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Embedded in Cisco router platforms, Cisco® Unified Communications Manager Express (Unified CME) enables powerful unified communications for distributed enterprise branch-office and retail environments.
As a licensed feature set of Cisco IOS® XE Software, it is easy to configure and can be tailored to the needs of an individual site. It is feature-rich and can be combined with other services on the Cisco router platforms to provide an all-in-one branch-office solution that saves valuable real estate. Unified CME is ideal if you are looking for an integrated, reliable, feature-rich unified communications system for up to 450 users.
Key features and benefits
Cisco Unified CME enhances the cost benefits of converging data, voice, and video onto a single network by offering the following benefits:
● Cost-effective operations through a single, integrated platform for all branch-office needs – Highly reliable routers running IOS XE software provide robust Quality of Service (QoS), network security, encryption, firewall, and network modules that deliver content networking and enhanced VPN services to address branch-office business needs. The system delivers integrated IP telephony, gateway, voicemail, and Automated-Attendant functions, allowing you to deploy one platform to address all your business needs, thereby simplifying management, maintenance, and operations and delivering a lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).
● Sophisticated key system and Private-Branch-Exchange (PBX) capabilities – Retail offices have different workflows and require specialized features to support their work practices. Cisco Unified CME delivers a robust set of telephony features for the retail office and delivers innovative value-added multimedia capabilities through XML and Java midlets. These capabilities, which traditional systems cannot deliver, enhance the productivity of the end user and the business.
● Contact-center capabilities – From basic call queuing to sophisticated contact centers for small to medium-sized companies, branch-office locations, or departments, you can deploy agent-assisted or self-service applications to reduce business costs and improve customer response by providing sophisticated and Basic Automatic Call Distributor (BACD), Interactive Voice Response (IVR), CTI, and agent and desktop services.
● Interoperability with Cisco Unified Communications Manager – You can deploy Cisco Unified Communications Manager at larger sites and Cisco Unified CME at branch-office locations where local call processing is required, without a dependency on the WAN. Using Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) trunking, you can route calls over the WAN with calling-party name and number information.
Investment protection and ease of upgrade to centralized call-processing systems – With a simple software configuration change on the router, you can convert Cisco Unified CME to Cisco Unified Survivable Remote Site Telephony (SRST). Therefore, if you transition your unified communications architecture from a decentralized to a centralized architecture using Cisco Unified Communications Manager or Business Edition, the branch offices will be able to use Cisco Unified SRST to provide telephony survivability if a WAN failure occurs.
Remote maintenance and troubleshooting – You can use the industry-standard Cisco IOS XE Software Command-Line Interface (CLI) to configure and administer Cisco Unified CME.
Cisco Unified CME allows a Cisco Integrated Services Router to provide rich call processing for IP phones across the Cisco portfolio. All the necessary configurations and support files for IP phones are stored internally on the appliance, providing a single-platform solution. In addition, the solution offers a robust set of Public-Switched-Telephone-Network (PSTN) interfaces, integrated voicemail and Automated Attendant, and a full phone portfolio.
Cisco IOS XE Software offers industry-leading voice features designed for IP-based telephony systems. In addition, devices with integrated functions such as Channel Service Unit/Data Service Unit (CSU/DSU) and Network Termination 1 (NT1) are available with digital PSTN interface cards to provide flexible and robust voice services.
Cisco platforms and IP phone support
Using Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express, a maximum of 450 IP phones can be supported across a choice of platforms. Table 1 lists the maximum number of devices Unified CME 14 supports with each platform. Table 2 lists some of the devices supported by Unified CME 14. For further detail, refer to the supported products document for your release.
Table 1. Platform support for Unified CME
| Platform |
Maximum number of phones |
| Cisco 6300 Embedded Services Router |
50 |
| Cisco 1100 Series Integrated Services Routers* |
50 |
| Cisco 4321 Integrated Services Router |
50 or 200 in appliance mode |
| Cisco 4331 Integrated Services Router |
100 |
| Cisco 4351 Integrated Services Router |
250 |
| Cisco 4431 Integrated Services Router |
350 |
| Cisco 4451 Integrated Services Router |
450 |
| Cisco 4461 Integrated Services Router |
450 |
| Cisco Catalyst 8200L-1N-4T** |
100 |
| Cisco Catalyst 8200-1N-4T** |
250 |
| Cisco Catalyst 8300-1N1S-6T** |
500 |
| Cisco Catalyst 8300-2N2S-6T** |
500 |
| Cisco Catalyst 8300-1N1S-4T2X** |
750 |
| Cisco Catalyst 8300-2N2S-4T2X** |
750 |
| Cisco 1000V Cloud Services Router (vCME) |
475 |
| Cisco Catalyst 8000V Software (vCME) |
475 |
Table 2. Unified CME device support
| Current range of supported Cisco devices |
Description |
| Cisco IP Phone 8800 Series |
● Ideal for onsite and remote knowledge workers, administrative staff, and managers
● Enjoy clear IP telephony with enhanced acoustics to increase productivity
● Work your way with advanced features such as personal mobile device integration
● Compatible with Cisco on-premises, Cisco cloud, and many third-party solutions
|
| Cisco IP Phone 7800 Series |
● Ideal for common areas, knowledge workers, administrative staff, and managers
● Cost-effective, full-featured IP telephony for small to large organizations
● Range of models supporting light to active voice communications needs
● Clear sound from enhanced acoustics and wideband audio to avoid fatigue
● Compatible with Cisco on-premises, Cisco cloud, and many third-party solutions
|
| Cisco IP Phone 3905 |
● Affordable, entry-level VoIP handset
● Basic telephony features
● Ideal for lobbies, classrooms, laboratories, and hallways
|
| ATA 190 Series |
● The Cisco ATA 190 Series Analog Telephone Adapters enable you to turn analog devices, such as phones, fax machines, and paging systems into IP devices.
● The 190 Series are Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) endpoints that are managed from your IP network.
|
| Cisco 8800 KEM Series |
● Call coverage is critical for administrative assistants and others who must monitor and manage the status of calls. It requires the ability to instantly determine the status of numerous lines beyond those of the Cisco IP Phone 8851, 8861, and 8865 models.
|
Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express provides a sophisticated set of key system and PBX telephony features designed for businesses and branch offices. It also provides several industry-unique features that are not available with other traditional telephony solutions. Table 3 summarizes the features available with Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express Version 14.0.
Table 3. Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express 14 features
| Feature |
Description |
| Phone features |
● Abbreviated dialing
● Access features using soft keys or feature access codes
● Answer with headset
● Attendant console functions
● Audible ringtone with hunt-group login and logout
● Auto-answer
● Automatic line selection for outbound calls
● Busy Lamp Field (BLF)
● Call barge with privacy on shared lines
● Call forward on busy, no answer, and all (internal or external)
● Call waiting with overlay directory number
● Call-forward-all restriction control
● Call-waiting ring
● cBarge on mixed shared lines
● Customizable phone Telephony User Interface (TUI) with button layout control
● Customization of soft keys
● Dial-plan pattern load on SIP phones
● Distinctive ring for parked call recall
● Distinctive ring per line
● Diversion of calls directly to voicemail
● Do Not Disturb (DND)
● DTMF
● Dual or eight call line appearances per button (SCCP mode)
● Dynamic hunt-group join or leave
● Dynamic hunt-group login
● Enable and disable call-waiting notification per line
● Enhanced iDivert
● Fast transfer: Blind or consult
● Feature ring with DND set
● Hook flash passthrough across analog PSTN trunks
● iDivert
● Idle URL: Periodically push messages or graphics on IP phones
● Improved security with customizable services and directories page
● IP phone display of DND state
● Last-number redial
● Line label
● Live record to Cisco Unity Express mailbox
● Local name directory lookup
● Localization support for Cisco unified IP phones
● Localized date formats
● My Phone Apps support for SIP endpoints
● My Phone Apps support for BLF speed-dial configuration
● Normalized +E.164 support for Cisco unified IP phones (SCCP)
● On-hook dialing
● Programmable Line Keys (PLK) on Cisco IP phone TUI
● Redundant Cisco Unified CME Router on Cisco IP phones
● Session and Enhanced Line Modes for 7800/8800 series models
● Shared line between SCCP and SIP endpoints
● Shared line on SIP phones with privacy and barge-in capabilities
● Silent and feature ring options
● Silent ringing options
● SIP-initiated conference
● Speakerphone
● SSH and WebUI access to phone
● Station speed dial with configuration changes from IP phone
● Station-to-station video with voice using Cisco video capable endpoints
● Transfer to voicemail soft key
● Up to 94 line appearances per phone using key expansion modules
● Video and camera support for Cisco unified IP phones
● Visual list of parked calls
● Visual list of voice hunt groups
● Whisper intercom
● Wideband audio (G.722) and Internet low-bit-rate codec (iLBC)
● XML application services on Cisco Unified IP display phones
|
| Trunk features |
● Analog Foreign-Exchange-Office (FXO) Loop and Ground Start
● Automatic Number Identification (ANI)
● Basic Rate Interface (BRI) and Primary Rate Interface (PRI) support (NI2, 4ESS, 5ESS, EuroISDN, DMS100, and DMS250) and several other switch types currently supported in Cisco IOS Software
● Call forwarding busy, no answer, and all
● Caller ID name and number
● Calling Line Identification Presentation (CLIP) and Calling Name Identification Presentation (CNIP)
● Connected line identification presentation (COLP) and connected name identification presentation (CONP)
● Dedicated trunk mapping to phone button
● Digital trunk support (T1/E1)
● Direct Inward Dialing (DID)
● Direct Outward Dialing (DOD)
● E1 R2 support
● Message-Waiting Indicator (MWI) and message center support
● MWI passthrough QSIG-to-Time-Division Multiplexing (TDM) voicemail
● Overlap sending support on ISDN PRI and BRI trunks
● SIP trunks and RFC 2833 support
|
| System features |
● After-hours toll-bar override
● Attendant console functions
● Enable and disable call-waiting notification per line
● Extension mobility within the single site
● Fast Track Mode
● Fast transfer: blind or consult
● Redundant Cisco Unified CME Router on Cisco IP phones
● Remote teleworker IP phone support
● Single Number Reach and paging for SIP endpoints
● SIP-based line-side subscribe, providing basic presence of phone status
● SIP-initiated conference
● Support for analog phones using Cisco Analog Telephone Adaptors (ATA)
● Support for Cisco analog voice gateways
● Support for fax machines on Foreign-Exchange-Station (FXS) ports or ATA using H.323, SCCP, or SIP
● Support for legacy Cisco IP phones and third-party SIP devices
● Support for the latest Cisco Unified IP Phone 7800 and 8800 endpoints
● System speed dial for 10,000 numbers
● Video and camera support for Cisco unified IP phones
● Wideband audio (G.722) and Internet low-bit-rate codec (iLBC)
● XML application services on Cisco unified IP display phones
|
| International localization |
● Per-phone localization for up to five local languages per system, including English, Bulgarian, Chinese Mandarin and Cantonese, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, European Spanish, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese Kanji and Katakana, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovakian, Slovenian, Swedish, Turkish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Estonian, and Hebrew
|
| Management features |
● Automatic assignment of extensions to phones for easy phone additions
● Smart Licensing
● Telephony-service setup and configuration using Cisco IOS XE Web UI
|
Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express delivers telephony features you need to meet the requirements of your branch office. Cisco routers offer high reliability and advanced applications, including unified communications, VPN, firewall, encryption, dial access, Ethernet switching with Power over Ethernet (PoE), and content networking within a single all-in-one platform that is easy to deploy and maintain, resulting in a lower TCO.
As your business expands, you can easily migrate Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express to a larger-scale Cisco Unified Communications Manager based IP telephony solution. All hardware and software used by this solution is fully compatible with Cisco Unified Communications Manager and Cisco Unified SRST, giving you robust investment protection.
Cisco Smart Licenses allow for entitlement pooling and portability across all unified CME platforms registered to an organization’s Cisco Smart Licensing account.
Starting with CME version 12.5 (Cisco IOS XE 16.10.1a), all platforms must be registered with a customer’s Cisco Smart Software Management account. For more information regarding Smart Licensing, see: https://www.cisco.com/go/smartlicensing
Cisco CME may be purchased through a Cisco Collaboration Flex Plan subscription using the product codes in Table 4. For more information on ordering CME as a subscription, refer to the Cisco Collaboration Flex Plan Ordering Guide. Entitlements provided through Flex subscriptions are term-based and may be used with any version of CME.
Table 4. CME Subscription ordering information
| Product code |
Description |
| A-FLEX-3 |
Subscription type; select this first |
| A-FLEX-EP-CME |
One CME Endpoint subscription (provides entitlement to use any version of CME) |
Cisco environmental sustainability
Information about Cisco’s environmental sustainability policies and initiatives for our products, solutions, operations, and extended operations or supply chain is provided in the “Environment Sustainability” section of Cisco’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report.
Reference links to information about key environmental sustainability topics (mentioned in the “Environment Sustainability” section of the CSR Report) are provided in Table 6.
Table 5. Environmental sustainability
| Sustainability topic |
Reference |
| Information on product material content laws and regulations |
|
| Information on electronic waste laws and regulations, including products, batteries, and packaging |
Cisco makes the packaging data available for informational purposes only. It may not reflect the most current legal developments, and Cisco does not represent, warrant, or guarantee that it is complete, accurate, or up to date. This information is subject to change without notice.
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For more information about the Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express (CME), visit https://www.cisco.com/go/cme or contact your local Cisco account representative.