ICM Application Gateway planning
The Unified ICM Application Gateway option allows the Unified ICM system to interface with any external call center application. Within the Unified ICM software, the Unified ICM Application Gateway feature is implemented as a node in a call routing script. You add a Gateway node to a script to instruct the Unified ICM to execute an external application. This allows the script to evaluate responses from an external application. The Unified ICM can then base subsequent routing decisions on the results produced by the application.
A typical Unified ICM Application Gateway application can return a variable to the CallRouter that identifies the caller as having a certain type of account. The script can then use this information to control where and how the call is routed. Optionally, the Unified ICM software can pass the retrieved information to the site that is receiving the call. In this case, certain data such as account numbers, dates, billing phone numbers, and addresses are passed along with the call to an answering resource.
Host System Preparation
To prepare for the Unified ICM Application Gateway option, you must set up the host system to communicate with the Unified ICM system. This involves configuring the host application to listen to a socket on the target Unified ICM machine. You also need to configure a name and port number to connect the host system to the Unified ICM central database. These steps are performed at system installation; however, you can begin preparing the host applications ahead of time.
During system installation, when connectivity between the Unified ICM system and host system is established, you must identify the host system to be queried by entering data in the Application_Gateway table.
Fault Tolerance
You can configure access to a single host application or duplicate host applications. In a single host configuration, configure the same host for both CallRouters (Side A and Side B). The single host method provides no protection against host failures; however, it does protect against connection failures.
In order to achieve a higher level of fault tolerance in an Unified ICM Application Gateway application, you can connect duplicate host applications to the CallRouter. For example, the Side A and Side B CallRouters can each manage a connection to one of the duplicated host applications. Each time a script initiates a request, both CallRouters query their corresponding host. The CallRouters use the response from the host that responds first. This method is highly reliable. Even if a host or a connection fails, all query requests are satisfied.