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Q&A
PRODUCT OVERVIEW
Q. What does Cisco® Media Gateway Manager do in a Cisco network?
A. Cisco Media Gateway Manager provides comprehensive, carrier-class management capabilities, enabling network operators to efficiently manage their Cisco MGX® voice gateways in voice over IP (VoIP) applications. It is an element management system (EMS) for the Cisco MGX voice gateway-Cisco MGX 8880 media gateways and voice-enabled Cisco MGX 8850 multiservice switches. This includes support for the Cisco MGX Voice Switch Service Module (VXSM) and Voice Interworking Service Module (VISM-PR) voice services modules.
Q. What are the benefits of Cisco Media Gateway Manager?
A. Cisco Media Gateway Manager enables a network operator to lower the cost of operating the Cisco MGX voice gateway network, increase the availability and quality of the network (fail-safe operations), and increase service responsiveness by enabling top-to-bottom operations support system (OSS) automation. Cisco Media Gateway Manager increases network operations productivity. It helps reduce the total cost of ownership (TCO) by better controlling operational and systems costs, potentially resulting in increased profitability.
Q. What are the major enhancements offered by Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0?
A. Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 features include:
• An intuitive Java-based GUI that provides a native "look and feel" on Microsoft Windows and Sun Solaris client platforms
• User-defined domain explorer network views with "bubble-up" alarm severity propagation and the ability to isolate fault conditions and service-delivery impact
• Geographic network maps and explorer views that reflect the physical layout and configuration of the network
• Alarm browser and alarm log views that provide a listing of all current and historical alarms and events
• A desktop-resident dashboard that provides alarm status for the Cisco Media Gateway Manager user's entire span of control, with quick access to the domain explorer and the alarm browser
• Real-time network surveillance with configurable popup alarm and event notifications
• Real-time shelf views with full alarm and operational status indicators
• Automated configuration backup with manual restore capabilities, plus remote software download capability across the entire network domain
• GUI-based network element configuration
• Extensive performance-monitoring statistics collected for display or export
• Custom profiles that can be used to grant separate permissions for each Cisco Media Gateway Manager operation
• Comprehensive security management providing flexible user access
• A high-availability solution that provides automatic client reconnect on switchover, database and disk redundancy, and automatic reconnection to the network elements
• A northbound Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) gateway for fault and inventory management
• Northbound Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP)-based fault integration with Cisco Info Center
Refer to the Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 Product Bulletin for further details on new features.
Q. Does Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 support a high-availability configuration?
A. Yes. Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 can be installed on redundant servers in a failover configuration. The redundant servers may either be colocated or geographically separated. Information on Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 high-availability options can be found in the High Availability Installation Guide.
OPEN INTERFACES AND THIRD-PARTY INTEGRATION
Q. What type of management capability is supported by Cisco Media Gateway Manager's Gateway/CORBA northbound interfaces?
A. Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 supports fault and inventory via the CORBA interface for the Cisco MGX voice gateway, and supports fault from the Cisco Media Gateway Manager EMS itself. Support for flow-through provisioning is planned for the second half of CY'05. For coverage details, refer to the Cisco Media Gateway Manager GateWay/CORBA Release 5.0 User Guide and Programmer Manual.
Q. Is the GateWay/CORBA interface based on an industry standard?
A. Yes. GateWay/CORBA is based on and compliant with TMF 814 (version 2) as published by the TeleManagement Forum.
Q. Is the Cisco Media Gateway Manager database schema published?
A. No. However, the schema can be made available as required.
GENERAL INSTALLATIONS AND CONFIGURATION
Q. What server hardware does Cisco Media Gateway Manager require?
A. Cisco Media Gateway Manager software can be installed on industry-standard, off-the-shelf Sun and PC hardware platforms. Minimally, the Cisco Media Gateway Manager server and client components can be operated from a single Sun server. Network operators may configure and license additional Sun or WinTel PC workstations as Media Gateway Manager clients to provide access for local and remote users. Optionally, Cisco Media Gateway Manager can be licensed and deployed in a high-availability failover mode. High availability requires the purchase of an additional Sun server and specific third-party failover software.
Q. What specific server and client workstation hardware does Cisco Media Gateway Manager require? Are these the only supported platforms, or will Cisco Media Gateway Manager run on other hardware?
A. The Cisco Media Gateway Manager server can run on a Sun platform that supports Sun Solaris 8. Cisco Media Gateway Manager client software can be run from several models of Sun and WinTel PCs. Sample hardware configurations are provided in the Media Gateway Manager Installation Guide, and represent platforms used for performance benchmarking. These should be used to provide guidance to customers when estimating the performance that can be achieved from similar platform configurations.
Q. Does Cisco Media Gateway Manager provide support for other Cisco voice products, such as Cisco AS5000 Series gateways and Cisco softswitches including BTS 10200 or PGW 2200 devices.
A. No. Currently, Cisco Media Gateway Manager is the EMS for Cisco MGX 8800 Series voice gateway products only.
Q. Can Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 support a network with mixed releases of the same network element?
A. No. Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 provides element management for Cisco MGX 8880 media gateways and voice-enabled Cisco MGX 8850 multiservice switches, based on the Cisco MGX 8800 Series PXM-45 Processor Switch Module. Table 1 provides the Cisco MGX 8880 Media Gateway and Cisco MGX 8850 Software dependencies with respect to the associated voice service modules. As future versions of Media Gateway Manager are developed, backward support will be provided for these device versions for some time.
Table 1. Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 Product Compatibility
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Cisco Processor Switch Module (PXM-45) |
Cisco Voice Service Module (VXSM/VISM-PR) |
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Version 5.0.20
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VXSM Version 5.0.20 (Release 1.5)
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Version 5.0.20
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VISM-PR Release 3.3.00
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HIGH-AVAILABILTY INSTALLATIONS AND CONFIGURATION
Q. Does Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 support high-availability configurations that support automatic failover of servers and clients?
A. Yes. Cisco Media Gateway Manager can be licensed to be deployed on redundant Sun servers that synchronize operations and provide system failover protection. The two servers hosting Media Gateway Manager in a high-availability configuration can be locally or remotely connected. The Media Gateway Manager software needed for high-availability installations is included in the standard Media Gateway Manager media kit, although a separate remote test unit (RTU) needs to be purchased to activate use. Each high-availability server must have VERITAS loaded; this enables the server's operations to be synchronized. In a high-availability deployment, the secondary server assumes the load of the primary server in the event of primary server failure. During normal operation, in order for the primary server to hand off management control to the second Media Gateway Manager server, several user-defined failure criteria parameters must be met that determine the primary server has failed. Once the high-availability agent has detected a failure, the primary system is shut down in an orderly sequence (assuming no system failures-CPU or motherboard, for example) and the secondary server activates all appropriate daemons, launches Oracle, activates the virtual IP, and restarts Cisco Media Gateway Manager.
Q. What is the impact on the network when the primary Media Gateway Manager server fails and the failover server takes control?
A. Any alarms sent to the primary server when the systems are switching to the secondary server will be lost until Media Gateway Manager resynchronizes with the network element and gets an updated alarm status. Once the secondary Media Gateway Manager server has assumed the virtual IP address, it can synchronize either manually or automatically to every network element to obtain the latest alarm status.
Q. Will the secondary server toggle back to the primary server if the high-availability agent detects a failure in the secondary server?
A. No. This requires a platform manager intervention, which helps ensure that the systems aren't toggling back and forth until someone investigates what caused the initial failover situation.
Q. Why is VERITAS software required in high-availability deployments of Media Gateway Manager?
A. Cisco Media Gateway Manager uses the virtualized operating environment created between the primary and failover Media Gateway Manager servers by the VERITAS software run on both. VERITAS software is not included with Media Gateway Manager. VERITAS is a market leader in providing storage virtualization, high-availability, recovery, and backup solutions. The solutions are especially beneficial for customers with heterogeneous storage environments, because VERITAS solutions run across numerous hardware components and operating systems. For more information, visit the VERITAS Website.
AVAILABILITY AND ORDERING
Q. How can Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 be ordered?
A. Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 is orderable through standard Cisco ordering systems and authorized resellers. The product is shipped on CDs and is not available for customer download.
Q. Where can I obtain the Media Gateway Manager high-availability agent software and its RTU license?
A. The software is included on the installation CD with Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0. To obtain the RTU for the high-availability option, use part numbers CTM-5.0-HA and CTM-5.0-HA-UPG. High-availability documentation is included on the Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 Media Kit CD-ROM, and is available for download from Cisco.com.
Q. How is Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 licensed?
A. Cisco Media Gateway Manager is sold as a software media kit with separate add-on client, device, and option licenses (Table 2). No license key registration is currently required for Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0.
Table 2. Ordering Information for Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0
Q. Can Cisco Media Gateway Manager licenses used with earlier versions of Cisco Media Gateway Manager, including 3.0, be used with Media Gateway Manager 5.0?
A. No. In Cisco Media Gateway Manager 3.0, RTU licenses were placed on individual cards (VISM-PR, for example). Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 licensing is based on the number and type of chassis, regardless of the number of cards.
Q. What are customers' options for licenses with Oracle?
A. Customers can elect to pay Oracle based on the number of CPUs installed in their systems; they also have the option to pay by named users. The Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0 Installation Guide provides detailed information on the number of named users required. Full Oracle licensing is required for the primary Sun server, and no additional Oracle licenses are required for the secondary Sun server. An Oracle sales representative can offer the best advice on exact licensing fees, based on the customer's hardware configuration.
Q. Does a customer require extra Oracle named users in a high-availability environment?
A. There are no extra named users or licenses needed to operate in a high-availability configuration.
Q. How does a customer order supporting Media Gateway Manager products that are not manufactured by Cisco?
A. Products from Oracle, VERITAS Software, or Sun Microsystems, as well as disk arrays, hubs, cabling, and cabinets, must be ordered directly from each vendor representative.
Q. How are the GateWay/CORBA northbound interfaces and the high-availability agents sold?
A. The Cisco Media Gateway Manager Media Kit contains the basic fault, configuration, performance, and administrative element management features and two optional add-on applications. The CORBA northbound interface and the high-availability agent add-on applications are purchased separately, when required, to meet customer requirements.
PRODUCT SUPPORT
Q. Is a service contract available for Cisco Media Gateway Manager 5.0?
A. Yes. Customers must purchase a Cisco Software Application Support (SAS) contract to receive access to technical assistance through Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) or Cisco.com. Customers with active SAS contracts on Media Gateway Manager 5.0 will be entitled to minor and patch releases (5.x and 5.x.x, for example). Major new releases of Cisco Media Gateway Manager software will require the purchase of a new Media Gateway Manager base software kit.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
For more information about Cisco Media Gateway Manager, visit the Media Gateway Manager product page or contact your local account representative.
