in place. Let’’s call them up, right?
Not so fast. Check a few things first. You wouldn”t want your first OCS conference to crash would you? Might cause problems with the client, if they think your conferencing setup isn”t up to snuff.
These are 6 things to check in your OCS setup before any conference is held. I”m assuming basic OCS functionality is already taken care of; these are things you might not think to check right away. But they can "tangle the lines" if they”re not addressed.
1. Test the VoIP connection by calling someone outside your internal network.
If they can”t hear you/you can”t hear them, there’’s a problem on the Mediation server or VoIP gateway. (Run video on this test too, if you plan to use video in the conference.)
2. Check the Edge server for invalid certificates.
A run-through of the Edge server’’s event log will tell you if there’’s any certificate issues creeping around. If so, these should be resolved. They could potentially mess up your client’’s external connection to your OCS setup if not.
3. Double-check your SIP domains.
If you used sip.domain.com (as most Edge servers do), make sure it’’s an FQDN (fully-qualified domain name) and it’’s not blocked by any firewall rules. This can scuttle any external connections if not checked.
4. Is public IM federation turned on & running?
Just in case you want to send over a link during the conference. If your SIP domains are okay, this shouldn”t have any configuration problems.
5. Run the OCS Remote Connectivity Analyzer.
This Analyzer is a Microsoft tool (beta) that tests remote connectivity to an OCS server. It will even auto-discover the needed port and Access Edge.
Ask your client to run the Analyzer on their end before the conference. It’’s free and web-based, so it should be quick & easy: https://www.testocsconnectivity.com/
(The Communications Server Team blog has a write-up on it here: Office Communications Server Remote Connectivity Analyzer - Communications Server Team Blog)
6. And as a last check, make sure that your Internet connection is solid.
If that goes down, well…there’’s not much else you can do, is there?
If everything checks out here - you”re ready to have your chat.
P.S. - Jeff Schertz of PointBridge Blogs has a detailed review of connectivity needs too. With a few handy diagrams.
Did I miss anything? Is there something you like to check in OCS before any big conference session? Let us know in the Comments. Be as detailed as you like; it helps everybody!
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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 2007SIP
OCS 2007 R2 Web Scheduler Released for Free Download
While we were finishing up the new site (which you can see at www.planetmagpie.com if you like), Microsoft was sneaky and released a new OCS tool!
It’’s called Web Scheduler. It lets you schedule an OCS conference using your browser, instead of Outlook or the Office Communicator desktop client. When you don”t have Outlook open, or can”t get to it for some reason, you can still join conference calls.
The Web Scheduler is pretty small too - less than 2MB. I get the feeling it”ll be included in the next update. But we can start using it in the meantime!
Uses for the Web Scheduler
Web Scheduler lets you:
- Schedule a new Live Meeting conference or conference call.
- View/change details of an existing conference.
- Check the schedules of conference attendees.
- Send out email invitations to conference participants (by using a configured SMTP mail server).
- Join a conference.
I”m thinking of two potentials where an OCS Web Scheduler would be handy.
One, on smartphones. Use OCS as a bridge from your iPhone/Android mobile into a conference while off-site. (Yes, the Office Communicator can do this from phones too. It’’s always good to have a Web-based alternative though.)
Two, when you”re on someone else’’s computer or network. On-site with a client perhaps, or logging in from home.
Any other ideas? Let us know in the Comments.
Technical Details
Web Scheduler is a 64-bit tool. It works on Windows Server 2003 (Standard and Enterprise x64 Edition) and Windows Server 2008. An SMTP server like Microsoft Exchange Server is needed for sending out email invitations in Web Scheduler.
To download Web Scheduler for Microsoft OCS 2007 R2, visit this Microsoft.com page: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=6d6848ec-e7d6-41f4-82d9-5bed3526fcbd&displaylang=en
This IS a free download, but of course you”ll need OCS 2007 R2 to run it.
I”ll see about some more technical details - maybe instructions for use - for a later post. Setup is detailed on the above page. Have fun with Web Scheduler!
Face-to-Face VS. Video Conference: A Which-to-Choose Checklist
Filed under: OCS 2007, OCS 2007 R2, Unified Communications, Voice over IP
Traffic. The price of gas. No time anyway. Airport security. There’’s lots of reasons why business travel is more irritating than ever. (That last one’’s bad enough!) So it’’s no surprise that we field lots of questions about conferencing systems.
Which always brings up the same question. “Which is better, face-to-face meetings or conferencing?”
By “conferencing” I mean conference calls, video conferencing through systems like OCS, etc. Any system used to bridge the communication gap between you and someone who’’s not close enough for you to knock on their door.
So which IS better? Well, it depends on a few things. Like the person with whom you”re conferencing. Their relationship to you. Where they”re located. And what technology’’s available.
What Types of Meetings Do We Have?
Let’’s start with the types of meeting out there. The “type” is determined by the other person (or group) you meet, and why. This gives us about 5 major meeting types:
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