Configuration Guide for Cisco Unified Videoconferencing Manager Release 5.5
Managing an MCU Profile in Resource Manager
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Table Of Contents

Managing an MCU Profile in Resource Manager

Configuring Cascading

Creating or Modifying an MCU Profile

Taking an MCU Offline

Removing an MCU Profile

Searching for an MCU Profile

Synchronizing MCU Information with Cisco Unified Videoconferencing Manager

How to Manage Meeting Types

Viewing Available Meeting Types on Network MCUs

Viewing Built-in Meeting Types

Removing a Meeting Type

Searching for a Meeting Type

Downloading a Meeting Type to Resource Manager

Resolving Meeting Type Conflicts Between MCUs

Resolving Meeting Type Conflicts Between Resource Manager and an MCU

Uploading a Meeting Type to Network MCUs

Viewing Meeting Type Details

Accessing an MCU from the Meeting Type Details Screen

Viewing a List of MCUs Containing a Specified Meeting Type

Limiting User Access to Meeting Types

Customizing MCU Delimiters


Managing an MCU Profile in Resource Manager

•Configuring Cascading

•Creating or Modifying an MCU Profile

•Taking an MCU Offline

•Removing an MCU Profile

•Searching for an MCU Profile

•Synchronizing MCU Information with Cisco Unified Videoconferencing Manager

•How to Manage Meeting Types

•Limiting User Access to Meeting Types

•Customizing MCU Delimiters

Configuring Cascading

Resource Manager is able to manage multiple MCUs as a pool of resources. You can cascade MCUs to reduce potential drain on network resources, increase the efficiency of MCU usage, and allow large conferences to be held. The following points about cascading should be noted:

•The Meeting Type (MCU service) representing the required meeting must be available on all participating MCUs. For example, if the meeting uses MCU service 81, then 81 must exist on the master MCU and on the slave MCUs.

•A cascaded connection uses two ports—one on the master MCU conference, and one port on the slave MCU conference.

•Only one cascading stream exists between the master MCU and the slave MCU; therefore, only one participant from the slave MCU can send video for mixing and only one participant from the slave MCU can be seen by other participants in the meeting.

•Only one level of cascading is supported. All slave MCU conferences must cascade to the same master MCU conference.

•The administrator must define a default system level property that determines the cascading behavior.

To configure the MCU cascading behavior, use the following procedure:

Procedure

Step 1 From the sidebar menu, go to Admin > Advanced Settings.

Step 2 On the Default Meeting Settings tab you can enable or disable automatic cascading of MCU conferences by configuring the Allow Cascaded Meeting field.

Step 3 If Allow Cascaded Meeting is set to yes, choose one of the following options from the Prioritize field:

•Bandwidth—Resource Manager allocates resources to conserve bandwidth. For example, at a site with two users and one MCU, Resource Manager creates a local meeting. In some cases, this may cause a meeting to cascade to conserve bandwidth, even though a single MCU is available to host the meeting.

•Using this option, Resource Manager cascades a maximum of two MCUs.

•Delay (default)—Resource Manager allocates resources to ensure the best video quality. Resource Manager invites all users directly to a main MCU, whatever their location. Since Delay can be costly in terms of bandwidth, it is recommended that you take topology into account before selecting the Delay option.

•Local MCU—Select this option if Resource Manager has more than one MCU and there are at least two meeting participants. Resource Manager invites all of the participating terminals to meetings hosted on their respective local MCUs (according to IP Topology settings), and then cascades these meetings together to form a single conference.

Step 4 Click OK to save the preferred behavior as the default.

Creating or Modifying an MCU Profile

The MCU is where a multipoint videoconference is hosted. Resource Manager reserves MCU resources, schedules MCU conferences, and controls in-session MCU meetings. In order for Resource Manager to correctly manage the MCU, it needs to retrieve configuration information from the MCU via the profiles defined under Admin > Resource Management.

Procedure

Step 1 Click Resource Management in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Click MCU.

Step 3 Click the link in the Name column for the MCU you require, or click Add to create a new MCU profile.

Step 4 Enter the name and IP address of the MCU in the relevant fields.

Step 5 Select the MCU model.

Step 6 If you want the MCU to operate in H.323 mode, select a gatekeeper from the Registered To list.

This is the gatekeeper to which the MCU registers.

Step 7 If you want to register the MCU to operate in SIP mode only (without registering to an H.323 gatekeeper), select MCU operates in SIP only mode.

The MCU is not required to register to a gatekeeper and the Registered To field is inactive.

Step 8 From the Location list, choose the device island to which the MCU belongs.

The Location field is visible only when the IP Topology tab is activated in the Resource Manager Configuration Tool under System Configuration > UI Settings.

Step 9 Enter the login name and login password of the MCU in the relevant fields.

These must match the MCU web interface login name and password.

Step 10 Define SNMP communities, user name and password, communication port and signaling port in the relevant fields.

SNMP community information must match the settings defined in the MCU to enable Resource Manager to retrieve information from the MCU.

Step 11 Click OK to save your changes.

Step 12 The MCU is added to the MCU tab and brought online by default.

If Resource Manager cannot connect to a newly configured MCU, the MCU is added but its status is shown as Offline in the MCU tab.

To try to reconnect to the MCU, select Online, and then click OK.

Taking an MCU Offline

Procedure

Step 1 Click Resource Management in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Click MCU.

Step 3 Click the link in the Name column for the MCU you require.

Step 4 To take the MCU offline temporarily, select Take this MCU offline and reschedule all meetings on this MCU up to this date and set the date to bring the MCU online again.

Step 5 To take the MCU offline permanently, select Take this MCU offline and reschedule all meetings currently on this MCU.

Step 6 Click OK to save your changes.

When you take the MCU offline, the following changes occur:

•Resource Manager cannot schedule meetings for the offline MCU.

•All meetings currently in progress are terminated. Resource Manager attempts to reschedule upcoming meetings for the offline MCU on other MCUs that use the same services and have sufficient, available resources. If no replacement MCUs are available when the MCU status is changed back to online, upcoming meetings are lost and not restored.

•If the MCU goes offline temporarily, Resource Manager attempts to reschedule all meetings scheduled to this MCU from the time the MCU goes offline to the specified date for its return online.

•If the MCU goes offline permanently, Resource Manager attempts to reschedule all future meetings scheduled to this MCU.

Removing an MCU Profile

You must take an MCU offline before you can remove it from the Cisco Unified Videoconferencing Manager database.

Procedure

Step 1 Click Resource Management in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Click MCU.

Step 3 Click the MCU entry you wish to delete in the Name column.

Step 4 Click Delete and then OK.

The MCU profile is deleted from the scheduler and information about the MCU is removed from the database.

Searching for an MCU Profile

Procedure

Step 1 Click Resource Management in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Click MCU.

Step 3 Enter the partial or complete name of the MCU in the Name field.

Step 4 Click Search.

Search results are listed.

Step 5 To return to the complete list of MCUs, clear the Name field, and then click Search.

Synchronizing MCU Information with Cisco Unified Videoconferencing Manager

When a new MCU is initially configured, its internal information is downloaded to Resource Manager. If you change the initial configuration, you must update the Resource Manager.

Procedure

Step 1 Click Resource Management in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Click MCU.

Step 3 Click the MCU entry you wish to update in the Name column.

Step 4 Click Synchronize.

The information download includes the number of cards the MCU has and the resource capacity of each card.

How to Manage Meeting Types

A meeting type in Resource Manager is the equivalent of the MCU service definition. Services should be defined in the MCU first and then synchronized to Resource Manager. In the Meeting Types section, retrieve services from MCUs configured in the system and then save them to Resource Manager. Resource Manager then distributes these services to other MCUs according to your specific deployment requirements. Meeting types in Resource Manager are used to schedule meetings on the MCU. There are also built-in meeting types that are not retrieved from the MCU in Resource Manager.

•Viewing Available Meeting Types on Network MCUs

•Viewing Built-in Meeting Types

•Removing a Meeting Type

•Searching for a Meeting Type

•Downloading a Meeting Type to Resource Manager

•Resolving Meeting Type Conflicts Between MCUs

•Resolving Meeting Type Conflicts Between Resource Manager and an MCU

•Uploading a Meeting Type to Network MCUs

•Viewing Meeting Type Details

•Accessing an MCU from the Meeting Type Details Screen

•Viewing a List of MCUs Containing a Specified Meeting Type

•Limiting User Access to Meeting Types

Viewing Available Meeting Types on Network MCUs

Procedure

Step 1 Click Meeting Types in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Ensure that the Active Meeting Types tab is displayed.

All meeting types available for meeting scheduling are displayed with the parameters listed in Table 4-1.

If the name of a meeting type appears in red, the meeting type does not belong to any MCU and cannot currently be used for meeting scheduling.

Table 4-1 Meeting Type Parameters 

Parameter
Description

Name

The name of a meeting type defined in Resource Manager.

Prefix

The service prefix downloaded from the MCU.

Description

The service description downloaded from the MCU.

Media

The service media type downloaded from the MCU.

BW(Kbps)

The maximum service bandwidth (in kilobytes per second) for download from the MCU.

Lecture Mode

For MCU services that support exactly two views with the first view being single sub-frame and the second view being multiple sub-frames, you can set this service to support the lecture mode feature in which a meeting participant is set to one view and can be seen by all other participants, and the other participants are set to the other view and can be seen by the first participant.

In Use

Indicates whether or not there are currently or upcoming meetings in Resource Manager that use the specified meeting type. If so, the meeting type is considered in use and cannot be deleted from the system until the meeting type is no longer in use.

MCUs

Click Details to display a list of all MCUs defined in Cisco Unified Videoconferencing Manager containing the specified meeting type.


Viewing Built-in Meeting Types

You cannot modify, upload or download built-in meeting types.

Procedure

Step 1 Click Meeting Types in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Ensure that the Active Meeting Types tab is displayed.

The built-in meeting types listed in Table 4-2 are available.

Table 4-2 Built-in Meeting Types

Parameter
Description

Non Video Conference

This is a conference that involves only users and meeting rooms. There is no need for video conference devices. Use this meeting type to reserve users and room resources only.

Point to Point

This is a conference that involves only two endpoints (terminals) and no MCU resources. It can only be created if one endpoint dials another endpoint directly.


Removing a Meeting Type

An active meeting type must be deactivated before it can be permanently removed from the system. Once a meeting type is inactive, it can no longer be used for meeting scheduling; however, you must wait until all current or future meetings that use this meeting type are in the past, or you must cancel them. When there are no longer any scheduled meetings that required this meeting type, the meeting type is marked not in use and is removed.

Procedure

Step 1 Click Meeting Types in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Select the meeting type you wish to delete.

Step 3 Click Deactivate and then OK.

The meeting type is removed from the Active Meeting Types tab and placed on the Inactive Meeting Types tab.

Searching for a Meeting Type

Procedure

Step 1 Click Meeting Types in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Enter the partial or complete name of the meeting type in the Name field.

Step 3 Click Search.

Search results are listed.

Step 4 To return to the complete list of meeting types, clear the Name field, and then click Search.

Downloading a Meeting Type to Resource Manager

Procedure

Step 1 Click Meeting Types in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Select the meeting types you want to download to Resource Manager on the Active Meeting Types tab.

Step 3 Click Download.

MCU services are downloaded from all network MCUs.

Since MCU services are downloaded via SNMP, the process may take some time if there are many MCUs to connect to.

Step 4 Enter a unique name for each meeting type.

Step 5 Click OK.

Resolving Meeting Type Conflicts Between MCUs

You may need to resolve a conflict when downloading MCU services if two services from two different MCUs in the network have the same service prefix. For example, both services may have prefix 80, which is the default prefix for an audio service.

Procedure

Step 1 Click Meeting Types in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Select the meeting types you want to download to Resource Manager on the Active Meeting Types tab.

Step 3 Click Download.

MCU services are downloaded from all network MCUs.

Since MCU services are downloaded via SNMP, the process may take some time if there are many MCUs to connect to.

Step 4 Scroll down to the Meeting Type (Service) Conflicts section on the Download Meeting Types (Services) screen.

Step 5 Select the entry that you want to keep in the Use Meeting Type (Service) Definition From column for each service prefix listed.

Resource Manager downloads the specified copy of the MCU service and overwrites all other MCU services that use the same prefix on other network MCUs.

This process enables Resource Manager to ensure that all services with the same service prefix are identical on different MCUs in the network.

This process does not assign a service to MCUs that do not already have the service prefix defined.

Step 6 Enter a unique name for each meeting type.

Step 7 Click OK.

Resolving Meeting Type Conflicts Between Resource Manager and an MCU

If a service downloaded from a network MCU conflicts with a service that already exists in Resource Manager, the service stored in Resource Manager is selected by default during conflict resolution.

If a service exists only on a single MCU that is removed from the network, that service can no longer be used for meeting scheduling. Such services are displayed in red.

Uploading a Meeting Type to Network MCUs

We recommend that you configure all network MCUs with exactly the same service definitions so that you can treat all your MCUs as a pool of interchangeable resources.

Resource Manager supports mixed version 4 and 5 MCU deployments. However, version 4 and 5 MCU cannot share the same MCU service prefix. If you try to perform such operations, you receive a warning message.

MCU services defined as supporting High Definition Continuous Presence (HP CD) conferences cannot be synchronized to a MCU that is not HD CP enabled. If you try to perform such operations, you receive a warning message.

Procedure

Step 1 Click Meeting Types in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Select the meeting types you want to upload from Resource Manager on the Active Meeting Types tab.

Step 3 Click Upload.

Step 4 Use the arrows to select the target MCUs.

Step 5 Click OK.

Since MCU services are uploaded via SNMP, the process may take some time if there are many MCUs to connect to.

Viewing Meeting Type Details

Procedure

Step 1 Click Meeting Types in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Click the link in the Name column for the meeting type you require on the Active Meeting Types tab.

Accessing an MCU from the Meeting Type Details Screen

Procedure

Step 1 Click Meeting Types in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Click the link in the Name column for the meeting type you require on the Active Meeting Types tab.

A link is available for each MCU containing the specified meeting type.

Viewing a List of MCUs Containing a Specified Meeting Type

Procedure

Step 1 Click Meeting Types in the sidebar menu.

Step 2 Click Detail in the MCU column to see a list of MCUs containing the specified meeting type.

Limiting User Access to Meeting Types

Meeting types listed on the Active Meeting Types tab are automatically listed in the Meeting Type field at User > Meeting Scheduling > Meeting. You can limit which meeting types are accessible by users.

Procedure

Step 1 Customize the available meeting types in Admin > Advanced Settings > Default User Settings.

Step 2 You can also configure which user can use which meeting type for scheduling in the profile of the user at Admin > User Management > User Profile.

Customizing MCU Delimiters

By default, ** is the MCU delimiter for inviting an endpoint to a meeting, and *** is the MCU delimiter for the meeting password.

If MCU delimiters are customized via the MCU web user interface configuration, you need to configure MCU delimiters accordingly in Resource Manager as well.

Procedure

Step 1 Open the vcs-core.properties file located at \JBOSS_DIR\BIN.

Step 2 Locate the following string:

vnex.vcms.core.mcuPasswordDelimiter=###

Step 3 Modify the delimiter to match the value configured in the MCU web user interface.

Step 4 Save and close the vcs-core.properties file.

Note \JBOSS_DIR is the default JBOSS home directory path. The default path is C:\Program Files\Cisco\Unified Videoconferencing Manager\CUVCMRM\jboss.