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Cisco Conference Connection Administration Guide (1.2)
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Preface
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Planning for Cisco Conference Connection
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Installing Cisco Conference Connection
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Configuring Cisco CallManager for Cisco Conference Connection
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Configuring the CRA Engine for Cisco Conference Connection
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Managing Cisco Conference Connection
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Managing Conferences
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Troubleshooting Cisco Conference Connection
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Table of Contents
Troubleshooting Cisco Conference ConnectionTroubleshooting Installation Problems
The Cisco Conference Connection Web Interface Does Not Work Correctly
Monitoring and Troubleshooting the CRA Engine
Setting Up and Viewing CRA Engine Trace Files
Fixing JTAPI Subsystem Out-of-Service Status
Resolving Problems Configuring the Directory
Viewing Windows Event Messages
Troubleshooting Problems in Joining Conferences
Caller Hears Welcome Prompt But Then Hears Nothing, Gets Busy Tone, or Is Disconnected
Caller Gets "System Problem" Message
Caller Is Not Asked To Enter Password
Caller Successfully Joins Conference But Is Then Dropped
Fixing Audio Echo Problems
Fixing Audio Clipping, Robotic Voice, and Silence Problems
User Cannot Add a Conference
User Cannot Find a Conference
User Cannot Extend or Delete an In-Progress Conference
Conferences Do Not Appear on the Cisco IP Phone
User Must Enter Logon Password When Using IP Phone Service
User Gets "Service Not Appropriately Configured" Message When Using IP Phone Service
Troubleshooting Cisco Conference Connection
These topics help you identify and resolve problems you might have when using Cisco Conference Connection:
- Troubleshooting Installation Problems
- Resolving Server Startup Problems
- Monitoring and Troubleshooting the CRA Engine
- Integrating with Network Management Systems
- Troubleshooting Problems in Joining Conferences
- Troubleshooting Conference Call Audio Problems
- Troubleshooting Web or IP Phone Service Problems
Troubleshooting Installation Problems
These topics help you identify and troubleshoot problems that arise while installing Cisco Conference Connection or when trying to initially configure the system:
Error Messages During Installation
Table 7-1 lists some likely errors you might encounter while installing Cisco Conference Connection. In general, look at the c:\ciscoInstall.log file for any problems related to installation.
Table 7-1 Cisco Conference Connection Installation Error Messages
| Error Message | Description/Solution |
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Verify that Microsoft Data Engine (MSDE) is installed correctly on the Cisco Conference Connection server machine by selecting Start>Programs>MSDE. If you do not find the MSDE folder, then MSDE was not installed correctly. This might happen if you installed the software using Terminal Services (do not use Terminal Services to install the product). Reinstall Cisco Conference Connection as described in the "Upgrading or Reinstalling Cisco Conference Connection" section. |
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"Serviceability installation failed" or "Installation of Compaq drivers and agent failed..." |
Check the c:\ciscoInstall.log file for errors related to the serviceability installation. Reinstall Cisco Conference Connection as described in the "Upgrading or Reinstalling Cisco Conference Connection" section. |
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You may have to create the virtual directory yourself. Try to log on to the Cisco Conference Connection Web interface. If you can log on successfully, then ignore this message. Otherwise, create the virtual directory yourself as described in the "The Cisco Conference Connection Web Interface Does Not Work Correctly" section. |
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Follow the procedure described in the "Changes Required When Changing Directory Support" section. You do not need to redo the CRA Engine configuration as mentioned in this procedure. |
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"You do not have administrator privileges on this machine..." |
You must log into Windows with administrative privileges to install the software. Log out and log in with an account that has administrative privileges. |
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Check to see if Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) are installed on the Cisco Conference Connection server. If it is not installed, reinstall Cisco Conference Connection as described in the "Upgrading or Reinstalling Cisco Conference Connection" section. |
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You tried to upgrade or reinstall the software without first uninstalling it. Follow the procedure described in the "Upgrading or Reinstalling Cisco Conference Connection" section. |
The Cisco Conference Connection Web Interface Does Not Work Correctly
If you get a message during installation that a virtual directory could not be created, and when you try to use the Cisco Conference Connection web interface it does not work correctly (for example, graphics are missing), it is likely that the Scripts (and possibly the DC-MeetingServer) virtual directory did not get installed and that you need to create the virtual directory yourself. Instead of creating the directory yourself, you can first try reinstalling the software. If that does not work, use this procedure to create the Scripts virtual directory.
If you need to create the DC-MeetingServer directory, the procedure is similar: use DC-MeetingServer instead of Scripts when indicated in the procedure.
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Note If the web page does not appear at all, verify that you have started Cisco Conference Connection. If it is started, you need to reinstall the software. |
Procedure
Step 1 Select Start>Programs>Administrative Tools>Internet Services Manager.
Internet Information Services opens.
Step 2 Select the Cisco Conference Connection server in the left pane.
Internet Information Services displays the server information in the right pane. The information is also available in the left pane if you open the server's folder.
Step 3 Double-click Default Web Site in the right pane.
Internet Information Services displays the virtual directories of the Cisco Conference Connection web site.
Step 4 Check to see if the Scripts virtual directory appears in the list. If it does not appear, create it:
Internet Information Services starts the Virtual Directory Creation wizard.
c. On the Virtual Directory Alias window, enter Scripts and click Next.
d. On the Web Site Content Directory window, click Browse and locate the c:\Inetpub\Scripts folder. Click OK to select the folder, and then Next to move to the next window.
e. On the Access Permissions window, clear all check boxes so that nothing is selected. Click Next.
f. Click Finish to close the wizard.
g. Right-click the Scripts directory in the right pane and select Properties.
h. On the Properties window, select the Virtual Directory tab and then select Scripts and Executables in the Execute Permissions field.
Resolving Server Startup Problems
These topics describe some problems you might encounter when starting or rebooting the Cisco Conference Connection server:
- Services Fail To Start
- Subsystems Fail to Start
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Note If you change the IP address or machine name of the Cisco Conference Connection server, the server might not start or function correctly. Reinstall the software as described in the "Upgrading or Reinstalling Cisco Conference Connection" section. |
Services Fail To Start
Several services must start for Cisco Conference Connection to work properly. These services include:
If some services fail to start when you start the Cisco Conference Connection server:
1. Select Start>Programs>Administrative Tools>Services to open the Services control panel.
2. Double-click the Cisco Application Engine service to open the properties window, and select the Log On tab. The account used to log on must have administrative privileges on the server. If the password contains spaces, change it here.
Subsystems Fail to Start
If the CRA Engine subsystems fail to start even if the engine is shown as running, reboot the Cisco Conference Connection server. This will resolve the problem in most cases. See the "Monitoring CRA Engine Subsystem Status" section for information on how to monitor CRA Engine status.
If restarting the server does not resolve the problem:
- JTAPI subsystem—See the "Fixing JTAPI Subsystem Out-of-Service Status" section.
- Database subsystem—Check these things:
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- MSDE installation—Ensure that Start>Programs>MDSE exists. This indicates that MSDE was installed. If MDSE does not appear on the Programs menu, reinstall the software.
- ODBC source creation—Ensure that Start>Programs>Administrative Tools>Data Sources (ODBC)>System DSN>DCMS exists. This indicates that the ODBC source was created.
If the DCMS data source does not appear, log into the Cisco Conference Connection web interface and schedule a conference. Then, recheck the Start menu path. If DCMS still does not appear, reinstall the software.
Monitoring and Troubleshooting the CRA Engine
These topics describe how to monitor the CRA Engine and troubleshoot problems you might encounter with the CRA Engine status and configuration.
Monitoring CRA Engine Subsystem Status
The CRA Engine's subsystems must be in service for Cisco Conference Connection to work properly. You can monitor the status of the Engine and its subsystem's through the CRA Application Administration interface.
Procedure
Step 1 In Cisco CRA Application Administration, at the Application Administration Main Menu, click Engine in the Options column.
Cisco CRA Application Administration opens the Engine page. This page shows the status of the CRA Engine and its subsystems.
Step 2 Determine the system status:
- If the Engine status is "running" and all subsystems are "IN_SERVICE," then the CRA Engine and its subsystems should be running properly. If you are having problems with the Cisco Conference Connection server and everything looks right on this page, try rebooting the server.
- If the Engine status is not running, or one or more subsystem is "OUT_OF_SERVICE," restart the CRA Engine by clicking Start Engine. You might have to click Stop Engine before you can restart it.
If the JTAPI subsystem remains out of service even after you restart the engine or reboot the server, you probably need to upgrade the JTAPI client to the most recent version. See the "Fixing JTAPI Subsystem Out-of-Service Status" section for more detailed information.
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Tip |
- To start Cisco CRA Application Administration, open http://servername/AppAdmin in your web browser, where servername is the DNS name or IP address of the application server. Click Help for detailed information on using the interface.
Setting Up and Viewing CRA Engine Trace Files
The CRA Engine includes trace file facilities to help you and Cisco Technical Support track down persistent problems. Because tracing reduces the performance of the server, only turn on tracing when trying to troubleshoot. Do not leave tracing on under normal conditions.
Procedure
Step 1 In Cisco CRA Application Administration, at the Application Administration Main Menu, click Engine in the Options column.
Cisco CRA Application Administration opens the Engine page.
Step 2 Click Trace Configuration.
Cisco CRA Application Administration opens the Trace Configuration page.
Step 3 Select Trace File Output to enable tracing, and fill in the required information. Click Help and read the online help for detailed information about these settings and the trace level options you can select. Select the options by selecting the option's check box in the Debugging column.
Step 4 To view the trace files, click Trace Files.
Cisco CRA Application Administration opens the Trace Files page. This page lists all the trace files that have been created. To view a file, click the file name in the list.
Table 7-2 explains some of the messages you might see.
Table 7-2 Cisco Conference Connection CRA Engine Trace Messages
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- To start Cisco CRA Application Administration, open http://servername/AppAdmin in your web browser, where servername is the DNS name or IP address of the application server. Click Help for detailed information on using the interface.
Fixing JTAPI Subsystem Out-of-Service Status
If the CRA Engine's JTAPI subsystem is out of service, and restarting the CRA Engine (as described in the "Monitoring CRA Engine Subsystem Status" section) does not resolve the problem, you might need to upgrade the JTAPI client.
Before upgrading the client, first check to ensure that these things are correct. If they are not correct, fix them and recheck the JTAPI subsystem on the Cisco Conference Connection server.
If you have configured two JTAPI providers in the CRA Engine configuration, the first one listed must be up and running for the JTAPI subsystem to start correctly. If the first one listed is not operational, try switching them (or fix the problem with the first one).
- The IP address configured for the CRA Engine is the same address used on the server. To check the CRA Engine's IP address
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- In Cisco CRA Application Administration, at the Application Administration Main Menu, click Engine in the Options column.
- Then, click Configure. If the IP address does not match the server's IP address, correct it and click Update. See the online help for more information about the Configuration page.
If none of these is the cause of the JTAPI subsystem problem, upgrade the JTAPI client on the Cisco Conference Connection server using this procedure:
Procedure
Step 1 In Cisco CRA Application Administration, at the Application Administration Main Menu, click the Engine link in the Options column.
Cisco CRA Application Administration opens the Engine page.
Step 2 Click Stop Engine.
Cisco CRA Application Administration stops the CRA Engine.
Step 3 Open the browser on the Cisco Conference Connection server and log into the Cisco CallManager administration interface.
Step 4 Select Application>Install Plugins.
Cisco CallManager opens the Install Plugins page.
Step 5 Click Cisco JTAPI in the list of plugins.
The browser opens a file download window and asks whether you want to run the program from the current location or download it.
Step 6 Select Run this program from the current location and click OK.
The JTAPI client installation program starts.
Step 7 Follow the on-screen instructions for installing the client. Reboot the Cisco Conference Connection server when the installation is complete.
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Tip |
- To start Cisco CRA Application Administration, open http://servername/AppAdmin in your web browser, where servername is the DNS name or IP address of the application server. Click Help for detailed information on using the interface.
- To start Cisco CallManager, open http://servername/ccmAdmin in your web browser, where servername is the DNS name or IP address of the system running Cisco CallManager.
- If you are using a version of Cisco CallManager other than 3.2, the steps for installing the plug-in might be slightly different. See the Cisco CallManager online help for more specific information.
Resolving Problems Configuring the Directory
If you encounter problems trying to configure the Cisco CallManager directory in Cisco CRA Application Administration (as described in the "Logging In and Configuring Directory Information" section), it is likely that the directory server is unavailable.
Try pinging the directory server from the Cisco Conference Connection server to see if there is a network path between the servers. Check the directory server to ensure it is up and running correctly.
Also, check to ensure you have the correct password in the directory configuration.
Viewing Windows Event Messages
You can view Cisco Conference Connection messages in the Windows Event Viewer to help diagnose problems with the system. See the Microsoft online help for information on using the Event Viewer administration tool.
To open the Event Viewer, select Start>Programs>Administrative Tools>Event Viewer. Select the application log to view Cisco Conference Connection messages. Cisco Conference Connection messages are from the DCMS source.
Some of the key messages to review are listed in Table 7-3.
Table 7-3 Cisco Conference Connection Event Viewer Application Log Messages
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Tip |
- You might want to change the properties of the application log to ensure the log is large enough and that it does not stop collecting information once it is full. Cisco recommends you specify 10MB for the application log size, and that you select Overwrite events as needed for when the log is filled.
Integrating with Network Management Systems
You can manage the status of the Cisco Conference Connection 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 Cisco Conference Connection. For more information about CiscoWorks2000, Campus Manager, and Topology Services, refer to the documentation, available at the following URL:
http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/rtrmgmt/cw2000/index.htm
These topics provide information to assist you in integrating Cisco Conference Connection with network management systems:
Understanding CDP Support
Cisco Conference Connection 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 Conference Connection server by listening to these periodic messages.
Using information provided through CDP, the CiscoWorks2000 Server can detect the Cisco Conference Connection server, and the Campus Manager application, Topology Services, can build topology maps displaying the Cisco Conference Connection server.
Monitoring Cisco Conference Connection Subsystem Status
Cisco Conference Connection supports the SYSAPPL-MIB that allows you to use CiscoWorks2000 or a third-party SNMP browser to remotely access information about the following Cisco Conference Connection components:
The SYSAPPL-MIB uses the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP). Cisco Conference Connection supports the following SYSAPPL-MIB tables:
- sysApplInstallPkgEntry Table—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).
- sysApplRunEntry Table—describes the application starting time and run-time status.
- sysApplInstallElmtEntryTable—describes the individual application elements, or associated executables, which comprise the applications defined in the sysApplInstallPkgEntry Table.
Troubleshooting Problems in Joining Conferences
These topics help you identify and troubleshoot problems that arise while users try to join conferences or while they are on a conference call:
Caller Does Not Hear Welcome Prompt
Callers calling the conference call number should hear a welcome prompt. If callers do not hear the prompt, but instead report that they get an error tone, busy tone, or are disconnected when they call the Cisco Conference Connection access number:
- First check to be sure that the number being dialed is correct (the CTI route point number; see the "Creating the Conference Call CTI Route Point" section).
- Next check that the CRA Engine is operating properly. The Engine status should be "running," and all subsystems should be in service. The "Monitoring CRA Engine Subsystem Status" section explains how to check the CRA Engine and subsystem status.
Try stopping the engine (click Stop Engine), then restarting it (click Start Engine).
Stopping and restarting the Engine does not affect any callers currently in conferences. However, it does prevent new callers from joining conferences until the engine restarts.
The "Configuring the Conference Director IVR Application" section explains how to configure the conference.aef script.
Caller Hears Welcome Prompt But Then Hears Nothing, Gets Busy Tone, or Is Disconnected
If callers calling the conference call number hear a welcome prompt and successfully request to join a conference, but report that they subsequently hear nothing, get an error tone, busy tone, or are disconnected:
- Busy Tone or Hear Nothing—The conference is already full (for example, if six participants is the scheduled limit, and six participants are currently present, then no more participants can join the conference). Cisco Conference Connection plays a busy tone when an attempt is made to join a valid, but full, conference.
If the caller has dialed in through an H.323 gateway, the busy signal might not be transmitted to the caller, so the caller will hear nothing. There is no way to resolve this problem.
- Disconnection—There are several possible causes for this. The most common are:
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- The conference call is already full, but the caller has connected through a gateway that is not properly configured to generate the appropriate tone. In this case the gateway might disconnect the caller. Consult your gateway configuration documentation to determine how to configure the gateway so that it does not disconnect callers in these cases (it varies according to gateway type).
- The conference has just reached its end time and is being stopped.
- The administrator has modified or reset the Cisco Conference Connection server. This includes modifications to the route pattern or H.323 gateway configuration in Cisco CallManager that the server uses.
- The GWPrefix on the Application Parameters Configuration screen is incorrect. If an incorrect GWPrefix is given, the call will be incorrectly routed and may result in disconnection (or error tone). See the "Configuring the Conference Director IVR Application" section for information on configuring the script.
- The route pattern is not configured correctly. See the "Creating the Route Pattern" section.
- The gateway through which the caller is connected to the conference was reset. Resetting a gateway drops all calls that are connected through the gateway.
- The conference owner or administrator manually stopped the conference.
Caller Gets "System Problem" Message
If you configure a default conference password (as described in the "Configuring the Conference Director IVR Application" section) callers must enter a password to join a conference. If the Cisco Conference Connection database is not working properly, or it is misconfigured, callers get this response based on the type of password the conference uses:
- Default password—If the conference is protected by the default password, Conference Director does not allow the caller to join the conference. Instead, the caller hears "We have encountered a system problem. Please contact your system administrator for help" and is disconnected.
- Owner-supplied password—If the conference is protected by an owner-supplied password and the default password is "null," Conference Director allows the caller to join the conference. If the default password is not "null," the caller hears the System Problem message mentioned above and is disconnected.
Callers also get this message if you entered an invalid default password (for example, one that is too short or too long, or one that contains non-numeric characters). If users get this message, ensure that:
Caller Is Not Asked To Enter Password
If you configure the default password as "null," callers are only asked to enter a password if the conference owner defined a password for the conference. If callers are not asked to enter a password for password-protected conferences, it means there is a problem with the database. Ensure the database subsystem is in service, and that it is configured correctly.
Caller Successfully Joins Conference But Is Then Dropped
If a caller makes it into the conference but then is dropped from the conference, these might be the possible causes:
- The conference may have been stopped by the conference owner or the administrator.
- The conference reached its end time and there were insufficient resources to automatically extend it. Cisco Conference Connection warns participants if a conference cannot be extended, and announces the end of the conference.
- The H.323 Gateway for Cisco Conference Connection might have been reset.
Troubleshooting Conference Call Audio Problems
These topics help you resolve conference call audio problems:
Fixing Announcements, Entry or Exit Tone Problems
If the Conference Director's announcements, or conference entry or exit tones, are not working, check that the .wav files are present in the c:\Program Files\Cisco\ConferenceConnection\Prompts folder.
If they are there, check to see if they have the proper format, which must be 8- or 16-bit mono 8000 kHz, PCM.
If either of these are the problem, try reinstalling the software as described in the "Upgrading or Reinstalling Cisco Conference Connection" section.
Fixing Audio Echo Problems
If conference attendees hear echoing on a conference call, first determine if all participants hear an echo. If one participant is not hearing an echo, the chances are very good that the echo is coming from the participant who does not hear the echo.
One way to help eliminate various participants as the source of the echo is to ask them to mute their phones one by one, or to momentarily drop out of the conference one by one.
There are two main sources of echo:
- Acoustic echo—This kind of echo may be induced by the use of a speakerphone, where some of the audio from the speaker is fed back into the microphone. This is especially true when certain devices are used in conference halls, or when PC speakers are facing a participant who is talking into a microphone. Other common causes of acoustic echo are:
To reduce acoustic echo, determine if any participant is using a speakerphone and request that they use a handset or headset.
- Network echo—This is caused by impedance mismatch problems between physical network components, such as between analog phones and their network connection, or between an analog trunk and the central office (CO) connection. This problem is generally caused by improper gateway configuration and thus is most prominent when external callers are involved in the conference. For gateways running Cisco IOS software, the most important parameter to adjust is the echo-cancel command.
To reduce the network echo, determine if any participant is calling from the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), or is using a cellular phone. PSTN gateways include some form of echo cancellation; this may be set to a value that cannot handle the echo produced by some networks. Since it is not feasible to recommend a particular value for the echo cancellation parameter, check the gateway documentation to see how to vary echo cancellation, then try to experiment with different values.
If you need to contact the Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) for help in resolving an audio quality problem, a sniffer program trace would be very helpful.
- Install the sniffer program on a separate machine, then connect this machine to a hub connected to the Cisco Conference Connection server. Read the sniffer program instructions on how to capture traces. Two common tools used are Netmon (Microsoft, ships with Windows 2000 Server) and Sniffer PRO (Network Associates).
- Try to run the sniffer at the endpoint where the poor audio is received. However, if this not possible, then trace the Cisco Conference Connection server input and output streams, and send them to the Technical Assistance Center (TAC), if necessary.
Fixing Audio Clipping, Robotic Voice, and Silence Problems
During a conference, if participants hear jittery voices, which might sound like the speaker is underwater or robotic, or if voices are clipped, there might be a bandwidth problem on the network. This problem is most often observed when participants join a conference through gateways and in a highly routed or switched environment.
Cisco recommends this setup to avoid this type of audio problem:
1. Connect the Cisco Conference Connection server directly to a switch port.
2. Configure the switch port to run at 100Mbps Full Duplex (do not set it for automatic detection).
3. Configure the Network Interface Card (NIC) on the Cisco Conference Connection server to run at 100Mbps Full Duplex mode:
a. Select Start>Settings>Control Panel>Network and Dial-Up Connections.
b. Right-click the network connection the server is using and select Properties.
c. Select the General tab on the Properties window and click Configure to configure the NIC.
d. In the NIC's Properties window, select the Advanced tab, and then select the setting for link speed and duplex mode. Set this parameter to 100Mbps and Full Duplex mode (these might be two parameters instead of one). Click OK when finished.
If you try to run Cisco Conference Connection on a 10Mbps link, Cisco estimates that 60 participants will use all of the available bandwidth. Any other traffic on the network will adversely effect voice quality.
If the network speed is not the problem, and you are mainly getting short intervals of silence, or clicks and pops, check to see if the problem occurred during a call with a gateway. Voice Activity Detection (VAD) on the gateways, or intelligent routers, can cause short periods of silence, if the volume of the audio stream is determined to be low. Try to lower the VAD, or remove it completely, and then check to see if the problem persists.
If none of the above procedures has any positive effect on the voice quality, then Cisco recommends that you install a network sniffer program as described in the "Fixing Audio Echo Problems" section.
Troubleshooting Web or IP Phone Service Problems
These topics describe some problems users might encounter when using the Cisco Conference Connection web interface or the IP Phone Service:
- User Cannot Access or Log Into the Cisco Conference Connection Web Interface
- User Cannot Add a Conference
- User Cannot Find a Conference
- User Cannot Extend or Delete an In-Progress Conference
- Conferences Do Not Appear on the Cisco IP Phone
- User Must Enter Logon Password When Using IP Phone Service
- User Gets "Service Not Appropriately Configured" Message When Using IP Phone Service
User Cannot Access or Log Into the Cisco Conference Connection Web Interface
If a user cannot access or log into the Cisco Conference Connection web interface:
- Check the URL the user is using for the Cisco Conference Connection web interface.
- Make sure the user is using the Cisco CallManager user ID and password.
- Make sure the directory server is functioning correctly and that there is a network path between Cisco Conference Connection and the directory. Cisco Conference Connection looks up the user ID and password in the Cisco CallManager directory to validate login attempts. If the directory is unavailable, no one can log into Cisco Conference Connection.
- If the user is getting a "Cannot find server" or "DNS error" message, either the URL is incorrect or the server is not available. Check to ensure that the Cisco Conference Connection server is running properly.
- Ensure that DNS is working properly and names can be resolved by the Cisco Conference Connection server.
- Ensure that the Cisco CallManager directory server is available. Check the c:\dcdsrvr\logs event log for errors.
User Cannot Add a Conference
If a user is having problems adding a conference, check for these problems:
- Check these common errors first. Cisco Conference Connection tells the user if these problems arise, but the user might overlook the message or not understand it completely.
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- The conference end date or time precedes the conference start time (if the user is creating a recurring conference).
- The conference name is missing or duplicates an existing name. The conference name must be unique.
- The conference start or end date is invalid (for example, February 30)
- There are insufficient resources available during the requested time to create the conference (for example, there are insufficient ports available).
- If it is not one of the common problems, check the Cisco Conference Connection web interface to ensure that the Add a Conference link appears in the left-hand column. If the interface says that the link is not available, stop and then restart the server. See the "Starting and Stopping Cisco Conference Connection" section.
User Cannot Find a Conference
If a user cannot find a conference in the Cisco Conference Connection web interface:
- Try to search for the conference as described in the "Searching for Conferences" section. If you can find the conference, check to see if it is hidden. (A conference that is not defined as hidden might also be hidden if you have configured the system to automatically hide password-protected conferences.) If the conference is hidden, and the user is not the conference owner, then the user can only see the conference by searching for it using the exact conference name or conference ID.
You will need to search in the Conferences In Progress, Scheduled Conferences, and Past Conferences pages separately, so ask the user whether this is a currently running, future, or past conference. The user might be looking for the conference in the wrong list.
User Cannot Extend or Delete an In-Progress Conference
If a user is having problems extending or deleting an in-progress conference, consider these facts:
- When extending a conference, the user must extend it in increments of 5 minutes (for example, 5, 10, 15, 20, and so forth).
- A conference can only be extended if there are sufficient resources available on the Cisco Conference Connection server to continue hosting the conference. Note that if there are available resources, Cisco Conference Connection automatically extends the conference, so the user does not need to manually extend it.
- You cannot delete an active conference. First, you must stop the conference (as described in the "Stopping a Conference" section), then you can delete it.
Conferences Do Not Appear on the Cisco IP Phone
If a user has a Cisco IP Phone that supports IP Phone Services, and you have created the service on the Cisco CallManager server, then users can subscribe to the service. Using the service, they can directly connect to conferences without going through the Conference Director application (that is, they do not have to enter conference IDs, although they do have to enter passwords).
If users cannot see a conference on the phone, first ensure that their phone supports services, that they have subscribed to the service as described in the "Subscribing to the Cisco Conference Connection IP Phone Service" section, and that the phone is associated to their user ID in Cisco CallManager.
If the service is set up correctly, find out which conference they cannot find, and check the conference information in the web interface. Hidden conferences only appear for conference owners and administrators. If a conference is hidden, and the person is not the conference owner, the conference will not appear on the phone.
User Must Enter Logon Password When Using IP Phone Service
When users use the Cisco Conference Connection IP Phone Service, they should immediately see a list of in-progress conferences without having to log into Cisco Conference Connection. If they are asked to enter their passwords, one of these problems might exist:
- The user did not enter the correct user name and password when subscribing to the service as described in the "Subscribing to the Cisco Conference Connection IP Phone Service" section. Perhaps the user changed the password after subscribing to the service. Tell the user to resubscribe to the service using the correct Cisco CallManager user name and password.
- You did not create the IP Phone Service using the correct parameters, as described in "Creating the Cisco Conference Connection IP Phone Service" section. This is probably the problem if every user must enter their passwords. Recreate the service using the correct parameter names, including capitalization.
- The phone is not associated with the person's user ID in Cisco CallManager.
User Gets "Service Not Appropriately Configured" Message When Using IP Phone Service
If users get the "Service not appropriately configured" message when trying to connect to a conference using the IP Phone Service, it means that the URL you entered when configuring the service contains an empty gateway prefix. Reconfigure the service as described in the "Creating the Cisco Conference Connection IP Phone Service" section.