Dial Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 15.5M&T

Components of Incoming and Outgoing Call Management

Cisco RPM manages both incoming calls and outgoing sessions. Cisco RPM differentiates dial customers through configured customer profiles based on the DNIS and call type determined at the time of an incoming call.

The components of incoming call management in the Cisco RPM are described in the following sections:

• Customer Profile Types
• DNIS Groups
• Call Types
• Resource Groups
• Resource Services

You can use Cisco RPM to answer all calls and differentiate customers by using VPDN profiles and groups. The components of outgoing session management in the Cisco RPM are described in the following sections:

• VPDN Groups
• VPDN Profiles

Note These components of Cisco RPM are enabled after the NAS and other equipment has been initially set up, configured, and verified for proper operation of the dial, PPP, VPDN, and authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) segments. Refer to the Cisco IOS documentation for these other segments for installation, configuration, and troubleshooting information before attempting to use RPM.

Configured DNIS groups and resource data can be associated to customer profiles. These customer profiles are selected by the incoming call DNIS number and call type and then used to identify resource allocations based on the associated resource groups and defined resource services.

After the call is answered, customer profiles can also be associated with VPDN groups so the configured VPDN sessions and other data necessary to set up or reject a VPDN session are applied to the answered calls. VPDN group data includes associated domain name or DNIS, IP addresses of endpoints, maximum sessions per endpoint, maximum Multilink PPP (MLP) bundles per VPDN group, maximum links per MLP bundle, and other tunnel information.

Customer Profile Types

There are three types of customer profiles in Cisco RPM, which are described in the following sections:

• Customer Profiles
• Default Customer Profiles
• Backup Customer Profiles

Additionally, you can create a customer profile template and associate it with a customer profile; it is then integrated into the customer profile.

Customer Profiles

A customer profile defines how and when to answer a call. Customer profiles include the following components (see Figure 1):

• Customer profile name and description—Name and description of the customer.
• Session limits—Maximum number of standard sessions.
• Overflow limits—Maximum number of overflow sessions.
• DNIS groups.
• CLID.
• Resource groups.
• Resource services.
• VPDN groups and VPDN profiles.
• Call treatment—Determines how calls that exceed the session and overflow limits are treated.

Figure 1 Components of a Customer Profile

The incoming side of the customer profile determines if the call will be answered using parameters such as DNIS and call type from the assigned DNIS group and session limits. The call is then assigned the appropriate resource within the resource group defined in the customer profile. Each configured customer profile includes a maximum allowed session value and an overflow value. As sessions are started and ended, session counters are incremented and decremented so customer status is kept current. This information is used to monitor the customer resource limit and determine the appropriate call treatment based on the configured session limits.

The outgoing side of the customer profile directs the answered call to the appropriate destination:

Note Effective with Cisco Release 12.4(11)T, the L2F protocol was removed in Cisco IOS software.

• To a local AAA server of retail dial applications and Internet/intranet access.
• To a tunnel that is established between the NAS or L2TP Access Concentrator (LAC) to a wholesale VPDN home gateway of a dial customer, or L2TP Network Server (LNS) using Layer 2 Forwarding Protocol (L2F) or Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) technology.

Default Customer Profiles

Default customer profiles are identical to standard customer profiles, except that they do not have any associated DNIS groups. Default customer profiles are created using the reserved keyword default for the DNIS group.

Default customer profiles are used to provide session counting and resource assignment to incoming calls that do not match any of the configured DNIS groups. Although specific resources and DNIS groups can be assigned to customer profiles, default customer profiles allow resource pooling for the calls that do not match the configured DNIS groups or where the DNIS is not provided. Retail dial services and domain-based VPDN use default customer profiles.

When multiple default customer profiles are used, the call type (speech, digital, V.110, or V.120) of the default DNIS group is used to identify which default customer profile to use for an incoming call. At most, four default profiles (one for each call type) can be configured.

Note If default customer profiles are not defined, then calls that do not match a DNIS group in a customer profile are rejected with a “no answer” or “busy” call treatment sent to the switch.

Backup Customer Profiles

Backup customer profiles are customer profiles configured locally on the Cisco NAS and are used to answer calls based on a configured allocation scheme when the link between the Cisco NAS and Cisco RPMS is disabled. See the section “Configuring Customer Profiles Using Backup Customer Profiles” for more information about configuring backup customer profiles.

Customer Profile Template

With RPM, users can also implement wholesale dial services without using VPDN tunnels to complete dial-in calls to destinations of the end customer. This capability is accomplished with components of the AAA groups and the PPP configurations.

The AAA group provides IP addresses of AAA servers for authentication and accounting. The PPP configurations allow users to configure the Cisco IOS PPP feature set on each customer profile. In this current implementation, PPP configuration is based on the following:

• Applicable IP address pool(s) or default local list of IP addresses
• Primary and secondary Domain Name System (DNS) or Windows Internet naming service (WINS)
• Number of links allowed for each call using MLP

Note The AAA and PPP integration applies to a single NAS environment.

To add PPP configurations to a customer profile, you must create a customer profile template. Once you create the template and associate it with a customer profile using the source template command, it is integrated into the customer profile.

The RPM customer profile template for the PPP command set, when used with the Cisco IOS feature, Server Groups Selected by DNIS, presents a strong single NAS solution for providers of wholesale dial services, as follows:

• Call acceptance is determined by the RPM before call answering, using the configured size limits and resource availability.
• The answered call then uses the PPP configuration defined in the template to initiate authentication, obtain an IP address, and select a DNS or WINS that is located at the customer site.
• The same DNIS that was used to choose the customer profile selects the servers for authentication/authorization and accounting that are located at the wholesale customer’s site.

The section “Configuring a Customer Profile Template” later in this chapter describes how to create a customer profile template so that you can configure the Cisco IOS PPP features on a customer profile, but this section does not list the existing PPP command set. For information about the PPP command set, refer to the Cisco IOS Dial Technologies Command Reference.

DNIS Groups

A DNIS group is a configured list of DNIS called party numbers that correspond to the numbers dialed to access particular customers, service offerings, or both. For example, if a customer from phone number 000-1234 calls a number 000-5678, the DNIS provides information on the number dialed—000-5678.

Cisco RPM checks the DNIS number of inbound calls against the configured DNIS groups, as follows:

• If Cisco RPM finds a match, it uses the configured information in the customer profile to which the DNIS group is assigned.
• If Cisco RPM does not find a match, it uses the configured information in the customer profile to which the default DNIS group is assigned.
• The DNIS/call type sequence can be associated only with one customer profile.

CLID Groups

A CLID group is a configured list of CLID calling party numbers. The CLID group specifies a list of numbers to reject if the group is associated with a call discriminator. For example, if a customer from phone number 000-1234 calls a number 000-5678, the CLID provides information on the calling party number—000-1234.

A CLID can be associated with only one CLID group.

Call Types

Call types from calls originating from ISDN, SS7, and CAS (CT1, CT3, and CE1) are used to assign calls to the appropriate resource. Call types for ISDN and SS7 are based on Q.931 bearer capability. Call types for CAS are assigned based on static channel configuration.

Supported call types are as follows:

• Speech
• Digital
• V.110
• V.120

Note Voice over IP, fax over IP, and dial-out calls are not supported in RPM.

Resource Groups

Cisco RPM enables you to maximize the use of available shared resources within a Cisco NAS for various resource allocation schemes to support service-level agreements. Cisco RPM allows you to combine your Cisco NAS resource groups with call types (speech, digital, V.110, and V.120) and optional resource modem services. Resource groups and services are configured for customer profiles and assigned to incoming calls through DNIS groups and call types.

Resource groups have the following characteristics:

• Are configured on the Cisco NAS and applied to a customer profile.
• Represent groupings of similar hardware or firmware that are static and do not change on a per-call basis.
• Can define resources that are port-based or not port-based:

– Port-based resources are identified by physical location, such as a range of port/slot numbers (for example, modems or terminal adapters).

– Non-port-based resources are identified by a single size parameter (for example, HDLC framers or V.120 terminal adapters—V.120 terminal adapters are currently implemented as part of Cisco IOS software).

Resource assignments contain combinations of Cisco NAS resource groups, optional resource modem services, and call types. The NAS resources in resource groups that have not been assigned to a customer profile will not be used.

Note To support ISDN DoVBS, use a DNIS group and a configured customer profile to direct the speech call to the appropriate digital resource. The resource group assigned to this customer profile will be “digital resources” and also have a call type of “speech,” so the call will terminate on an HDLC controller rather than a modem.

Resource Services

A resource service contains a finite series of resource command strings that can be used to help dynamically configure an incoming connection. Services supported by a resource group are determined by the combination of hardware and firmware installed. Currently, resource service options can be configured and applied to resource groups. Resource services can be defined to affect minimum and maximum speed, modulation, error correction, and compression, as shown in Table 1 .

VPDN Groups

The VPDN group contains the data required to build a VPDN tunnel from the RPM NAS LAC to the LNS. In the context of RPM, VPDN is authorized by first associating a customer profile with a VPDN group, and second by associating the VPDN group to the DNIS group used for that customer profile. VPDN group data includes the endpoint IP addresses.

Cisco RPM enables you to specify multiple IP endpoints for a VPDN group, as follows:

• If two or more IP endpoints are specified, Cisco RPM uses a load-balancing method to ensure that traffic is distributed across the IP endpoints.
• For DNIS-based VPDN dial service, VPDN groups are assigned to customer profiles based on the incoming DNIS number and the configured DNIS groups.
• For domain-based VPDN dial service, VPDN groups are assigned to the customer profile or the default customer profile with the matching call-type assignment.
• For either DNIS-based or domain-based VPDN dial services, there is a customer profile or default customer profile for the initial resource allocation and customer session limits.

The VPDN group provides call management by allowing limits to be applied to both the number of MLP bundles per tunnel and the number of links per MLP bundle. Limits can also restrict the number of sessions per IP endpoint. If you require more granular control of VPDN counters, use VPDN profiles.

VPDN Profiles

VPDN profiles allow session and overflow limits to be imposed for a particular customer profile. These limits are unrelated to the limits imposed by the customer profile. A customer profile is associated with a VPDN profile. A VPDN profile is associated with a VPDN group. VPDN profiles are required only when these additional counters are required for VPDN usage per customer profile.

Call Treatments

Call treatment determines how calls are handled when certain events require the call to be rejected. For example, if the session and overflow limits for one of your customers have been exceeded, any additional calls will receive a busy signal (see Table 2 ).

Details on RPM Call Processes

On the incoming call management of the customer profile, the following sequence occurs to determine if a call is answered:

1. The incoming DNIS is mapped to a DNIS group; if there is no incoming DNIS number, or the DNIS number provided does not match any configured DNIS group, the DNIS group default is used.

2. The mapped DNIS group is checked against configured call discriminator profiles to confirm if this DNIS group/call-type combination is disallowed. If there is a match, the call is immediately rejected.

3. Once a DNIS group or a default DNIS group is identified, the customer profile associated with that DNIS group and the call type (from the bearer capability for ISDN call, statically configured for CAS calls) is selected. If there is no corresponding customer profile, the call is rejected.

4. The customer profile includes a session limit value and an overflow limit value. If these thresholds are not met, the call is then assigned the appropriate resource defined in the customer profile. If the thresholds are met, the call is rejected.

5. If resources are available from the resource group defined in the customer profile, the call is answered. Otherwise, the call is rejected.

6. As sessions start and end, the session counters increase and decrease, so the customer profile call counters are kept current.

See Figure 2 for a graphical illustration of the RPM call processes.

Figure 2 Incoming Call Management: RPM Functional Description

After the call is answered and if VPDN is enabled, Cisco RPM checks the customer profile for an assigned VPDN group or profile. The outgoing session management of the customer profile directs the answered call to the appropriate destination (see Figure 3), as follows:

Note Effective with Cisco Release 12.4(11)T, the L2F protocol was removed in Cisco IOS software.

• To a local AAA server of retail dial applications and Internet/intranet access.
• To a tunnel that is established between the NAS or LAC and a wholesale VPDN home gateway from a dial customer or LNS using L2F or L2TP tunneling technology.

Figure 3 Outgoing Call Management: RPM Functional Description for VPDN Profiles and Groups

If a VPDN profile is found, the limits are checked, as follows:

• If the limits have not been exceeded, the VPDN group data associated with that VPDN profile is used to build a VPDN tunnel.
• If the VPDN limits have been exceeded, the call is disconnected.

If a VPDN group is found within the customer profile, the VPDN group data is used to build a VPDN tunnel, as follows:

• If the VPDN group limits (number of multilink bundles, number of links per bundle) have not been exceeded, a VPDN tunnel is built.
• If the limits have been reached, the call is disconnected.

If no VPDN profile is assigned to the customer profile and VPDN is enabled, non-RPM VPDN service is attempted. If the attempt fails, the call is processed as a retail dial service call if local AAA service is available.

Accounting Data

You can generate accounting data for network dial service usage in NAS AAA attribute format.

You can configure the Cisco NAS to generate AAA accounting records for access to external AAA server option. The accounting start and stop records in AAA attribute format are sent to the external AAA server using either RADIUS server hosts or TACACS+ protocols for accounting data storage. Table 3 lists the new fields in the AAA accounting packets.

Data over Voice Bearer Services

DoVBS is a dial service that uses a customer profile and an associated resource group of digital resources to direct data calls with a speech call type to HDLC controllers.

To support ISDN DoVBS, use a DNIS group and a configured customer profile to direct the speech call to the appropriate digital resource.

The resource group assigned to this customer profile will be “digital resources” and will also have a call type of speech, so the call will terminate on an HDLC controller rather than a modem.

Call Discriminator Profiles

The Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS Call Discriminator feature lets you specify a list of calling party numbers to be rejected for inbound calls. This Cisco IOS Release 12.2 CLID/DNIS call screening feature expands previous call screening features in Cisco RPM. CLID/DNIS call screening provides an additional way to screen calls on the basis of CLID/DNIS for both local and remote RPM.

Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS Call Discriminator profiles enable you to process calls differently on the basis of the call type and CLID combination. Resource pool management offers a call discrimination feature that rejects calls on the basis of a CLID group and a call type filter. When a call arrives at the NAS, the CLID and the call type are matched against a table of disallowed calls. If the CLID and call type match entries in this table, the call is rejected before it is assigned Cisco NAS resources or before any other Cisco RPM processing occurs. This is called precall screening.

Precall screening decides whether the call is allowed to be processed. You can use the following types of discriminators to execute precall screening:

• ISDN discriminator —Accepts a call if the calling number matches a number in a group of configured numbers (ISDN group). This is also called white box screening. If you configure an ISDN group, only the calling numbers specified in the group are accepted.
• DNIS discriminator—Accepts a call if the called party number matches a number in a group of configured numbers (DNIS group). If you set up a DNIS group, only the called party numbers in the group are accepted. DNIS gives you information about the called party.
• Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS discriminator—Rejects a call if the calling number matches a number in a group of configured numbers (CLID/DNIS group). This is also called black box screening.

If you configure a discriminator with a CLID group, the calling party numbers specified in the group are rejected. CLID gives you information about the caller.

Similarly, if you configure a discriminator with a DNIS group, the called party numbers specified in the group are rejected.

The Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS Call Discriminator Feature is independent of ISDN or DNIS screening done by other subsystems. ISDN or DNIS screening and Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS screening can both be present in the same system. Both features are executed if configured. Similarly, if DNIS Preauthorization using AAA is configured, it is present in addition to Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS screening. Refer to the Cisco IOS Security Configuration Guide for more information about call preauthorization.

In Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS screening, the discriminator can be a CLID discriminator, a DNIS discriminator, or a discriminator that screens on both the CLID and DNIS. The resulting discrimination logic is:

• If a discriminator contains just DNIS groups, it is a DNIS discriminator that ignores CLID. The DNIS discriminator blocks the call if the called number is in a DNIS group, which the call type references.
• If a discriminator contains just CLID groups, it is a CLID discriminator that ignores DNIS. The CLID discriminator blocks the call if the calling number is in a CLID group, which the call type references.
• If a discriminator contains both CLID and DNIS groups, it is a logical AND discriminator. It blocks the call if the calling number and called number are in the CLID or DNIS group, and the call type references the corresponding discriminator.

Figure 4 shows how call discrimination can be used to restrict a specific DNIS group to only modem calls by creating call discrimination settings for the DNIS group and the other supported call types (digital, V.110, and V.120).

Figure 4 Call Discrimination

Incoming Call Preauthentication

With ISDN PRI or channel-associated signaling (CAS), information about an incoming call is available to the NAS before the call is connected. The available call information includes:

• The DNIS, also referred to as the called number
• The CLID, also referred to as the calling number
• The call type, also referred to as the bearer capability

The Preauthentication with ISDN PRI and Channel-Associated Signalling feature introduced in Cisco IOS Release 12.2 allows a Cisco NAS to decide—on the basis of the DNIS number, the CLID number, or the call type—whether to connect an incoming call.

When an incoming call arrives from the public network switch, but before it is connected, this feature enables the NAS to send the DNIS number, CLID number, and call type to a RADIUS server for authorization. If the server authorizes the call, the NAS accepts the call. If the server does not authorize the call, the NAS sends a disconnect message to the public network switch to reject the call.

The Preauthentication with ISDN PRI and Channel-Associated Signalling feature offers the following benefits:

• With ISDN PRI, it enables user authentication and authorization before a call is answered. With CAS, the call must be answered; however, the call can be dropped if preauthentication fails.
• It enables service providers to better manage ports using their existing RADIUS solutions.
• Coupled with a preauthentication RADIUS server application, it enables service providers to efficiently manage the use of shared resources to offer differing service-level agreements.

For more information about the Preauthentication with ISDN PRI and Channel-Associated Signalling feature, refer to the Cisco IOS Security Configuration Guide.

RPM Standalone Network Access Server

A single NAS using Cisco RPM can provide the following:

• Wholesale VPDN dial service to corporate customers
• Direct remote services
• Retail dial service to end users

Figure 5 and Figure 6 show multiple connections to a Cisco AS5300 NAS. Incoming calls to the NAS can use ISDN PRI signaling, CAS, or the SS7 signaling protocol. Figure 5 shows incoming calls that are authenticated locally for retail dial services or forwarded through VPDN tunnels for wholesale dial services.

Note This implementation does not use Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS Call Discriminator Feature. If you are not using Cisco RPMS and you have more than one Cisco NAS, you must manually configure each NAS by using Cisco IOS commands. Resource usage information is not shared between NASes.

Figure 5 Retail Dial Service Using RPM

Figure 6 shows a method of implementing wholesale dial services without using VPDN tunnels by creating individual customer profiles that consist of AAA groups and PPP configurations. The AAA groups provide IP addresses of AAA servers for authentication and accounting. The PPP configurations enable you to set different PPP parameter values on each customer profile. A customer profile typically includes the following PPP parameters:

• Applicable IP address pools or a default local list of IP addresses
• Primary and secondary DNS or WINS
• Authentication method such as the Password Authentication Protocol (PAP), Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol (CHAP), or Microsoft CHAP Version 1 (MS-CHAP)
• Number of links allowed for each call using Multilink PPP

Note The AAA and PPP integration applies to a single NAS environment; the external RPMS solution is not supported.

Figure 6 Resource Pool Management with Direct Remote Services

Call Processing

For call processing, incoming calls are matched to a DNIS group and the customer profile associated with that DNIS group. If a match is found, the customer profile session and overflow limits are applied and if available, the required resources are allocated. If a DNIS group is not found, the customer profile associated with the default DNIS group is used. The call is rejected if a customer profile using the default DNIS group cannot be found.

After the call is answered and if VPDN is enabled, the Cisco RPM checks the customer profile for an assigned VPDN group or profile. If a VPDN group is found, Cisco RPM authorizes VPDN by matching the group domain name or DNIS with the incoming call. If a match is found, VPDN profile session and overflow limits are applied, and, if the limits are not exceeded, tunnel negotiation begins. If the VPDN limits are exceeded, the call is disconnected.

If no VPDN profile is assigned to the customer profile and VPDN is enabled, non-RPM VPDN service will be attempted. If it fails, the call is processed as a retail dial service call if local AAA service is available.

Base Session and Overflow Session Limits

Cisco RPM enables you to set base and overflow session limits in each customer profile. The base session limit determines the maximum number of nonoverflow sessions supported for a customer profile. When the session limit is reached, if overflow sessions are not enabled, any new calls are rejected. If overflow sessions are enabled, new sessions up to the session overflow limit are processed and marked as overflow for call handling and accounting.

The session overflow limit determines the allowable number of sessions above the session limit. If the session overflow limit is greater than zero, overflow sessions are enabled and the maximum number of allowed sessions is the session limit plus the session overflow limit. While the session overflow limit has been reached, any new calls are rejected. Table 4 summarizes the effects of session and session overflow limits.

Enabling overflow sessions is useful for allocating extra sessions for preferred customers at premium rates. Overflow sessions can also be useful for encouraging customers to adequately forecast bandwidth usage or for special events when normal session usage is exceeded. For example, if a customer is having a corporate-wide program and many people are expected to request remote access, you could enable many overflow sessions and charge a premium rate for the excess bandwidth requirements.

Note An overflow call is a call received while the session limit is exceeded and is in an overflow state. When a call is identified as an overflow call, the call maintains the overflow status throughout its duration, even if the number of current sessions returns below the session limit.

VPDN Session and Overflow Session Limits

Cisco RPM enables you to configure base and overflow session limits per VPDN profile for managing VPDN sessions.

Note The VDPN session and session overflow limits are independent of the limits set in the customer profiles.

The base VPDN session limit determines the maximum number of nonoverflow sessions supported for a VPDN profile. When the VPDN session limit is reached, if overflow sessions are not enabled, any new VPDN calls using the VPDN profile sessions are rejected. If overflow sessions are enabled, new sessions up to the session overflow limit are processed and marked as overflow for VPDN accounting.

The VPDN session overflow limit determines the number of sessions above the session limit allowed in the VPDN group. If the session overflow limit is greater than zero, overflow sessions are enabled and the maximum number of allowed sessions is the session limit plus the session overflow limit. While the session overflow limit has been reached, any new calls are rejected.

Enabling VPDN overflow sessions is useful for allocating extra sessions for preferred customers at premium rates. Overflow sessions are also useful for encouraging customers to adequately forecast bandwidth usage or for special events when normal session usage is exceeded. For example, if a customer is having a corporate-wide program and many people are expected to request remote access, you could enable many overflow sessions and charge a premium rate for the extra bandwidth requirements.

VPDN MLP Bundle and Links-per-Bundle Limits

To ensure that resources are not consumed by a few users with MLP connections, Cisco RPM also enables you to specify the maximum number of MLP bundles that can open in a VPDN group. In addition, you can specify the maximum number of links for each MLP bundle.

For example, if standard ISDN users access the VPDN profile, limit this setting to two links per bundle. If video conferencing is used, increase this setting to accommodate the necessary bandwidth (usually six links). These limits have no overflow option and are configured under the VPDN group component.

VPDN Tunnel Limits

For increased VPDN tunnel management, Cisco RPM enables you to set an IP endpoint session limit for each IP endpoint. IP endpoints are configured for VPDN groups.

Figure 7 and Figure 8 show logical flowcharts of RPM call processing for a standalone NAS with and without the RPM Direct Remote Services feature.

Figure 7 RPM Call-Processing Flowchart for a Standalone Network Access Server

Figure 8 Flowchart for a Standalone Network Access Server with RPM Direct Remote Services

RPM Using the Cisco RPMS

Figure 9 shows a typical resource pooling network scenario using RPMS.

Figure 9 RPM Scenario Using RPMS

Resource Manager Protocol

Resource Manager Protocol (RMP) is a robust, recoverable protocol used for communication between the Cisco RPMS and the NAS. Each NAS client uses RMP to communicate resource management requests to the Cisco RPMS server. RPMS also periodically polls the NAS clients to query their current call information or address error conditions when they occur. RMP also allows for protocol attributes that make it extensible and enable support for customer billing requirements.

Figure 10 shows the relationship of Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS Call Discriminator Feature and RMP.

Figure 10 Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS Call Discriminator Feature and RMP

Note RMP must be enabled on all NASes that communicate with the Cisco RPM CLID/DNIS Call Discriminator Feature.

Direct Remote Services

Direct remote services is an enhancement to Cisco RPM implemented in Cisco IOS Release 12.0(7)T that enables service providers to implement wholesale dial services without using VPDN tunnels. A customer profile that has been preconfigured with a PPP template to define the unique PPP services for the wholesale dial customer is selected by the incoming DNIS and call type. At the same time, the DNIS is used to select AAA server groups for authentication/authorization and for accounting for the customer.

PPP Common Configuration Architecture (CCA) is the new component of the RPM customer profile that enables direct remote services. The full PPP command set available in Cisco IOS software is configurable per customer profile for wholesale dial applications. A customer profile typically includes the following PPP parameters:

• Local or named IP address pools
• Primary and secondary DNS or WINS addresses
• Authentication method (PAP, CHAP, MS-CHAP)
• Multilink PPP links per bundle limits

The AAA session information is selected by the incoming DNIS. AAA server lists provide the IP addresses of AAA servers for authentication, authorization, and accounting in the wholesale local network of the customer. The server lists for both authentication and authorization and for accounting contain the server addresses, AAA server type, timeout, retransmission, and keys per server.

When direct remote services is implemented on a Cisco NAS, the following sequence occurs:

1. The NAS sends an authorization request packet to the AAA server by using the authentication method (PAP, CHAP, MSCHAP) that has been configured through PPP.

2. The AAA server accepts the authorization request and returns one of the following items to the NAS:

– A specific IP address

– An IP address pool name

– Nothing

3. Depending on the response from the AAA server, the NAS assigns one of the following items to the user through the DNS/WINS:

– The IP address returned by the AAA server

– An IP address randomly assigned from the named IP address pool

– An IP address from a pool specified in the customer profile template

Note If the AAA server sends back to the NAS a named IP address pool and that name does not exist on the NAS, the request for service is denied. If the AAA server does not send anything back to the NAS and there is an IP address pool name configured in the customer profile template, an address from that pool is used for the session.

RPM Process with RPMS and SS7

For information on SS7 implementation for RPM, refer to the document Cisco Resource Pool Manager Server 1.0 SS7 Implementation.

Additional Information About Cisco RPM

For more information about Cisco RPM, see the following documents:

• AAA Server Group
• Cisco Access VPN Solutions Using Tunneling Technology
• Cisco AS5200 Universal Access Server Software Configuration Guide
• Cisco AS5300 Software Configuration Guide
• Cisco AS5800 Access Server Software ICG
• Cisco Resource Pool Manager Server Configuration Guide
• Cisco Resource Pool Manager Server Installation Guide
• Cisco Resource Pool Manager Server Solutions Guide
• Dial Solutions Quick Configuration Guide
• RADIUS Multiple UDP Ports Support
• Redundant Link Manager
• Release Notes for Cisco Resource Pool Manager Server Release 1.0
• Resource Pool Management
• Resource Pool Management with Direct Remote Services
• Resource Pool Manager Customer Profile Template
• Selecting AAA Server Groups Based on DNIS
• SS7 Continuity Testing for Network Access Servers
• SS7 Dial Solution System Integration

Enabling RPM

To enable RPM, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

Note If you have an RPMS, you need not define VPDN groups/profiles, customer profiles, or DNIS groups on the NAS; you need only define resource groups. Configure the remaining items by using the RPMS system.

Configuring DNIS Groups

This configuration task is optional.

To configure DNIS groups, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

For default DNIS service, no DNIS group configuration is required. The following characteristics and restrictions apply to DNIS group configuration:

• Each DNIS group/call-type combination can apply to only one customer profile.
• You can use up to four default DNIS groups (one for each call type).
• You must statically configure CAS call types.
• You can use x, X or. as wildcards within each DNIS number.

Creating CLID Groups

You can add multiple CLID groups to a discriminator profile. You can organize CLID numbers for a customer or service type into a CLID group. Add all CLID numbers into one CLID group, or subdivide the CLID numbers using criteria such as call type, geographical location, or division. To create CLID groups, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

Configuring Discriminator Profiles

Discriminator profiles enable you to process calls differently on the basis of the call type and CLID/DNIS combination. The “Call Discriminator Profiles” section earlier in this chapter describes the different types of discriminator profiles that you can create.

To configure discriminator profiles for RPM implementation, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

To verify discriminator profile settings, use the following commands:

Step 1 Use the show resource-pool discriminator name command to verify the call discriminator profiles that you configured.

If you enter the show resource-pool discriminator command without including a call discriminator name, a list of all current call discriminator profiles appears.

If you enter a call discriminator profile name with the show resource-pool discriminator command, the number of calls rejected by the selected call discriminator appears.

Step 2 Use the show dialer command to display general diagnostic information for interfaces configured for the dialer.

Configuring Resource Groups

To configure resource groups, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

For external Cisco RPMS environments, configure resource groups on the NAS before defining them on external RPMS servers.

For standalone NAS environments, first configure resource groups before using them in customer profiles.

Resource groups can apply to multiple customer profiles.

Note You can separate physical resources into groups. However, do not put heterogeneous resources in the same group. Do not put MICA technologies modems in the same group as Microcom modems. Do not put modems and HDLC controllers in the same resource group. Do not configure the port and limit command parameters in the same resource group.

Configuring Service Profiles

To configure service profiles, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

Service profiles are used to configure modem service parameters for Nextport and MICA technologies modems, and support speech, digital, V.110, and V.120 call types. Error-correction and compression are hidden parameters that may be included in a service profile.

Configuring Customer Profiles

To configure customer profiles, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

Customer profiles are used so that service providers can assign different service characteristics to different customers. Note the following characteristics of customer profiles:

• Multiple resources of the same call type are used sequentially.
• The limits imposed are per customer (DNIS)—not per resource.
• A digital resource with a call type of speech allows for Data over Speech Bearer Service (DoSBS).

Configuring Default Customer Profiles

Default customer profiles are identical to standard customer profiles, except they do not have any associated DNIS groups. To define a default customer profile, use the reserved keyword default for the DNIS group:

The rest of the customer profile is configured as shown in the previous section “Configuring Customer Profiles.”

Configuring Customer Profiles Using Backup Customer Profiles

Backup customer profiles are customer profiles configured locally on the Cisco NAS and are used to answer calls on the basis of a configured allocation scheme when the link between the Cisco NAS and Cisco RPMS is disabled.

To enable the backup feature, you need to have already configured the following on the router:

• The resource-pool aaa protocol group name local command.
• All customer profiles and DNIS groups on the NAS.

The backup customer profile can contain all of the elements defined in a standard customer profile, including base size or overflow parameters. However, when the connection between the Cisco NAS and Cisco RPMS is unavailable, session counting and session limits are not applied to incoming calls. Also, after the connection is reestablished, there is no synchronization of call counters between the Cisco NAS and Cisco RPMS.

Configuring Customer Profiles for Using DoVBS

To configure customer profiles for using DoVBS, use the following commands beginning in global configuration command mode:

To support ISDN DoVBS, use a DNIS group and a configured customer profile to direct the speech call to the appropriate digital resource. The DNIS group assigned to the customer profile should have a call type of speech. The resource group assigned to this customer profile will be digital resources and also have a call type of speech, so the call will terminate on an HDLC controller rather than a modem.

See the section “Customer Profile Configuration for DoVBS Example” at the end of this chapter for a configuration example.

Configuring a Customer Profile Template

Customer profile templates provide a way to keep each unique situation for a customer separate for both security and accountability. This is an optional configuration task.

To configure a template and place it in a customer profile, ensure that all basic configuration tasks and the RPM configuration tasks have been completed and verified before attempting to configure the customer profile templates.

To add PPP configurations to a customer profile, create a customer profile template. Once you create the template and associate it with a customer profile by using the source template command, it is integrated into the customer profile.

To configure a template in RPM, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

Typical Template Configuration

The following example shows a typical template configuration:

Verifying Template Configuration

To verify your template configuration, perform the following steps:

Step 1 Enter the show running-config EXEC command (where the template name is “PPP1”):

Step 2 Ensure that your template appears in the configuration file.

Placing the Template in the Customer Profile

To place your template in the customer profile, use the following commands beginning in global configuration command mode:

To verify the placement of your template in the customer profile, perform the following steps:

Step 1 Enter the show resource-pool customer EXEC command:

Step 2 Look at the list of customer profiles and make sure that your profile appears in the list.

Step 3 To verify a particular customer profile configuration, enter the show resource-pool customer name EXEC command (where the customer profile name is “CP1”):

Configuring AAA Server Groups

To configure AAA server groups, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

AAA server groups are lists of AAA server hosts of a particular type. The Cisco RPM currently supports RADIUS and TACACS+ server hosts. A AAA server group lists the IP addresses of the selected server hosts.

You can use a AAA server group to define a distinct list of AAA server hosts and apply this list to the Cisco RPM application. Note that the AAA server group feature works only when the server hosts in a group are of the same type.

Configuring VPDN Profiles

A VPDN profile is required only if you want to impose limits on the VPDN tunnel that are separate from the customer limits.

To configure VPDN profiles, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

Configuring VPDN Groups

To configure VPDN groups, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

A VPDN group consists of VPDN sessions that are combined and placed into a customer profile or a VPDN profile. Note the following characteristics of VPDN groups:

• The dnis-group-name argument is required to authorize the VPDN group with RPM.
• A VPDN group placed in a customer profile allows VPDN connections for the customer using that profile.
• A VPDN group placed in a VPDN profile allows the session limits configured for that profile to apply to all of the VPDN sessions within that VPDN group.
• VPDN data includes an associated domain name or DNIS, an endpoint IP address, the maximum number of MLP bundles, and the maximum number of links per MLP bundle; this data can optionally be located on a AAA server.

See the sections “VPDN Configuration Example” and “VPDN Load Sharing and Backing Up Between Multiple HGW/LNSs Example” at the end of this chapter for examples of using VPDN with RPM.

Counting VPDN Sessions by Using VPDN Profiles

Session counting is provided for each VPDN profile. One session is brought up each time a remote client dials into a HGW/LNS router by using the NAS/LAC. Sessions are counted by using VPDN profiles. If you do not want to count the number of VPDN sessions, do not set up any VPDN profiles. VPDN profiles count sessions in one or more VPDN groups.

To configure VPDN profile session counting, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

To verify session counting and view VPDN group information configured under resource pooling, use the show resource-pool vpdn group command. In this example, two different VPDN groups are configured under two different customer profiles:

VPDN Profile customer1-profile:customer1-vpdng

To display the contents of a specific VPDN group, use the show resource-pool vpdn group name command. This example contains one domain name, two DNIS called groups, and two endpoints:

To display the contents of a specific VPDN profile, use the show resource-pool vpdn profile name command, as follows:

Note Use the debug vpdn event command to troubleshoot VPDN profile limits, session limits, and MLP connections. First, enable this command; then, send a call into the access server. Interpret the debug output and make configuration changes as needed.

To debug the L2F or L2TP protocols, use the debug vpdn l2x command:

Note Effective with Cisco Release 12.4(11)T, the L2F protocol was removed in Cisco IOS software.

Limiting the Number of MLP Bundles in VPDN Groups

Cisco IOS software enables you to limit the number of MLP bundles and links supported for each VPDN group. A bundle name consists of a username endpoint discriminator (for example, an IP address or phone number) sent during LCP negotiation.

To limit the number of MLP bundles in VPDN groups, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode:

The following example shows the show vpdn multilink command output for verifying MLP bundle limits:

Note Use the debug vpdn event and debug resource-pooling commands to troubleshoot VPDN profile limits, session limits, and MLP connections. First, enable this command; then, send a call into the access server. Interpret the debug output and make configuration changes as needed.

Configuring Switched 56 over CT1 and RBS

To configure switched 56 over CT1 and RBS, use the following commands beginning in global configuration mode. Perform this task on the Cisco AS5200 and Cisco AS5300 access servers only.

To verify switched 56 over CT1, use the show dialer dnis command as follows:

Verifying Current Calls

The following output from the show resource-pool call command shows the details for all current calls, including the customer profile and resource group, and the matched DNIS group:

Verifying Call Counters for a Customer Profile

The following output from the show resource-pool customer command shows the call counters for a given customer profile. These counters include historical data and can be cleared.

Clearing Call Counters

The clear resource-pool command clears the call counters.

Verifying Call Counters for a Discriminator Profile

The following output from the show resource-pool discriminator command shows the call counters for a given discriminator profile. These counters include historical data and can be cleared.

Verifying Call Counters for a Resource Group

The following output from the show resource-pool resource command shows the call counters for a given resource group. These counters include historical data and can be cleared.

Verifying Call Counters for a DNIS Group

The following output from the show dialer dnis command shows the call counters for a given DNIS group. These counters include historical data and can be cleared.

Verifying Call Counters for a VPDN Profile

The following output from the show resource-pool vpdn command shows the call counters for a given VPDN profile or the tunnel information for a given VPDN group. These counters include historical data and can be cleared.

Note Effective with Cisco Release 12.4(11)T, the L2F protocol was removed in Cisco IOS software.

Verifying Load Sharing and Backup

The following example from the show running-config EXEC command shows two different VPDN customer groups:

Note Effective with Cisco Release 12.4(11)T, the L2F protocol was removed in Cisco IOS software.

Resource-Pool Component

The resource-pool component contains two modules—a dispatcher and a local resource-pool manager. The dispatcher interfaces with the signaling stack, resource-group manager, and AAA, and is responsible for maintaining resource-pool call state and status information. The state transitions can be displayed by enabling the resource-pool debug traces. Table 5 summarizes the resource pooling states.

The resource-pool state can be used to isolate problems. For example, if a call fails authorization in the RM_RES_AUTHOR state, investigate further with AAA authorization debugs to determine whether the problem lies in the resource-pool manager, AAA, or dispatcher.

The resource-pool component also contains local customer profiles and discriminators, and is responsible for matching, configuring, and maintaining the associated counters and statistics. The resource-pool component is responsible for the following:

• Configuration of customer profiles or discriminators
• Matching a customer profile or discriminator for local profile configuration
• Counters/statistics for customer profiles or discriminators
• Active call information displayed by the show resource-pool call command

The RPMS debug commands are summarized in Table 6 .

Successful Resource Pool Connection

The following sample output from the debug resource-pool command displays a successful RPM connection. The entries in bold are of particular importance.

Dialer Component

The dialer component contains DNIS groups and is responsible for configuration, and maintenance of counters and statistics. The resource-pool component is responsible for the following:

• DNIS number statistics or counters
• Configuring DNIS groups

Resource Group Manager

Resource groups are created, maintained, allocated, freed, and tallied by the resource group manager. The resource group manager is also responsible for service profiles, which are applied to resources at call setup time. The resource group manager is responsible for:

• Allocating resources when the profile has been authorized and a valid resource group is received
• Statistics or configuration of resource groups
• Configuring or applying service profiles to resource groups
• Collecting DNIS number information for channel-associated signaling calls

Signaling Stack

The signaling stacks currently supported in resource pooling are CAS and ISDN. The signaling stack delivers the incoming call to the resource-pool dispatcher and provides call-type and DNIS number information to the resource-pool dispatcher. Depending on configuration, call connect attempts may fail if the signaling stacks do not send the DNIS number and the call type to the resource-pool dispatcher. Call attempts will also fail if signaling stacks disconnect prematurely, not giving enough time for authorization or resource allocation processes to complete.

Therefore, investigate the signaling stack when call attempts or call treatment behavior does not meet expectations. For ISDN, the debug isdn q931 command can be used to isolate errors between resource pooling, signaling stack, and switch. For CAS, the debug modem csm , service internal , and modem-mgmt csm debug-rbs commands are used on Cisco AS5200 and Cisco AS5300 access servers, while the debug csm and debug trunk cas port number timeslots number commands are used on the Cisco AS5800 access server.

AAA Component

In context with resource pooling, the AAA component is responsible for the following:

• Authorization of profiles between the resource-pool dispatcher and local or external resource-pool manager
• Accounting messages between the resource-pool dispatcher and external resource-pool manager for resource allocation
• VPDN authorization between VPDN and the local or external resource-pool manager
• VPDN accounting messages between VPDN and the external resource-pool manager
• Overflow accounting records between the AAA server and resource-pool dispatcher
• Resource connect speed accounting records between the AAA server and resource group

VPDN Component

The VPDN component is responsible for the following:

• Creating VPDN groups and profiles
• Searching or matching groups based on domain or DNIS
• Maintaining counts and statistics for the groups and profiles
• Setting up the tunnel between the NAS/LAC and HGW/LNS

The VPDN component interfaces with AAA to get VPDN tunnel authorization on the local or remote resource-pool manager. VPDN and AAA debugging traces should be used for troubleshooting.

Troubleshooting DNIS Group Problems

The following output from the debug resource-pool command displays a customer profile that is not found for a particular DNIS group:

Troubleshooting Call Discriminator Problems

The following output from the debug resource-pool command displays an incoming call that is matched against a call discriminator profile:

Troubleshooting Customer Profile Counts

The following output from the debug resource-pool command displays what happens once the customer profile limits have been reached:

Troubleshooting Resource Group Counts

The following output from the debug resource-pool command displays the resources within a resource group all in use:

Troubleshooting VPDN

Troubleshooting problems that might typically occur are as follows:

• Customer profile is not associated with a VPDN profile or VPDN group (the call will be locally terminated in this case. Regular VPDN can still succeed even if RPM/VPDN fails).
• VPDN profile limits have been reached (call answered but disconnected).
• VPDN group limits have been reached (call answered but disconnected).
• VPDN endpoint is not reachable (call answered but disconnected).

Troubleshooting RPM/VPDN Connection

The following sample output from the debug resource-pool command displays a successful RPM/VPDN connection. The entries in bold are of particular importance.

Note Effective with Cisco Release 12.4(11)T, the L2F protocol was removed in Cisco IOS software.

Troubleshooting Customer/VPDN Profile

The following sample output from the debug resource-pool command displays when there is no VPDN group associated with an incoming DNIS group. However, the output from the debug resource-pool command, as shown here, does not effectively reflect the problem:

Note Effective with Cisco Release 12.4(11)T, the L2F protocol was removed in Cisco IOS software.

Whenever the debug resource-pool command offers no further assistance besides the indication that authorization has failed, enter the debug aaa authorization command to further troubleshoot the problem. In this case, the debug aaa authorization command output appears as follows:

Troubleshooting VPDN Profile Limits

The following output from the debug resource-pool command displays that VPDN profile limits have been reached:

Note Effective with Cisco Release 12.4(11)T, the L2F protocol was removed in Cisco IOS software.

Troubleshooting VPDN Group Limits

The following debug resource-pool command display shows that VPDN group limits have been reached. From this display, the problem is not obvious. To troubleshoot further, use the debug aaa authorization command described in the “Troubleshooting RPMS” section later in this chapter:

Note Effective with Cisco Release 12.4(11)T, the L2F protocol was removed in Cisco IOS software.

Troubleshooting VPDN Endpoint Problems

The following output from the debug resource-pool command displays that the IP endpoint for the VPDN group is not reachable:

Note Effective with Cisco Release 12.4(11)T, the L2F protocol was removed in Cisco IOS software.

Troubleshooting RPMS

In general, the debug aaa authorization command is not used for RPM troubleshooting unless the debug resource-pool command display is too vague. The debug aaa authorization command is more useful for troubleshooting with RPMS. Following is sample output:

The following output from the debug resource-pool and debug aaa authorization commands shows a successful RPM connection:

Standard Configuration for RPM Example

The following example demonstrates a basic RPM configuration:

Tip • Replace the command string resource isdn-ports digital in the previous example with resource isdn-ports speech to set up DoVBS. See the section, “Customer Profile Configuration for DoVBS Example,” for more information.

Digital calls to 301001 are associated with the customer ACME by using the resource group “isdn-ports.”

• Speech calls to 301001 are associated with the customer ACME by using the resource group “mica-modems” and allow for V.90 connections (anything less than V.90 is also allowed).
• Digital calls to 301005 are denied.
• All other speech calls to any other DNIS number are associated with the customer profile “DEFAULT” by using the resource group “mica-modems” and allow for V.34 connections (anything more than V.34 is not allowed; anything less than V.34 is also allowed).
• All other digital calls to any other DNIS number are not associated with a customer profile and are therefore not allowed.
• The customer profile named “DEFAULT” serves as the default customer profile for speech calls only. If the solution uses an external RPMS server, this same configuration can be used for backup resource pooling if communication is lost between the NAS and the RPMS.

Customer Profile Configuration for DoVBS Example

To allow ISDN calls with a speech bearer capability to be directed to digital resources, make the following change (highlighted in bold) to the configuration shown in the previous section, “Standard Configuration for RPM Example”:

This change causes ISDN speech calls (in addition to ISDN digital calls) to be directed to the resource “isdn-ports”; thus, ISDN speech calls provide DoVBS.

DNIS Discriminator Profile Example

The following is sample configuration for a DNIS discriminator. It shows how to enable resource pool management, configure a customer profile, create DNIS groups, and add numbers to the DNIS groups.

CLID Discriminator Profile Example

The following is a sample configuration of a CLID discriminator. It shows how to enable resource pool management, configure resource groups, configure customer profiles, configure CLID groups and DNIS groups, and add them to discriminator profiles.

Direct Remote Services Configuration Example

The following example shows a direct remote services configuration:

VPDN Configuration Example

Adding the following commands to those listed in the section “Standard Configuration for RPM Example” earlier in this chapter allows you to use VPDN by setting up a VPDN profile and a VPDN group:

Note If the limits imposed by the VPDN profile are not required, do not configure the VPDN profile. Replace the vpdn profile ACME_VPDN command under the customer profile ACME with the vpdn group outgoing-2 command.

VPDN Load Sharing and Backing Up Between Multiple HGW/LNSs Example

Cisco IOS software enables you to balance and back up VPDN sessions across multiple tunnel endpoints (HGW/LNS). When a user or session comes into the NAS/LAC, a VPDN load-balancing algorithm is triggered and applied to the call. The call is then passed to an available HGW/LNS. You can modify this function by limiting the number of sessions supported on an HGW/LNS router and limiting the number of MLP bundles and links.

Figure 11 shows an example of one NAS/LAC that directs calls to two HGW/LNS routers by using the L2TP tunneling protocol. Each router has a different number of supported sessions and works at a different speed. The NAS/LAC is counting the number of active simultaneous sessions sent to each HGW/LNS.

Figure 11 Home Gateway Load Sharing and Backup

In a standalone NAS environment (no RPMS server used), the NAS has complete knowledge of the status of tunnel endpoints. Balancing across endpoints is done by a “least-filled tunnel” or a “next-available round robin” approach. In an RPMS-controlled environment, RPMS has the complete knowledge of tunnel endpoints. However, the NAS still has the control over those tunnel endpoints selected by RPMS.

A standalone NAS uses the following default search criteria for load-balancing traffic across multiple endpoints (HGW/LNS):

• Select any idle endpoint—an HGW/LNS with no active sessions.
• Select an active endpoint that currently has a tunnel established with the NAS.
• If all specified load-sharing routers are busy, select the backup HGW. If all endpoints are busy, report that the NAS cannot find an IP address to establish the call.

Note This default search order criteria is independent of the Cisco RPMS application scenario. A standalone NAS uses a different load-sharing algorithm than the Cisco RPMS. This search criteria will change as future enhancements become available.

The following is an example of VPDN load sharing between multiple HGW/LNSs:

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