Table Of Contents
Configuring Streaming Media Services
Licensing and Enabling Streaming Servers
Using the Real-Time Streaming Protocol Gateway
Configuring the RTSP Gateway
Enabling RealProxy
Enabling RealSubscriber
Enabling the Cisco Streaming Engine
Using Windows Media Technologies
Enabling WMT
Configuring WMT Proxy Settings
Configuring WMT Live Splitting for Unicast and Multicast Transmissions
Live Stream Splitting Scenarios
Configuring Unicast-In Multicast-Out
Configuring Multicast-In Multicast-Out
Configuring Multicast-In Unicast-Out
Configuring Unicast-In Unicast-Out
Configuring WMT Station Schedules
Configuring Content Services Bandwidth Settings
Configuring Content Services Default and Maximum Bandwidth Settings
Configuring Content Services Bandwidth Settings for Scheduled Times
Displaying a Graphical Representation of the Content Service Bandwidth Settings
Configuring the WMT Bandwidth Incoming Bypass List
Managing Multicast Addresses for Programs
Configuring Program Multicast Addresses
Configuring Streaming Media Services
Streaming is a technology that allows content to be accessed or viewed before all the media packets have been received, whereas with traditional content serving, the content must be received in its entirety before it can be accessed. Streaming media can be delivered as live content or it can be delivered as on-demand content, such as video on demand (VOD). Cisco ACNS software supports several types of streaming media services, including RealNetworks RealMedia, Microsoft Windows Media Technologies (WMT), and Apple QuickTime.
To acquire and distribute live streams to clients, you can use a manifest file and set up multicasting on each Content Engine using either the CLI or the Content Distribution Manager GUI, as described in this chapter. ACNS 5.1 software also supports a Program API that allows you to set up a multicast of a scheduled event on a set of Content Engines without using the CLI. The Program API provides additional scheduling options that are not supported by the manifest file. Additionally, you can use the Content Distribution Manager to manage the multicast addresses to be used for programs, as described in this chapter.
Note 
For more information about the Program API, refer to the Cisco ACNS Software API Guide, Release 5.1 publication.
This chapter contains the following sections:
•Licensing and Enabling Streaming Servers
•Using the Real-Time Streaming Protocol Gateway
•Using Windows Media Technologies
•Configuring Content Services Bandwidth Settings
•Managing Multicast Addresses for Programs
Licensing and Enabling Streaming Servers
In order for your ACNS network devices to be able to serve streaming media, you must tell the ACNS network that a particular media player type is present.
Note You must enable licenses for streaming media on each Content Engine individually in the ACNS network before you can enable these streaming licenses on a device group.
If there is a particular media type that you do not want to serve through your ACNS network, you need to disable the corresponding media player so that your ACNS network devices do not attempt to serve that media type.
Using the media player mappings in the manifest file, you can customize your content type mappings from MIME content types or file extensions to configured media players. See the "Working with Manifest Files" section for more information on configuring manifest files.
Note Modifying the configuration of any media players causes any ACNS network devices running that media player software to restart and register the configuration change. Depending on the number and location of devices that restart following a media player configuration change, you may experience a temporary interruption in service for the time it takes your devices to come back online—usually a few minutes.
Before enabling licenses for streaming media services, make sure that the clock and calendar settings on the ACNS network device are correct; otherwise, you will see an error message, and the services will fail to install. Use the show clock EXEC command to display the system clock. To set the system clock, use the clock set EXEC command.
Using the Real-Time Streaming Protocol Gateway
Real-Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP) is a standard Internet streaming control protocol (RFC 2326). It is a widely used application-level protocol that controls the delivery of data with real-time properties, such as video and audio. Apple QuickTime, RealNetworks, and the Cisco Streaming Engine use RTSP as a streaming control protocol.
The RTSP gateway is a process running on the Content Engine that accepts an RTSP request and performs the initial RTSP contact with RTSP-based clients (RealMedia, QuickTime, and so on) on behalf of the RTSP-based streaming servers available on the Content Engine. From information derived from the initial request operation, the RTSP gateway queries the URL filtering, rules, authentication, and unified name space (UNS) agents to determine whether or not the content is pre-positioned.
Note Pre-positioned content requests are only accepted and served on the RTSP gateway (for both RealMedia and the Cisco Streaming Engine) default port number 554. If the default RTSP port number is changed to any other port number on the Content Engine while the Content Engine is waiting for RTSP pre-positioned content from the origin server, the Content Engine will be unable to serve the content.
The RTSP gateway is always enabled and cannot be disabled. Based on the properties of the incoming request, including such properties as user agent, final destination, and media file type, the RTSP gateway performs these tasks:
•Forwards the incoming request to the RealProxy that resides on the same Content Engine as the RTSP gateway
•Forwards the incoming request to the RealSubscriber that resides on the same Content Engine as the RTSP gateway
•Forwards the incoming request to the Cisco Streaming Engine
•Redirects the incoming request
•Rejects the incoming request
To fulfill a client RTSP request for non-pre-positioned content, a Content Engine (CE1) forwards the request to the origin server. If the request is transparently intercepted by another Content Engine (CE2) on its way to the origin server, and the content is not pre-positioned on CE2, then the RTSP Gateway application on CE2 issues an RTSP redirect response and adds a bypass entry in the WCCP bypass list.
The Content Engine can be configured to accept transparently redirected RTSP requests as well as traditional proxy-style RTSP requests from RealPlayer client software. The RealProxy software is configured with the RealAdministrator GUI, accessed from the RealProxy window of the Content Engine management GUI. Detailed configuration, statistics, and reporting of RealProxy status are obtained through the RealAdministrator GUI.
A RealProxy window has been added to the Content Engine management GUI. See the "Enabling RealProxy" section. The Admin button is active on the Content Engine Management GUI when the RealProxy software is installed and enabled. You will be provided with a default username and password to access this administration window from the Content Engine GUI.
Note You must configure disk space to include mediafs storage with the disk config EXEC command before you can run streaming media using RealProxy.
Configuring the RTSP Gateway
To configure RTSP gateway parameters, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Device Groups. If you have created device groups, the Device Group window appears.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the name of the device group that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 From the Contents pane, choose RTSP > RTSP Gateway. (See Figure 13-1.) Table 13-1 describes the fields in this window and provides the corresponding CLI commands.
Figure 13-1 RTSP Gateway Settings Window
Step 4 Check the Enable check box. Checking this box allows you to configure the RTSP gateway settings. When unchecked, the fields in this window are disabled for configuration. Unchecking this box does not disable RTSP.
Step 5 In the Incoming Port field, enter the port number used by the RSTP proxy to receive requests.
Step 6 In the IP-Address field, enter the IP address of the RTSP gateway. This is usually the Content Engine that is serving the requested content.
Step 7 Check the Enable L4 Switch Support check box to enable redirection using a Layer 4 switch.
Table 13-1 RTSP Gateway-Related Features
Key Parameter
|
Function
|
CLI Command
|
Incoming Port
|
Specifies the ports on which to listen for RTSP requests.
|
rtsp ports
|
IP-Address
|
Specifies the IP address of the RTSP gateway.
|
rtsp ip-address
|
Layer 4 Switch Support
|
Enables redirection with a Layer 4 switch, such as a Cisco CSS 11000 Series switch.
|
rtsp L4-switch enable
|
Enabling RealProxy
RealProxy software is configured using the RealSystem administrator GUI, which is accessed from the RealProxy page of the Content Engine management GUI. See the Cisco ACNS Caching and Streaming Configuration Guide, Release 5.x for more information on how to access the RealProxy GUI from the Content Engine GUI.
ACNS 5.x software includes RealServer Version 9 as an optional component that is used as a streaming media engine.
Note You must enable a RealProxy streaming license on each Content Engine on the ACNS network before you can enable RealProxy on a device group.
Before enabling licenses for streaming media services, make sure that the clock and calendar settings on the ACNS network device are correct, otherwise, you will see an error message and the services will fail to install. Use the show clock EXEC command to display the system clock. To set the system clock, use the clock set EXEC command.
Note The Real Proxy License Agreement for Content Engine window appears the first time if you have not read and accepted the license agreement for the device. After you have read and accepted the terms of this agreement, you must check the Accept License check box at the bottom of this window and click Submit. The page refreshes itself and the Real Proxy License Settings window appears.
To enable RealProxy on a Content Engine, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Content Engines. If you have registered Content Engines, the Content Engines window appears.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the name of the Content Engine that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 From the Contents pane, choose RTSP > RTSP License.
The Real Proxy License Agreement for Content Engine window appears if you have not previously read and accepted the license agreement for the device. After you have read and accepted the terms of this agreement, you must check the Accept License check box at the bottom of this window and click Submit. The page refreshes itself and the Real Proxy License Settings window appears. (See Figure 13-2.)
Figure 13-2 Real Proxy License Settings Window
Step 4 Check the Enable check box to activate the RealProxy license.
Step 5 In the License Key field, enter the license key number to obtain a permanent RealProxy license.
Alternatively, check the Evaluate check box to use a temporary 60-day license.
Step 6 Check the validate check box to validate the license key that you entered. (The box is checked by default.)
Step 7 To apply the settings from a device group, choose a device group from the drop-down list in the taskbar.
You can also click the Apply Defaults icon in the taskbar to apply default settings. The Reset button returns settings to the most recently saved settings.
Step 8 Click Submit to save new settings.
Enabling RealSubscriber
ACNS 5.1 software includes RealServer Version 9 as an optional component that is used as a streaming media engine. When RealServer software is configured for subscriber-only mode, it is referred to as RealSubscriber.
To enable RealSubscriber on a Content Engine, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Content Engines. If you have registered Content Engines, the Content Engines window appears.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the Content Engine that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 Click RTSP > Real Subscriber.
The RealSubscriber License Agreement for Content Engine window appears if you have not previously read and accepted the license agreement for the device. After you have read and accepted the terms of this agreement, you must check the Accept License check box at the bottom of this window and click Submit. The page refreshes itself and the RealSubscriber License Settings window appears. (See Figure 13-3.)
Figure 13-3 RealSubscriber License Settings Window
Step 4 Check the Enable check box to activate a RealSubscriber license.
Step 5 In the License Key field, enter the license key number to obtain a permanent RealSubscriber license.
Alternatively, check the Evaluate check box to use a temporary 60-day license.
Step 6 Check the validate check box to validate the license key that you entered. (The box is checked by default.)
Step 7 Click Submit to save the settings.
Enabling the Cisco Streaming Engine
ACNS 5.x software includes support for a standard RTSP server, also known as the Cisco Streaming Engine solution for RTSP streaming media protocol.
Note You do not need a license to use the Cisco Streaming Engine to deliver RTSP streaming media.
To configure Cisco Streaming Engine parameters, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Content Engines. The Content Engines window appears.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the Content Engine that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 From the Contents pane, choose RTSP > Cisco Streaming Engine. (See Figure 13-4.)
Figure 13-4 Cisco Streaming Engine Settings Window
Step 4 Check the Enable check box to allow use of the Cisco Streaming Engine for RTSP streaming media delivery.
Step 5 If you want to apply settings from a device group to this device, choose the device group name from the drop-down list that appears in the taskbar. The list includes all device groups with which the device is associated that have been configured with license agreement settings for the Cisco Streaming Engine.
Step 6 Click Submit to save the settings.
Step 7 To override the device group settings applied to the device with the factory default settings, click the Override Group Settings with Defaults icon in the taskbar. This icon appears only if you have applied the device group settings to the Content Engine.
Using Windows Media Technologies
Microsoft Windows Media Technologies (WMT) is a set of streaming solutions for creating, distributing, and playing back digital media files across the Internet. WMT includes the following applications:
•Windows Media Player— End user application
•Windows Media Server—Server and distribution application
•Windows Media Encoder—Encodes media files for distribution
•Windows Media Codec—Compression algorithm applied to live or on-demand content
•Window Media Rights Manager (WMRM)—Encrypts content and manages user privileges
Note ACNS 5.1 software interoperates with WMT Version 9 Windows Media Player, Windows Media Encoder, Windows Media Codec, and Windows Media Server; however, the Content Engine does not provide the full functionality of Windows Media Server Version 9 and so cannot fully replace the server in Release 5.1.
ACNS 5.1 software supports WMT Version 9 live streaming from a Windows Media Encoder over a Microsoft Media Server MMS; serving files encoded with the Version 9 codec; and streaming live or on-demand content to Windows Media Player Version 9.
ACNS 5.1 software does not support serving a WMT file over RTP or RTSP, or authenticating against Windows Media Server Version 9 before serving a file.
Enabling WMT
To disseminate live and pre-positioned Windows Media content on an ACNS network, WMT caching proxy and server capabilities must be enabled on the Content Engine.
Note You must configure disk space to include mediafs storage with the disk config EXEC command before you can run streaming media using WMT.
Note You must enable a WMT streaming license on each Content Engine on the ACNS network before you can enable WMT on a device group.
To configure WMT parameters, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Content Engines. If you have registered Content Engines, the Content Engines window appears.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the Content Engine that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 Click WMT > WMT License.
The WMT License Agreement for Content Engine window appears if you have not previously read and accepted the license agreement for the device. After you have read and accepted the terms of this agreement, you must check the Accept License check box at the bottom of this window and click Submit. The page refreshes itself and the WMT License Settings window appears. (See Figure 13-5.)
Figure 13-5 WMT License Settings Window
Step 4 Check the Enable WMT Services check box to enable WMT.
Step 5 Check the Enable WMT Proxy check box to enable WMT caching proxy functionality.
Step 6 In the License Key field, enter the license key number to obtain a permanent WMT license.
Alternatively, check the Evaluate check box to use a temporary 60-day license.
Step 7 Check the validate check box to validate the license key that you entered. (The box is checked by default.)
Step 8 To apply the settings from a device group, choose a device group from the drop-down list in the taskbar.
You can also click the Apply Defaults icon in the taskbar to apply default settings. The Reset button returns settings to the most recently saved settings.
Step 9 Click Submit to save the settings.
Configuring WMT Proxy Settings
The Content Engine acting as a WMT proxy supports a basic proxy feature—it accepts incoming WMT streaming requests from clients and acts on behalf of the clients communicating with an origin server. The WMT proxy accepts and serves the streaming requests over the Microsoft Media Server (MMS) protocol as well as the HTTP protocol. (See Figure 13-6.) MMS is the protocol that WMT uses for communication between media players and servers.
Figure 13-6 Content Engine as Conventional WMT Caching Proxy
When possible, the WMT proxy also caches streaming content and serves the request from the Content Engine cache instead of from the origin server. It accepts transparently intercepted requests (through WCCP or Layer 4 [L4] redirect) as well as manual proxy requests (clients configured to use an upstream proxy).
The WMT proxy also supports multicasting and splitting of live streams (that is, it splits a single inbound feed to multiple clients).
Note For MMS over TCP and UDP, the proxy always fetches the stream from a server using TCP (MMST), so that the item cached is reliable and complete for future delivery. Streams requested using HTTP will be fetched using HTTP.
To configure WMT proxy settings parameters, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Content Engines.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the Content Engine that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 From the Contents pane, choose WMT > WMT General. The WMT General Settings window appears. (See Figure 13-7 and Figure 13-8.) Table 13-2 describes the fields in this window and provides the corresponding CLI global configuration commands.
Figure 13-7 WMT General Settings Window—WMT Proxy Settings
Step 4 Under the WMT Proxy Settings heading, check the Enable L4 Switch Support check box to enable redirection using a Layer 4 switch.
Step 5 Check the Enforce Max Object Size check box to allow the maximum size for an object to be cached.
Step 6 Enter a value (in megabytes) in the Max Object Size field. The range is from 1 to 1000000. The default value is 1024 megabytes.
Step 7 Check the Enable Outgoing HTTP Proxy check box to configure the outgoing MMS over HTTP proxy. Then enter the host name or IP address and the port number of the outgoing proxy. The port number range is 1 to 65535.
Step 8 Check the Enable Outgoing MMS Proxy check box to configure the outgoing MMS proxy. Then enter the host name or IP address and the port number of the outgoing proxy. The port number range is 1 to 65535.
Step 9 Check the Enable Fast Proxy Cache check box to enable caching performance improvement of the WMT proxy.
Step 10 Under the WMT General Settings heading, disable WMT traffic as desired. (See Figure 13-8.)
•Check the Disable HTTP WMT Traffic check box to disallow HTTP WMT traffic (streaming over http://).
•Check the Disable TCP WMT Traffic check box to disallow TCP WMT traffic (mmst://).
•Check the Disable UDP WMT Traffic check box to disallow UDP WMT traffic (mmsu://).
Figure 13-8 WMT General Settings
Step 11 In the Port to handle WMT Traffic field, enter the port number used by WMT to receive requests. The default port number used for WMT traffic is 1755.
Step 12 Specify the maximum number of concurrent sessions in the Maximum Concurrent Connections field. The default value is 3000 sessions.
Step 13 Check the Enforce Maximum Bitrate check box to allow use of the maximum bit rate allowed for serving content.
Step 14 Specify the maximum bit rate allowed (in kilobytes per second) in the Maximum Bitrate field.
Step 15 Check the Enable Live URL Stripping check box to remove personalization information from the URL before using it for live splitting.
Step 16 Check the Enable Fast Live Split check box to enable the WMT proxy live split performance improvement. This feature is an extension to the WMT proxy performance improvement.
Step 17 Check the Enable Mms Allowed Extensions check box to make is possible to add to or delete from the list of permitted filename extensions.
The default list of filename extensions includes asf, none, nsc, wma, and wmv. The none filename extension has been included to enable the Content Engine to serve files without filename extensions, such as live encoder URLs. The nsc filename extension is used for multicast media files.
Step 18 Specify the list of allowable extensions for MMS in the Mms Allowed Extensions field. The default extensions are automatically entered in this list.
Step 19 Under WMT Multicast Settings, enter the number of hops to live for multicast WMT packets. The default is 5 hops. The range is 0 to 255 hops.
For clients that are many router hops away from Content Engines functioning as multicast stations, the requested content is sometimes not delivered even though the delivering device has sent the content to the multicast address configured on the Content Engine. In such cases, configure a larger number of hops to allow a longer Time To Live for multicast packets being delivered to the Content Engine.
Step 20 Click Submit to save the settings.
Table 13-2 WMT General Settings Window
Key GUI Parameter
|
Description
|
CLI Command
|
WMT Proxy Settings
|
|
|
Enable L4 Switch Support
|
Enables redirection with a Layer 4 switch, such as a Cisco CSS 11000 series switch.
|
wmt l4-switch enable
|
Enforce Max Object Size
|
Enforces use of the maximum object size.
|
|
Max Object Size (MB)
|
Specifies the maximum allowable size of streaming media objects in megabytes (MB).
|
wmt cache max-obj-size
|
Enable Outgoing HTTP Proxy
|
Enables the use of outgoing MMS-over-HTTP.
|
wmt proxy outgoing http
|
Host Name
|
Host name or IP address of the outgoing HTTP proxy.
|
wmt proxy outgoing hostname
|
Port
|
Port of the outgoing proxy (the standard port is 1755).
|
wmt proxy outgoing ip-address port
|
Enable Outgoing MMS Proxy
|
Enables use of outgoing MMS.
|
wmt proxy outgoing mms
|
Host Name
|
Host name or IP address of the outgoing MMS proxy.
|
wmt proxy outgoing mms hostname
|
Port
|
Port of the outgoing proxy.
|
wmt proxy outgoing mms ip-address port
|
WMT General Settings
|
|
|
Disable HTTP WMT Traffic
|
Disallows HTTP (streaming over http://).
|
wmt disallowed-client-protocols HTTP
|
Disable TCP WMT traffic
|
Disallows TCP (mmst://).
|
wmt disallowed-client-protocols TCP
|
Disable UDP WMT Traffic
|
Disallows UDP (mmsu://).
|
wmt disallowed-client-protocols UDP
|
Port to handle WMT Traffic
|
Port number used by WMT to receive requests, between 1 and 65535. If a particular port is not specified, port 1755 is used as the default.
|
wmt incoming port number 1-65535
|
Maximum Concurrent Connections
|
Maximum number of unicast clients that can be served. The range depends on the physical limitations of the platform. The default value is 2500.
|
wmt max-concurrent-sessions number
|
Enforce Maximum Bitrate
|
Enforces the maximum stream bit rate that can be served.
|
|
Maximum Bitrate (Kbps)
|
Maximum stream bit rate that can be served. The range is 0 to 2147483647 kbps. There is no default value.
|
bitrate wmt outgoing max-bitrate
|
Enable Live URL Stripping
|
Removes personalization information from the URL before using it for live splitting.
|
wmt live-url-stripping
|
Enable Fast Live Split
|
Enables performance improvements in live splitting for the WMT proxy.
|
wmt fast-live-split enable
|
Enable Mms Allowed Extensions
|
Enables the Mms Allowed Extensions field.
|
|
Mms Allowed Extensions
|
List of allowable extensions for MMS.
You can add or delete filename extensions from this list with the following restrictions:
•Each extension must be alphanumeric, with the first character in the extension being an alphabetic character.
•You cannot have more than 10 characters in a filename extension.
•You cannot add more than 20 filename extensions to the allowed list.
|
wmt mms allow extension extension
|
WMT Multicast Settings
|
|
|
Number of hops to live
|
Number of hops to live for multicast WMT packets. The default is 5 hops. The range is 0 to 255 hops.
|
wmt multicast time-to-live ttl
|
Configuring WMT Live Splitting for Unicast and Multicast Transmissions
Splitting is a method of sending live data transmissions across the Internet to a proxy edge device. The live stream is then fanned out to multiple downstream clients using unicast or multicast. (See Figure 13-9.)
The WMT-enabled Content Engine acts as a proxy for the streaming server or broadcast server and replicates the stream to local users. Splitting the stream at the Content Engine proxy is better than splitting it at the server, because the proxy is closer to the clients, thereby potentially saving considerable network bandwidth between the client and the server.
Figure 13-9 Live Splitting
When a client requests a publishing point on a server (without specifying an ASF file), then the Content Engine dynamically creates an alias file that references the remote server. All further requests to that station are served by splitting the stream. Note that when the first client (Client 1) that requested the original stream disconnects from the network, the proxy continues to serve the other clients (Client 2 and Client 3), until all clients disconnect from the network.
Note Live splitting is supported for different data packet transport protocols (HTTP, MMS TCP [MMST], MMS UDP [MMSU], and IP multicast).
Live Stream Splitting Scenarios
Based on the capabilities and limitations of the network, a Content Engine can receive and deliver WMT streaming content through IP multicast or unicast transmissions in the following four combinations:
•Unicast-In Multicast-Out
•Multicast-In Multicast-Out
•Multicast-In Unicast-Out
•Unicast-In Unicast-Out
The two WMT multicast-out features combined enable you to receive and deliver WMT streaming media content through IP multicasting, and to do conversions from multicast to unicast (and vice versa).
Note You must accept a WMT license and enable WMT on the Content Engine and device groups before you can use enable WMT multicasting in your ACNS 5.x network. See the "Enabling WMT" section.
Each station needs a multicast IP address. You must enter a valid Class D IP address multicast address in the range 224.0.0.0 to 239.255.255.255, except for the reserved IP ranges based on RFC 1700 and related documents as follows:
•224.0.0.0 to 224.0.6.255
•224.0.13.0 to 224.0.13.255
•224.1.0.0 to 224.2.255.255
•232.0.0.0 to 232.255.255.255
Note You must choose a multicast IP address that does not conflict internally within the same multicast-enabled network configuration. This multicast IP address is not related to the IP address of the Content Engine. (See the "Unusable IP Multicast Addresses" section.)
The allowed multicast port range is 1 through 65535. However, the multicast-enabled network may impose certain restrictions on your choice of port. Normally, port numbers below 1024 should be avoided, but the Content Engine does not enforce any restrictions.
Note If a live stream is interrupted on the server side, you must stop the multicast station and then restart the same station to resume live multicasting.
Configuring Unicast-In Multicast-Out
The unicast-in multicast-out multicast delivery feature enables you to distribute streaming media efficiently by allowing different devices on the IP multicast to receive a single stream of media content from the Content Engine simultaneously. This can save significant network bandwidth, because a single stream is sent to many devices, rather than sending a single stream to a single device every time that this stream is requested. This multicast delivery feature is enabled by setting up a multicast address on the Content Engine to which different devices, configured to receive content from the same channel, can subscribe. The delivering device sends content to the multicast address set up at the Content Engine, from which it becomes available to all subscribed receiving devices.
To enable WMT services for unicast-in multicast-out, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Content Engines.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the Content Engine that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 From the Contents pane, choose WMT > WMT Multicast Stations. The WMT Multicast Station for Content Engine window appears.
Step 4 In the Aggregate Settings section, the Yes radio button is chosen by default, which means that the broadcast aliases created for the Content Engine as well as associated device groups are displayed and applied. Alternatively, click the No radio button to apply the settings of the Content Engine only.
Step 5 Click the Create New Multicast Station icon. The Creating New WMT Multicast Station appears. (See Figure 13-10.)
Figure 13-10 WMT Multicast Station Configuration
Step 6 Under the WMT Station heading, enter a name for the multicast station in the Station Name field.
Step 7 In the Address field, enter a Class D IP address to be used as the multicast station IP address.
Step 8 In the Port field, enter the port number to be used by this station.
Step 9 In the Media field, enter the source of the WMT streaming media.
Step 10 Check the Repeat Forever check box if you want this source to play the media files without interruption. Otherwise, the multicast stream stops playing when the end of the source.nsc file is reached.
In the example in Figure 13-10, a multicast station named Multicast Station 1 is configured and used by the Content Engine as the multicast source. Its Class D IP address is 233.33.33.33, and the multicast port is 3333.
Note This source file source.asf can be located on any WMT server, including a Windows server, or on the Content Engine. In the case of the Content Engine, pre-positioned media files should be stored in the /local1/wmt_vod directory. In this scenario, the media source is represented by mms://CEIPaddress/wmt_vod/source.asf, where CEIPaddress is the IP address of the Content Engine.
Step 11 Check the Enable Unicast URL check box and enter the URL in the Unicast URL field to allow unicast live splitting for clients who cannot be reached by multicast.
For viewers who are unable to receive WMT multicast streams or virtual private network (VPN) users who are not accessible to multicasting, the unicast published URL can be used for unicast live splitting. The WMT player will fall back to unicast in the event of multicast failure. The unicast published URL is made available inside the multicast description metafile (.nsc) to viewers for automatic fallback to unicast live streaming. The unicast URL serves as a backup URL if the request is not intercepted by the ACNS network, when it is unable to route multicast or when the client is unable to receive multicast streams.
Step 12 Under the WMT Multicast Logging Settings heading, check the Enable WMT Multicast Logging check box to enable the Content Engine to collect statistics regarding the multicast stream using the .nsc file.
A WMT server supports a large number of media players for a particular stream during multicast, providing scalability without overloading the server. When WMT multicast logging is enabled, you can also receive feedback on certain statistical data, such as the number of times that buffering occurred while the stream was played, the number of packets lost during transmission, the browser type used when the WMT media player is embedded in a browser, and the protocol used to access the stream. These details are helpful for business analysts and program creators to learn about the effectiveness of the program multicast statistics. The media player obtains the IP address and port to monitor for content. When the stream stops playing, the WMT player automatically collects and sends the statistics to the multicast logging URL using the HTTP POST request method. You can choose to specify the URL to which Windows media transaction log files must be sent.
Step 13 Alternatively, check the Enable Local Multicast Logging check box and enter a URL in the Multicast Logging URL field.
Step 14 Click Submit to save the settings.
Step 15 Open your Windows Media Player and choose File > Open URL. Enter the following URL:
http://CEIPaddress/MulticastStation1.nsc
Note The source file for streaming can be located on any WMT server, including a Windows server, or on the Content Engine. In the case of the Content Engine, pre-positioned media files must be stored in the /local1/wmt_vod directory. In this case, the source of the media file is represented by the URL mms://ceIpAddress/wmt_vod/asf_file.
Step 16 Click OK. The Windows Media Player should retrieve the multicast description .nsc file and join the multicast station that was specified in Step 6.
Note The use of port 80 is implied in the URL for WMT multicasting. An equivalent URL is http://CEIPaddress:80/test1.nsc.
Configuring Multicast-In Multicast-Out
The multicast-in multicast-out multicast receive feature enables you to receive multicast WMT streams delivered through IP multicasting and then relay them to end users through another delivery channel (unicast or multicast).
In this multicasting scenario, a description file *.nsc is created that is accessible through multicast-out to clients. This is similar to the unicast-in multicast-out scenario except that the input source is multicast. The clients use this description file to subscribe to the multicast.
To enable WMT services for multicast-in multicast-out, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Content Engines.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the Content Engine that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 From the Contents pane, choose WMT > WMT Multicast Stations. The WMT Multicast Station for Content Engine window appears.
Step 4 In the Aggregate Settings section, the Yes radio button is chosen by default, which means that the broadcast aliases created for the Content Engine as well as associated device groups are displayed and applied. Alternatively, click the No radio button to apply the settings of the Content Engine only.
Step 5 Click the Create New Multicast Station icon. (See Figure 13-11.)
Figure 13-11 WMT Multicast Station Configuration
Step 6 In the Station Name field, enter a name for the multicast station.
Step 7 In the Address field, enter a Class D IP address to be used as the multicast station IP address.
Step 8 In the Port field, enter the port number to be used by this station.
Step 9 In the Media field, enter the filename of the multicast source*.nsc file.
Step 10 Check the Repeat Forever check box if you want this source to play the media files without interruption. Otherwise, the multicast stream stops playing when the end of the source*.nsc file is reached.
In this example, a multicast station named Multicast Station 2 is configured and used by the Content Engine as the multicast source. Its Class D IP address is 233.33.33.34, and the multicast port is 3334.
Note This source file source.nsc can be located on any WMT server, including a Windows server, or on the Content Engine. In the case of the Content Engine, pre-positioned media files should be stored in the /local1/wmt_vod directory. In this scenario, the media source is represented by mms://CEIPaddress/wmt_vod/source.asf, where CEIPaddress is the IP address of the Content Engine.
Step 11 Check the Enable Unicast URL check box and enter the URL in the Unicast URL field to allow unicast live splitting for clients who cannot be reached by multicast.
For viewers who are unable to receive WMT multicast streams or VPN users who are not accessible to multicasting, the unicast published URL can be used for unicast live splitting. The WMT player will fall back to unicast in the event of multicast failure. The unicast published URL is made available inside the multicast description metafile (.nsc) to viewers for automatic fallback to unicast live streaming. The unicast URL serves as a backup URL if the request is not intercepted by the ACNS network, when it is unable to route multicast or when the client is unable to receive multicast streams.
Step 12 Under WMT Multicast Logging Settings, check the Enable WMT Multicast Logging check box to enable the Content Engine collect statistics regarding the multicast stream using the .nsc file.
A WMT server supports a large number of media players for a particular stream during multicast, providing scalability without overloading the server. When WMT multicast logging is enabled, you can also receive feedback on certain statistical data, such as the number of times that buffering occurred while the stream was played, the number of packets lost during transmission, the browser type used when the WMT media player is embedded in a browser, and the protocol used to access the stream. These details are helpful for business analysts and program creators to learn about the effectiveness of the program multicast statistics. The media player obtains the IP address and port to monitor for content. When the stream stops playing, the WMT player automatically collects and sends the statistics to the multicast logging URL using the HTTP POST request method. You can choose to specify the URL to which Windows media transaction log files must be sent.
Step 13 Alternatively, check the Enable Local Multicast Logging check box to allow WMT media players to send multicast statistics to the WMT server configured on the Content Engine.
Step 14 In the Multicast Logging URL field, enter the URL of the WMT server to which the multicast statistics need to be sent, using the HTTP POST request method. You need to explicitly specify the URL, in case the WMT server is configured on any WMT server other than the Content Engine.
Step 15 Click Submit to save the settings.
Step 16 Open your Windows Media Player and choose File > Open URL. Enter the following URL:
http://CEIPaddress/MulticastStation2.nsc
Note The source file for streaming can be located on any WMT server, including a Windows server, or on the Content Engine. In the case of the Content engine, pre-positioned media files must be stored in the /local1/wmt_vod directory. In this case, the source of the media file is represented by the URL, mms://ceIpAddress/wmt_vod/nsc_file.
Step 17 Click OK. The Windows Media Player should retrieve the multicast description .nsc file and join the multicast station that was specified in Step 6.
Note The use of port 80 is implied in the URL for WMT multicasting. An equivalent URL is http://CEIPaddress:80/test1.nsc.
Configuring Multicast-In Unicast-Out
The multicast-in unicast-out configuration enables you to deliver an incoming stream live to requesting clients using multicast as the source of the streaming media. In this scenario, a unicast-out publishing point is created to deliver the incoming multicast stream live to requesting clients by converting the multicast stream to unicast.
To enable WMT services for multicast-in unicast-out, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Content Engines.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the Content Engine that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 From the Contents pane, choose WMT > WMT Broadcast Alias. The WMT Broadcast Alias for Content Engine window appears.
Step 4 In the Aggregate Settings section, the Yes radio button is chosen by default, which means that the broadcast aliases created for the Content Engine as well as associated device groups are displayed and applied. Alternatively, click the No radio button to apply the settings of the Content Engine only.
Step 5 Click the Create New WMT Broadcast Alias icon. The Creating New WMT Broadcast Alias for Content Engine window appears. (See Figure 13-12.)
Figure 13-12 WMT Broadcast Alias Window
Step 6 In the Broadcast Alias field, enter an alias for the station name.
Step 7 In the Source URL field, enter the URL of the station to be used for the broadcast.
Step 8 Click Submit to save the settings.
In Figure 13-12, a unicast publishing point with the alias name broadcast1 is configured with a multicast source URL containing the file station.nsc. A source URL in the format http://server/file.nsc tells the Content Engine that the input source is sending out WMT multicast streams.
Step 9 Open your Windows Media Player and choose File > Open URL. Enter the following URL:
mms://CEIPaddress/broadcast1
Step 10 Click OK. The Windows Media Player should receive content from the MMS media source specified in Step 6. Note that in this scenario, an MMS URL is used to access the streaming media, and that only the alias name is specified instead of the *.nsc files as in the multicast-out scenarios.
This converts the multicast stream to unicast and sends it to the requesting client.
Configuring Unicast-In Unicast-Out
In this scenario, unicast-in unicast-out provides a point-to-point connection between the client and the Content Engine. The Content Engine in turn makes a single connection to the media server. Multiple requests for the same stream can be split by the Content Engine so that each client receives a distinct data stream directly from the Content Engine, while the Content Engine maintains its single stream connection to the media server. The client can request a stream that contains either stored or live content.
The advantage of unicasting when streaming media over a network is that only a single stream needs to be distributed over the network between the origin server and Content Engine, but that stream can be delivered to multiple clients in a nonmulticast environment. A server running Windows Media Services can provide a unicast video stream to multiple clients through a single stream delivered to the Content Engine. Those clients can take advantage of the VCR-like controls in the Windows Media Player to pause the stream or to skip backward or forward (in the case of stored content [video on demand]).
There are two ways to configure unicast-in unicast-out:
•By live splitting without any configuration. In this case, the Content Engine acts as a proxy. When clients request the same unicast URL, the Content Engine proxy automatically splits the stream from the source to the clients.
•By configuring the Content Engine with a broadcast alias. In this case, a client makes the request to the Content Engine as if it were the Windows Media Server, and the Content Engine checks to see whether the incoming stream is present. If it is, then the Content Engine joins the stream and splits it to the new client. If the request is the first client request for this stream, the Content Engine sends the request out to server and then serves it to the new client.
To enable WMT services for unicast-in unicast-out, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Content Engines.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the Content Engine that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 From the Contents pane, choose WMT > WMT Broadcast Alias. The WMT Broadcast Alias for Content Engine window appears.
Step 4 In the Aggregate Settings section, the Yes radio button is chosen by default, which means that the broadcast aliases created for the Content Engine and associated device groups are displayed and applied. Alternatively, click the No radio button to apply the settings of the Content Engine only.
Step 5 Click the Create New WMT Broadcast Alias icon. The Creating New WMT Broadcast Alias for Content Engine window appears. (See Figure 13-12.)
Step 6 In the Broadcast Alias field, enter an alias name for the source URL.
Step 7 In the Source URL field, enter the source URL of the content to be used for the transmission. For example:
mms://wms.company.com/cotv
where wms.company.com is the name of the Windows Media Server, and cotv is the name used when the broadcast alias is created. The MMS protocol is used to retrieve the stream.
Step 8 Click Submit to save the settings.
Step 9 Open your Windows Media Player and choose File > Open URL. Enter the following URL:
mms://CEIPaddress/broadcast1
where CEIPaddress is the IP address or domain name of the Content Engine, and broadcast1 is the alias name used in Step 6.
Step 10 Click OK. The Windows Media Player should receive content from the MMS media source specified in Step 7.
Configuring WMT Station Schedules
To configure WMT station schedules for the Content Engine, follow these steps:
Step 1 Choose Devices > Content Engines. The Content Engine window appears.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the Content Engine whose station schedule you want to set. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 From the Contents pane, choose WMT > WMT Station Schedules. The WMT Station Schedule for Content Engine window appears.
Step 4 Click the Create New WMT Station Schedule icon. The Creating New WMT Station Schedule for Content Engine window appears.
Step 5 Choose a multicast station from the Station Name drop-down list.
Step 6 Enter the month (1-12) in the Month field.
Step 7 Enter the day (1-31) in the Day field.
Step 8 Enter hour (0-23) in the Hour field.
Step 9 Enter the minute (0-59) in the Minute field.
Step 10 Click Submit to save the settings.
Configuring Content Services Bandwidth Settings
Content services bandwidth settings control the amount of bandwidth that each content service uses to stream content to users.
Content services bandwidth includes bandwidth allocation for WMT, RealProxy, RealServer, and Cisco Streaming Engine services. WMT bandwidth settings apply to WMT streaming of live, cached, and pre-positioned content. RealServer bandwidth settings apply to RealServer streaming of pre-positioned and live content that has been specified in the manifest file for a channel. RealProxy bandwidth settings apply to RealProxy streaming of cached and live content that has not been specified in the manifest file for a channel. Cisco Streaming Engine bandwidth settings apply to the standard RTSP server streaming of pre-positioned content only.
For each type of bandwidth, you can specify the amount of bandwidth to be used for a particular time interval. This is called scheduled bandwidth. Default bandwidth is the amount of bandwidth associated with each content services type when there is no scheduled bandwidth. When a Content Engine is a member of a device group, and if the default bandwidth is specified for that Content Engine, that bandwidth setting overrides the settings at the device group level. However, if there are no settings defined for a Content Engine, the device group settings become applicable for the Content Engine. When a Content Engine is a member of multiple device groups, the settings of the device group that have been most recently modified are used.
Maximum bandwidth specifies the upper limit beyond which any specified bandwidth is not allowed. The total bandwidth configured for all content services must not exceed the bandwidth limits specified for a particular Content Engine model. In addition, the license keys configured for WMT further restrict the maximum bandwidth below the allowable maximum bandwidth for each Content Engine model.
Configuring Content Services Default and Maximum Bandwidth Settings
To configure content services default and maximum bandwidth settings, follow these steps:
Step 1 Choose Devices > Content Engines. The Content Engines window appears.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the name of the Content Engine that you want to view. The Modifying Content Engine window appears.
Step 3 In the Contents pane, choose Content Services > Content Service Default/Max Bandwidth. The Default and Max Bandwidth for Content Engine window appears.
Step 4 For WMT Incoming, in the Default Bandwidth field, specify the amount of default bandwidth, in kbps, allowed for incoming WMT traffic from end users. In the Max Bandwidth field, specify the maximum bandwidth, in kbps, permitted by the system license.
Step 5 For WMT Outgoing, in the Default Bandwidth field, specify the amount of default bandwidth, in kbps, allowed for outgoing WMT traffic from Content Engines. In the Max Bandwidth field, specify the maximum bandwidth, in kbps, permitted by the system license.
Step 6 For Real Proxy Incoming, in the Default Bandwidth field, specify the amount of default bandwidth, in kbps, allowed for incoming RealProxy traffic from end users. In the Max Bandwidth field, specify the maximum bandwidth, in kbps, permitted by the system license. RealProxy traffic refers to RealMedia traffic that has been cached in response to requests from end users.
Step 7 For Real Proxy Outgoing, in the Default Bandwidth field, specify the amount of default bandwidth, in kbps, allowed for outgoing RealProxy traffic from Content Engines. In the Max Bandwidth field, specify the maximum bandwidth, in kbps, permitted by the system license.
Step 8 For Real Server, in the Default Bandwidth field, specify the amount of default bandwidth, in kbps, for streaming RealServer traffic to end users. In the Max Bandwidth field, specify the maximum bandwidth, in kbps, permitted by the system license. RealServer traffic refers to RealMedia content that has been pre-positioned.
Step 9 For Cisco Streaming Engine, in the Default Bandwidth field, specify the amount of default bandwidth, in kbps, allowed for the Cisco Streaming Engine to stream content to end users. In the Max Bandwidth field, specify the maximum bandwidth, in kbps, permitted by the system license.
Step 10 For HTTP, in the Default Bandwidth field, specify the amount of default bandwidth, in kbps, associated with HTTP traffic. In the Max Bandwidth field, specify the maximum allowed bandwidth, in kbps, to handle HTTP requests.
Step 11 Click Submit to save your settings. A "Click Submit to Save" message appears in red next to the current settings when there are pending changes to be saved. You can also revert to the previously configured window settings by clicking Reset. The Reset button is visible only when you apply default or group settings to change the current device settings but the settings have not yet been submitted.
Step 12 To delete the configured settings for the device, click the Remove Device Settings icon in the taskbar. This icon appears only if you have configured the settings for the Content Engine.
Step 13 To restore the factory default settings to the device, click the Apply Defaults icon in the taskbar.
Step 14 To override the device group settings applied to the device with the factory default settings, click the Override Group Settings with Defaults icon in the taskbar. This icon appears only if you have applied the device group settings to the Content Engine.
Step 15 To override the device group settings that have been applied from device groups with which the device is associated, click the Override Group Settings icon in the taskbar and configure the device settings. This icon appears only if you have applied the device group settings to the Content Engine.
To apply settings from a different device group to this device, choose the device group name from the drop-down list that appears in the taskbar.
Configuring Content Services Bandwidth Settings for Scheduled Times
To configure content services bandwidth settings, follow these steps:
Step 1 From the Content Distribution Manager GUI, choose Devices > Content Engines.
Step 2 Click the Edit icon next to the name of the Content Engine that you want to configure. The Contents pane appears on the left.
Step 3 From the Contents pane, choose Content Services > Content Service Bandwidth. The Bandwidth Settings for Content Engine window appears.
Step 4 In Aggregate Settings, the Yes radio button is chosen by default, which means that the bandwidth configurations of the Content Engine as well as the device groups to which it is assigned are displayed and applied. Click the No radio button if you want to apply and view the bandwidth settings of the Content Engine only.
Step 5 Click the Create New Bandwidth Settings for Content Engine icon. The Create New Content Service Bandwidth Settings window appears. (See Figure 13-13.) Table 13-3 describes each field displayed in this window.
Figure 13-13 Create New Content Service Bandwidth Settings Window
Step 6 In the Bandwidth Configuration section, choose a bandwidth type from the Bandwidth Type drop-down list.
Step 7 In the Bandwidth Rate field, specify the bandwidth rate allowed in kbps.
Step 8 Under the Bandwidth Time Settings headings, the current time is displayed in UTC. For Time Selection, enter the start time and end time for bandwidth usage (in hh:mm) in the appropriate fields.
Note For a schedule from 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m., the administrator must configure two schedules in order to span the two days; one from 8:00 p.m. t
