Certified Cisco Network Consultants
Cisco Voice Over IP Consultants:
Evaluation, Deployment and Support
 Voice
over IP refers to telephony technology that transmits voice
communications over a network using IP standards. Cisco AVVID
(Architecture for Voice, Video and Integrated Data) provides
the infrastructure and feature set for creating a single converged
network that can handle voice, video, and data traffic simultaneously.
It provides this capability while maintaining a high level
of network availability, Quality of Service (QoS), and security.
Important advantages of IP communications solutions enabled
by Cisco's AVVID architecture include:
-
A flexible, interoperable migration strategy that
allows you to choose IP Communications
solutions that meet your current
needs, while providing a smooth path
for accelerating IP deployment
-
QoS mechanisms that help ensure high voice quality
through tight control of delay, loss
and jitter
-
Network management products that provide network
administration, operations,
troubleshooting, configuring, fault
monitoring and element management
The architecture of the Cisco IP
Telephony solution consists of
communications endpoints,
call-processing agents, and IP telephony
applications.
Communications Endpoints
A communications endpoint is a user
instrument, either a desk phone or a
software phone application that runs on
a PC. In the IP environment, each phone
has an Ethernet connection. IP phones
have all of the functions that a
telephone provides. They can also have
additional features such as the ability
to access Websites or to run
productivity-enhancing applications.
In a Cisco IP Telephony network, you
also have the option of choosing the
Cisco IP Communicator, a PC-based phone.
When using the Cisco IP Communicator
remotely, you take your office
extensions with you and also have access
to the same familiar phone services and
features you have in the office. System
administrators can provision Cisco IP
Communicator as they would any other
Cisco IP Phone, greatly simplifying IP
phone management.
Unlike traditional PBX systems, in a
Cisco IP Telephony network you can
perform virtually instantaneous moves,
adds and changes. You simply take the IP
phone to your new location, plug it into
the Ethernet jack, and the phone
registers itself with Cisco CallManager.
All user privileges and settings are
automatically re-established,
eliminating the cost and delay of
sending technicians to wiring closets.
Another helpful feature is extension
mobility, which allows you to log into
any Cisco IP phones and receive your own
phone number and privilege.
Call-processing agent
The call-processing agent is the heart
of the Cisco IP Telephony system. To
meet your organizational needs you can
choose to deploy a centralized
call-processing model, a decentralized
model, or a combination of both. In a
centralized deployment, Cisco
CallManager extends enterprise telephony
features and capabilities to packet
telephony network devices such as IP
phones, media processing devices, voice
over IP (VoIP) gateways, and multimedia
applications throughout the network.
Cisco CallManager enables additional
voice, video, and data services such as
unified messaging, multimedia
conferencing, collaborative customer
interaction networks, and interactive
multimedia response systems.
When a central Cisco CallManager cluster
also handles call processing for users
at distributed sites, administrators can
help ensure continuous phone service
using Cisco Survivable Remote Site
Telephony (SRST), a Cisco IOS Software
image for Cisco routers. If a WAN link
fails, Cisco SRST in the router provides
basic Cisco CallManager capabilities
until the link is restored.
For small offices or loosely coupled
small enterprise branch locations that
do not require the full,
enterprise-class feature set offered by
Cisco CallManager, Cisco CallManager
Express offers a cost-effective solution
that meets the requirements of sites
with fewer than 100 employees. Since
Cisco CallManager Express is embedded in
the Cisco IOS Software running on a
Cisco multiservice access router,
smaller offices are able to simply and
easily deploy a converged voice and data
solution.
IP Telephony Applications
Under Cisco's AVVID architecture, IP
telephony applications are physically
independent from the call-processing and
voice-processing infrastructure, and
they may reside anywhere within the
network. A single network infrastructure
provides an open platform for powerful
productivity applications, and serves as
a solid foundation for future
convergence-based applications.
Cisco Unified Communications
The Cisco Unity application delivers
powerful unified messaging including
e-mail, intelligent voice messaging, and
faxes managed from a single inbox.
The Cisco Unity solution integrates
advanced convergence-based
communications services with everyday
desktop applications such as Microsoft
Outlook. With Cisco Unity Unified
Messaging, you can listen to e-mail over
the telephone, check voice messages from
the Internet, and forward faxes to your
current location. Cisco Unity Voice
Messaging offers automated attendant
features that include intelligent
routing and customizable call screening
and message notification options.
The Cisco Unity solution supports both
Cisco CallManager and leading PBX
systems to help your business transition
to IP telephony at your own pace and
protect your existing infrastructure
investments. The solution also offers
several networking modules that enable
advanced message interchange with
popular voice-mail systems. While you
are migrating to the Cisco Unity
solution, these modules help to ensure a
smooth transition by giving you the
ability to exchange messages with
internal system subscribers who reside
on a different messaging system.
The Cisco Personal Assistant telephony
application allows your users to manage
how and where they want to be reached by
offering features such as rules-based
call routing, simplified contact
management, and speech recognition. With
Cisco Personal Assistant, users can
customize call screening and forwarding
features, routing calls based on time of
day, who the caller is, and calendar
appointments. All of this requires no
assistance from your IT department.
Streamlining outbound communications can
be done with speech recognition access
to name dial contacts in the corporate
directory or Microsoft Outlook contact
list. Speech commands are also used to
set up ad hoc conference calls, initiate
“follow me” call routing, and respond to
voice-mail messages.
Cisco Unity Express offers local
voice-mail and automated attendant
capabilities for IP phone users
connected to either Cisco CallManager or
Cisco CallManager Express in a small or
branch office location. Cisco Unity
Express is fully integrated into the
Cisco access router either on a network
module or an advanced integration module
(AIM). Cisco Unity Express serves up to
100 subscribers, with features intended
for the small business or branch office.
How DCI Can Help You with Cisco's VoIP
Technology
DCI can provide a Cisco Certified
Internetwork Expert (CCIE) or Cisco
Certified Network Professional (CCNP) to
help you deploy Cisco VoIP technology.
DCI can evaluate your existing network
and Internet access infrastructure to
determine whether your environment is
optimized to support VoIP, help you
select and deploy Cisco hardware and
software appropriate for your current
situation and future growth plans, and
business objectives, and integrate your
VoIP solution with technology from other
vendors.
For information about DCI's consulting
and support services for other Cisco
technologies, select a topic:
For more information about DCI's
consulting and support services for
Cisco technology, call (866)666-7731
or send email to
information@dcicorporation.com.
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