Cisco Unity Troubleshooting Guide, Release 3.1(2)
Messages

Table Of Contents

Messages

About Problems with Messages

Messages Appear to Be Delayed

The Cisco Unity Primary Exchange Server Is Down or Is Disconnected

A Subscriber Misunderstands the Use of the # Key

The System Clock Time Is Incorrect

Exchange Settings Were Updated

AMIS Messages Are Unable to Be Delivered Promptly

Some Messages Seem to Disappear

The Network or Home Exchange Server Is Down

A Mailbox Is Full

Undeliverable Messages Have Not Been Forwarded to Recipients

Troubleshooting Problems with Outbound AMIS Messages

Messages Are Not Delivered to the UAmis Mailbox

Messages Are Stuck in the UAmis Mailbox

Messages Leave the UAmis Mailbox But Are Not Delivered

Troubleshooting Problems with Inbound AMIS Messages

AMIS Troubleshooting Procedures

Cisco Unity Stops Recording Before a Caller Has Finished Leaving a Message

The Dialogic Quiet Parameter Is Incorrect

Cisco Unity, the Phone System, or the Central Office Disconnected the Call

Dial Tone or Reorder Tone Is Present at the End of a Message

Subscribers Hear Messages at Inconsistent Sound Levels


Messages


About Problems with Messages

Message problems fall into five categories:

Messages appear to be delayed

Some subscriber errors or misconceptions can lead to the impression that Cisco Unity is delaying messages. See the "Messages Appear to Be Delayed" section.

Messages seem to disappear

Some Exchange and Cisco Unity situations can affect message delivery. See the "Some Messages Seem to Disappear" section. If you are troubleshooting AMIS message problems, see the "Troubleshooting Problems with Outbound AMIS Messages" section, the "Troubleshooting Problems with Inbound AMIS Messages" section, and the "AMIS Troubleshooting Procedures" section.

Messages are incomplete

A setup problem may cause callers to be cut off when they try to leave a message. See the "Cisco Unity Stops Recording Before a Caller Has Finished Leaving a Message" section.

Messages include dial tone or reorder tone

See the "Dial Tone or Reorder Tone Is Present at the End of a Message" section.

Subscribers hear messages at inconsistent sound levels

See the "Subscribers Hear Messages at Inconsistent Sound Levels" section.


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Begin your troubleshooting by gathering information about the message problem. By discussing the problem with the subscriber, sometimes you can determine whether a problem is due to a misunderstanding of how Cisco Unity works. If you encounter a message problem that is not described in this section, contact the Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC).

Messages Appear to Be Delayed

There are several possible reasons that messages may appear to be delayed. To confirm the arrival times of messages, generate a subscriber message activity report for the subscriber. For more information, see the "Subscriber Message Activity Report" section in the "Reports" chapter of the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide, available on Cisco.com at http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/voice/c_unity/unity31/sag/index.htm.

In this section, possible causes for message delays are listed in order, from most likely to least likely to occur:

The Cisco Unity Primary Exchange Server Is Down or Is Disconnected

A Subscriber Misunderstands the Use of the # Key

The System Clock Time Is Incorrect

Exchange Settings Were Updated

AMIS Messages Are Unable to Be Delivered Promptly

The Cisco Unity Primary Exchange Server Is Down or Is Disconnected

Messages recorded while the primary Exchange server is down or disconnected are stored until the server is brought back up. The delay experienced between the time a message is recorded and its delivery is entirely dependant on the amount of time that the primary Exchange server was down or disconnected.

A Subscriber Misunderstands the Use of the # Key

For example, when a subscriber presses the # key while listening to a message, Cisco Unity saves the message as a new message and skips to the next message. Later, the subscriber checks messages again and hears the same message.

Explain to the subscriber that pressing the # key while a message plays saves it as a new message.

The System Clock Time Is Incorrect

For example, if the system clock is slow or if a desk clock is fast, the subscriber may believe messages were delayed.

Confirm that the system clock on the Cisco Unity server is reporting the correct time.

Exchange Settings Were Updated

When settings are changed for a subscriber in Exchange, the new values may not be reflected immediately in Cisco Unity.

Explain to the subscriber that the settings may take a few minutes to synchronize, causing a delay in receipt of messages.

AMIS Messages Are Unable to Be Delivered Promptly

There are a number of reasons why AMIS messages may not be delivered promptly (or why they may be perceived as not being delivered promptly):

Outbound AMIS messages can be restricted to use only certain voice messaging ports. If the ports designated to handle AMIS messages are busy with other calls, outbound AMIS messages can be delayed. The AMIS Out Traffic report shows AMIS outbound traffic and total transmission time used. If the total transmission time approaches the limit of the ports dedicated to AMIS deliveries, review the AMIS schedule and port assignments to determine if additional resources (time and/or ports) should be dedicated to AMIS message traffic.

AMIS delivery of non-urgent messages can be restricted to occur only at scheduled delivery times. This may cause the recipient to believe message delivery was delayed.

Some AMIS messages may be undeliverable. An undeliverable message is returned to the sender with a non-delivery receipt (NDR) status; the sender or the administrator can make corrections and resend the message. This may also appear to the recipient as a delayed delivery.

For more information, see the "Troubleshooting Problems with Outbound AMIS Messages" section.

Some Messages Seem to Disappear

In some situations, messages may not be delivered to the intended recipients. In this section, possible causes for this problem are listed in order, from most likely to least likely to occur:

The Network or Home Exchange Server Is Down

A Mailbox Is Full

Undeliverable Messages Have Not Been Forwarded to Recipients

The Network or Home Exchange Server Is Down

This applies only if there are multiple Exchange servers. Increasing the Max Open Retries value and decreasing the Open Interval value will increase the number of tries and decrease the wait time Exchange uses when it tries to deliver a message after the network or server comes back up.

Change these message transfer agent (MTA) site configuration values, if needed, in the Exchange Administrator.

A Mailbox Is Full

When an Exchange mailbox has exceeded the Prohibit Send and Receive limit set in the Exchange Administrator, no new messages can be sent or received. When a recipient mailbox is full, an undeliverable message is returned to the sender.

Encourage the subscriber to dispose of messages promptly so that the Exchange mailbox does not fill up.

Undeliverable Messages Have Not Been Forwarded to Recipients

Messages returned to the Cisco Unity Messaging System mailbox are forwarded automatically to subscribers whose names appear on the Unaddressed Messages public distribution list. The messages then must be forwarded to the intended recipients.

Explain to subscribers on the Unaddressed Messages public distribution list the importance of regularly checking for and forwarding undeliverable messages.

Troubleshooting Problems with Outbound AMIS Messages

If you have just set up Cisco Unity and the other voice messaging system for AMIS, and messages are not being delivered, before proceeding, confirm that the other voice messaging system is supported by Cisco Unity for AMIS messaging. See the "AMIS Support" section of the Cisco Unity 3.1 System Requirements, and Supported Hardware and Software, available on Cisco.com at http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/voice/c_unity/sysreq/31_sysrq.htm.

Cisco Unity logs AMIS-related errors to the Windows Application Event log. The first step in troubleshooting AMIS outbound message delivery problems is to check the Event log. See the "AMIS Error Messages" section on page 7-11 for more information about each of the errors and a brief description of the action to take to resolve the problem. Then if needed, refer back to this section for detailed troubleshooting information.

When a subscriber sends a message, if the recipient has an address in the form AMIS:<Location Dial ID>_<Remote Mailbox Number>, then the Voice Connector delivers the message to the UAmis mailbox. Next, the AMIS schedule, the AMIS restriction table, and the other AMIS delivery options are checked to determine when to send the message. To troubleshoot problems with outbound AMIS messages, you need to determine where the problem has occurred on the path that AMIS messages take through Cisco Unity. You may need to check to see if messages are stuck in the UAmis mailbox.

You can use either Outlook or DohPropTest to access the UAmis mailbox. In order to use Outlook, you need to add the UAmis mailbox to the user profile of someone with administrative rights to Exchange. See the "To add the UAmis mailbox to a user profile" section and the "To view messages in the UAmis mailbox by using DohPropTest" section for more information.

Note that when a message is addressed to an AMIS recipient by using the phone, a copy of the message is not saved in the Outlook Sent Items folder after the message leaves the UAmis mailbox. However, when a message is addressed to an AMIS recipient by using Outlook, a copy of the message is saved in the Sent Items folder of the UAmis mailbox.

See the following sections for more information on troubleshooting outbound AMIS messages:

Messages Are Not Delivered to the UAmis Mailbox

Messages Are Stuck in the UAmis Mailbox

Messages Leave the UAmis Mailbox But Are Not Delivered

In addition, detailed procedures for troubleshooting the above AMIS problems can be found in the following section:

AMIS Troubleshooting Procedures

Messages Are Not Delivered to the UAmis Mailbox

When subscribers address messages to an AMIS recipient, the Voice Connector is responsible for delivering the messages to the UAmis mailbox. If messages are not showing up in the UAmis mailbox, then there is a problem with the Voice Connector. When there is a problem with the Voice Connector, no AMIS-related errors are logged to the Windows Application Event log.

If you are not sure whether messages are being delivered to the UAmis mailbox, follow the steps in the "To confirm that messages are being delivered to the UAmis mailbox" section.

If outbound AMIS messages are not showing up in the UAmis mailbox, then the problem is with the Voice Connector.

To troubleshoot problems with the Voice Connector

Confirm that the Exchange server on which the Voice Connector is installed has not gone down.

Confirm that the Voice Connector service is running. If the service is not running, then start it. The messages will be delivered from the Voice Connector MTS-OUT queue to the UAmis mailbox.

For detailed instructions, see the "To confirm that the Voice Connector service is running" section, the "To view the Voice Connector MTS-OUT queue in Exchange 2000" section, and the "To view the Voice Connector MTS out queue in Exchange 5.5" section.

Enable the Voice Connector log file and send a test message. You may need to contact Cisco TAC to interpret the data in the Voice Connector log file.

For detailed instructions, see the "To enable the Voice Connector log file" section.

Messages Are Stuck in the UAmis Mailbox

After the Voice Connector has delivered a message to the UAmis mailbox, the AMIS schedule and the AMIS restriction table will determine when the message will be sent. When an AMIS delivery number is allowed by the restriction table, messages to this number are sent immediately from the UAmis mailbox—the schedule settings do not matter. When the delivery number is disallowed by the restriction table, messages to this number are queued in the UAmis mailbox until the active hours of the AMIS schedule.

An error is logged in the Windows Application Event log when messages remain in the UAmis mailbox for more than 24 hours. Only one error is logged in the Event log, no matter how many messages remain in the UAmis mailbox. An additional error is logged daily until the messages are either sent or deleted from the UAmis mailbox.

If necessary, you can delete messages that are stuck in the UAmis mailbox by using Outlook or DohPropTest. See the "To add the UAmis mailbox to a user profile" section, and the "To view messages in the UAmis mailbox by using DohPropTest" section for detailed steps.

To determine why messages are stuck in the UAmis mailbox

In the Cisco Unity Administrator, review the settings for the AMIS restriction table. If any delivery numbers are disallowed, messages addressed to these numbers will be queued in the UAmis mailbox. This may not be what you intended. To send the messages immediately, change the AMIS schedule so that it is active during the time that you are troubleshooting. After the messages are sent from the UAmis mailbox, reset the AMIS schedule and adjust the AMIS restriction table as needed.

Review the AMIS schedule. Confirm that the schedule has enough Active hours set for sending all the messages.

Go to the System > Ports page, and confirm that there is at least one port configured for outbound AMIS messages.

Go to the Reports > System > AMIS Out Traffic page, and run the report.

If the total transmission time (listed at the bottom of the transmission duration column, and reported in seconds) is approaching the limit of the ports dedicated to AMIS deliveries, all of the port resources available are being used. Review the AMIS schedule and port assignments again to determine if additional resources (time and/or ports) should be dedicated to AMIS message traffic.

Confirm that the delivery phone numbers on all AMIS delivery locations are valid. To confirm that the delivery phone numbers are valid, do one of the following:

If there are not many AMIS delivery locations, in the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to the Network > Delivery Locations > Profile page of each AMIS delivery location to confirm the delivery phone number.

Alternatively, you can run DohPropTest to view the delivery phone number and other attributes about the messages that are stuck in the UAmis mailbox. See the "To view messages in the UAmis mailbox by using DohPropTest" section for more information.

In Outlook, confirm that the messages are marked as Unread. Messages that have been manually marked as Read will not be sent from the UAmis mailbox. For example, if someone has been monitoring the UAmis mailbox and has opened a message, then that message will not be sent.

If you still have not determined why the messages are stuck in the UAmis mailbox, use the Cisco Unity Diagnostic Tool to set micro traces.

For detailed instructions, see the "To set and retrieve traces for AMIS messages" section. You may need to contact Cisco TAC to interpret the trace data.

Messages Leave the UAmis Mailbox But Are Not Delivered

Use the following steps to troubleshoot problems with messages that leave the UAmis mailbox but are not delivered.

To troubleshoot undelivered messages

Check the Event log.

See the "AMIS Error Messages" section on page 7-11 for more information about each of the errors and a brief description of the action to take to resolve the problem.

Double-check the AMIS configuration in Cisco Unity, as follows:

In the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to the Network > AMIS Options > Delivery Options page. Review the settings for If The Remote System Does Not Answer and If The Remote System Is Busy. These settings should be set to at least the default values (Hang Up After 4 Rings; Try Calling 4 Times; Retry Every 5 Minutes), otherwise the remote voice messaging system may not be given enough time to answer.

Go to the Network > Delivery Options > Profile page of each of the AMIS delivery locations. If the Disable Outbound Messages To This AMIS Location checkbox is checked, change the Delivery Phone Number as needed, and then uncheck the box.

Go to the Network > Primary Location > Profile page. Confirm that the Node ID is accepted by the remote voice messaging system.

Confirm that the extension addresses listed in Exchange for AMIS subscribers are correct. If the Dial ID for an AMIS delivery location has changed, or if the remote mailbox number for an AMIS subscriber has changed, you need to run the Extension Address utility to update the extension addresses. See the "To view AMIS subscriber extension addresses" section and the "To run the Extension Address utility" section for more information.

Determine whether the calls to an AMIS location are actually being made or whether there is something unexpected happening during the AMIS transmission. You can use the StatusMonitor utility (located in C:\CommServer\TechTools) to observe call progress. See the "To use the StatusMonitor utility to watch details of an AMIS transmission" section.

If you have not determined why the messages are not being delivered, use the Cisco Unity Diagnostic Tool to set micro traces and send a test message. See the "To set and retrieve traces for AMIS messages" section. You may need to contact Cisco TAC to interpret the data in the traces.

Troubleshooting Problems with Inbound AMIS Messages

If you have just set up Cisco Unity and the other voice messaging system for AMIS, and messages are not being delivered, before proceeding, confirm that the other voice messaging system is supported by Cisco Unity for AMIS messaging. See the "AMIS Support" section of the Cisco Unity 3.1 System Requirements, and Supported Hardware and Software, available on Cisco.com at http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/voice/c_unity/sysreq/31_sysrq.htm.

Use the following steps to troubleshoot problems with messages that leave the UAmis mailbox but are not delivered to subscribers. Note that detailed procedures for troubleshooting inbound AMIS problems can be found in the "AMIS Troubleshooting Procedures" section.

To troubleshoot problems with Inbound AMIS messages

Check the Event log.

See the "AMIS Error Messages" section on page 7-11 for more information about each of the errors and a brief description of the action to take to resolve the problem.

Go to the Network > Delivery Options > Profile page of each of the AMIS delivery locations. Confirm that the Node ID entered on the page exactly matches the node ID that the remote voice messaging system transmits.

If you have not determined why the messages are not being delivered, use the Cisco Unity Diagnostic Tool to set micro traces and send a test message. See the "To set and retrieve traces for AMIS messages" section. You may need to contact Cisco TAC to interpret the trace data.

AMIS Troubleshooting Procedures

Use the following procedures as needed to troubleshoot problems with AMIS message delivery. For discussion of when to use the following procedures, and the correct order in which to perform the procedures, see the preceding topics:

Troubleshooting Problems with Outbound AMIS Messages

Troubleshooting Problems with Inbound AMIS Messages

To confirm that messages are being delivered to the UAmis mailbox


Step 1 In the Cisco Unity Administrator, change the AMIS restriction table to disallow all numbers. This causes all AMIS messages to be queued in the UAmis mailbox until the AMIS schedule becomes active.

For detailed instructions on changing the restriction table, see the "To change the AMIS restriction table to disallow all delivery numbers" section.

Step 2 Change the AMIS schedule so that it is inactive during the time that you are troubleshooting. This way, the messages (if they arrive) stay in the UAmis mailbox long enough for you to see them.

For detailed instructions on changing the schedule, see "To change the AMIS schedule so that it is inactive while troubleshooting" section.

Step 3 In Outlook, open the UAmis mailbox.

If necessary, follow the steps in the "To add the UAmis mailbox to a user profile" section.

Step 4 Send a test message to see if it gets delivered to the UAmis Inbox. If using blind addressing, be sure to verify that you are using a valid Dial ID number from a Delivery Location.

Step 5 After testing, be sure to reset the AMIS restriction table and schedule.


To change the AMIS restriction table to disallow all delivery numbers


Step 1 In the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to Network > AMIS Options > Delivery Options.

Step 2 Click the View button next to Local Dial Restriction Table to display the AMIS restriction table.

Step 3 On the AMIS restriction table page, click Add Dial String.

Step 4 In the Call Pattern box, enter *.

Step 5 In the Allow This String box, click No.

Step 6 Click the Save icon.


To change the AMIS schedule so that it is inactive while troubleshooting


Step 1 In the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to Network > AMIS Options > Schedule.

Step 2 Click the appropriate blocks so that the schedule is inactive while you are troubleshooting.

Step 3 Click the Save icon.


To add the UAmis mailbox to a user profile


Step 1 Start Outlook.

Step 2 On the Tools menu, click Services.

Step 3 On the Services tab, click Microsoft Exchange Server in The Following Information Services Are Set Up in This Profile box.

Step 4 Click Properties.

Step 5 On the Advanced tab, click Add.

Step 6 In the Add Mailbox box, enter UAmis.

Step 7 Click OK three times to dismiss the dialog boxes.


To confirm that the Voice Connector service is running


Step 1 Log on to the Exchange server on which the Voice Connector is installed.

Step 2 Open Windows Services (click Start > Programs > Administrative Tools > Services).

Step 3 Locate the Voice Connector service in the Name column. In Exchange 2000, the display name for the service is "Exchange 2000 Voice Connector," and in Exchange 5.5, the display name is "Internet Voice Connector."

Step 4 If the Status column indicates that the Voice Connector service is not running, right-click the service and click Start.


To view the Voice Connector MTS-OUT queue in Exchange 2000


Step 1 Log on to the Exchange server on which the Voice Connector is installed.

Step 2 Start Exchange System Manager (click Start > Programs > Microsoft Exchange > System Manager).

Step 3 Browse to Connectors\ Exchange 2000 Voice Connector\Queues.

Step 4 Click MTS-OUT.


To view the Voice Connector MTS out queue in Exchange 5.5


Step 1 Log on to the Exchange server on which the Voice Connector is installed.

Step 2 Start the Exchange Administrator (click Start > Programs > Microsoft Exchange > Exchange Administrator).

Step 3 Browse to Connectors\ Internet Voice Connector.

Step 4 Double-click Internet Voice Connector to display the properties.

Step 5 Click the Queues tab.

Step 6 Select MTS-OUT from the Queue Name list.


To enable the Voice Connector log file


Step 1 Log on to the Exchange server on which the Voice Connector is installed.

Step 2 Stop the Voice Connector service.

Step 3 Use Notepad (or any other text editor) to create an empty file with the file name gwivc.log, and save the file in the folder C:\WINNT\system32.

The Voice Connector logs information to this file.

Step 4 Start the Voice Connector service.

Step 5 Send a test message.


To view messages in the UAmis mailbox by using DohPropTest


Step 1 On the Cisco Unity server, browse to the location where Cisco Unity is installed (the default is C:\CommServer), and then browse to the TechTools folder.

Step 2 Run DohPropTest.exe.

Step 3 In the DohPropTest Logon dialog box, leave the Password box empty, and click OK.

Step 4 On the warning dialog box, click Ignore to start the read-only mode of DohPropTest.

Step 5 In the list on the left side of the window, click MailUsers.

Step 6 In the middle list, click the UAmis_<server name> mailbox.

Step 7 Click Get User's Mailbox, which displays a dialog box.

Step 8 Click OK. A dialog box with all the messages appears.

Step 9 Click a message. The message plays, and the message properties are displayed. Select a property to check the values. The following properties should be checked:

AVP_AMIS_Destination_NODE—The AMIS delivery location Dial ID.

AVP_AMIS_Recipient—The remote mailbox number of the recipient.

AVP_AMIS_SENDER_ADDRESS—The message sender.

AVP_SUBMIT_TIME—The time the message was submitted. Note that the timestamp is in GMT.


To set and retrieve traces for AMIS messages


Step 1 On the Windows Start menu, click Programs > Unity > Unity Diagnostic Tool.

Step 2 On the Cisco Unity Diagnostic Tasks screen, click Configure Micro Traces. The Configure Micro Traces Wizard displays.

Step 3 Click Next to select the traces to enable.

Step 4 Expand the CDE component, and enable traces 10, 14, and 18.

Step 5 Expand the Conv AMIS component, and enable trace 28.

Step 6 Expand the Exchange Monitor component, and enable trace 13.

Step 7 Expand the Notifier component, and enable traces 13, 19, 24, 26, and 28.

Step 8 Click Finish.

Step 9 On the Cisco Unity Diagnostic Tasks screen, click Start New Log Files.

Step 10 After the problem reoccurs, or sufficient time has passed to gather AMIS message data, click Process > AvCsMgr, and then click the Current log file to view it.

The selected log file is formatted and displayed in the right pane.

Step 11 To export or save a copy of the log file, click Action > Export List.

Step 12 Name the file and save it to a location of your choice in .txt or .csv format.

Step 13 Disable all diagnostic traces that were activated in Step 4, Step 5, Step 6, and
Step 7.

Step 14 If you need assistance in interpreting the diagnostic logs, or are unable to resolve an AMIS message problem, contact Cisco TAC.


To view AMIS subscriber extension addresses


Step 1 Open Active Directory Users and Computers (click Start > Programs > Administrative Tools > Active Directory Users and Computers).

Step 2 Open the properties page for an AMIS subscriber.

Step 3 Click the E-mail Addresses tab. You should see an address with the Type "amis" and an Address in the form <Location Dial ID>_<Remote Mailbox Number>.

Step 4 Confirm that this is the correct address.


To run the Extension Address utility


Step 1 On the Cisco Unity server, go to Start > Programs > Cisco Unity > Extension Address Utility.

Step 2 Click Update.

Step 3 When the utility has finished updating extension addresses, click Close.


To use the StatusMonitor utility to watch details of an AMIS transmission


Step 1 In the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to the System > Ports page, and change the settings as needed so that only port 1 is enabled for outbound AMIS calls. This makes it easier to observe the call progress information in the StatusMonitor.

Step 2 On the Cisco Unity server, browse to the location in which Cisco Unity is installed (the default is C:\CommServer), and then browse to the TechTools folder.

Step 3 Run StatusMonitor.exe.

Step 4 Click Display and Conversation in the Monitor Settings When Started section.

Step 5 In the Ports list, confirm that Port 1 is selected for monitoring. This port should match the port selected on the System > Ports page for outbound AMIS calls (see Step 1).

Step 6 Click Start Monitor.

Step 7 Use the phone to dial into Cisco Unity, and send a test message to someone on the remote voice messaging system.

Step 8 Observe the information in the StatusMonitor.

In the Display State pane in the StatusMonitor window, you should see the dial out information. In the Conversation State pane, you should see the states that the AMIS call goes through. An AMIS call has a finite number of states that happen during an AMIS transmission. As the AMIS call progresses, you should see descriptive names of each state appear in the Conversation State pane. For detailed information about the AMIS transmission states, refer to White Paper: AMIS Analog Networking Definitions, available on Cisco.com at http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/voice/c_unity/whitpapr/amis.htm.


Cisco Unity Stops Recording Before a Caller Has Finished Leaving a Message

There are several possible reasons that Cisco Unity may stop recording before a caller has finished leaving a message. In this section, possible causes are listed in order, from most likely to least likely to occur:

The Dialogic Quiet Parameter Is Incorrect

Cisco Unity, the Phone System, or the Central Office Disconnected the Call

The Dialogic Quiet Parameter Is Incorrect

A caller may report hearing a prompt and being prevented from completing a message, or a subscriber may report this problem after noticing that a recording ends before the caller finished leaving a message. This can happen when the quiet parameter is not set to recognize low voice volume. It also can happen when a changed quiet parameter is not retained after a Cisco Unity upgrade.

To change the Dialogic quiet parameter (systems equipped with Dialogic voice cards only)


Step 1 Shut down Cisco Unity and stop the Telephony service.

Step 2 On the Windows Start menu, click Programs > Dialogic System Software > Dialogic Configuration Manager-DCM.

Step 3 On the Service menu, click Stop Service. A second Dialogic Configuration Manager window appears.

Step 4 When the message "Success: Dialogic service stopped" appears, click Close.

Step 5 In the Service window, select a Dialogic card.

Step 6 In the DCM-Properties dialog box for the card, click Misc.

Step 7 Click ParameterFile.

Step 8 In the Edit section, enter quiet50.prm in the Value box, and click OK.

Step 9 Repeat Step 5 through Step 8 for additional Dialogic cards.

Step 10 On the Service menu, click Start Service. A second Dialogic Configuration Manager window appears.

Step 11 When the message "Success: Dialogic service started" appears, click Close.

Step 12 Restart Cisco Unity.


Cisco Unity, the Phone System, or the Central Office Disconnected the Call

If a caller reports being cut off while leaving a message and if the caller did not hear a prompt prior to the disconnect, Cisco Unity, the phone system, or the central office may have disconnected the call.

To determine why the call was disconnected


Step 1 On the Windows Start menu, click Programs > Administrative Tools > Event Viewer.

Step 2 On the Log menu, click System.

Step 3 In the System Event log, look for an error that occurred at the time of the reported disconnected call. Double-click the error and skip to Step 6.

If no errors appear for the date and time of the disconnected call, continue with Step 4.

Step 4 On the Log menu, click Application.

Step 5 In the Application Event log, look for an error that occurred at the time of the reported disconnected call. Double-click the error.

Step 6 In the Event Detail dialog box, review the contents of the Description box.

If you need assistance interpreting or resolving the error, or if no error appears in the Application Event log that matches the date and time of the reported disconnected call, contact Cisco TAC.


Dial Tone or Reorder Tone Is Present at the End of a Message

A possible cause may be that the switch disconnect tone and/or the CO disconnect tone are incorrect in the switch.ini file (in circuit-switched phone systems only).

To determine the correct switch disconnect and CO disconnect tone values


Step 1 Run the Learn Tones utility. See the "Learn Tones" section on page 9-7 for detailed instructions.

Step 2 If running the Learn Tones utility does not resolve the problem, contact Cisco TAC.


Subscribers Hear Messages at Inconsistent Sound Levels

A possible cause for subscribers hearing messages at inconsistent sound levels is that the automatic gain control (ACG) settings need adjustment.

Automatic gain control registry settings may need adjustment if, for example, a message left by a caller who is using a cellular phone is perceived as being too loud or too soft, while a message left by an internal caller is perceived as being at a normal sound level.

Cisco Unity automatic gain control is designed to give subscribers consistent message playback levels through the normalization of recordings. Cisco Unity automatic gain control is on by default, and is applied to voice samples after they have passed through all external hardware. Port, gateway, and external trunk configurations can produce inconsistent recording levels, and automatic gain control can be adjusted for individual ports if necessary. The audio codec chosen for message storage, legacy integration voice cards, and devices such as telephony cards and wave drivers, can also have an impact on message recording levels.

The following registry keys determine how Cisco Unity automatic gain control normalizes recordings. The entire device topology should be taken into consideration before automatic gain control settings are changed.

Key Name
Purpose
Recommended Setting

AGCtargetDB

Target root mean square (RMS) power to which all recordings are normalized. The setting is system- wide, with optional port-specific override available.

-12dB to -18dB

(0 disables AGC)

AGCsampleSize

Buffer sample size used to calculate the average RMS power level.

20k

(20k = approximately 1.5 seconds)

AGCuseCompression

Determines if a sample is clipped when a gain adjustment is applied. A value of 1 will not clip the sample; 0 clips the sample to the minimum/maximum values.

1

(0 = clipped sample; disables compression)

ACGgainThreshold

Maximum dB gain (+/-) applied to a sample to bring it to the target dB level.

40dB

This value should not be changed.


To adjust the Cisco Unity automatic gain control settings


Step 1 Start Regedit.


Caution Changing the wrong registry key or entering an incorrect value can cause the server to malfunction. Before you edit the registry, confirm that you know how to restore it if a problem occurs. (Refer to the "Restoring" topics in Registry Editor Help.) Note that a typical backup of the Cisco Unity server does not back up the registry. Also note that for a Cisco Unity failover system, registry changes on one Cisco Unity server must be made manually on the other Cisco Unity server, because registry changes are not replicated. If you have any questions about changing registry key settings, contact Cisco TAC.

Step 2 If you do not have a current backup of the registry, click Registry > Export Registry File, and save the registry settings to a file.

Step 3 Expand the key

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Active Voice\Miu\1.0.\Initialization\

Step 4 Modify the value of AGCtargetDB as needed within the recommended range.

Step 5 If inconsistent recording levels are found on a certain port or group of ports—due to gateways, external trunks, or other port-specific factors—AGC can be configured on a per-port basis. Add the following key as needed for each affected port:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Active Voice\Miu\1.0.\Initialization
\Port n\

where n is the port number to which the AGC setting will be applied.

Step 6 Add the new DWORD value AGCtargetDB for each port key created in Step 5 and set it to an appropriate value within the recommended range.

Step 7 Restart the Cisco Unity server.