Administration Guide for Cisco Emergency Responder 8.7
Troubleshoot Cisco Emergency Responder
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Contents

Troubleshoot Cisco Emergency Responder

These topics address problems you might encounter with Cisco Emergency Responder (Emergency Responder), and provide ways to resolve them; also included are other tasks associated with problem identification and resolution.

Troubleshoot Phone-Related Problems

The following sections help you troubleshoot problems related to assigning phones to ERLs and managing the phones.

Check Unified CM SNMP Settings

If Cisco Emergency Responder (Emergency Responder) is not discovering the phones homing to Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Unified CM), check that all Unified CMs are SNMP-reachable and that the SNMP settings are correct. Emergency Responder logs an event if Unified CM is SNMP-unreachable.

To verify the Unified CM SNMP settings, follow these steps:

Procedure
    Step 1   Log in to the Emergency Responder Administration CLI and use the following command to ping the Unified CM server: utils network ping <ipaddress of CUCM>
    Step 2   If you successfully ping the Unified CM, verify that the SNMP settings are correct on Unified CM, as follows:
    • If you are using a Linux-based version of Unified CM (version 6.0 or higher), log in to the Unified CM Serviceability web interface and use the SNMP web pages to check the SNMP community string settings.
    • If you are using a Windows-based version of Unified CM, open the services on Unified CM and choose Start > Settings > Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Services Properties > SNMP > Properties > Security Tab.
    Step 3   Check to see if Unified CM is SNMP reachable by running the following CLI command on the Emergency Responder server:

    utils snmp get <ccm ip-address/host name> <snmp-read-community-string> 1.3.6.1.2.1.1.2.0

    If the Unified CM is SNMP reachable, then the output of the preceding command should be similar to the following:

    Variable = 1.3.6.1.2.1.1.2.0

    value = OBJECT IDENTIFIER <sys-oid-of-ccm>

    Unlocated Phones

    Emergency Responder obtains a list of registered phones from Unified CM and tries to locate all phones. If Emergency Responder cannot locate a phone behind a switch port or in any configured IP subnets, and the phone is not a configured synthetic phone, the phone is placed in the list of unlocated phones.

    If there are a lot of unlocated phones, first try running the switch port and phone update process to see if Emergency Responder can resolve some of the problems automatically. See Manually Run The Switch-Port and Phone Update Process for more information.

    These are some things that can prevent Emergency Responder from locating a phone:

    • If more than one switch port reports the phone as a CDP (Cisco Discovery Protocol) neighbor, then the phone is placed in unlocated phones. This condition is corrected in the next phone tracking when only one switch port reports this phone as its CDP neighbor.
    • The phone is attached to a switch that is not defined in Emergency Responder. See LAN Switch Identification for information about defining switches.
    • The phone is connected to an unsupported device, such as a router port, a hub connected to a router, or an unsupported switch. See Network Hardware and Software Requirements for a list of supported switches. See Manually Define Phones for information about configuring these types of phones if you cannot connect them to a supported device.
    • The phone is connected to a hub, which is connected to a supported switch port, but it does not support CDP. Emergency Responder can consistently discover CDP-enabled phones attached to hubs (which are attached to supported switch ports), but cannot always track non-CDP phones attached in this manner. For non-CDP phones, ensure the phones are attached directly to supported switch ports.
    • The switch to which the phone is connected is currently unreachable, for example, it does not respond to SNMP queries. This could be for several reasons:
      • The SNMP read community string on the switch does not match the string configured in Emergency Responder. Correct the Emergency Responder configuration. See Set Up SNMP Connection.
      • The phone requires CAM table access, but CAM tracking is not enabled for the switch in Emergency Responder. See LAN Switch Identification.
      • There is a network outage preventing communication between the Emergency Responder server and the switch. Locate and resolve the network outage problem. Unreachable switches are not retried until Emergency Responder runs the next full switch-port and phone update process, unless you run it against the individual switch.
    • The phone has moved to a switch served by a different Emergency Responder group. If this is the case, the Emergency Responder group name is shown for the phone in the unlocated phones list. If the phone is not in the next incremental phone tracking process after it is moved, the phone remains unlocated in any Emergency Responder group until a full switch-port and phone update process is run.
    • The phone requires CAM-based tracking, but CAM-based tracking is not enabled on the switch to which the phone is connected. Cisco IP SoftPhone and some other phone models require CAM-based tracking. See LAN Switch Identification for information about enabling CAM-based tracking, and Network Hardware and Software Requirements for a list of phones that require CAM-based tracking.

    After fixing the problems that are preventing Emergency Responder from locating phones, run the switch-port and phone update process on the affected switches, or on all switches:

    • To run the process on a specific switch—Select Phone Tracking > LAN Switch Details and select the switch in the left-hand column; then click Locate Switch Ports.
    • To run the process on all switches—Select Phone Tracking > Run Switch-Port & Phone Update.
    Related Tasks
    Related Information

    Phone Disappears in Emergency Responder

    If Emergency Responder is in the middle of a phone tracking process, and a phone is in the middle of homing to a different Unified CM cluster, no Unified CM cluster has a record of the phone. Thus, Emergency Responder does not know the phone exists, and you can not look up the phone in the Emergency Responder interface. However, assuming the phone successfully connects to a Unified CM cluster, Emergency Responder tracks the phone during the next incremental phone tracking process, and the phone should then appear in the Emergency Responder interface.

    This problem can also occur if phones are reconnecting to a primary Unified CM server from a backup server during the Emergency Responder phone tracking process.

    Wrong ERL Used for Shared Line

    When two or more phones with a shared line appearance move from switches that are monitored by one Emergency Responder group to switches that are monitored by a different Emergency Responder group, then Emergency Responder may assign an incorrect ERL to these phones during an emergency call. This can occur when the phones move to a different campus that has a different Unified CM cluster (although the moved phones are still registered with the original Unified CM cluster), and it can also occur when the phones move within a single large campus that is served by multiple Unified CM clusters.

    Because the moved phones are still registered to their original Unified CM cluster, emergency calls from these phones are routed to the original Emergency Responder group. In this case, the Emergency Responder group detects that the calling phone is connected to a switch that is monitored by a different Emergency Responder group, and the call is forwarded to the appropriate Emergency Responder group through an H.323 inter-cluster trunk. Because the inter-cluster trunk does not pass the MAC address of the calling phone, the receiving Emergency Responder group does not know the MAC address of the calling phone and must associate the phone to an ERL based on the calling party number.

    In cases with a single phone connected to the switches monitored by the receiving Emergency Responder group, this is not a problem. However, when multiple phones with a shared line appearance connect to switches monitored by the receiving Emergency Responder group, then Emergency Responder must guess which phone has placed the emergency call. If all of the phones with a shared line appearance are in the same ERL, the guess is correct. If the phones span multiple ERLs, then the guess might be incorrect.

    Related Tasks
    Related Information

    802.11b Endpoints Using Wrong ERL

    802.11b endpoints (such as Cisco Wireless IP 7920 Phones and Cisco IP SoftPhones running on 802.11b) are using switch port-based ERL instead of the configured subnet-based ERL.

    Cisco Emergency Responder (Emergency Responder) give a higher priority to switch port association for call routing. If Emergency Responder finds a switch port mapping for any endpoint (including 802.11b endpoints), it uses the switch port mapping to route emergency calls. If the switch port mapping is not found or if the ERL is not configured for the corresponding switch port, Emergency Responder routes emergency calls using subnet-ERL configuration.

    Be aware that Emergency Responder locates 802.11b endpoints behind a switch port under the following conditions:

    • CDP (Cisco Discovery Protocol) is disabled on the access point or the switch port on which it is connected; and
    • CAM tracking is enabled in Emergency Responder for that particular switch.

    See the switch port screen or the ERL debug tool (see Check Emergency Responder Configuration Using ERL Debug Tool) to check if the 802.11b endpoint is associated with a switch port.

    It is recommended that you track 802.11b endpoints using subnet-based ERLs. Therefore, enable CDP on the switch port and the access points to route emergency calls from 802.11b endpoints using subnet-based ERLS.

    Related Tasks

    Troubleshoot Emergency Call Problems

    The following sections describe how to troubleshoot emergency calls routing and how to use the information supplied with the calls.

    Emergency Calls Not Intercepted by Emergency Responder

    If Emergency Responder is not intercepting emergency calls, there is probably a mistake in your Unified CM configuration or its representation in the Emergency Responder configuration.

    • The emergency call number (911) is in the Phones partition and uses the E911CSS calling search space. Ensure this number was identified during Emergency Responder installation (see Installation on A New System). This ensures that users can dial the emergency number. See Create Emergency Call Route Points for information about setting up the Unified CM configuration for this number.
    • The standby Emergency Responder server route point (912) is in the E911 partition and uses the E911CSS calling search space. See Create Emergency Call Route Points for information about setting up the Unified CM configuration for this number. Ensure this number is defined as the standby server route point in the Emergency Responder configuration (see Set Up Group Telephony Settings for Server).
    • The PSAP callback route point pattern (913XXXXXXXXXX) is in the E911 partition and uses the E911CSS calling search space. See Create Emergency Call Route Points for information about setting up the Unified CM configuration for this number. Ensure this number is defined as the PSAP callback route point pattern in the Emergency Responder configuration, and that the strip prefix (913) is also identified (see Set Up Group Telephony Settings for Server).
    • All ELIN route patterns are in the E911 partition. See Create Route Patterns for ERLs for information about setting up the Unified CM configuration for these numbers.
    • All phones and CTI ports (both device and line) are in the Phones partition and use the PhoneCSS calling search space. You can use additional partitions, but they must be set up with relationship to the Emergency Responder partitions and calling search spaces in the same manner as these partitions in the examples described in the Create Route Patterns for ERLs.
    • All gateways to the service provider's network use the E911CSS calling search space. See Set Up Calling Search Space for Gateway and PSAP Connection for more information.
    • The Unified CM Version (JTAPI jar) being configured is proper. To check the Unified CM version, follow these steps:
      1. Login to the Emergency Responder Admin Utility website.
      2. Select Update > CCM Version
      3. In the Status section, check the Current Version of CCM.

    ELIN Not Transmitted to PSAP

    If the ELIN is not transmitted to the PSAP, and you are using a PRI connection to route emergency calls to the PSAP, check the configuration of the gateway. The PRI must be configured to send the real calling party number (the ELIN) rather than a static number, such as the main site number. See CAMA and PRI Trunks.

    ELIN Default ERL Used for Calls from Other ERLs

    If an emergency call is assigned an ELIN defined for the Default ERL rather than an ELIN assigned to the ERL whence the call was made:

    If the route pattern for an ERL fails, Emergency Responder uses the route pattern defined for the Default ERL.

    Emergency Calls Not Routed to Correct PSAP

    If an emergency call is not routed to any PSAP, check whether the route patterns used for the ERL from which the call was made and for the default ERL are configured and use the correct partitions and calling search spaces (see Create Route Patterns for ERLs). Ensure that the partitions and calling search spaces for the gateways are correct (see Set Up Calling Search Space for Gateway and PSAP Connection).


    Note
    When a 911 call is made, the call does not route to an alternate PSAP when the primary PSAP call fails. The caller may hear a busy tone, but the Emergency Responder administrator will not receive an email alert that the emergency call could not be routed.

    If an emergency call successfully leaves your network but does not get routed to the correct PSAP, look at these possible points of failure:

    • Is Emergency Responder configured to assign the correct ELIN to the ERL assigned to the phone? Emergency calls are routed based on the ELIN, so if you assign the wrong ELIN, the call is not routed correctly. See ERL Creation.
    • If the ELIN is correct, is the ELIN route pattern configured to use the correct gateway? If you select the wrong gateway, the call might be routed to a part of the service provider's network that cannot connect to the desired PSAP. Consult with your service provider to determine gateway requirements. See these topics:
    • Does the service provider's ALI database contain the correct information for the ELIN? Emergency call routing outside your network is based on the information in the service provider's database, not on the information in your local network. See Export ERL Information.
    • Does the emergency caller's phone register with a Unified CM cluster supported by a different Emergency Responder group than the Emergency Responder group that supports the originating switch port? Then you might have a miss-configured Emergency Responder cluster. See these topics:

    Emergency Calls Get Busy Signal and Not Routed

    If callers hear a busy signal when calling the emergency call number, or if emergency calls sometimes do not get routed, there is probably a problem with the configuration of your standby Emergency Responder server:

    • If you have only configured a primary Emergency Responder server, install and configure a standby Emergency Responder server. If CPU utilization on the primary server reaches 100%, Emergency Responder cannot handle emergency calls. In this case, the standby server handles the calls.
    • Check the route point configuration for the standby server. Ensure the emergency call route point's call forward settings are configured to forward calls to this number. See Create Emergency Call Route Points for information about the Unified CM configuration, and the Set Up Group Telephony Settings for Server for the Emergency Responder configuration.

    PSAP Call Back Errors

    You might encounter a PSAP call back error if a PSAP operator tries to call back an emergency caller using the ELIN provided by caller ID. The following sections describe two such errors - if a PSAP cannot reach the original emergency call extension and if onsite security personnel get a call back from a PSAP.

    PSAP Cannot Reach Original Emergency Call Extension

    Problem    PSAP could not reach the original emergency call extension.
    Solution    Emergency Responder caches a mapping between the caller's true extension and the ELIN you define for an ERL. If more calls get made than the number of ELINs you define for an ERL, Emergency Responder must reuse these numbers and thus overwrites the original caller's extension. You can view the call history to determine the extension of the original caller. See Emergency Call Process.

    If this is not the problem, check the configuration of the PSAP callback route point in Unified CM and Emergency Responder (see Create Emergency Call Route Points and Set Up Group Telephony Settings for Server), and ELIN translation patterns in Unified CM (see Create Translation Patterns for ELINs).

    Onsite Alert Security Personnel Get Callbacks from PSAP

    Problem    Onsite alert (security) personnel get callbacks from the PSAP.
    Solution    Emergency Responder routes PSAP callbacks to the onsite alert personnel for the default ERL if ELIN-to-extension mapping for the emergency call has expired from the cache. By default, this is three hours, although you can configure expiration to be a longer or shorter time. See Group Settings.

    Onsite Alert Personnel Not Getting Telephone Alerts

    If the onsite alert personnel are not getting telephone alerts when an emergency call is made in an ERL they are covering, ensure that all phones and CTI ports (both device and line) are in the Phones partition and use the PhoneCSS calling search space. You can use additional partitions, but they must be set up with relationship to the Emergency Responder partitions and calling search spaces in the same manner as these partitions in the examples described in the Group Settings.

    Also, ensure that the Emergency Responder configuration for the Unified CM clusters is correct. The Emergency Responder configuration should show the correct begin address for the telephony ports you defined as CTI ports in Unified CM, and the number of telephony ports should be the correct number and it must be greater than 0 for any calls to occur. Emergency Responder uses this CTI ports to place the telephone calls to onsite alert personnel.

    If the Event Viewer in the Emergency Responder Serviceability web interface displays the error message "No port to place call," then there were not enough CTI ports defined to initiate all the calls to onsite alert personnel. Therefore, you must define additional ports. To access the Event Viewer, log in to the Emergency Responder Serviceability web interface and select Tools > Event Viewer.

    Onsite Alert Phone Does Not Ring When Emergency Call Placed

    You might encounter this problem if the onsite alert phone does not ring when an emergency call is placed:

    Problem    The onsite alert phone does not ring when an emergency call is placed.
    Possible Cause    The onsite alert phone does not ring if the Do Not Disturb (DND) feature is enabled on the phone and if Emergency Responder is configured with Unified CM 6.x.
    Solution    Do not enable DND on an onsite alert phone.

    Prompts for Phone Alerts Not Getting Played

    You might encounter this problem if prompts for phone alerts are not getting played:

    Problem    Prompts do not get played at the onsite alert phone when the call is initiated from the CTI ports.
    Possible Cause    This problem can occur when a single CTI port is configured with multiple lines. Prompts may not get played from one or more of these lines when the onsite alert notifications call is initiated through them.
    Solution    To avoid this problem, configure only one line per CTI port in the Unified CM that is configured for Emergency Responder.

    Onsite Alert Personnel Not Getting Email or Paging Notifications

    If the onsite alert personnel are not getting email, or email-based pages, even though you configure email addresses for them (see Onsite Alert Settings), check the Emergency Responder configurations SMTP settings. Ensure that the SMTP server address and source mail ID are correct (see Group Settings), and that there is an account for the mail ID in the SMTP server.

    Incorrect Location Information Sent to Onsite Alert Personnel

    If your onsite alert (security) personnel are receiving incorrect location information for an emergency call, consider these potential problems:

    • Is the ALI data for the ERL correct? See ERL Creation.
    • Is the phone location data for the switch port correct? See Switch Port Configuration.
    • Is the correct ERL assigned to the switch port to which the phone is connected? If not, there could be two problems:
      • Someone switched wires on the switch, so your formerly correct configuration is no longer correct. Wires cannot be moved from port to port without potentially invalidating the ERL assignment. See Data Integrity and Reliability.
      • The wiring closet is secure, the ERL assignment is simply incorrect. See Switch Port Configuration.
    • Did the call come from the Default ERL (assuming you do not use the Default ERL for any permanent ERL)? This could indicate these problems:
      • The phone is connected to an unsupported port and is not defined as a manual phone. See Manually Define Phones.
      • The phone is not supported and it is not defined as a manual phone. See Manually Define Phones.
      • The phone is supported but Emergency Responder could not locate it. You might have to manually assign the phone to an ERL if you cannot resolve the problem. See Unlocated Phones.
    • Did the call come from a manually-defined phone extension? If so, it is likely the incorrect ERL is assigned, perhaps because the phone moved. See Manually Define Phones.

    Emergency Call History Problems

    There are two issues you might encounter when viewing the emergency call history information:

    • Emergency call information does not appear in call history
    • Call history does not show call ELIN and route pattern

    For additional information, see View Emergency Call History

    Emergency Call Information Does Not Appear in Call History

    Problem    Emergency call information does not show up in call history right away.
    Solution    Emergency Responder writes call history information to the database every 15 seconds. You can view history information after 15 seconds.

    Call History Does Not Show Call ELIN and Route Pattern

    Problem    The call history does not show the ELIN and route pattern used for a call.
    Solution    If the call could not be routed to the PSAP, you will not see an ELIN or route pattern. Check to determine why the call could not be routed. See Emergency Calls Not Routed to Correct PSAP.

    Troubleshoot Email Alerts

    The following sections describe how you troubleshoot problems related to the email alerts generated by Emergency Responder.

    JTAPI Incompatibility Warning

    As an administrator, you will be alerted if the Unified CM version configured on Emergency Responder differs from the version to which Emergency Responder route points are registered, so that you can take corrective action and assure that emergency calls are processed correctly. An email alert will be sent to the configured email address using SMTP mail server.

    Please ensure that email alerts for Emergency Call Routing Parameters are enabled under Email Alert Settings on the Emergency Responder administration pages.

    Alert would be as follows:

    Unified CM at <IP address> is version CUCM x which differs from CUCM version setting CUCM y on Cisco Emergency Responder.

    This warning would be displayed following a major discovery whenever the version selected by the Unified CM version setting on Emergency Responder differs from the Unified CM version with which Emergency Responder is integrated.

    This could occur in the following cases:
    • Unified CM version is no longer supported; for example Unified CM 2.0 integrated with Cisco Emergency Responder 8.7 or 9.0
    • Unified CM version is not yet supported; for example Unified CM 9.5 integrated with Cisco Emergency Responder 8.7 or 9.0
    • Unified CM version is supported, but Unified CM version setting on Emergency Responder is incorrect; for example Unified CM 9.0 integrated with Cisco Emergency Responder 8.7 or 9.0, but Emergency Responder Unified CM version setting is Unified CM 7.1

    Multiple Unified CM versions in the same Emergency Responder will always cause one of the above.

    JTAPI Route Point Registration Failure Alarm

    As an administrator, you will be alerted if Emergency Responder cannot register its JTAPI route points so that you can take corrective action and assure that emergency calls are processed correctly.

    Following are the events which can cause the route point to register/unregister:
    • Cisco Emergency Responder/SNMP service restart
    • Cisco Emergency Responder failover/fallback
    • JTAPI version upgrade/downgrade
    • Incompatible JTAPI version
    • Emergency Responder/Unified CM upgrade
    • Application user’s credential is incorrectly mentioned in Emergency Responder
    • Application user password expired
    • CTI telephony port begin number is wrongly mentioned in Emergency Responder (impacts only CTI ports)
    • CTI telephony port count is wrongly mentioned in Emergency Responder (impacts only CTI ports)
    • SNMP configuration is incorrect in either Emergency Responder or Unified CM
    • Route point DN numbers mismatch in Cisco Emergency Responder/Unified CM

    If Unified CM is SNMP unreachable or application user credentials to Unified CM are incorrect, then Emergency Responder will send an email alert to the configured email id. Please ensure that the email alert settings under the discovery parameters are enabled under Email Alert Settings on the Emergency Responder administration pages.

    The email alert would be as follows:

    <CERserver hostname> Cisco ER Phone Tracking could not get information [using SNMP] from 1 Cisco CallManager(s) Check EventViewer on CERServer for details.

    This is a serious condition and may indicate that Emergency Responder will not receive and process emergency calls. Follow the procedures in the Troubleshooting section of the Administration Guide to assure that emergency calls will be processed as expected.

    Emergency Call Alert

    Whenever a user makes a 911(Emergency) call, Emergency Responder generates an email alert. Emergency Responder sends the email alert to all of the onsite alert (security) personnel whose email ids are configured for the ERL from which the call was made. (See Set Up Server Group.)

    Security personnel are expected to respond to that user. For detailed call information, see the following URL:

    http://<<CERServer HostName>>/ceruserreports

    When a 911 call is made and the backup Emergency Responder server handles the call, an alert similar to the following is sent: 

    Subject: Emergency Call Alert -- Extn # 332101 (Generated by Backup Cisco ER)Message: EMERGENCY CALL DETAILS (Generated by Emergency Responder)
Caller Extension:332101
Zone/ERL         :Z1
Location         :ddd    
Call Time        :June 2, 2003 3:47:30 PM IST

    Transition Alert

    When the standby Emergency Responder server takes control and becomes the active server, a Transition Alert is sent to the Emergency Responder administrator. This situation occurs under any of the following circumstances:

    • If the primary Emergency Responder server is stopped.
    • If the Emergency Responder service is stopped on that server.
    • If the connectivity between primary and standby Emergency Responder servers is broken.

    The administrator should diagnose the cause and fix the problem as soon as possible.

    When the Emergency Responder backup server takes control, an alert similar to the following is sent: 

    Subject: Transition Alert: Cisco ER Backup is activeMessage:
Backup Cisco ER <<CER HostName>> has taken control as Active Cisco ER.
Transition Time  :June 2, 2003 3:57:12 PM IST

    When the master Emergency Responder server takes control, an alert similar to the following is sent: 

    Subject: Transition Alert: Cisco ER Master is activeMessage:
Master Cisco ER <<Emergency Responder Server HostName>> has taken control 
as Active Cisco ER. Transition Time  :June 2, 2003 3:57:12 PM IST

    Tracking Failure

    At the end of a switch-port and phone tracking process, if there are any devices that could not be tracked, Emergency Responder sends a Tracking Failure email to the Emergency Responder administrator.

    The administrator should look at the event log on the Emergency Responder server to find the list of devices that were not tracked. Then the administrator should check the following and make any required corrections:

    1. Make sure that the correct SNMP Community String is configured in Emergency Responder.
    2. Check that the device is connected.
    3. Check that the host name for the Emergency Responder server is resolvable, that is, it can be found.
    4. Check that the SNMP service is enabled on that particular device (Switch / Unified CM).

    Here is an example of a tracking failure alert. 

    Subject: CER Phone Tracking failed to track some devicesMessage:
CER Phone Tracking could not get information [using SNMP] from 2 
Cisco Unified CM(s) and 1 Switch(es)Check Event Viewer 
on CER Server for details.

    Failed To Get Provider Alert

    Emergency Responder sends a Failed to Get Provider Alert to the Emergency Responder administrator if Emergency Responder is not able register to one of the configured Unified CM clusters. Emergency Responder continues trying the registration until it succeeds. Emergency Responder sends the Failed to Get Provider email after a few retries.

    The message provides information about how to clear the problem, as shown in the following example. 

    Subject: Failed to get JTAPI Provider for Cisco Unified CM <<CCM IP/Host Name>> 
(Generated by Backup Cisco ER)Message:
Please check the following:
1) Check if the Cisco Unified CM is connected to the CER server.
2) Check if the configured Call Manager is running a version 
supported by the CER server.
3) Check if the given login credentials are correct:
CTI Manager Host Name:<<CCM IP/HostName>>

    Failed to Establish Communication with Emergency Responder Phone Tracking Engine

    Emergency Responder sends this email alert to the Emergency Responder administrator if the Emergency Responder server fails to establish communication with the Phone Tracking Engine fora period of time. This can occur if the Emergency Responder Phone Tracking Engine service is down. The administrator should perform the following steps:

    1. If the Emergency Responder Phone Tracking Engine service is down, start the service.
    2. Make sure that the Host Name of the Emergency Responder server does not contain any underscore (_) characters.

    Here is an example of a tracking failure alert. 

    Subject: CER Server failed to establish communication 
with CER Phone Tracking Engine.Message:
CER Server could not communicate with CER Phone Tracking Engine.

    Lost Communication with Emergency Responder Phone Tracking Engine

    Emergency Responder sends this email alert to the Emergency Responder administrator if the Emergency Responder server loses communication with the Emergency Responder Phone Tracking Engine. This is most liked to occur if the Emergency Responder Phone Tracking Engine service goes down when the Emergency Responder server is running.

    The administrator should restart the Emergency Responder Phone Tracking Engine service.

    The following shows an example of a tracking failure alert. 

    Subject: CER Server lost communication with CER Phone Tracking EngineMessage:
CER Server could not communicate with CER Phone Tracking Engine.

    Failed to Send Unlocated Phone Details to Remote Emergency Responder Server Group

    If Emergency Responder fails to send unlocated entries to a server group because it is already in the process of sending entries to that server group, this alert is sent.

    This alert occurs very rarely. It can occur when a Emergency Responder server is found in more than one Emergency Responder server group. To resolve this problem, check to see which server group is an old configuration and remove that server group. 

    Subject: CER Server failed to send Unlocated Phones details 
to Remote CER Server Group.Message:
CER Server failed to send Unlocated Phones to Remote CER Server Group. 
Please ensure that the CER servers are not found under more than one CER Server Group.
CER Servers in Remote Server Group:<< CERServer HostNames >>

    Emergency Call Could Not Be Routed

    If the emergency call routing to some route patterns configured in the ERL fails, Emergency Responder sends an email to the system administrator.

    Subject: Emergency call could not be routed using some route patterns (CERServer:<server hostname>)

    Message Body: Emergency call from :<Caller Extn> could not be routed using some Route Patterns. Check Event Log.

    The Event Log displays the following message: 

    Emergency call from <extn> could not be routed using the following route patterns
<RoutePattern1>
<RoutePattern2>
*****************
Call Routed to <RoutePattern-X>

Please check the availability of the above routes. Also, check for the following error conditions:

1. If FAC and/or CMC are configured on the route patterns used for Cisco ER, please disable them.
2. If the "Calling Party Number Modification" flag on the CER user page in 
the Cisco Unified CM is not enabled, please enable it.

    Solution

    • If you are running Unified CM 4.2 or 4.3, check to make sure that the Calling Party Number check box on the Emergency Responder User page is checked.
    • If you are running Unified CM 5.x or Unified CM 6.x, check to make sure that the routes are available.
    • Add the Emergency Responder Application User to the "Standard CTI Allow Calling Number Modification" user group.

    Calling Party Modification Failed

    If the calling party modification was not successful, Emergency Responder sends the following email to the system administrator:

    Subject: Emergency Calling Party Modification Failed (Emergency ResponderServer: <server>)

    Message Body: Emergency call from :<Caller Extn> cannot be routed with calling party modification. Check Event Log.

    The Event Log displays the following message: 

    Emergency Call from <Caller Extn> has been routed to default ERL because the 
calling party modification failed. Please make sure that the check box "Enable Calling 
Party Number Modification: is checked on the Cisco Unified CM user page for the 
CER user. PSAP callbacks MAY NOT work correctly. The CER service will need to 
be restarted once the flag is checked on the Cisco Unified CM User page.

    Solution

    Check the box for the "Enable Calling Party Number Modification" in the Emergency Responder user page in Unified CM 4.2 or 4.3 Administration. After you enable this flag, restart the Emergency Responder service for the changes to take effect.

    Troubleshoot Web Alerts

    You might encounter Web alert refreshes every 30 seconds when receiving web alerts.

    Web Alert Refreshes Every 30 Seconds

    Problem    Web alert continues to refresh every 30 seconds. You can see this problem by checking the status in the browser. The status displays the seconds remaining before refresh if it is in this mode.
    Solution    Check if there are other web alert screens open on the same client machine. Only one browser from a client machine can operate in the real-time mode. Remove any extra browsers.

    Troubleshoot Emergency Responder System and Administration Problems

    The following sections describe how you can troubleshoot problems related to the Emergency Responder system and its administration, such as server and web server problems.

    Cannot Validate Publisher

    If the installation cannot validate the Publisher (Step 5 of the Install Emergency Responder Subscriber), check the following:

    1. Verify that the Publisher hostname is correct and that the Publisher is reachable by hostname.
    2. Verify that the Publisher and Subscriber servers are running the same version of Emergency Responder.
    3. Verify that the database password that you entered is correct. This password was specified on the Database Access Security Configuration page during installation.
    4. Make sure that the Subscriber has been configured correctly on the Publisher.

    Troubleshoot Login Problems

    The following section shows some issues you might encounter while logging into Emergency Responder.

    Cannot Access Emergency Responder Administration Website

    Problem    You cannot log in to the Emergency Responder Administration website.
    Solution    Log in to CLI and run the utils service list command. Check if the status "Cisco IDS" is STARTED. If not, start the service using the utils service start service name command.

    Cannot Open Multiple Emergency Responder Sessions Using Netscape Navigator

    Problem    You cannot open multiple Emergency Responder sessions using Netscape Navigator.
    Solution    Netscape/Mozilla Navigator uses the same session ID across multiple windows. This creates problems if you try to log into Emergency Responder using different IDs. Normally, you can open multiple windows when logged in as system administrator. With Internet Explorer, if you open separate IE session by starting a new IE instance (rather than by opening a new window from an existing session), IE uses different session IDs, and you can log in using separate IDs (for example, as a user and an administrator, or as LAN switch and ERL administrators).
    Related Tasks

    Cisco Unified Operations Manager

    Use Cisco Unified Operations Manager to continuously monitor the health of the Emergency Responder system.

    For information about setting up Emergency Responder to use Cisco Unified Operations Manager, see Set Up Test ERLs.

    For information about installing and using Cisco Unified Operations Manager, see:

    http:/​/​www.cisco.com/​en/​US/​products/​sw/​cscowork/​index.html

    Troubleshoot Emergency Responder Switch and Port Configuration Problems

    The following sections describe several common issues you might encounter while configuring switches or switch ports in Emergency Responder.

    Phones Do Not Get Discovered

    Problem    Emergency Responder is configured with Unified CM information, but no phones get discovered.
    Solution    Ensure that the Unified CM servers are reachable on the network. Then, ensure that the SNMP read community strings are configured correctly for the switches and Unified CM servers (see Set Up SNMP Connection.) Then, manually run the switch port and phone update process (see Manually Run The Switch-Port and Phone Update Process.) Use the CLI-based utils snmp command to determine if the Unified CM is SNMP reachable.

    Emergency Responder Does Not Show Ports on A Switch

    Problem    Emergency Responder does not show the ports on a switch configured in Emergency Responder.
    Solution    If you add a supported switch to Emergency Responder and run phone tracking on the switch after adding it, you can view the list of Ethernet ports on the switch. If Emergency Responder does not list the ports, check the SNMP settings in Emergency Responder for the switch (see Set Up SNMP Connection.) Also, verify that the switch is reachable over the network. Retry the selective phone tracking process on the switch (click Locate Switch Ports when viewing the switch details; see LAN Switch Details.)

    If the problem persists, ensure that the switch is supported (see Network Hardware and Software Requirements.) Also, check the Event Viewer for error messages.

    Some Phones Do Not Appear in Switch Port List

    Problem    Some phones do not appear in the switch port list.
    Solution    Check if the phone is found under configured IP subnets or in synthetic phones. If it is not found in either of those places, then they are placed as unlocated phones. See Unlocated Phones for a list of reasons that a phone could not be located.

    Cannot Delete Switch from Emergency Responder Configuration

    Problem    Cannot delete a switch from the Emergency Responder configuration.
    Solution    You cannot delete a switch when a phone tracking process is in progress. Retry the deletion after the process has ended. If this is not the problem, the Emergency Responder server might not be running. Check the control center and restart the server (see Manage Emergency Responder Server.)

    Import or Export of Switch Port Details Fails

    Problem    Import or export of the switch port details fails.
    Solution    If a switch port import or export attempt fails, it might be due to these reasons: the first switch-port and phone update process has not yet ended (wait for it to finish); the Emergency Responder server is not running (use the control center to restart it, see Manage Emergency Responder Server); the Emergency Responder server is not completely initialized (wait for it to initialize).

    Import of Some Switch Port Configurations Fail

    Problem    The import of some switch port configurations fail.
    Solution    To import switch port configurations, Emergency Responder must already be configured with the switch and Emergency Responder must first discover the ports on the switch using the switch-port and phone update process. If you try to import a configuration for ports not yet discovered in Emergency Responder, the importation of those settings fails. See Manually Run The Switch-Port and Phone Update Process for information about the process. Run it on the switches whose port configurations you could not import, then retry the import.

    Phones Moved to and from Various Emergency Responder Groups Incorrectly Display in Switch Port Details

    Problem    Phones moved from other Emergency Responder groups to this Emergency Responder group, and then moved back, are still showing up in the switch port details for the Emergency Responder group.
    Solution    This types of phones are not removed from the switch port details until the next full switch-port and phone update process is run. If this is an issue for you, you can run the process on the switch (or on all switches) manually. See Manually Run The Switch-Port and Phone Update Process.

    Check Emergency Responder Configuration Using ERL Debug Tool

    The ERL Debug Tool takes a phone extension as the search criteria and displays the ERLs currently being used for routing emergency calls for the phones.

    Use this diagnostic tool to verify the Emergency Responder configuration during the ERL creation and the ERL assignment phase, and to troubleshoot calls directed to incorrect ERLs.

    For example, you configured the phone in ERL_1 as a manually configured phone, however a misconfigured IP subnet matches this phone's IP address, and associates it with ERL_2. Now that you have found the configuration problem using the Debug Tool, you can correct it.

    To use the ERL Debug Tool, follow these steps.

    Procedure
      Step 1   Select Tools > ERL Debug Tool.

      Emergency Responder displays the ERL Debug Tool page.

      Step 2   At the Find Phones field, to list specific phones, select the search criteria and click Find.

      Emergency Responder displays the ERL currently being used for routing emergency calls for the phone.

      Step 3   If the configurations are not correct, make the required changes.
      Note   

      Emergency Responder displays a maximum of 1,000 records.

      Publisher and Subscriber Server Replacement

      The following sections describe how to replace a faulty Publisher server and how to replace a faulty Subscriber server.

      Replace Faulty Subscriber

      To replace a faulty Subscriber, go to Emergency Responder administration and delete the faulty Subscriber. Install a new Emergency Responder Subscriber for the Publisher (see Installation on A New System).


      Note

      If the same host name is not going to be used by the replacement Subscriber server, you must delete the faulty Subscriber using the Emergency Responder administration screen on the Publisher server.

      Replace Faulty Publisher

      You can restore the Publisher only if you have backed up the Publisher using the Disaster Recovery System available as part of the Emergency Responder. See Data Backup and Recovery.

      To replace a faulty Publisher, follow these steps:

      Procedure
        Step 1   Install the same version of the Emergency Responder Publisher on a server with the same host name as the one you used previously.
        Step 2   Choose the same configuration options (such as the Unified CM version, and so on) during the installation.
        Step 3   Restore the old configuration data using the Disaster Recovery System.

        Emergency Responder Admin Utility

        You can use the Emergency Responder Admin Utility tool to perform the following tasks:

        • To update Emergency Responder cluster database host details
        • To upgrade the CCM version

        Use Emergency Responder Admin Utility Tool

        To use the Emergency Responder  Admin Utility tool, follow these steps:

        Procedure
          Step 1   Log in to the Emergency Responder Admin Utility web interface.
          Step 2   Using the menu bar, choose a task to perform:
          1. To change the Publisher that the Subscriber server points to, select Update > Publisher.
          2. To update the Unified CM version, select Update > CCM Version.
          3. To update the cluster settings on both the Publisher and Subscriber servers, select Cluster > DBHost.
            Note   

            This action updates the Emergency Responder cluster DB details for this server group only. Other servers in this Emergency Responder cluster will NOT be updated automatically.

          Step 3   To save the changes that you have made, restart both the Publisher and the Subscriber servers.

          Set Up Subscriber Database

          To configure the Publisher-Subscriber setup again if you have an issue with the Subscriber (apart from DB replication), follow these steps:

          Procedure
            Step 1   Log in to the Emergency Responder Admin Utility web interface on the Subscriber server.
            Step 2   Select Update > Publisher.
            Step 3   Specify the same Publisher Host Name, IP address (already being pointed to) and database access security password.
            Step 4   Click Go.

            This step might a take a while setup.

            Database and Enterprise Replication Troubleshooting Commands

            Use the following CLI commands for troubleshooting the Informix Dynamic Server (IDS) database:

            • utils service list—Used to check whether the IDS service is running or not
            • show tech dbstateinfo—Gives the DB state information which is helpful in debugging database issues
            • show tech dbinuse—Displays the currently used database
            • show tech dbintegrity—Shows database integrity information
            • show tech database—Creates a .csv file with contents of all the tables in the database

            Use the following CLI commands for troubleshooting Enterprise Replication:

            • utils dbreplication status—Used to show the status of the database replication
            • utils dbreplication reset—Resets and restarts the database replication between the Publisher and Subscriber
            • utils dbreplication repair—Compares the data on replication servers (Publisher and Subscriber) and create a report listing data inconsistencies and repairs the data inconsistencies. This command also tries to repair replication by rebuilding the corrupted .rhosts file if it is corrupted for some reason.

            For troubleshooting database problems using logs, download logs from the Emergency Responder Serviceability website or through CLI.

            The following logs provide information for debugging database related issues

            • Install/Upgrade logs—/var/log/install/
            • Install DB logs—/var/log/active/er/trace/dbl/sdi/
            • CERDbMon logs—/var/log/active/er/trace/dbl/sdi/cerdbmon/
            • CLI logs—/var/log/active/platform/log/

            Replication Fails to Start After Subscriber and DNS Installation

            Problem    Replication fails to start after the Subscriber is installed with DNS and the CLI command utils dbreplication status shows replication not working.
            Possible Cause    The .rhosts have the Host Name for the Subscriber instead of FQDN (Fully Qualified Domain Name) of the Subscriber.
            Solution    Use the CLI command utils dbreplication repair to repair the replication issue. This command tries to repair replication by rebuilding the corrupted .rhosts file.

            Troubleshoot Emergency Responder System Problems

            The following sections discuss some issues you might encounter with general operation of the Emergency Responder system and the configuration screens that involve the Emergency Responder server, group, and cluster.

            Emergency Responder Intra-Cluster Call Routing Fails or Phones Not Discovered Correctly

            Problem    Emergency Responder intra-cluster call routing fails or Emergency Responder does not discover phones correctly.
            Solution    Ensure that all the Emergency Responder servers in an Emergency Responder cluster can be found by their host name, and ensure that all are reachable on the network by all the other Emergency Responder servers.

            Ensure that all the Emergency Responder servers can reach the Emergency Responder cluster DB host and that the cluster DB password is the same across all servers in the cluster.

            Emergency Responder Exits after Starting

            Problem    Emergency Responder exits after starting.
            Possible Cause    You have configured Emergency Responder to use a TCP port that is already in use.
            Solution    Check the Windows Event Viewer for the message "CER could not open socket at port peer-tcp-port, Exiting." If you see this message, change the Emergency Responder group configuration to use a different TCP port. See Set Up Server Group for instructions.

            Emergency Responder Groups in Cluster Screen Does Not Load and Displays A Cannot Connect to Cluster DB Host Error

            Problem    The Emergency Responder Groups in Cluster screen does not load, and exhibits the error "Cannot connect to cluster DB host."
            Solution    Ensure that the cluster DB host can be found by host name.

            Ensure that the specified cluster db host password is the same across all Emergency Responder server groups in the cluster.

            For more information, see Set up Emergency Responder Cluster and Cluster DB Host.

            Related Tasks
            Related Information

            Troubleshoot Cisco Unified Communications Manager Configuration Problems

            These are some issues that you might encounter when the Emergency Responder communicates with Unified CM. Additional problems with symptoms that involve emergency call failures are discussed in the Troubleshoot Emergency Call Problems.

            Emergency Responder Does Not Register with Route Points and CTI Ports

            Problem    Emergency Responder does not register with the route points and CTI ports configured for its use.
            Solution    Ensure that the route points and CTI ports are associated with the Unified CM Cisco Emergency Responder user (see Create Emergency Responder Cisco Unified Communications Manager User.) Ensure that the CTI Manager on the Unified CM server (or the DC Directory on a Windows-based Unified CM server) is running properly.

            Cannot Delete Unified CM from Emergency Responder Configuration

            Problem    When trying to delete a Unified CM from the Cisco Emergency Responder configuration, Emergency Responder prevents me and displays the message "Phone tracking in progress."
            Solution    You cannot delete a Unified CM server from the Emergency Responder configuration while a phone tracking process is in progress. Retry the deletion after the process has ended.

            Updating Cisco Emergency Responder after You Add Devices

            You must create a Unified CM user for Emergency Responder use and CTI ports and route points that must be assigned to the user before Emergency Responder tries to create a provider with the Emergency Responder cluster. Emergency Responder only registers the CTI ports and route points that are associated with the user when the provider is created. Thus, any devices you add to the user after starting Emergency Responder is not registered by Emergency Responder.

            If you add devices to the Emergency Responder user in Unified CM, you can force Emergency Responder to recreate the provider using any of these techniques:

            • Restart the Emergency Responder server.
            • Delete the Unified CM server from the Emergency Responder configuration and reenter it.
            • Change the backup CTI Manager setting for the Unified CM server in the Emergency Responder configuration and click Update. This forces Emergency Responder to log off the provider and recreate it.
            • Change the name of the user in Unified CM, or create a new user, and associate all devices with it. Then update the Emergency Responder configuration to use the new user.

            Identify Emergency Responder Groups and Servers in Cluster

            If you are connected to the administrator interface on a Emergency Responder server, you can view the details of the server and the Emergency Responder group's standby server by selecting System > Cisco ER Group Settings.

            You can also identify the Emergency Responder groups and their Emergency Responder servers that are in the same Emergency Responder cluster. To view the other Emergency Responder groups in the cluster, select System > Cisco ER Groups in Cluster. From the Emergency Responder Groups in Cluster page, select the group you want to view; and Emergency Responder displays the Emergency Responder servers that are in the group. To view the details for these servers, you must log into the Emergency Responder Administration interface running on one of the servers, select System > Cisco ER Groups in Cluster, then select the group you want to view from the list of groups.

            If you must uninstall a Emergency Responder group, first delete the group from the Emergency Responder cluster using this page. You must log in as a system administrator to delete the group. Deleting the group from the cluster simply removes the entries for the group from the Emergency Responder Cluster DB; it does not remove Emergency Responder from the group's servers.

            Related References

            Phone Moves between Clusters

            The following scenario illustrates how Emergency Responder clusters work and how Emergency Responder treats phones moving between clusters:

            • Server Group A (SGA) has a phone (Phone_1) that is moving out of SGA.
              • Emergency Responder discovers Phone_1 in Server Group B (SGB).
              • The Unlocated Phones page in SGA display the phone in SGB.
            • If both the Emergency Responder servers (Publisher and Subscriber) in SGB go down, SGA still displays Phone_1 in SGB.
              • Calls made from Phone_1 during this time are redirected to SGB and Emergency Responder takes the same steps to route this emergency call when Emergency Responder servers are not there in SGB.
              • Phone_1 is also treated like any other phone in SGB when both the SGB Emergency Responder servers are down.
            • If Phone_1 moves to Server Group C (SGC):
              • It is discovered after the next incremental phone tracking on SGA and then in SGC.
              • The Unlocated Phones page changes the association of Phone_1 to SGC.
            • If Phone_1 moves back to SGA, it is discovered in the next incremental phone tracking and displayed under the corresponding switch port.

            Manage Emergency Responder Server

            When you install Emergency Responder, the Emergency Responder server is set up to automatically start whenever the computer is powered up or rebooted. However, you can stop and then restart an Emergency Responder server through the Emergency Responder Serviceability web interface without powering down or rebooting the computer. You might find this helpful if you are trying to debug a problem.

            To start or stop an Emergency Responder server, follow these steps:

            Procedure
              Step 1   Log in to the Emergency Responder Serviceability web interface and select Tools > Control Center.

              The Control Center Services page displays, showing all Emergency Responder services and the current status of each one.

              Step 2   Click the radio button to the left of the service name, then click Start, Stop, or Restart to perform the desired action on the service. Click Refresh to refresh the screen with updated information.
              Note   

              The buttons only appear if the action is possible; for example, Start only appears if the service is currently stopped.

              Note   

              The Cisco Tomcat and Cisco IDS services cannot be started or stopped from the Control Center. These services can only be started or stopped using the utils service command. For additional information, see utils service.

              Cisco Emergency Responder Control Center Icons explains the meaning of the icons you see on the Control Center Services page.

              Table 1 Cisco Emergency Responder Control Center Icons

              Icon

              Meaning

              The Emergency Responder server or the Emergency Responder Phone Tracking Engine is started and functioning normally.

              The Emergency Responder server Emergency Responder Phone Tracking Engine was stopped by the administrator.

              Related References

              Troubleshoot ALI Data Uploads

              Periodically, you must export your ALI data and submit it to your service provider. The ALI data is used to route emergency calls from your network to the correct PSAP, and provide the PSAP with information about the location of the emergency call.

              Emergency Responder lets you export the ALI data in a variety of NENA formats. Ask your service provider which format you should use.

              During the upload process, you might find that some ALI data records did not upload correctly. Your service provider can provide you with a list of errors, or you can see these when using your service provider's data upload software. You must fix any mistaken records and resubmit the ALI data export file. To fix the records, you need to manually edit the records in error.

              The following sections describe the general procedure for fixing ALI data records, and explain how to edit the various types of NENA formatted files.

              Fix ALI Data Records

              To correct data errors you might receive when uploading ALI records to your service provider, follow these steps:

              Before You Begin

              Obtain NENA Doc 02-010, Recommended Formats and Protocols for Data Exchange, from NENA or your service provider. This document explains the various NENA formats in detail.

              Procedure
                Step 1   Look through the error reports to determine the problems you encountered.
                Step 2   Emergency Responder web interface, change the fields that were in error for the ERL/ALI records that failed. For example, if the Street Suffix was an unacceptable abbreviation, change it to an acceptable one. Save all of your changes.
                Step 3   Export the ALI data again (see the online help).
                Step 4   If any of the records in error were new, you must change the database function for the records. Because Emergency Responder has already exported these records, Emergency Responder labels them as updates rather than new insertions. However, because these records failed on upload, the service provider's database views them as new.

                Open the ALI export file in a text editor and change the function code for the records that you are fixing. Use an editor that will not add formatting or other extra characters. See these sections for details about editing the files:

                Step 5   Submit the edited file to your service provider.

                NENA 2.0 and 2.1 File Formats

                The NENA 2.0 and 2.1 file formats have these characteristics:

                • Fixed-length records
                • Fields are in a specific order
                • Unused fields are filled with blanks
                • End of record is indicated by an asterisk (*)

                Use NENA Doc 02-010, Recommended Formats and Protocols for Data Exchange, to determine the byte location and length of each field. When you edit the file, ensure that you are not lengthening the records. Delete any extra spaces that get added. If the length of an item is less than the length of a field, pad the field with blanks. Depending on the field, padding might be on the right or the left.

                The file contains one header and one trailer record. The ALI data records are contained between these records.

                Table 1 describes the fields you are most likely to edit. You should use the Emergency Responder web interface to change the other fields.

                Table 2 NENA 2.0 and 2.1 Common Fields

                Field

                Description

                Function Code

                Location: Byte 1.

                Length: 1 character.

                Description: The database function for the record. One of:

                • I—Insert new ALI record
                • C—Change existing record. You must have successfully uploaded the record once before you can use C. If you are correcting a record that has never been successfully uploaded, change the C to an I.
                • D—Delete the record. Emergency Responder only generates a deletion record once, in the export file created after you deleted the ALI from the Emergency Responder configuration. If you must regenerate the record, cut and paste it from the previous export file (and adjust the record count), or recreate the ALI in Emergency Responder, save it, export the data, then delete the ALI and export the data again.

                Cycle Counter (sequence number)

                Location: Byte 62 to 67.

                Length: 6 characters.

                Description: The sequence number of the file you are submitting to the service provider (for example, 1 or 2.) The number is right-aligned with leading spaces. Your service provider might ignore this field.

                Record count

                Location: Byte 62 to 70 in the trailer record.

                Length: 9 characters.

                Description: The total number of records in the file you are submitting to the service provider (for example, 1 or 2.) The number is right-aligned with leading spaces.

                NENA 3.0 File Formats

                The NENA 3.0 file format has these characteristics:

                • Variable-length records.
                • Fields are a tag and data combination, and can be in any order.
                • Unused fields are not included. The presence or absence of a tag has this effect:
                  • If the tag is not included, the previous value of the element, if any, is left unchanged.
                  • If the tag is included with a blank value, any previous value for the element is removed.
                  • If the tag is include with a non-blank value, the value of the element is changed to the new value.
                • Tags are separated by a vertical bar (|).
                • End of record is indicated by a predefined character.

                Use NENA Doc 02-010, Recommended Formats and Protocols for Data Exchange, to determine tag name and values for each field. Ensure that your values do not exceed the maximum length for the field. You do not need to pad fields with extra blanks.

                The file contains one header and one trailer record. The ALI data records are contained between these records.

                Table 1 describes the fields you are most likely to edit. You should use the Emergency Responder web interface to change the other fields.

                Table 3 NENA 3.0 Common Fields

                Field

                Description

                Function Code

                Tag: FOC.

                Description: The database function for the record. One of:

                • I—Insert new ALI record (FOCI)
                • C—Change existing record (FOCC). You must have successfully uploaded the record once before you can use C. If you are correcting a record that has never been successfully uploaded, change the C to an I.
                • D—Delete the record (FOCD). Emergency Responder only generates a deletion record once, in the export file created after you deleted the ALI from the Emergency Responder configuration. If you must regenerate the record, cut the version number and paste it from the previous export file (and adjust the record count); or recreate the ALI in Emergency Responder, save it, export the data, then delete the ALI and export the data again.

                Cycle Counter (sequence number)

                Tag: CYC.

                Description: The sequence number of the file you are submitting to the service provider (for example, CYC1 or CYC2.) Your service provider might ignore this field.

                Record count

                Tag: REC in the header and trailer records.

                Description: The total number of records in the file you are submitting to the service provider (for example REC1 or REC2.)

                Call History Logs

                Emergency Responder maintains extensive call history logs, which include entries for each emergency call handled. You can view call history information from the administration and user interfaces.

                Emergency Responder maintains in its database a history of the emergency calls that have been placed. When the primary Emergency Responder server (Publisher) is not active, emergency calls are handled by the backup Emergency Responder server (Subscriber). Through replication, the call history records on both these servers are synchronized when they are active. For this reason, the call history can be viewed on either of the Emergency Responder servers.

                To download these records, click on the Download button at the top of the table displaying the call history. These records are downloadable in Excel (.xls) format.

                Trace and Debug Information

                When you contact Cisco Technical Support for help with a problem that you are having with Emergency Responder, Cisco might request that you collect trace and debug information.

                Because collecting trace and debug information affects Emergency Responder performance, you should only turn on tracing and debugging at Cisco's request. The generated information is for Cisco's use in resolving product problems.

                Enable Emergency Responder Trace and Debug Information

                To enable detailed trace and debug information for Emergency Responder, follow these steps:

                Procedure
                  Step 1   From the Emergency Responder web interface, select Cisco ER Group > Server Settings.

                  Emergency Responder opens the Server Settings page.

                  Step 2   From the left column, select the server from which you must collect debug or trace information.

                  Emergency Responder displays the settings for the server.

                  Step 3   Scroll down to the debug package and trace package sections and select the packages that Cisco Technical Support has requested.

                  The lists in each section are identical; make sure that you select the package in the list that Cisco requested. Packages selected in the Debug list generate trace information plus extra debug data. If Cisco requests that you select all packages, click Select All for the appropriate list.

                  The available packages include:

                  • CER_DATABASE—The database subsystem, covers the log information generated by the database access code.
                  • CER_REMOTEUPDATE—The remote update subsystem, which manages updates between servers.
                  • CER_PHONETRACKINGENGINE—The phone tracking subsystem, which runs the phone tracking and switch-port and phone update processes.
                  • ER_ONSITEALERT—The onsite alert subsystem for notifying onsite alert personnel.
                  • CER_CALLENGINE—The call engine subsystem, which routes and processes calls.
                  • CER_SYSADMIN—The system administration web interface subsystem.
                  • CER_TELEPHONY—The telephony subsystem, used for interactions with Unified CM.
                  • CER_AGGREGATOR—The aggregator module covers all Emergency Responder server communication and data handling with the phone tracking engine. The module includes the search and lookup of tracked data for the subsystems like cluster, Administration, Cisco IP SoftPhone and call routing.
                  • CER_GROUP—The Emergency Responder server group subsystem, used for communicating between servers within a group.
                  • CER_CLUSTER—The server cluster subsystem, used for communicating between Emergency Responder groups in a cluster.
                  Step 4   Click Update to save and activate your changes.

                  Emergency Responder begins generating the requested trace and debug information.

                  Note   

                  The traces for Emergency Responder can be collected from either Emergency Responder Serviceability web interface or by using the CLI.

                  Step 5   When you have finished generating debug and trace information, click Clear All for each section in which you have made a selection to turn off debug and trace. Then, click Update to complete the change.
                  Related References
                  Related Information

                  Syslog Enablement

                  To collect trace and debug information, you must enable syslog for Emergency Responder.

                  To enable syslog for Emergency Responder, see Collect Information from Syslog.

                  Event Messages

                  You can view Emergency Responder event messages to help diagnose problems with the software by using the Emergency Responder Serviceability web interface.

                  For information about viewing Emergency Responder events, see Use Event Viewer.

                  For details about the Find and List Events page, see Event Viewer.

                  Performance Management

                  See the latest version of the Release Notes for Cisco Emergency Responder for supported Cisco MCS Unified CM Appliance platforms and their Emergency Responder scalability.

                  Emergency Responder performance can be affected if Emergency Responder is managing switches across a WAN link. Emergency Responder must send SNMP requests to the managed switches, and WAN delays can lead to SNMP timeouts and increase the time needed to track phone and switch changes. You might need to tune the SNMP parameters. See Set Up SNMP Connection for more information.

                  Network Management Systems Integration

                  You can manage the status of the Emergency Responder server remotely using CiscoWorks2000 or another SNMP-based network management system. CiscoWorks2000 is the standard Cisco network management system, but it is not bundled with Emergency Responder. For more information about CiscoWorks2000, Campus Manager, and Topology Services, see the documentation, available at the following URL:

                  http:/​/​www.cisco.com/​en/​US/​products/​sw/​netmgtsw/​tsd_​products_​support_​category_​home.html

                  The following sections provide information to assist you in integrating Emergency Responder with network management systems.

                  CDP Support

                  Cisco Emergency Responder uses the Cisco Discovery Protocol (CDP) to periodically send out CDP messages, on the active interface, to a designated multicast address. These messages contain information such as device identification, interface name, system capabilities, SNMP agent address, and time-to-live. Any Cisco device with CDP support can locate a Cisco Emergency Responder server by listening to these periodic messages.

                  Using information provided through CDP, the CiscoWorks2000 Server can detect the Cisco Emergency Responder server, and the Campus Manager application, Topology Services, can build topology maps displaying the Cisco Emergency Responder server.

                  In addition to sending out CDP messages, the Cisco Emergency Responder server uses CDP to locate phones that support CDP. You must ensure CDP is enabled on your switches so that Cisco Emergency Responder can obtain this information through SNMP queries to the switches.

                  Cisco Emergency Responder Hardware Platform OIDs shows the SNMP OIDs for the Cisco Emergency Responder hardware platforms.

                  Table 4 Cisco Emergency Responder Hardware Platform OIDs

                  Hardware Platform

                  SNMP OID

                  Cisco MCS-7815-I

                  1.3.6.1.4.1.9.1.582

                  Cisco MCS-7825-H

                  1.3.6.1.4.1.9.1.583

                  Cisco MCS-7825-I

                  1.3.6.1.4.1.9.1.746

                  Cisco MCS-7835-H

                  1.3.6.1.4.1.9.1.584

                  Cisco MCS-7835-I

                  1.3.6.1.4.1.9.1.585

                  Cisco MCS-7845-H

                  1.3.6.1.4.1.9.1.586

                  Cisco MCS-7845-I

                  1.3.6.1.4.1.9.1.587

                  Emergency Responder Components

                  Cisco Emergency Responder supports the SYSAPPL-MIB that allows you to use CiscoWorks2000 or a third-party SNMP browser to remotely access information about the following Emergency Responder components:

                  • Cisco Emergency Responder Server
                    • CERServer.exe
                  • Cisco PhoneTrackingEngine
                    • CERPhoneTracking.exe
                  • MSQL Server-related Services

                  The SYSAPPL-MIB uses SNMP. Emergency Responder supports the following SYSAPPL-MIB tables:

                  • SysApplInstallPkgTable—provides installed application information such as Manufacturer, Product Name, Version installed, Date installed, and Location, which is a partial URL for accessing the associated Application Administration web page (when applicable).
                  • SysApplRunTable—describes the application starting time and run-time status.
                  • SysApplInstallElmtTable—describes the individual application elements, or associated executables, which comprise the applications defined in the SysApplInstallPkgTable.
                  • SysApplElmtRunTable—describes the processes, or executables, that are currently running on the host system.

                  Collect Information from Syslog

                  You can configure Emergency Responder to use the Cisco Syslog Collector. Cisco Syslog Collector and Cisco Syslog Analyzer are offered with CiscoWorks2000 as part of the Resource Management Essentials package. You can also adapt Syslog output from Emergency Responder for use with other network management systems.

                  The Cisco Syslog Collector keeps common system logs of messages reported to Emergency Responder.

                  The Cisco Syslog Analyzer controls and displays all events efficiently so they can easily be read, interpreted, and used for system maintenance and problem solving.

                  To install and configure the Cisco Syslog Collector, see the CiscoWorks2000 documentation.

                  To enable syslog, follow these steps:

                  Procedure
                    Step 1   Select System > Cisco ER Group Settings.

                    Emergency Responder opens the Emergency Responder Group Settings page.

                    Step 2   Select enable in Enable Syslog.
                    Step 3   Enter the fully-qualified DNS name of the server in the Syslog Server field, for example, server.domain.com.
                    Step 4   Click Update Settings to save your changes.

                    Emergency Responder immediately begins writing messages to syslog.

                    Related References

                    Data Backup and Recovery

                    Emergency Responder uses the Disaster Recovery System to backup and restore system data.

                    For information about using the Disaster Recovery System, see Configure Cisco Emergency Responder Disaster Recovery System

                    Related Information

                    Troubleshoot Data Migration Assistant

                    The Data Migration Assistant (DMA) operates in two phases. In the first phase, Database, the following folders are backed up to a tar file:

                    • export
                    • import
                    • etc
                    • nena_msag_records

                    In the second phase, the contents of the backed-up Emergency Responder database are verified against the Emergency Responder database schema.

                    DMA Backup and Validation Failed

                    Problem    DMA backup and validation failed.
                    Solution    Go through the following check list:
                    • Check if MSDE is running. If the database is not running, the backup fails.
                    • Verify that the node being backed up is a Publisher node, not a Subscriber node. DMA backup cannot be performed on a Subscriber node.
                    • Verify that CSA is not running. If CSA is running, stop it before starting the backup.

                    DMA Backup Is Successful but Validation Failed

                    Problem    DMA backup is successful but the validation failed.
                    Solution    Go through the following check list:
                    • Verify that CSA is not running. If CSA is running, stop it before starting the backup. CSA interferes with DMA operation.
                    • Collect the data validation logs for further analysis. In this case, some changes may need to be made to the data in the database before a migration to Emergency Responder can succeed.

                    The DMA Logs are in the following locations:

                    • exportdb.log and migratecCERCSV.log are in C:\CiscoWebs\DMA\Bin
                    • installdbw1.log, installdbw1.log.err, installdbccm.log, installdbccm.log.err, and dbl_INSTALLDBxxxxxx.txt are located under C:\Program Files\Cisco\Trace\DBL
                    • Log Files are located under C:\Program Files\Cisco\Trace\DMA

                    The validation log files are as follows:

                    • exportdb.log
                    • installdbw1.log
                    • installdbw1.log.err
                    • dbl_INSTALLEDBxxxxxx.txt

                    Troubleshoot Linux Upgrades

                    You might encounter certain problems when upgrading to future versions of Emergency Responder from your current version of Emergency Responder. This section explains what could cause these problems and the provides recommended actions.

                    No Valid Upgrade Options Found Error Appears on The First Page of Install/Upgrade Menu

                    Problem    On the first page of the Install / Upgrade menu, after you enter the details for an upgrade patch, the error message "No valid upgrade options found" appears.
                    Solution    Verify that you are not trying to upgrade the Subscriber before upgrading the Publisher. When upgrading an Emergency Responder servergroup, you must always upgrade the Publisher first.

                    Verify that the local/remote path that you have specified actually contains a valid, signed ISO image, having the extension .sgn.iso.

                    Incorrect User Name/Password Error Appears on The First Page of The Install/Upgrade Menu

                    Problem    On the first page of the Install / Upgrade menu, after you enter the details for an upgrade patch at a remote location, the error message "Incorrect user name/password" appears.
                    Solution    Verify that the username and password entered for the remote SFTP/FTP location are correct.

                    Checksum Values Do Not Match after Downloading ISO Image on Emergency Responder Server

                    Problem    After downloading the ISO image onto the Emergency Responder server, the checksum values do not match.
                    Solution    Download a fresh ISO image from Cisco.com and try the upgrade again.

                    Upgrade Cancelled and Warning Message Appears Prompting You to Reboot System

                    Problem    The upgrade was cancelled, but a warning message appears prompting you to reboot the system.
                    Solution    During the upgrade, certain services on the Emergency Responder server could have been stopped, depending on when the upgrade was cancelled. In this case, it is highly recommended that you reboot the server.