Networking in Cisco Unity Guide (With IBM Lotus Domino), Release 4.0(5)
AMIS Networking

Table Of Contents

AMIS Networking

Overview: AMIS

Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use AMIS

Prerequisites

Considerations for Deploying AMIS with Cisco CallManager and Cisco Gateways

Task List: Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use AMIS

Procedures for Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use AMIS

Configuring the Interop Gateway

Creating the UAmis Account

Designating Voice Ports for Outbound AMIS Calls

Setting AMIS Delivery Options

Customizing the AMIS Restriction Table

Setting Up the AMIS Schedule

Customizing the Primary Location

Creating AMIS Delivery Locations

Using the Cisco Unity Administrator to Create AMIS Delivery Locations

Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard to Create AMIS Delivery Locations

Modifying Existing Delivery Locations by Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard

Creating AMIS Subscribers

Before Creating Subscriber Accounts

Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard to Create Multiple Subscriber Accounts

Correcting CSV Import Errors

Using the Cisco Unity Administrator to Create AMIS Subscriber Accounts

After Creating Subscriber Accounts

Extending Identified Subscriber Messaging to Include AMIS Subscribers

Installations with Multiple Cisco Unity Servers Networked via Digital Networking

Single-Server Installations

Enabling Identified Subscriber Messaging

Extending Identified Subscriber Messaging

AMIS Concepts and Definitions

Introduction to AMIS

Port Usage and Schedules

UAmis Account

Interop Gateway and AMIS Networking

Choosing the Interop Gateway Foreign Domain Name

Locations and AMIS Networking

Message Addressing Options

Message Addressing Limitations

Blind Addressing and AMIS Networking

AMIS Subscribers

Subscriber Experience with AMIS Subscribers

Identified Subscriber Messaging

Live Reply to AMIS Subscribers

Deleting AMIS Subscribers

Extension Addresses

Preventing Subscribers From Adding Individual Subscribers to Private Lists in the Cisco Unity Assistant

Migrating Subscribers from Another Voice Messaging System to Cisco Unity

Migrating Subscribers in Bulk

Private List Considerations for Migrating Subscribers

Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers

Design Considerations

Maintenance

Monitoring AMIS Message Traffic

Changing the Interop Gateway Foreign Domain Name

Moving the Interop Gateway Mail File

Moving the UAmis Mail File

AMIS Reference

AMIS Delivery Location Profile Settings

AMIS Delivery Options Settings

AMIS Schedule Settings

Troubleshooting

Notable Behavior

Call Transfer Settings for AMIS Subscribers

Inbound Messages Are Delivered Only to Primary Extensions

Inbound Search Scope


AMIS Networking


Overview: AMIS

Cisco Unity supports the Audio Messaging Interchange Specification analog (AMIS-a) protocol, which provides a mechanism for transferring voice messages between different voice messaging systems.

AMIS Networking is a licensed feature. If your organization has multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, only one server needs to be licensed and configured for AMIS Networking. The Cisco Unity server configured for AMIS Networking is referred to as the bridgehead server. For more information about obtaining licenses for Cisco Unity features, see the White Paper: Licensing for Cisco Unity, at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_white_paper09186a008019c743.shtml.

No special permissions are required for AMIS Networking beyond those required for Cisco Unity itself. For detailed information about the permissions required by Cisco Unity, refer to Permissions wizard Help, which is available in Tools Depot on the Cisco Unity server.

In this chapter, you will find procedures for setting up AMIS Networking, followed by detailed discussions of the concepts and terminology you need to understand. See the following sections:

Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use AMIS—This section describes the prerequisites and considerations for setting up AMIS Networking and provides a task list containing a high-level view of all of the tasks you need to complete for the setup, and the order in which they should be completed.

Procedures for Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use AMIS—This section contains all of the step-by-step procedures necessary to set up Cisco Unity to use AMIS.

AMIS Concepts and Definitions—This section explains AMIS concepts in detail. You may want to read this section prior to doing the setup procedures.

Maintenance—This section provides information about monitoring system activity.

AMIS Reference—This section contains tables that define the fields on the Cisco Unity Administrator web pages related to AMIS setup.

Troubleshooting—This section provides links to troubleshooting information.

Notable Behavior—This section provides information about notable behavior related to AMIS Networking.

Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use AMIS

See the following sections:

Prerequisites

Considerations for Deploying AMIS with Cisco CallManager and Cisco Gateways

Task List: Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use AMIS

Prerequisites

Before starting the setup, verify that the following prerequisites have been met.

Cisco Unity is already installed on the server(s), and they are connected to the network as applicable to your installation.

A license file with an AMIS license has been obtained and installed on the Cisco Unity bridgehead server.

Cisco Unity meets the requirements as described in the "AMIS Networking Requirements" section of the Cisco Unity Networking Options Requirements, at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_device_support_table09186a0080531ba9.html.

The voice messaging system that Cisco Unity will be networked with is listed in the "Support Policy for AMIS Voice Messaging Systems" section of the applicable Cisco Unity System Requirements, and Supported Hardware and Software, at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/prod_installation_guides_list.html.

For installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers that access the same directory, you should first set up the servers for Digital Networking as described in the "Digital Networking" chapter before setting up AMIS Networking. In order to use AMIS Networking, all the Cisco Unity servers must be at version 4.0(5) or later. After the Cisco Unity servers have been set up for Digital Networking, verify the following settings:

Verify that the addressing search scope is set to either the dialing domain or the global directory on all of the networked servers so that Cisco Unity subscribers, no matter which server they are associated with, can address messages to AMIS delivery locations and/or AMIS subscribers. See the "Setting the Addressing Search Scope" section for details.

If you want outside callers to be able to reach AMIS subscribers from the automated attendant (for example, from the opening greeting) or directory assistance:

Verify that the Cisco Unity server(s) on which the AMIS subscribers will be created are in the same dialing domain as the Cisco Unity server that outside callers call into. See the "Customizing the Primary Location" section for details on creating the dialing domain, and the "Dialing Domains" section for background information.

Verify that the automated attendant and directory handler(s) search scopes are set to the dialing domain scope. See the "Setting the Directory Handler Search Scope" section and the "Setting the Automated Attendant Search Scope" section.

Considerations for Deploying AMIS with Cisco CallManager and Cisco Gateways

In a Cisco CallManager environment where AMIS calls may traverse one or more Cisco gateways or routers, we recommend that customers (or their systems integration partners) test the interoperability of such gateways with Cisco Unity before the products are deployed. Consider the following when deploying AMIS:

Call forwarding, call waiting or other tones can sometimes interfere with transmission of DTMF sequences.

Where applicable for Cisco CallManager and gateways, set DTMF duration and interdigit timing to 100 milliseconds.

Task List: Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use AMIS

Use this task list to set up Cisco Unity to use AMIS. The cross-references take you to detailed procedures for the setup.

1. Configure the Interop Gateway. See the "Configuring the Interop Gateway" section.

Do the Following Tasks on the Cisco Unity Server That Is Licensed for AMIS:

2. Verify that the Cisco Unity call routing rules route calls to a call handler, such as the Opening Greeting. (This is the default when Cisco Unity is initially installed.)

3. Create the UAmis account. See the "Creating the UAmis Account" section.

4. Designate voice ports for outbound AMIS calls. See the "Designating Voice Ports for Outbound AMIS Calls" section.

5. Set the AMIS delivery options. See the "Setting AMIS Delivery Options" section.

6. Customize the AMIS Restriction Table as needed. See the "Customizing the AMIS Restriction Table" section.

7. Set up the AMIS schedule. See the "Setting Up the AMIS Schedule" section.

8. Customize the primary location profile settings. See the "Customizing the Primary Location" section.

9. Create a delivery location for each remote voice messaging system. See the "Creating AMIS Delivery Locations" section.

10. Optionally, create AMIS subscribers. See the "Creating AMIS Subscribers" section.

11. Optionally, extend identified subscriber messaging to include AMIS subscribers. See the "Extending Identified Subscriber Messaging to Include AMIS Subscribers" section.

Finish the Setup:

12. Set up the other voice messaging system for AMIS. The other voice messaging system will require the number to dial into Cisco Unity, and the Node ID that was entered on the primary location.

13. Test the setup to verify that Cisco Unity can exchange messages with the other voice messaging system. Optionally, you can configure the macro trace "Basic Incoming and Outgoing AMIS Message" in the Unity Diagnostic tool (on the Windows Start menu, click Programs > Cisco Unity > Unity Diagnostic Tool) to verify that Cisco Unity can send and receive AMIS messages.

If you discover a problem with the setup, see the "Troubleshooting" section for links to information that can help you find and fix the problem.

Procedures for Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use AMIS

This section contains all of the procedures necessary to set up Cisco Unity to use AMIS.

Configuring the Interop Gateway

You can configure the Interop Gateway service—CsDomInteropGty—to run on the Cisco Unity bridgehead server, or on any other Cisco Unity server networked to the bridgehead via Digital Networking. Note the following:

Although the Interop Gateway mail file can be located on a Domino server that belongs to a cluster, or you can specifically cluster the Interop Gateway mail file, the Interop Gateway monitors only the Domino server on which the mail file was created. If the Domino server on which the Interop Gateway mail file was created fails-over or is marked busy by the Domino Cluster Manager, the Interop Gateway does not monitor the replica of the mail file (which is on another Domino server in the cluster). Domino will route messages to the mail file replica, but the messages will not be processed by the Interop Gateway until the Domino server on which the mail file was created becomes active again.

Configure the Interop Gateway only on one Cisco Unity server. Configuring multiple Interop Gateways is not supported.

Starting with Domino release 7.0, the default permissions set for the -Default- account on the access control list to the mailbox.ntf template do not include permission to replicate or copy documents. This permission is required when setting up the Interop Gateway. It can be granted either by adding the permission for the -Default- account, or by adding the UnityServers group that was created during Cisco Unity installation to the access control list, and granting permission to replicate or copy documents to the group. Refer to the applicable IBM Lotus documentation for information on adding this permission.


Caution The mail file used by the Interop Gateway can become quite large. We recommend that you monitor the mail file size and compact it as needed to prevent the mail file from consuming too much disk space. Refer to your Domino documentation for more information about compacting databases.

To Configure the Interop Gateway


Step 1 On the Cisco Unity server, browse to the directory in which Cisco Unity is installed (the default location is C:\CommServer).

Step 2 Double-click UnityDominoInterOpSetup.exe to run the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard.

Step 3 On the Welcome screen, click Next.

Step 4 On the Configure the Interop Gateway screen, click either Use a New Foreign Domain or Use an Existing Foreign Domain.

If you choose to use a new Foreign domain, in the text box, enter the domain name that will be used to route AMIS messages to the Interop Gateway mail file. For example, if "domain.com" is the domain name for your organization, you can enter voice.domain.com. The Interop Gateway Configuration wizard creates a new Foreign domain document with the specified name.

See the "Interop Gateway and AMIS Networking" section for more information on choosing a Foreign domain name.


Caution Changing the foreign domain name after the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard has been run is an involved process. Be very careful when entering the foreign domain name or choosing one from the list. See the "Changing the Interop Gateway Foreign Domain Name" section for more information.

If you chose to use an existing Foreign domain, click the Foreign domain name on the list.


Note The Foreign domain name must be a unique domain name in your Domino network, and it must be used exclusively by the Interop Gateway.


Step 5 Click Next to go to the Foreign Domain Mail Information screen. If you chose to use an existing Foreign domain, the mail file name and the Domino server on which the mail file resides are displayed. Verify the information, and skip to Step 6.

If you chose to create a new Foreign domain:

a. Click the down button for the Domino Server list and wait for the list to be populated with all of the Domino server names in your network. Choose the server on which the Interop Gateway mail file will be created. Although you can type in the server name, you must enter the server name by using the hierarchical naming format (for example "ServerName/Org").

b. In the Mail File Name field, enter the name of the mail file to be monitored by the Interop Gateway (for example, interop.nsf). The Interop Gateway Configuration wizard will create the mail file, so enter a file name that does not already exist.

Step 6 Click Next. Choose the Windows account that the Interop Gateway service will log on with. We recommend that you choose Local System. However, if you choose an existing Windows account, you will need to ensure that it has the same level of permissions as were set by the Permissions wizard during Cisco Unity setup for the directory and messaging services account.

Step 7 Click Next and review the summary information to verify that it is correct.

Step 8 Click Finish. The wizard configures and starts the Interop Gateway service on the Cisco Unity server. When the wizard finishes, a message box displays to let you know whether the configuration was successful.


Note If the system is using the Cisco Unity failover feature, you must run the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard first on the primary server and then on the secondary server. When you have finished configuring AMIS Networking on the primary Cisco Unity server, run the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard on the secondary server, and be sure to use the same Foreign domain that you specified above. (You will choose to use an existing Foreign domain.)



To Verify the Interop Gateway Configuration

Do the following procedure to verify that the Interop Gateway is configured properly, that the Interop Gateway service is running, and that the foreign domain document and mail file have been created.


Step 1 Open the Services MMC on the Cisco Unity server on which you ran the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard. (On the Windows Start menu, click Programs > Administrative Tools > Services.)

Step 2 Verify that the Status for the CsDomInteropGty service is Started, and that the Startup Type is set to Automatic.

Step 3 Exit the Services MMC.

Step 4 Open the Domino Administrator.

Step 5 Click the Configuration tab.

Step 6 In the left pane, expand Messaging, and click Domains.

Step 7 Verify that there is a foreign domain document with the name that you specified in the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard.

Step 8 Open the foreign domain document.


Caution Do not change any information in the Foreign Domain document. Instead, rerun the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard if you need to change information in the document.

Step 9 Click the Mail Information tab, and verify that the Gateway server name and Gateway mail file name fields contain the correct information.

Step 10 Close the foreign domain document, and exit Domino Administrator.

Step 11 On the applicable Domino server, open My Computer and browse to the Domino directory to verify that the Interop Gateway mail file was created.


Creating the UAmis Account

In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together via Digital Networking, ConfigMgr.exe, the utility that creates the UAmis account, needs to be run only on the Cisco Unity server(s) licensed for AMIS.

Note that the UAmis account can be removed just like any other Domino Person document, by using the Domino Administrator.

To Verify That Domino Will Allow Cisco Unity to Create a Mail File for the UAmis Account


Step 1 Open Domino Administrator.

Step 2 Click the Configuration tab.

Step 3 Open the Server document for the Domino server that was selected in the Message Store Configuration wizard during Cisco Unity setup.

Step 4 Click the Security tab, and scroll down to the Server Access section.

Step 5 If the Create Databases and Templates field is blank (which is the default), Cisco Unity will be allowed to create a mail file for the UAmis account. Close the Server document and skip to the next procedure, "To Create the UAmis Account."

Step 6 If the Create Databases and Templates field is not blank, click Edit Server.

Step 7 In the Create Databases and Templates field, click List to display the Select Names dialog box.

Step 8 Select the group that contains Person documents for all of the Cisco Unity servers.

Step 9 Click Add and then click OK.

Step 10 Click Save and Close. Continue with the next procedure, "To Create the UAmis Account."


To Create the UAmis Account


Step 1 On the Cisco Unity server, browse to the directory in which Cisco Unity is installed (the default location is C:\CommServer).

Step 2 Double-click ConfigMgr.exe. The ConfigMgr dialog box appears.

Step 3 Click Create AMIS Account.

Step 4 Click OK on the dialog box that displays when the UAmis account is successfully configured.

Step 5 Click Exit to close ConfigMgr.

Step 6 On the Cisco Unity server, start the Services tool. (On the Windows Start menu, click Programs > Administrative Tools > Services.)

Step 7 Right-click AvNotifierMgr, and select Restart. The CPU usage on the Cisco Unity server will spike for a few minutes while the AvNotifierMgr reinitializes connections with subscriber mailboxes.

Step 8 Close the Services tool.


To Verify That the UAmis Account Was Created

Note that the mail file for the UAmis account is located on the Domino server that was selected in the Message Store Configuration wizard during Cisco Unity setup.


Step 1 Open Domino Administrator.

Step 2 Click the People and Groups tab.

Step 3 Expand the tree in the left pane such that a list of people is displayed in the right pane.

Step 4 Verify that there is a Person document for Amis, Unity. (The first name is Unity, and the last name is Amis).

Step 5 Close Domino Administrator.

Step 6 On the applicable Domino server, open My Computer and browse to the directory that contains mail files.

Step 7 Verify that there is a mail file for UAmis_<ServerName>.

Step 8 Close My Computer.


Designating Voice Ports for Outbound AMIS Calls

In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together via Digital Networking, designate voice ports for AMIS calls only on those Cisco Unity server(s) licensed for AMIS. See the "Port Usage and Schedules" section for guidelines on configuring the ports.

To Designate Voice Ports for Outbound AMIS Calls


Step 1 In the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to the Systems > Ports page.

Step 2 Designate which ports to use for outgoing AMIS calls.

Step 3 Click the Save icon.


Setting AMIS Delivery Options

The AMIS delivery option settings control attributes of outgoing AMIS calls on the Cisco Unity server.

In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, set the AMIS delivery options only on those Cisco Unity server(s) licensed for AMIS.

To Set AMIS Delivery Options


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

Step 2 Select either the Default AMIS restriction table or another restriction table to use as the Local Dial Restriction Table.

The Local Dial Restriction Table and the AMIS schedule together determine when outgoing AMIS calls are made.

Step 3 Set the other AMIS delivery options as needed.

Step 4 Click the Save icon.


Customizing the AMIS Restriction Table

By default, the AMIS restriction table allows all delivery numbers; however, you can customize the restriction table as needed. The AMIS restriction table and the AMIS schedule together determine when outgoing AMIS calls are made. If a delivery number for an outgoing AMIS message is allowed by the AMIS restriction table, the message is sent immediately—the schedule settings do not apply. If the delivery number is not allowed by the AMIS restriction table, the schedule determines when the message is sent.

In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, customize the AMIS restriction table only on those Cisco Unity server(s) licensed for AMIS.

To Customize the AMIS Restriction Table


Step 1 In the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to any Call Management > Restriction Tables page.

Step 2 Click the Find icon.

Step 3 Double-click the AMIS restriction, which by default is named {Default AMIS}.

Note that the AMIS restriction table is specified on the Network > AMIS Options > Delivery Options page in the Local Dial Restriction Table field.

Step 4 As applicable for your installation, do one or more of the following:

To add a dial string, click Add Dial String and enter settings for the new dial string as applicable.

To delete a dial string, click the dial string number in the table at the bottom portion of the Restriction Tables page, and then click Remove Dial String.

To modify a dial string, click the dial string number in the table at the bottom portion of the Restriction Tables page, and change settings as applicable.

Step 5 Click the Save icon.


Setting Up the AMIS Schedule

Set up the AMIS schedule for messages that are not allowed by the AMIS restriction table.

In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, set up the AMIS schedule only on those Cisco Unity server(s) licensed for AMIS.

To Set Up the AMIS Schedule


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

Step 2 Click boxes on the schedule grid to set the active and inactive half hours. To avoid clicking the same blocks for more than one day, use the Copy Day's Schedule box to copy the settings from one day to other days.

Step 3 Click the Save icon.


Customizing the Primary Location

If your installation consists of multiple Cisco Unity servers networked via Digital Networking, you may have already customized the primary location. In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked via Digital Networking, you enter the AMIS node ID for the primary location only on the Cisco Unity bridgehead server (the field is displayed only on the Cisco Unity servers licensed for AMIS.)

For detailed information about the settings, see the "Primary Location Profile Settings" section on page 9-1.

To Customize the Primary Location


Step 1 In the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to the Network > Primary Location > Profile page.

Step 2 Enter a meaningful name for the location.

Step 3 Enter a Dial ID. The Dial ID identifies this location to Cisco Unity.

Step 4 Record a voice name for the location.

Step 5 For the Dialing Domain name:

If your installation consists of only one Cisco Unity server, and if you plan to enable identified subscriber messaging to include AMIS subscribers, enter a dialing domain name.

If your installation consists of multiple Cisco Unity servers networked via Digital Networking, and if this server is integrated with the same phone system as other networked Cisco Unity servers, you may have already added this server to a dialing domain. If not, enter the dialing domain name, or select it from the available list. The list contains names of dialing domain names already configured on at least one other Cisco Unity server in the network.

Note that the dialing domain name is case sensitive and must be entered exactly the same on all of the servers. To ensure that all servers are correctly added to the same dialing domain, enter the dialing domain name on one Cisco Unity server and wait for the name to replicate to the other Cisco Unity servers. By doing so, you also confirm that replication is working correctly among the servers. The time that it takes for the primary location data from other Cisco Unity servers to be reflected on the local server depends on your network configuration and replication schedule.

Step 6 Enter the numbers for the Node ID, which is transmitted by Cisco Unity to identify itself to other voice messaging systems during outgoing AMIS calls. If desired, the Country Code and Area Code fields may be left blank; however, the Phone Number field is mandatory.

Step 7 Click the Save icon.


Creating AMIS Delivery Locations

Create an AMIS delivery location on the bridgehead Cisco Unity server for each remote voice messaging system to which subscribers will send messages. If Cisco Unity will be messaging with a large number of voice messaging systems, you may prefer to configure only a few delivery locations at this time and proceed with the rest of the setup. After verifying that messaging works correctly between Cisco Unity and the voice messaging systems for which delivery locations have been configured, you can create the rest of the delivery locations.

For detailed information about the AMIS delivery location settings, see the "AMIS Delivery Location Profile Settings" section. Carefully consider the Dial ID that you will assign to the delivery location. See the "Guidelines for Assigning Dial IDs and Extensions" section on page 9-2 for detailed information about choosing a Dial ID.

You can create AMIS delivery locations by using the Cisco Unity Administrator or the Cisco Unity Bulk Location Import wizard. See the following sections:

Using the Cisco Unity Administrator to Create AMIS Delivery Locations

Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard to Create AMIS Delivery Locations

Modifying Existing Delivery Locations by Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard

Using the Cisco Unity Administrator to Create AMIS Delivery Locations

You can create AMIS delivery locations one at a time by using the Cisco Unity Administrator.

To Create AMIS Delivery Locations by Using the Cisco Unity Administrator


Step 1 In the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to the Network > Delivery Locations > Profile page.

Step 2 Click the Add icon.

Step 3 Enter a meaningful name for the location.

Step 4 Enter the Dial ID. See the "Guidelines for Assigning Dial IDs and Extensions" section on page 9-2 for detailed information about choosing a Dial ID.

Step 5 Select AMIS as the Destination Type for the location.

Step 6 Click Add.

Step 7 Record a voice name for the location.

Step 8 Enter the Delivery Phone Number. This is the number that Cisco Unity dials to connect to the remote voice messaging system for outgoing AMIS messages.

Step 9 Enter the numbers for the Node ID, which is used to identify the remote voice messaging system that corresponds to this delivery location. This Node ID must match the Node ID that the corresponding remote voice messaging system transmits during incoming calls. If desired, the Country Code and Area Code fields may be left blank; however, the Phone Number field is mandatory.

Step 10 Click the Save icon.


Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard to Create AMIS Delivery Locations

The Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard allows you to create or modify multiple delivery locations at once by importing data in a CSV file. If you have already created delivery locations, you can run Cisco Unity Bulk Import to export the data about the delivery locations to a CSV file.

Use the following procedure to prepare your CSV file. To learn more about preparing a CSV file for use with the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard—including information on the required and optional column headers for your CSV file—refer to the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard Help.

To Prepare a CSV File for Creating AMIS Delivery Locations


Step 1 Create a CSV file in a spreadsheet application (or another applicable application) on the Cisco Unity server, or in a directory that you can browse to from the server.

Step 2 Enter the required column headers in the first row. Column headers must be in uppercase, separated by commas, and spelled as indicated below:

DTMF_ACCESS_ID, DISPLAY_NAME, DELIVERY_PHONE_NUMBER

Step 3 If desired, add optional column headers to the first row. Be sure to separate the column headers with commas.

Although the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard does not require that you provide the AMIS_NODE_ID column in the CSV file, we recommend that you add the column with the Node ID data to the CSV file.

Step 4 Add the data for the delivery locations in the subsequent rows. When finished:

Confirm that each row contains the applicable data corresponding to each column header.

Confirm that the data is separated by commas, and that no tabs, spaces, or semicolons separate the data in the file.

If any data includes a space, quotes, or commas, contain it within quotes.

Note that each row does not have to contain data in the optional columns.

Step 5 Save the file as a CSV file.

Step 6 Continue with the "To Create AMIS Delivery Locations by Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard" procedure.


To Create AMIS Delivery Locations by Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard


Step 1 Before you run the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard, disable virus-scanning services and intrusion-detection software on the Cisco Unity server, if applicable. Otherwise, the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard may run slowly.

Step 2 On the Cisco Unity server, on the Windows Start menu, click Programs > Cisco Unity > Cisco Unity Bulk Import.

Step 3 On the Welcome page, click Next.

Step 4 On the Select Import Operation, in the Locations section, click CSV File, and then click Next.

Step 5 On the Select Location Operation page, click Create New Locations, and then click Next.

Step 6 On the Type of Locations page, click AMIS, and then click Next.

Step 7 On the Files page, specify the name and location of the input file.

Step 8 Specify the name and location of the output file, or use the default location and file name, which is based on the input file. For example, if the input file is C:\Temp\AMIS_Locations.csv, the default output file will be C:\Temp\AMIS_Locations.out.csv.

Step 9 Click Next to proceed to the Valid Location Data page, which displays a table with validated rows of data from the input CSV file. If you do not want to import a row of data, uncheck the check box in the first column of the row.

If errors were found in any of the rows, you can click the Errors link at the bottom of the page to open the output CSV file to correct the errors, or you can ignore the errors for now and proceed with the import.

Step 10 Click Next to start the import process and display the Creating Locations page, which provides status information about the import.

Step 11 When the delivery locations are created, click Next to display the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard Finished page, which displays summary information.

Step 12 If you had import errors, continue with the "To Correct Errors That Occurred When Importing Delivery Location Data from a CSV File" procedure.


To Correct Errors That Occurred When Importing Delivery Location Data from a CSV File


Step 1 Browse to the directory location of the output file that you specified during the import. (The default location and file name is based on the input file. For example, if the input file is C:\Temp\AMIS_Locations.csv, the default output file will be C:\Temp\AMIS_Locations.out.csv.)

This file contains all of the records that were not imported.

Step 2 Use a text editor to open the output file.

Step 3 Correct any records in the output file by using the error information listed in the Results column of the file.

Step 4 When you have finished editing the output file, save it as a CSV file with a new name.

Step 5 Run the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard again with the new CSV file.

Step 6 Repeat this procedure until all delivery locations are created without error.


Modifying Existing Delivery Locations by Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard

If you want to use the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard to make modifications to existing delivery locations, you will need to create a CSV file for the modifications. We recommend that you run the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard to export your existing delivery location data to a CSV file, and then edit the CSV file to use for the modification.

Note that the DTMF_ACCESS_ID column is used as the primary key to find the existing delivery location, and therefore it cannot be modified by the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard.

Creating AMIS Subscribers

You may prefer to begin by creating only a few AMIS subscribers for testing purposes, until you verify that Cisco Unity and the remote system can successfully exchange messages. After you have confirmed that messaging between Cisco Unity and the remote system is working correctly, you can finish creating the AMIS subscribers. Note that the AMIS subscribers must be created on the same Cisco Unity server as the AMIS delivery locations.

You can create AMIS subscriber accounts by using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard or the Cisco Unity Administrator. See the following sections:

Before Creating Subscriber Accounts

Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard to Create Multiple Subscriber Accounts

Using the Cisco Unity Administrator to Create AMIS Subscriber Accounts

After Creating Subscriber Accounts

Before Creating Subscriber Accounts

This section lists—in order—the issues that you must consider before creating subscriber accounts. AMIS subscribers can be created only on a Cisco Unity bridgehead server. Do the following tasks on the Cisco Unity bridgehead server where you will be adding the AMIS subscribers.

1. Cisco Unity Configuration and Permissions

If you are unsure whether the account that you are using has sufficient rights and permissions to create subscribers, or whether Cisco Unity is properly configured to work with your message store, use the following "To Check Cisco Unity Setup and Permissions by Using the Cisco Unity SysCheck Tool" procedure.

To Check Cisco Unity Setup and Permissions by Using the Cisco Unity SysCheck Tool


Step 1 On the Cisco Unity server desktop, double-click the Cisco Unity Tools Depot icon.

Step 2 In the left pane of the Tools Depot window, in the Diagnostic Tools directory, double-click SysCheck.

Step 3 On the Welcome to the Cisco Unity Configuration Wizard page, click Select Configuration Tests, and click Next.

Step 4 Uncheck the boxes for the message stores that are not connected to Cisco Unity.

Step 5 Click Test.

Step 6 In the Test Results box, click the link provided to view the test results.

Step 7 If no errors are reported, proceed to Step 8. Otherwise, do the following sub-steps:

a. Follow the advice offered in the Resolution column to correct each configuration or permissions error.

b. Return to the Completing the Check Unity Configuration Wizard page, and click Finish.

c. Repeat Step 2 through Step 7 until no errors are reported.

Step 8 Click Finish.


2. Classes of Service

A class of service (COS) defines limits and permissions for subscribers who use Cisco Unity. For example, a COS dictates the maximum length of subscriber messages and greetings. Although most COS settings are not applicable to AMIS subscribers, they still must be members of a COS. In the Cisco Unity Administrator, a COS is specified in each subscriber template; thus, a subscriber is assigned to the COS that is specified in the template upon which the subscriber account is based. Cisco Unity includes predefined classes of service, which you can modify. You can also create new classes of service. For details, see the "Class of Service Settings" chapter in the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide.

3. Restriction Tables

Each COS specifies a restriction table for call transfers, one for message notification, and one for fax deliveries. Cisco Unity applies the restriction table associated with the COS of a subscriber, and displays an error message if the phone number is not allowed. Cisco Unity comes with predefined restriction tables, which you can modify.

Although most restriction table settings do not apply to AMIS subscribers because they cannot log on to Cisco Unity or use the Cisco Personal Communications Assistant (PCA), administrators can enter call transfer numbers for AMIS subscribers. For security purposes, you should modify the restriction table used for transfers in the COS to which AMIS subscribers belong, as necessary. For details, see the "Restriction Tables" chapter in the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide.

4. Public Distribution Lists

Public distribution lists are used to send voice messages to multiple subscribers at the same time. Cisco Unity assigns new subscribers to the public distribution lists that are specified in the template on which the subscriber account is based. For details, see the "Public Distribution List Settings" chapter in the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide.

Public distribution lists correspond to groups in Domino and are listed in the Notes address book. To help prevent others from sending e-mail to AMIS subscribers, you may want to create lists that contain only AMIS subscribers, and add text similar to "Voice Mail Only" to the list names. Additionally, you may also want to exclude AMIS subscribers from the All Subscribers distribution list or any other distribution list that contains regular subscribers.

5. Subscriber Templates

In the Cisco Unity Administrator, you can specify settings for a group of subscribers by using a subscriber template. Subscriber templates contain settings that are applicable for subscribers of a particular type, such as a department. The settings from the template you choose are applied to subscriber accounts as the accounts are created. Cisco Unity comes with a default subscriber template, which you can modify, and you can create an unlimited number of additional templates. For more details, see the "Subscriber Template Settings" chapter in the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide.

AMIS subscribers have corresponding Domino Person documents that have "Other Internet Mail" set in the Mail System field, and they are listed in the Notes address book. To help prevent others from sending e-mail to AMIS subscribers, you may want to add text similar to "Voice Mail Only" to the AMIS subscriber names.


Note The Cisco Unity System Administration Guide is available at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_administration_guide_book09186a008043ea45.html.


Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard to Create Multiple Subscriber Accounts

The Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard allows you to create multiple subscriber accounts at once by importing user data from a comma-separated value (CSV) file. CSV is a common text file format for moving data from one data store to another.

As long as user data contained in the CSV file is formatted correctly, you can use it to create new Person documents at the same time that you create subscriber accounts. (A corresponding Person document that has "Other Internet Mail" set in the Mail System field is created in the Domino directory.) Alternatively, the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard allows you to use a CSV file to create subscriber accounts with data on existing Person documents that have "Other Internet Mail" set in the Mail System field.

If you choose to create subscriber accounts with existing Person document data, note that the Forwarding address field in the Person documents for the imported users is overwritten with the extension address used for addressing voice messages to the remote voice messaging systems. Thus, the imported objects can no longer be used for outbound message addressing to remote e-mail addresses.

Use the following procedure to prepare your CSV file.

To learn more about preparing a CSV file for use with the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard—including information on the required and optional column headers for your CSV file—refer to Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard Help.

To Prepare a CSV File for Creating AMIS Subscriber Accounts


Step 1 Save the data which you will use to create Cisco Unity accounts as a CSV file.

As a best practice, do not include more than 7,500 records in a single CSV file, as you may encounter unexpected results when the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard imports the data.

Step 2 Copy the CSV file to the Cisco Unity bridgehead server or to a directory that you can browse to from the server.

Step 3 Open the CSV file in a spreadsheet application or another application with which you can edit and reorganize the data. Do the following:

Confirm that the data is separated by commas, and no tabs, spaces, or semicolons separate the data in the file.

If any data includes a space, quotes, or commas, contain the characters within quotes.

Step 4 Rearrange the data so that the columns are in the same order as the column headers that you will add in Step 5. The order of the column headers does not matter, though it is good practice to set up your CSV file as indicated here. For example, the columns of data in this sample are sorted so that the last name of the user is followed by the first name, the short name, the extension (DTMF_ACCESS_ID), and then by the remote mailbox number (REMOTE_USER_ID):

Abade,Alex,aabade,2001,3000
Bader,Kelly,kbader,2002,3100
Campbell,Terry,tcampbell,2003,3200
Cho,Li,lcho,2004,3300

Step 5 Enter the required column headers above the first row of data. Column headers must be in uppercase, separated by commas, and spelled as indicated below:

LAST_NAME,FIRST_NAME,SHORT_NAME,DTMF_ACCESS_ID,REMOTE_USER_ID


Note The examples in this procedure illustrate how to set up a CSV file so that the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard creates subscriber accounts and new Person documents at the same time. If you choose to create new subscriber accounts with existing Person document data, you must remove the LAST_NAME and FIRST_NAME column headers and data in your CSV file.


Step 6 If desired, add optional column headers to the first row, and the corresponding data that you want to import in the subsequent rows below. As you do so, confirm that:

Column headers and data are separated by commas. Note that every row does not have to contain data for any optional column header(s).

Any data that includes a space, quotes, or commas is contained within quotes.

Step 7 To associate the AMIS subscribers in the CSV file with a delivery location, you can either choose from the list of defined delivery locations presented by the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard during the import, or you can add the DELIVERY_LOCATION_ID column to the CSV file.

The DELIVERY_LOCATION_ID column contains the dial ID of a delivery location with which the external subscriber will be associated. This value corresponds to the Dial ID field on the Network > Delivery Locations > Profile Page in the Cisco Unity Administrator. If this column header is omitted, or if a row does not contain a value, the delivery location that the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard prompts for is used as a default. You can import external subscribers for multiple delivery locations by using one CSV file.

Step 8 If your CSV file contains columns of data that you do not want to import, delete the columns. Alternatively, you can title one column NOTES. The Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard ignores data beneath any NOTES column header, but the wizard does not support more than one NOTES column in a CSV file.

Step 9 Confirm that each row contains the appropriate data corresponding to each column header.

Step 10 Save the file as a CSV file.

Step 11 Continue with the following "To Create AMIS Subscriber Accounts by Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard" procedure.


To Create AMIS Subscriber Accounts by Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard


Step 1 Disable virus-scanning services and intrusion-detection software on the bridgehead Cisco Unity server, if applicable. Otherwise, the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard may run slowly. Refer to Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard Help for procedures.

Step 2 On the bridgehead Cisco Unity server, on the Windows Start menu, click Programs > Cisco Unity > Cisco Unity Bulk Import.

Step 3 Follow the on-screen instructions.

To learn more about the options presented in the dialog boxes that appear as the wizard proceeds, click Help.

Step 4 When prompted to choose the type of subscriber that you want to create, click AMIS.

Step 5 Click Next, and proceed through the wizard. If the wizard reports any errors, you can:

Click OK to continue with the import, and fix the errors later.

Fix the errors. See the "Correcting CSV Import Errors" section for details.

Step 6 When the subscriber accounts are created, click Finish.

Step 7 If you had import errors, but in Step 5 you chose to correct them later, see the "Correcting CSV Import Errors" section.

If you had no import errors, or if all errors have now been corrected, see the "After Creating Subscriber Accounts" section.


Correcting CSV Import Errors

The error log file contains data that the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard could not import. The wizard reports the first error it detects in a row in a CSV file. When you have corrected that error, the wizard may detect additional errors in the same row when the data is imported again. Thus, you may need to repeat the correction process—running the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard and correcting an error—several times to find and correct all errors.

The output log file contains all the records that were not imported. You can save it as a CSV file, and use it when you run the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard again. Note that each time you run the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard, the error and output log files are overwritten (unless you specify new names for the files).

To correct import errors, use the following procedure.

To Correct Errors That Occurred When Importing Data from a CSV File


Step 1 Browse to the directory that contains the error log file you specified during the import. (The default location and file name is C:\Error.log.)

Step 2 Use a text editor to open the error log file. You will use the error codes in the file to make corrections.

Step 3 Browse to the directory location of the output log file you specified during the import. (The default location and file name is C:\Output.log.)

Step 4 Use a text editor to open the output log file.

Step 5 Correct any records in the output file that are listed as errors in the error log file.

Step 6 When you have finished editing the output log file, save it as a CSV file with a new name.

Step 7 Run the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard again with the CSV file that you saved in Step 6.

Step 8 Repeat this procedure until all subscriber accounts are created without error, and then proceed to the "After Creating Subscriber Accounts" section.


Using the Cisco Unity Administrator to Create AMIS Subscriber Accounts

By using the Cisco Unity Administrator, you can create AMIS subscriber accounts one at a time. When you add a new AMIS subscriber account, a corresponding Person document that has "Other Internet Mail" set in the Mail System field is created in the Domino directory.

To create an AMIS subscriber account, do the following procedure.

To Add a New AMIS Subscriber by Using the Cisco Unity Administrator


Step 1 In the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to the Subscribers > Subscribers > Profile page.

Step 2 Click the Add icon.

Step 3 Click New and select AMIS from the list.

Step 4 Enter the First Name and Last Name.

Step 5 Enter the Extension of the AMIS subscriber on Cisco Unity. This is the number that Cisco Unity subscribers use when addressing a message to this AMIS subscriber.

Step 6 Select the Subscriber Template to use.

Step 7 Enter the Remote Mailbox Number, which is the number that the remote voice messaging system uses to route messages to this AMIS subscriber.

Step 8 Select the Delivery Location with which the subscriber is associated.

Step 9 Click Add.

Step 10 On the subscriber record, customize settings as applicable, and then click the Save icon.


After Creating Subscriber Accounts

After creating AMIS subscriber accounts, consider the following:

It takes a few minutes for the newly-created subscriber account to be available to receive messages.

You can make changes to subscriber settings for individual accounts in the Cisco Unity Administrator. For details, see the "Subscriber Settings" chapter in the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide. The guide is available at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_administration_guide_book09186a008043ea45.html.

When you want to modify unique subscriber settings—such as primary or alternate extensions—for multiple subscribers at once, you can (re)run the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard. To learn more, refer to Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard Help.

When a subscriber leaves the organization or otherwise no longer needs a Cisco Unity account, you can delete the subscriber account.

See the "Deleting AMIS Subscribers" section for details.

Extending Identified Subscriber Messaging to Include AMIS Subscribers

When a person on a remote voice messaging system who has a corresponding AMIS subscriber account calls a Cisco Unity subscriber and leaves a message, by default Cisco Unity will not identify the message as being from the AMIS subscriber. For Cisco Unity to identify callers whose calling number matches the extension or alternate extension of an AMIS subscriber, identified subscriber messaging (ISM) must be extended to include AMIS subscribers. See the following sections as applicable to your installation.

Installations with Multiple Cisco Unity Servers Networked via Digital Networking

Single-Server Installations

Installations with Multiple Cisco Unity Servers Networked via Digital Networking

In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked via Digital Networking, enabling ISM to include AMIS subscribers requires the following:

1. The Cisco Unity servers must be connected to the same phone system or phone system network as described in the "Dialing Domains" section.

2. The servers must be configured to be in the same dialing domain, as described in the "Customizing the Primary Location" section.

3. The automated attendant search scope on each server must be set to the dialing domain as described in the "Setting the Automated Attendant Search Scope" section.

4. Identified subscriber messaging on each server must be enabled as described in the "Enabling Identified Subscriber Messaging" section.

5. Identified subscriber messaging on each server must be extended for AMIS subscribers as described in the "Extending Identified Subscriber Messaging" section.

Single-Server Installations

In installations with only one Cisco Unity server, enabling ISM to include AMIS subscribers requires the following:

1. The server must be configured with a dialing domain name, as described in the "Customizing the Primary Location" section.

2. Identified subscriber messaging must be enabled as described in the "Enabling Identified Subscriber Messaging" section.

3. Identified subscriber messaging must be extended for AMIS subscribers as described in the "Extending Identified Subscriber Messaging" section.

Enabling Identified Subscriber Messaging


Note If the system is using failover, you must make this change on both the primary and secondary servers, because the setting is stored in the registry.


To Enable Identified Subscriber Messaging


Step 1 In the Cisco Unity Administrator, go to the System > Configuration Settings page.

Step 2 In the Identified Subscriber Messaging section, uncheck the Subscribers Are Identified as Message Senders Only If They Log On check box.

Identified subscriber messaging for subscribers on the same Cisco Unity server is enabled when the check box is unchecked. By default, the box is unchecked.

Step 3 Click the Save icon.


Extending Identified Subscriber Messaging

After identified subscriber messaging has been enabled, you must extend it to include AMIS subscribers.

To Extend Identified Messaging


Step 1 On the Cisco Unity server desktop, double-click the Cisco Unity Tools Depot icon.

Step 2 In the left pane, under Administrative Tools, double-click Advanced Settings Tool.

Step 3 In the Unity Settings pane, click Networking - Enable Identified Subscriber Messaging (ISM) for AMIS, Bridge, and VPIM Subscribers.

Step 4 In the New Value list, click 1, then click Set.

Step 5 When prompted, click OK.

Step 6 Click Exit.

Step 7 Restart Cisco Unity for the registry setting to take effect.


AMIS Concepts and Definitions

The following sections explain AMIS concepts in detail:

Introduction to AMIS

Port Usage and Schedules

UAmis Account

Interop Gateway and AMIS Networking

Locations and AMIS Networking

Message Addressing Options

Blind Addressing and AMIS Networking

AMIS Subscribers

Identified Subscriber Messaging

Live Reply to AMIS Subscribers

Deleting AMIS Subscribers

Extension Addresses

Migrating Subscribers from Another Voice Messaging System to Cisco Unity

Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers

Introduction to AMIS

In AMIS terminology, Cisco Unity and the other voice messaging systems that it communicates with are called nodes. Each node is assigned a unique ID, referred to as a Node ID. The node that places an AMIS call and delivers messages is called the originating node. The node that answers the AMIS call and receives messages is called the destination node. If a particular system acts as both an originating node and a destination node, its Node ID is the same for both functions. AMIS nodes correspond to locations in Cisco Unity.

The Cisco Unity subscribers and the users on the other voice messaging systems are identified by mailbox numbers. On Cisco Unity, the mailbox number for a subscriber is the same as the subscriber extension.

Voice messages are transmitted between nodes by using ordinary phone connections. When one node calls another by dialing a specified delivery phone number, the originating node transmits its Node ID by using a sequence of touchtones. If the destination node accepts the call, the originating node transmits each voice message by using analog playback, and the destination node records each message and delivers it to the applicable mailbox. For detailed information about the touchtones that are transmitted during an AMIS call, see the White Paper: AMIS Analog Networking Definitions, at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_white_paper09186a00800875e3.shtml.

In compliance with the AMIS protocol, Cisco Unity batches outgoing messages by node, with a maximum of 9 messages per batch. If there are more than 9 messages for a particular node, Cisco Unity ends the AMIS session after sending the ninth message, hangs up for a brief period of time, and then redials the node to send the next batch of messages.

The AMIS protocol specifies that a message be a maximum of eight minutes long. During an AMIS transmission, before playing a message, the originating node sends the destination node the length of the message. If the message is too long, the destination node may refuse the message and skip to the next message. However, some voice messaging systems will accept longer messages. If the voice messaging system refuses the message, a non-delivery receipt (NDR) is returned to the sender. If a subscriber sends a message that is longer than eight minutes, Cisco Unity will attempt to transmit it. In addition, Cisco Unity may accept messages longer than eight minutes. For each incoming message, Cisco Unity checks the space available in the subscriber mailbox and the Maximum Message Length setting on the Subscriber > Messages page to determine whether to accept the message.

Incoming AMIS messages to Cisco Unity are delivered to subscriber mailboxes only, and cannot be delivered to public distribution lists. Additionally, incoming messages must be addressed to the primary extension of the subscriber; messages addressed to an alternate extension will not be delivered. See the "Inbound Messages Are Delivered Only to Primary Extensions" section for additional information.

Note that for incoming AMIS calls, the initial "handshake" between the originating system and Cisco Unity must take place in a call handler, such as the Opening Greeting call handler. For AMIS Networking to be properly configured, you need to ensure that all incoming AMIS calls are routed to a call handler. When Cisco Unity is initially installed, the default setting is for the call routing table to route calls to the Opening Greeting call handler; thus it is properly configured for AMIS Networking. If the call routing table has been modified after installation, you need to make sure that a rule is in place in your call routing table to route any incoming AMIS calls to a call handler.

Port Usage and Schedules

In the Cisco Unity Telephony Integration Manager (UTIM) and in the Cisco Unity Administrator on the System > Ports page, you can designate which ports on your system are used for outgoing AMIS calls. All ports are used for incoming AMIS calls.

AMIS transmissions can be lengthy and thus tie up ports on your Cisco Unity server. For example, 10 hours of AMIS messages take at least 10 hours of port time to transmit. A 2-minute message sent to a public distribution list that contains 200 AMIS recipients results in 200 messages in the outbound queue, and would require at least 6.5 hours of port time to transmit.

When multiple ports have been designated for outgoing AMIS messages, Cisco Unity uses all designated ports as message traffic warrants. The total number of ports used is limited by the availability of ports that have been designated for outgoing AMIS calls. For example, if there are 10 ports available for outgoing AMIS messages, and 10 hours of messages to deliver, all 10 ports are used for message delivery, and the time to transmit all of the messages will be about one hour plus the time it takes to place the calls and establish the AMIS sessions.

Outbound messages are sorted according to their destination, and then batched into groups of 9. If there are multiple destinations, multiple ports are used to transmit the messages. If there are numerous messages to one destination, each batch of messages (with a maximum of 9 per batch) is transmitted on a different port, if one is available. In other words, if you have multiple ports designated for AMIS message delivery, multiple ports will be used to handle the messages to a single node, as needed. As the number of messages for a particular node increases, an additional port is added when the number of outgoing messages reaches a multiple of 9. For example, one port will be used for message delivery if there are 9 or fewer messages to a node. For 10-18 messages, two ports will be used. For 19-27 messages, three ports will be used, and so on.

After a port starts an AMIS session, it continues sending messages as long as there are messages to be sent. The only time a port disconnects is when there are no more outgoing messages, or after it sends the ninth message to the same node. In this case, the port disconnects briefly, and then continues sending messages if there are more messages that need to be sent.

Because the transmission of outgoing AMIS messages can tie up voice ports for long periods of time, you may want to adjust the schedule so that outgoing AMIS calls are placed during closed hours or at times when Cisco Unity is not processing many calls. Additionally, if most or all of your AMIS delivery numbers are long distance, you may want to schedule the outgoing AMIS calls when the long distance phone rates are lower. Keep in mind, however, that outgoing messages are queued up in the UAmis mail file, so there must be sufficient storage available if you restrict the delivery window.

You can override the AMIS schedule so that messages marked urgent are sent immediately. Additionally, by setting up a restriction table, you can specify which delivery numbers are sent immediately and which numbers must wait for the AMIS schedule to become active.

If you adjust the AMIS schedule so that outgoing AMIS calls are made only after normal business hours, be sure to inform subscribers. They may choose to contact users on the other voice messaging system directly, or send e-mail, rather than send a voice message that will not be delivered immediately.

If your schedule is such that outbound AMIS calls are placed during normal business hours or when call volumes are heavy, you may want to dedicate certain ports exclusively for incoming calls and other ports exclusively for TRAP. By excluding AMIS outbound calls from those ports, you make sure that there are ports available for calls of a time-sensitive nature. Use the Ports Usage Analyzer, available in Tools Depot, to monitor traffic for a few days and then adjust the ports as needed.

When Cisco Unity has an outbound AMIS call to make, it searches backwards for a port to use, starting with the last port (which is the highest numbered port), until it finds an available port that is configured for outbound AMIS calls. In dual-switch integrations, Cisco Unity starts the search for an available port with the last port in the last integration (again, this is the highest numbered port).

In organizations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, you can set up a "bridgehead" Cisco Unity server to handle all AMIS calls—both inbound and outbound—for all of the Cisco Unity servers in the network. This way, the ports on just one Cisco Unity server are used for AMIS messages.

For additional information, see the following:

UAmis Account

Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers

AMIS Delivery Options Settings

AMIS Schedule Settings

Also see the "Voice Messaging Port Settings" section in the "System Settings" chapter of the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide. (The guide is available at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_administration_guide_book09186a008043ea45.html.)

UAmis Account

Outgoing AMIS messages are placed in a special Domino mail file called UAmis_<Server name>. Before AMIS messages can be transmitted, you must create the UAmis account (see the "Creating the UAmis Account" section).

The mail file for the UAmis account is located on the Domino server that was selected in the Message Store Configuration wizard during Cisco Unity setup.

Although you can set a database quota on the UAmis mail file, and restrict mail routing based on the quota, do so with caution. If the UAmis mail file exceeds the quota, subsequent outgoing messages cannot be delivered, and the sender receives a delivery failure.

Consider the following when determining whether a database quota should be set on the UAmis mail file:

If the AMIS dialing restrictions and schedule are configured such that AMIS messages are delivered only during specified periods of the day, messages are queued up in the UAmis mail file. The database quota must be high enough to store all AMIS messages during the non-delivery periods.

There could be times during the day when the number of AMIS messages spikes. The database quota must be high enough to handle this.

If hard disk space on the Domino server is limited, you may want to set a database quota to ensure that available space is not exceeded.

You may want to monitor the outgoing AMIS message traffic by running the AMIS Out Traffic Report before setting a database quota on the UAmis mail file. For more information, see the "AMIS Out Traffic Report" section in the "Reports" chapter of the Cisco Unity Maintenance Guide. (The guide is available at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_maintenance_guide_book09186a008043ea50.html.)

The UAmis mail file can be moved and deleted just like any other Domino mail file, by using the Domino Administrator. Be sure to let anyone who administers Domino know about the UAmis account so that it is not moved or deleted by mistake.

For information on moving the UAmis mail file, see the "UAmis Mail File" section in the "Cisco Unity Data and Log Files" chapter of the Cisco Unity Maintenance Guide, at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_maintenance_guide_book09186a008043ea50.html.

Messages are sent from the UAmis mail file at one or more of the following times:

When a message is marked urgent, and the AMIS delivery option settings allow urgent messages to be sent immediately.

When the AMIS restriction table allows the delivery number of a message.

When the AMIS schedule becomes active.

When AMIS messages are sent, Cisco Unity follows the AMIS protocol. It batches the outgoing messages by destination, with a maximum of nine messages per batch. If there are more than nine messages for a particular destination, Cisco Unity ends the AMIS session after sending the ninth message, hangs up for a brief period of time, and then redials the delivery number to send the next batch of messages. Messages that have not been sent when the schedule becomes inactive remain in the UAmis mail file until the schedule becomes active again. An error is logged in the Windows Application Event log when messages remain in the UAmis mail file for more than 24 hours. See the "Maintenance" section for information about monitoring the UAmis mail file.

In organizations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, the UAmis account needs to be created only on those Cisco Unity servers that will place and receive AMIS calls. See the "Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers" section for more information.

Interop Gateway and AMIS Networking

The Interop Gateway for Domino is a Cisco Unity service (called CsDomInteropGty) that enables messaging between Cisco Unity and other voice messaging systems. The Interop Gateway files are copied to the Cisco Unity server during setup; however, the Interop Gateway is not installed as a service until you run the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard when configuring Cisco Unity for AMIS Networking. The Interop Gateway Configuration wizard configures and starts the service. In the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard, you specify a Domino Foreign domain name (for example, "voicemail.domain.com") and mail file that AMIS messages will be routed through.

When subscribers use the phone to address a message to an AMIS recipient, Cisco Unity constructs a "to" address in the form AMIS:<Location Dial ID>_<Remote Mailbox>@<ForeignDomain> for the message. Domino routes the message to the mail file that you specified in the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard. The Interop Gateway monitors this mail file. For an outbound message to an AMIS recipient, the Interop Gateway sets some message properties and delivers the message to the UAmis mail file. For installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers licensed for AMIS, the Interop Gateway delivers the message to the UAmis mail file associated with the Cisco Unity server on which the AMIS location or AMIS subscriber was created.

Incoming AMIS voice messages received by the Cisco Unity AMIS bridgehead are routed to the Interop Gateway mail file for processing, after which the Interop Gateway sends the message back to Domino, which routes it to the subscriber mail file.

Choosing the Interop Gateway Foreign Domain Name

The Foreign domain name to be used by the Interop Gateway can be whatever you would like it to be. If desired, you can use a name that follows the format <Name>.<DomainName>, where <Name> is a descriptive term and <DomainName> is the domain name of your organization, for example, UnityAMIS.mydomain.com. With AMIS Networking, the foreign domain name is only used by Cisco Unity and Domino, so following the <Name>.<DomainName> convention is not as important as it is when using the Bridge and VPIM Networking options. (With the Bridge and VPIM Networking options, incoming SMTP messages are addressed by using the foreign domain name.) If you will be using either the Bridge or VPIM Networking options in addition to AMIS, as a best practice, we recommend that you follow the <Name>.<DomainName> convention.

The Foreign domain name must be unique, meaning there can be no other Domain documents in Domino that have a domain name that matches what you choose for the Interop Gateway Foreign domain name. Additionally, the Foreign domain must not be used by any other program, such as a fax server. (Typically, fax servers use Foreign domains for processing and routing faxes.)

See the "Configuring the Interop Gateway" section for information on running the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard.

Locations and AMIS Networking

Central to how you set up AMIS is a Cisco Unity object called a location. Each Cisco Unity server is associated with one location referred to as the default or primary location, which is created during installation and which cannot be deleted. When setting up AMIS, you give the primary location a new name and a Dial ID (which is an identifier for the location within Cisco Unity), enter the AMIS Node ID, and customize other properties as applicable. The AMIS Node ID on the primary location is transmitted on all outgoing AMIS calls and identifies your Cisco Unity system to the destination nodes. See the "Primary Location Profile Settings" section on page 9-1 for details about the settings.

You create a delivery location in Cisco Unity to correspond to each remote voice messaging system with which Cisco Unity communicates. Delivery locations contain the information that Cisco Unity needs to exchange messages with other nodes—the Delivery Phone Number and the AMIS Node ID. See the "AMIS Delivery Location Profile Settings" section for details about the settings.

In organizations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, the delivery locations should be created only on those Cisco Unity servers that are licensed for AMIS. See the "Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers" section for more information.

Message Addressing Options

Cisco Unity provides the following message addressing options:

Blind addressing—Allows Cisco Unity subscribers to send messages to subscribers on the remote voice messaging system even though the recipient mailbox number, name, and recorded name are not in the directory. Even though Cisco Unity cannot provide voice name confirmation (hence the term "blind addressing"), the message is addressed and sent. See the "Blind Addressing and AMIS Networking" section for more information.

AMIS subscribers—Allows Cisco Unity subscribers to get voice name confirmation when addressing messages to subscribers on the remote voice messaging system. AMIS subscribers are a representation in Cisco Unity of the subscribers on the remote messaging system. AMIS subscribers are created in Cisco Unity to enable Cisco Unity subscribers to find them in the directory and send them messages as they would with any other subscriber. See the "AMIS Subscribers" section for more information.

Message Addressing Limitations

Subscribers can use the Cisco Unity phone conversation (also known as the telephone user interface, or TUI) or the DUC-enabled Notes client to reply to and forward AMIS messages just as they do with regular voice messages. However, when sending or retrieving AMIS messages, subscribers will encounter the following limitations:

AMIS messages marked urgent when they are sent are not marked urgent when they are retrieved by the recipient.

AMIS messages marked private when they are sent are not marked private when they are retrieved by the recipient.

Requests for return receipts on AMIS messages are not honored.

E-mail messages cannot be sent to AMIS recipients even though subscribers can address them via the Notes client. Instead of being delivered, e-mail messages sent to AMIS recipients are returned to the sender as NDRs.

Blind Addressing and AMIS Networking

AMIS blind addressing is one of the methods that Cisco Unity provides for addressing AMIS messages to users of another voice messaging system. Blind addressing allows Cisco Unity subscribers to send messages to subscribers on the remote voice messaging system even though the recipient mailbox number, name, and recorded name are not in the directory. Even though Cisco Unity cannot provide voice name confirmation (hence the term "blind addressing"), the message is addressed and sent.

One of the steps to setting up blind addressing is adjusting the Blind Addressing setting on the Primary Location > Addressing Options page. You also create a delivery location that corresponds to each voice messaging system with which Cisco Unity communicates.

You provide the following information for each delivery location:

Delivery Phone Number—The number that Cisco Unity dials to reach the other voice messaging system.

AMIS Node ID—The number used by Cisco Unity to identify the remote voice messaging system during an AMIS transmission. For incoming calls, Cisco Unity searches the AMIS delivery locations for an AMIS Node ID that matches the value transmitted by the originating node. If a corresponding location is not found, Cisco Unity follows the AMIS protocol and rejects the call without recording messages.

Dial ID—A unique number that identifies the location to Cisco Unity. This is the number that subscribers dial when blind addressing messages to individuals who use the remote voice messaging system.

When blind addressing a message, subscribers dial a number that is made up of the delivery location Dial ID and the mailbox number of the recipient. Before addressing the message, Cisco Unity parses the number that the subscriber entered and searches for a matching delivery location. If Cisco Unity does not find a matching location, it reports the error to the sender and does not address the message. If a matching delivery location is found, Cisco Unity addresses the message without verifying that the remote mailbox number exists. Cisco Unity does provide voice name confirmation that the delivery location exists before addressing the message (assuming a voice name was recorded for the delivery location).

Because your Cisco Unity server does not have access to the names and extensions of the users on the other voice messaging system, subscribers cannot use spelling mode when blind addressing a message to someone on the other system.

Subscribers can also address voice messages in the Lotus Notes client to someone on the remote voice messaging system by using the following format: AMIS:<Location Dial ID>_<Remote Mailbox>@<Foreign Domain>. For example, to send a message to Dial ID 206, mailbox 555, Foreign domain name RemoteVoiceMail.com, the address is: AMIS:206_555@RemoteVoiceMail.com.

For administrators of Cisco Unity, blind addressing is the option that requires the least amount of work to set up. However, subscribers will encounter some limitations when blind addressing messages to users on the other voice messaging system. Subscribers can address the message only by using number mode, so they must know the delivery location Dial ID and the mailbox number for the recipient. Additionally, Cisco Unity cannot verify that the number entered is correct, so subscribers may inadvertently address a message to the wrong person or to a non-existent mailbox.

In Cisco Unity 4.0(5) and later, subscribers can use the Cisco Unity conversation to add and delete blind addresses in their private distribution lists. In contrast, subscribers cannot use the Cisco Unity Assistant to add blind addresses to their private lists, though they can use it to view list members and to delete any blind addresses that were added by phone. The Cisco Unity Administrator also does not allow you to add blind addresses to private lists, but you can use it to view and delete list members.

In organizations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, when subscribers use blind addressing to address messages to someone at an AMIS location, the AMIS transmission originates from the Cisco Unity server on which the AMIS delivery location was created. See the "Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers" section for more information.

AMIS Subscribers

AMIS subscribers are a representation in Cisco Unity of the subscribers on the remote messaging system. AMIS subscribers are created in Cisco Unity to enable Cisco Unity subscribers to find them in the directory and send them messages as they would with any other subscriber. Voice messages addressed to AMIS subscribers are sent to the voice messaging system that they use.

AMIS subscribers do not require additional Domino client access licenses (CALs), and they do not consume Cisco Unity subscriber licenses. The Cisco Unity subscriber license count does not change when you create AMIS subscribers.

To set up AMIS subscribers, you first create an AMIS delivery location that corresponds to each remote voice messaging system with which Cisco Unity communicates. After creating the delivery location(s), you create an AMIS subscriber account for each remote user. When creating each AMIS subscriber account, you specify the user mailbox number on the other voice messaging system and select the AMIS delivery location with which the AMIS subscriber is associated. Cisco Unity uses the Delivery Phone Number and AMIS Node ID from the associated delivery location when delivering messages to the AMIS subscriber.

In organizations with more than one Cisco Unity server licensed for AMIS, AMIS subscribers can be associated only with AMIS delivery locations created on the same Cisco Unity server that the AMIS subscribers will be created on. When subscribers address messages to an AMIS subscriber, the AMIS transmission originates from the Cisco Unity server on which the AMIS subscriber was created. See the "Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers" section for more information.

AMIS subscribers have corresponding Domino Person documents that have "Other Internet Mail" set in the Mail System field, and they are listed in the Notes address book. When you delete AMIS subscribers in the Cisco Unity Administrator, the corresponding Person document is deleted in Domino.

You create and manage AMIS subscriber accounts in much the same way that you do regular subscriber accounts. You can use the Cisco Unity Administrator to create, modify, and delete AMIS subscriber accounts one at a time, and you can use the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard to create and modify multiple AMIS subscriber accounts.

Extensions are mandatory for AMIS subscriber accounts. The extension, which must be unique across the dialing domain, is the number that Cisco Unity subscribers dial when addressing a message to an AMIS subscriber. This number may or may not be the same as the mailbox number of the subscriber on the remote voice messaging system. Callers who reach the opening greeting of your organization can dial the extension of an AMIS subscriber or look up an AMIS subscriber in directory assistance and leave a message.

Other than receiving messages, AMIS subscribers do not have access to other Cisco Unity features, and some sections of the Cisco Unity Administrator are disabled for AMIS subscribers. AMIS subscribers:

Cannot log on to Cisco Unity by phone to check or send messages.

Cannot log on to Cisco Unity by phone—or use the Cisco Unity Assistant—to adjust personal settings, so their recorded names and greetings can only be recorded or changed in the Cisco Unity Administrator. However, in Cisco Unity 4.0(5), AMIS subscriber voice names can be imported by using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard. Refer to Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard Help for details.

Cannot own private lists.

Cannot set up or receive message notifications.

Cannot receive message waiting indications.

Setting up AMIS subscribers requires more overhead for administrators of Cisco Unity than AMIS blind addressing does. However, the AMIS subscriber option allows other subscribers to address messages to AMIS subscribers the same way that they address messages to regular subscribers.

Subscriber Experience with AMIS Subscribers

Provided that AMIS subscribers are listed in the phone directory and have had voice names and greetings recorded for them:

Subscribers can address messages to AMIS subscribers by using the phone or the DUC-enabled Notes client.

The Person documents that correspond to AMIS subscribers are included in the Domino directory. Therefore, message addressing to AMIS subscribers by using the DUC-enabled Notes client is the same as for regular subscribers.

When using the phone, subscribers can address messages to AMIS subscribers in spelled-name mode (if enabled on the system) or by extension.

Subscribers get voice name confirmation when addressing a message to a AMIS subscriber.

When subscribers use the phone to listen to messages, the conversation announces who the message is from.

AMIS subscribers can be added to public and private distribution lists.

Note that when Cisco Unity records a message from an unidentified caller for an AMIS subscriber, the Dial ID of the primary location is used as the sending mailbox. Although AMIS subscribers are not prevented from replying to these messages, the replies are returned to the Unity Messaging System mailbox as NDRs.

Identified Subscriber Messaging

Identified subscriber messaging (ISM) affects what subscribers hear when they call other subscribers from their primary or alternate extensions and are forwarded to the greetings of the subscribers they call. If they then leave a message, ISM affects what the called subscriber hears and can do when listening to the message. When ISM is enabled, Cisco Unity recognizes that the calling extension is associated with a subscriber and accordingly plays the internal greeting of the called subscriber. Additionally, when the called subscriber later listens to the message, Cisco Unity plays the recorded voice name of the subscriber who left the message and allows the called subscriber to record a reply.

When a call to a Cisco Unity subscriber is forwarded to the subscriber greeting and ISM is enabled, Cisco Unity compares the calling number (ANI or caller ID) to the primary and alternate extensions of subscribers. If a match is found, Cisco Unity identifies the caller as a subscriber. When Cisco Unity compares the calling number to extensions, by default, only "regular" Cisco Unity subscribers on the local system are included in the comparison. Beginning with Cisco Unity 4.0(3), ISM can be expanded to include all Cisco Unity subscribers throughout a dialing domain.

You can enable ISM for AMIS, Bridge, and VPIM subscribers (collectively referred to as external subscribers), so that Cisco Unity will include them when comparing calling numbers to extensions. Note the following:

After enabling ISM for external subscribers, Cisco Unity must be restarted.

If multiple Cisco Unity servers are networked via Digital Networking, ISM functionality can be made available only on the Cisco Unity servers that are in the same dialing domain as the bridgehead server.

You must enable ISM for external subscribers for each Cisco Unity server on which the functionality is desired.

If a single Cisco Unity server is in use, the Cisco Unity server must be a member of a dialing domain for this functionality to be used.

Note the difference between leaving a messaging and sending a message. When a person on the remote voice messaging system with a corresponding external subscriber account records and sends a message to a Cisco Unity subscriber (as opposed to calling and leaving a message), all versions of Cisco Unity identify the message as being from the corresponding external subscriber.

The phone system provides the calling number to Cisco Unity. The number of digits included in the calling number is configurable in most phone systems. For Cisco Unity to find a matching subscriber extension, the phone system must be configured to provide the applicable number of digits in the calling number. You may also need to add alternate extensions to the subscriber accounts to match the calling number. Additionally, there may be other phone system-specific issues that prevent Cisco Unity from matching the calling number to a subscriber extension. Refer to your phone system documentation and the applicable Cisco Unity integration guide for details about the call information provided by the phone system.

Live Reply to AMIS Subscribers

Live reply allows subscribers who listen to their messages by phone to respond to messages from other subscribers by calling them. When live reply is enabled, subscribers listening to messages by phone can reply to a subscriber message by pressing 4-4 to have Cisco Unity call the subscriber directly. (Subscribers using Optional Conversation 1 press 8-8 for live reply.) Note that whether subscribers have access to the live reply feature depends on their class of service settings. (Live reply is enabled on the Subscribers > Class of Service > Messages page in the Cisco Unity Administrator.)

Subscribers can live reply to messages from subscribers on other voice messaging systems who have corresponding AMIS subscriber accounts in Cisco Unity. In order for the live reply call to be successfully transferred, a call transfer number must be configured for the AMIS subscribers.

Note that a live reply to an AMIS subscriber is always done via a release to phone system transfer, even when both the Cisco Unity subscriber who is replying to a message and the AMIS subscriber have accounts on the same Cisco Unity server. On a release to switch transfer, Cisco Unity dials the call transfer number configured for the AMIS subscriber and hangs up, leaving the phone system to handle the call. Note the following limitations with release to switch transfers:

The AMIS subscriber call screening, call holding, and announce features are ignored.

The call transfer setting "No (Send Directly to Subscriber's Greeting)" is ignored. Cisco Unity dials the AMIS subscriber extension and hangs up. If the subscriber extension is a valid extension on the phone system that Cisco Unity is integrated with, then the subscriber phone rings. If the subscriber extension is not a valid phone extension, what happens to the call after that depends on the phone system and how it is configured. If you do not configure the phone system to handle calls to the subscriber extensions, the caller may be disconnected.

Note the following:

Live reply to AMIS subscribers is enabled automatically, and cannot be disabled.

Live replies to AMIS subscribers with accounts on other Cisco Unity servers do not use the cross-server live reply functionality that can be used to live reply to Cisco Unity subscribers with accounts on other Cisco Unity servers. However, for live reply to be offered when a Cisco Unity subscriber replies to a message from an AMIS subscriber with a subscriber account on another Cisco Unity server, the servers must be in the same dialing domain.

Deleting AMIS Subscribers

Each AMIS Subscriber is associated with a Person document that has "Other Internet Mail" set in the Mail system field. When you delete AMIS subscribers in the Cisco Unity Administrator by deleting the subscriber accounts individually, the associated Person documents are automatically deleted. To delete all of the AMIS subscribers associated with a delivery location, the associated Person documents for those subscribers, and the delivery location itself, use the Global Subscriber Manager, available in Tools Depot.

Note that when you delete an AMIS delivery location, blind addressees are also removed from all private lists. Consider notifying subscribers of these potential changes to their private lists.

Extension Addresses

When you create an AMIS subscriber, Cisco Unity automatically generates a Forwarding address in the Person document in the following format:
AMIS:<Location Dial ID>_<Remote Mailbox>@<Foreign Domain>

This special e-mail address is referred to as an extension address (or a remote address). The extension address is a combination of the delivery location Dial ID with which the AMIS subscriber is associated, the Remote Mailbox Number of the AMIS subscriber, and the Foreign domain name. Each Person document that corresponds to an AMIS subscriber contains an extension address in the Forwarding Address field.

When subscribers use the phone to address messages to an AMIS subscriber, they dial an extension. Cisco Unity recognizes the recipient as an AMIS subscriber and retrieves the extension address from the SQL database on the Cisco Unity server.

Extension addresses are generated automatically when you create AMIS subscribers, and extension addresses are automatically updated if you change the Dial ID of a delivery location or the Remote Mailbox Number of the AMIS subscriber. Extension address are not automatically updated when the foreign domain name is changed. For more information, see the "Changing the Interop Gateway Foreign Domain Name" section.

Preventing Subscribers From Adding Individual Subscribers to Private Lists in the Cisco Unity Assistant

In the transition from a legacy voice messaging system to Cisco Unity, your organization may choose to migrate users to Cisco Unity in phases. As a result, Cisco Unity will likely support both regular subscribers and "external" subscribers—Bridge, AMIS, or VPIM contacts (as applicable)—at the same time. Regular subscribers can send messages to external subscribers, and even add them to their private distribution lists during the transition.

However, once external subscribers are converted into regular Cisco Unity subscribers, they are automatically removed from all private lists without notifying private list owners. When this occurs, subscribers may continue to send messages to their private lists without realizing that some of their intended recipients no longer receive them.

When convenient and practical, Cisco Unity administrators should notify subscribers when external subscribers are converted to regular subscribers, notifying subscribers that they should re-add the newly migrated subscribers to existing private lists, as applicable. During the migration phase, you may also want to consider preventing subscribers from adding subscribers to their private lists in the Cisco Unity Assistant, and asking them not to use the Cisco Unity phone menus to do so—at least until the migration process is complete.

Use the following procedure to prevent all subscribers associated with the Cisco Unity server from adding individual subscribers to their private lists in the Cisco Unity Assistant. The procedure does not prevent subscribers from using the Cisco Unity phone menus to add regular and external subscribers to their private lists, nor does it prevent subscribers from addressing messages to regular and external subscribers.

To Prevent Subscribers From Adding Individual Subscribers to Private Lists in the Cisco Unity Assistant


Step 1 On the Cisco Unity server desktop, double-click the Cisco Unity Tools Depot icon.

Step 2 In the left pane, under Administrative Tools, double-click Advanced Settings Tool.

Step 3 In the Unity Settings pane, click Unity Assistant—Do Not Allow Subscribers to Add Subscribers to Private Lists.

Step 4 In the New Value list, click 1, and then click Set so that when subscribers add members to their lists in the Cisco Unity Assistant, the Find Names dialog box does not display the Subscribers tab. (Subscribers can continue to add distribution lists to their lists from the Distribution Lists tab.)

Step 5 When prompted, click OK.

Step 6 Click Exit.

You do not need to restart Cisco Unity to enable the change.


Migrating Subscribers from Another Voice Messaging System to Cisco Unity

If you are using AMIS to migrate from another voice messaging system to Cisco Unity, there are several tools that you can use to create Cisco Unity subscribers from AMIS subscriber information. See the following sections for more information:

Migrating Subscribers in Bulk

Private List Considerations for Migrating Subscribers

Migrating Subscribers in Bulk

Following are the general steps for migrating AMIS subscribers to Cisco Unity subscribers in bulk. Refer to the Help files of each of the tools for more information. (Click the Tools Depot icon on the Cisco Unity server, and click the applicable tool in the left pane to view the Help file.)

1. As a best practice, back up the Cisco Unity server (just as a precaution because you will be deleting data).

2. If the voice names of the subscribers on the remote system were recorded in a standard format that can be played on the Cisco Unity server (such as G.711 or G.729a), copy the WAV files to the Cisco Unity server. In Cisco Unity 4.0(5) and later, the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard will import the voice names.

3. Run Subscriber Information Dump from Tools Depot, and output the AMIS subscriber information to a CSV file.

4. Modify the output CSV file as needed so that you can use it as the input file when you create Cisco Unity subscribers by using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard.

5. Run Global Subscriber Manager from Tools Depot to delete the AMIS delivery locations and associated AMIS subscribers and the corresponding Person documents.

6. If the former AMIS subscribers did not use Notes for e-mail, register the users in the Domino Administrator.

7. Run the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard by using the input file that you prepared in Step 4.

Private List Considerations for Migrating Subscribers

When you migrate AMIS subscribers, consider notifying Cisco Unity subscribers of these potential effects on private distribution list membership:

When you delete a delivery location, blind addressees are removed from all private lists.

When an AMIS subscriber becomes a regular subscriber, the AMIS subscriber is removed from all private lists.

Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers

In organizations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, when subscribers address messages to an AMIS delivery location (by using blind addressing) or to an AMIS subscriber, the AMIS transmission originates from the Cisco Unity server on which the AMIS delivery location was created. (Note that AMIS subscribers are always created on the same Cisco Unity server as their associated AMIS delivery locations.)

When subscribers address a message to someone on the remote voice messaging system, the Interop Gateway delivers the message to the UAmis mail file associated with the Cisco Unity server on which the addressed AMIS delivery location was created. The AMIS schedule and the AMIS delivery options on the pertinent Cisco Unity server are applied.

Only one Cisco Unity server in the network needs to be licensed and set up for AMIS. If allowed by the primary location addressing options, all subscribers, no matter which Cisco Unity server they are associated with, can send messages to an AMIS delivery location or to an AMIS subscriber. The Cisco Unity server configured for AMIS acts as the AMIS "bridgehead" server for the other Cisco Unity servers in the network. For example, in Figure 5-1, there are three Cisco Unity servers in the network, but Unity 2 is the only server licensed and configured for AMIS. Unity 2 places and receives all of the AMIS calls. Thus, no matter which Cisco Unity server a subscriber is associated with, when the subscriber sends a message to someone on another voice messaging system, the message is routed to the UAmis mail file associated with Unity 2. This mail file is homed on the Domino server that was selected in the Message Store Configuration wizard during the setup of Unity 2.

Figure 5-1 AMIS Bridgehead Configuration

Design Considerations

Because AMIS calls are placed and answered on the Cisco Unity server on which the AMIS delivery locations were created, you can configure your Cisco Unity servers as needed to handle AMIS traffic.

You can set up a bridgehead topology by designating one Cisco Unity server in the network to handle sending and receiving AMIS calls. See Figure 5-1.

Recall that the dialout for an outbound AMIS message originates from the Cisco Unity server on which an AMIS delivery location was created. If the AMIS traffic is too heavy for one Cisco Unity server to handle, you can balance the load by setting up multiple AMIS bridgehead servers. In this case, you need to determine which AMIS delivery locations and AMIS subscribers to create on each of the Cisco Unity servers, and keep a record of the mapping.

For example, assume that there are two AMIS bridgehead servers, Bridgehead A and Bridgehead B, and there are four AMIS delivery locations called London, Paris, Goose Creek, and Monks Corner. You anticipate that message delivery to the London and Paris delivery locations will be heavy, and that message delivery to the Goose Creek and Monks Corner delivery locations will not be as heavy. You can balance the load by creating the London and Goose Creek delivery locations on Bridgehead A, and create the Paris and Monks Corner delivery locations on Bridgehead B. This ensures that the AMIS traffic for the two heavy AMIS locations is split up between the two bridgehead servers, rather than one trying to deliver all of the messages by itself.

For organizations with Cisco Unity servers deployed in different areas around the country or the world, it may be possible to set up a least-cost-routing topology to minimize or eliminate long distance phone charges related to AMIS transmissions.

For example, assume there are Cisco Unity servers in Chicago and in New York, and that there is also another voice messaging system in New York to which subscribers in Chicago want to send messages. To avoid long distance phone charges when subscribers in Chicago send messages to individuals who use the remote voice messaging system in New York, you create an AMIS delivery location, and optionally, AMIS subscribers, on the New York Cisco Unity server. When subscribers associated with the Chicago Cisco Unity server address messages to the AMIS subscribers in New York, the messages are first delivered by Domino and the Interop Gateway to the UAmis mail file associated with the New York Cisco Unity server. Then the New York Cisco Unity server dials a local number to deliver the message to the remote voice messaging system, thus avoiding long distance phone charges.

Maintenance

This section provides information on various tasks that you may need to do in order to maintain your AMIS Networking configuration. See the following sections for details:

Monitoring AMIS Message Traffic

Changing the Interop Gateway Foreign Domain Name

Moving the Interop Gateway Mail File

Moving the UAmis Mail File

Monitoring AMIS Message Traffic

Cisco Unity monitors AMIS transmissions and the UAmis mail file, and logs error events to the Windows Application Event log. Outgoing messages that cannot be delivered are returned to the sender, or to the Unaddressed Messages public distribution list if Cisco Unity cannot determine who the sender is.

For detailed information about the touchtones that are transmitted during an AMIS call, see the White Paper: AMIS Analog Networking Definitions, at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_white_paper09186a00800875e3.shtml. To see the DTMFs that are transmitted during an AMIS call, use the Cisco Unity Diagnostic tool to enable the micro trace 28 AMIS Frames in the Conv AMIS section. You can also use the Port Status Monitor, available in the Switch Integration Tools section of Tools Depot, to observe call progress, and the Port Usage Analyzer, available in the Reporting Tools section of Tools Depot, to monitor port usage.

Cisco Unity also provides reports on AMIS message traffic. For more information, see the "AMIS Out Traffic Report" and the "AMIS In Traffic Report" sections in the "Reports" chapter of the Cisco Unity Maintenance Guide. (The guide is available at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_maintenance_guide_book09186a008043ea50.html.)

Although Cisco Unity monitors the UAmis mail file, you may want to check the UAmis mail file periodically to confirm that messages are being sent in a timely manner. For example, if there are still messages to be sent when the AMIS schedule becomes inactive, they remain in the UAmis mail file until the AMIS schedule becomes active again. If messages are often left in the UAmis mail file, you may need to adjust the AMIS schedule or designate more voice ports for outgoing AMIS calls. Access to the UAmis mail file is also needed when troubleshooting outbound message delivery problems.

In order to use the Domino Administrator or Notes to access the UAmis mail file, you will need to make sure that you have permission to do so. How you do this depends on the Domino version and the security policies for your organization. Use the following as a guide, and consult your Domino documentation for more information:

If the Domino server on which the UAmis mail file is located is running Domino 6.0 or later:

If you have Full Access Administration rights, you will be able to open the mail file.

If someone who has Full Access Administration rights is available, have the administrator add you to the UAmis mail file Access Control List (ACL) with at least Editor permissions.

If the Domino server on which the UAmis mail file is located is running Domino 5.x, or if someone with Full Access Administration rights is unavailable:

Log on to the Domino Administrator by using the name and password of the Person document that was created for the Cisco Unity bridgehead server (the server that is licensed for AMIS). This account should have Editor plus Delete Documents permissions in the ACL of the UAmis mail file.

You can either use this account when you open the UAmis mail file, or you can add yourself to the UAmis mail file ACL with at least Editor permissions.

Changing the Interop Gateway Foreign Domain Name

The following task list provides an overview of how to change the name of the Foreign domain used by the Interop Gateway. We recommend that you change the Foreign domain name after normal business hours when message traffic is light, because messages to AMIS recipients may be sent back as undeliverable until the Foreign domain name has been changed in every place that it is stored.

1. On the Cisco Unity server on which the Interop Gateway service—CsDomInteropGty—is running, rerun the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard and change the Foreign domain name. This updates settings stored in SQL and in the registry. (The settings in SQL will replicate to all other Cisco Unity servers in your installation, but the registry change must be made on each Cisco Unity server, as described in the next step.)

2. If your installation consists of multiple Cisco Unity servers (either Digitally Networked servers and/or secondary failover servers), you must change the Foreign domain name stored in the registry. Open the Advanced Settings Tool in Tools Depot to change the Foreign Domain name in the setting Networking - Change Interop Gateway Foreign Domain Name (Domino Only).

3. Restart Cisco Unity.

4. In Domino Designer, copy the agent from the CommServer\Utilities\Domino\Agents\UpdateRemoteSubscribers directory of a Cisco Unity server, and paste it in names.nsf on a "hub" Domino server that pushes out directory changes.

5. In the Domino Administrator, run the agent to change the Foreign domain name in the Forwarding Address field of each Person document that corresponds to an AMIS, Bridge, or VPIM subscriber.

The following procedure provides detailed steps.

To Change the Interop Gateway Foreign Domain Name


Step 1 On the Cisco Unity server on which the Interop Gateway service—CsDomInteropGty—is running, browse to the directory in which Cisco Unity is installed (the default location is C:\CommServer).

Step 2 Double-click UnityDominoInterOpSetup.exe to run the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard.

Step 3 On the Welcome screen, click Next.

Step 4 On the Configure the Interop Gateway screen, click either Use a New Foreign Domain or Use an Existing Foreign Domain.

If you choose to use a new Foreign domain, in the text box, enter the domain name that will be used to route AMIS messages to the Interop Gateway mail file. The Interop Gateway Configuration wizard creates a new Foreign domain document with the specified name.

If you choose to use an existing Foreign domain, click the Foreign domain name on the list.

Step 5 Click Next to go to the Foreign Domain Mail Information screen. If you chose to use an existing Foreign domain, the mail file name and the Domino server on which the mail file resides are displayed. Verify the information, and skip to Step 6.

If you chose to create a new Foreign domain:

a. Click the down button for the Domino Server list and wait for the list to be populated with all of the Domino server names in your network. Choose the server on which the Interop Gateway mail file will be created. Although you can type in the server name, you must enter the server name by using the hierarchical naming format (for example "ServerName/Org").

b. In the Mail File Name field, enter the name of the mail file to be monitored by the Interop Gateway (for example, interop.nsf). The Interop Gateway Configuration wizard will create the mail file, so enter a file name that does not already exist.

Step 6 Click Next. Choose the Windows account that the Interop Gateway service will log on with. We recommend that you choose Local System. However, if you choose an existing Windows account, you will need to ensure that it has the same level of permissions as were set by the Permissions wizard during Cisco Unity setup for the directory and messaging services account.

Step 7 Click Next and review the summary information to verify that it is correct.

Step 8 Click Finish and the wizard configures and starts the Interop Gateway service on the Cisco Unity server. When the wizard finishes, a message box displays to let you know whether the configuration was successful.

Step 9 If your installation consists of only one Cisco Unity server, skip to Step 23.

Otherwise, log on to another Cisco Unity server (either a Digitally Networked server or a secondary failover server), and on the Cisco Unity server desktop, double-click the Cisco Unity Tools Depot icon.

Step 10 In the left pane of the Tools Depot window, expand Administration Tools, and double click Advanced Settings Tool.

Step 11 In the Unity Settings list, click Networking - Change Interop Gateway Foreign Domain Name (Domino Only).

Step 12 Enter the new Foreign domain name in the New Value field, and click Set.

Step 13 Restart Cisco Unity.

Step 14 Repeat Step 9 through Step 13 on each Cisco Unity server.

Step 15 Optionally, copy the contents of the CommServer\Utilities\Domino\Agents\UpdateRemoteSubscriber directory on the Cisco Unity server to the Domino server where you will run Domino Designer. If you can browse to the Cisco Unity server from Domino Designer to open the agent, you can skip this step. Note that the UpdateRemoteSubscriber directory contains the files:

Agent code to update interop foreign domain.txt

UUIsFA.nsf

The following steps describe how to copy and run the agent UUIsFa.nsf. If you are familiar with working with Domino agents, you may prefer to create a new agent by using the code in the .txt file instead. Also note that the following steps are specific to Domino R6.5. Adjust them as needed for other Domino versions. Refer to your Domino documentation for additional information.

Step 16 Open Domino Designer, and click Open an Existing Database.

Step 17 Browse to UUIsFA.nsf, and click Open.

Step 18 Click View > Go To > Agents.

Step 19 In the right pane, right-click the agent, and click Copy.

Step 20 Click File > Database > Open, and open names.nsf on a hub Domino server that pushes out directory changes.

Step 21 Click View > Go To > Agents.

Step 22 Click Edit > Paste to add the agent to names.nsf.

Step 23 In the right pane, double-click Update Unity Interop Subscriber Forwarding Address to open the agent.

Step 24 Click the Save icon, close the agent dialog box, close the agent window, and exit Domino Designer.

Step 25 Open the Domino Administrator, click File > Database > Open, and open names.nsf on the hub Domino server.

Step 26 Click Actions > Update Unity Interop Subscriber Forwarding Address to run the agent. (The agent may be located on the Actions > Other menu.)

Step 27 In the Old Foreign Domain dialog box, enter the old Foreign domain name and click OK.

Step 28 In the New Foreign Domain dialog box, enter the new Foreign domain name and click OK.

The agent searches the Person documents that corresponds to AMIS, Bridge, and VPIM subscribers looking for the old Foreign domain name in the Forwarding Address field. When it finds a match, the agent changes the domain name portion of the Forwarding Address field to the new Foreign domain name.


Moving the Interop Gateway Mail File

To move the Interop Gateway mail file to another Domino server:

1. Move the mail file.

2. Update the Foreign domain document with the new Domino server name.

3. Rerun the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard, and use the existing Foreign domain.

The following procedure provides detailed steps.

To Move the Interop Gateway Mail File


Step 1 In the Domino Administrator, click the Files tab.

Step 2 In the list in the right pane, right-click the Interop Gateway mail file, and click Move.

Step 3 In the Move Database dialog box, specify the destination Domino server, and click OK.

Step 4 Click the Configuration tab.

Step 5 In the left pane, expand Messaging > Domain.

Step 6 In the right pane, click the Foreign domain document used by the Interop Gateway, and click Edit Domain.

Step 7 In the Foreign domain document, click the Mail Information tab.

Step 8 In the Gateway Server Name field, enter the Domino server name where the Interop Gateway mail file was moved to.

Step 9 Click Save and Close.

Step 10 On the Cisco Unity server on which the Interop Gateway service is running, browse to the directory in which Cisco Unity is installed (the default location is C:\CommServer).

Step 11 Double-click UnityDominoInterOpSetup.exe to run the Interop Gateway Configuration wizard.

Step 12 On the Welcome screen, click Next.

Step 13 On the Configure the Interop Gateway screen, click Use an Existing Foreign Domain, and click Next.

Step 14 On the Domain screen, confirm that the new Domino server is listed in the Domino Server field, and click Next.

Step 15 On the Interop Gateway Log On Properties Screen, we recommend that you click Log On as Local System Account.

Step 16 Click Next to review the Foreign Domain settings, and then click Finish. When the wizard finishes, a message box displays to let you know whether the configuration was successful.


Moving the UAmis Mail File

For information on moving the UAmis mail file, see the "UAmis Mail File" section in the "Cisco Unity Data and Log Files" chapter of the Cisco Unity Maintenance Guide, at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_maintenance_guide_book09186a008043ea50.html.)

AMIS Reference

This section contains tables that define the fields on the Cisco Unity Administrator web pages related to AMIS setup, and briefly explain the options for correctly entering information in the fields. See the following sections for details:

AMIS Delivery Location Profile Settings

AMIS Delivery Options Settings

AMIS Schedule Settings

AMIS Delivery Location Profile Settings

AMIS delivery locations are Cisco Unity objects that contain the addressing information that Cisco Unity needs to send messages to and receive messages from another voice messaging system. You create an AMIS delivery location that corresponds to each remote voice messaging system with which Cisco Unity communicates.

Use the following tables to learn more about the delivery location profile settings for an AMIS location.

Table 5-1 Profile Settings Applicable to All Types of Delivery Locations 

Field
Considerations
Name

This displays the name of the delivery location. To change the name, enter a new name here, and then click the Save icon.

Dial ID

Enter the ID that identifies the location to Cisco Unity. Enter numbers only, up to a maximum of ten digits. The default minimum length is three digits.

Although the minimum length for Dial IDs can be reduced by using the Advanced Settings Tool, one- and two-digit Dial IDs may conflict with private distribution list IDs during an address search. When a subscriber addresses a message by entering a one- or two-digit number, Cisco Unity first searches for a matching private distribution list. If a match is found, the search stops. Therefore, when a subscriber addresses a message by entering a location Dial ID (to narrow down the search scope to a particular location), if the number entered matches a private distribution list ID, the conversation offers only the private distribution list as a destination. If subscribers do not address messages to other locations by first entering a Dial ID, there is no conflict, and the minimum length for Dial IDs can be reduced to accommodate complex dial plans.

When sending messages to a remote location, subscribers can dial a number that is made up of the Dial ID and the Remote mailbox number of the recipient.

The following policies are recommended:

Establish a fixed length for Dial IDs and if possible, a fixed length for extensions.

Assign unique Dial IDs. Dial IDs should not be the same as other Dial IDs or extensions.

Assign Dial IDs that have at least three-digits.

Use a different numbering range for Dial IDs than for extensions.

If you use variable-length Dial IDs, the first digits of each ID should be unique with respect to other Dial IDs.

Even if the Dial ID will never be used by subscribers when they address messages, enter a number that does not conflict with extensions, such as 001 or 002.

Recorded Name

Record a name for the delivery location. The subscriber conversation plays this recorded name in a number of places. For example, assume that the setting Include Locations in Searches on the Network > Primary Location > Addressing Options page is enabled. When subscribers address a message by spelling the name, the recorded name for this delivery location is played in the message addressing search results along with subscriber names. (For example: "There are two matches. For Chris Newton, press 1. For New York, press 2.")

To record the name here, use the Media Master control bar. (Note that the Media Master is not available across a firewall that blocks DCOM communications.) Use the Options menu in the Media Master control bar to set recording and playback devices, if applicable, and to use other sound files.

Destination Type

Display only. Indicates the type of delivery location. The Destination Type is specified when the delivery location is created, and it cannot be changed. The Destination Type is one of the following:

AMIS—Indicates that the delivery location corresponds to an AMIS-compliant voice messaging system. Messages are sent by using the industry-standard Audio Messaging Interchange Specification analog (AMIS-a) protocol.

Bridge—Indicates that the delivery location corresponds to an Octel node in an Octel analog network. Messages are exchanged between Cisco Unity and the Octel system by using the Cisco Unity Bridge. Cisco Unity sends messages to the Bridge in Voice Profile for Internet Mail (VPIM) format with proprietary extensions. The Bridge converts the message format and sends it to the appropriate Octel server by using the Octel Analog Networking protocol.

VPIM—Indicates that the delivery location corresponds to a VPIM-compliant voice messaging system. Messages are sent by using the industry-standard VPIM protocol over the Internet or a private TCP/IP network.


Table 5-2 Profile Settings Specific to AMIS Delivery Locations 

Field
Considerations
Delivery Phone Number

Enter the phone number, including trunk access code, that Cisco Unity dials for outgoing AMIS calls to the remote voice messaging system that corresponds to this delivery location.

Node ID:
Country Code, Area Code, Phone Number

Enter the numbers used to identify the remote voice messaging system that corresponds to this delivery location. This Node ID must match the Node ID that the corresponding remote voice messaging system transmits during incoming calls. Cisco Unity accepts messages only from known AMIS nodes, so the Node ID entered here must exactly match the Node ID that the remote voice messaging system transmits.

Although the Node ID numbers should contain all the information necessary for Cisco Unity to send a reply message to the originating system, this is not enforced because of the different ways in which voice messaging systems implement the AMIS protocol. Therefore, the only requirement is that the numbers entered here match the Node ID that the corresponding remote voice messaging system transmits.

The maximum number of digits for each field is:

Country Code—4 digits

Area Code—3 digits

Phone Number—8 digits

Disable Outbound Message Delivery to This AMIS Location

By default, this check box is unchecked. When an outbound AMIS call to this delivery location is answered by a person or a voice messaging system that is not AMIS-compliant (such as an answering machine), this check box is checked automatically. Checking the check box automatically prevents Cisco Unity from repeatedly attempting to deliver messages to an incorrect Delivery Phone Number.

If the call is answered by a person, Cisco Unity plays a prompt that instructs the person to prevent further calls by pressing a touchtone. If the person presses the touchtone, Cisco Unity checks this check box and disables outbound calls to this location. If the person simply hangs up, or if a voice messaging system that is not AMIS-compliant answers (such as an answering machine), Cisco Unity retries the delivery phone number according to the settings on the Network > AMIS Options > Delivery Options page. When the maximum number of retries has been reached, Cisco Unity checks this check box to disable further calls to this number.

Any messages that could not be delivered to this location remain in the UAmis mailbox until you confirm the delivery phone number and then uncheck this check box. An error is logged in the Windows Application Event log when messages remain in the UAmis mailbox for more than 24 hours.

Note that when multiple Cisco Unity servers are networked together, you can view the contents of delivery locations created on other Cisco Unity servers, and edit this field from your local server. 


 

AMIS Delivery Options Settings

The AMIS delivery options settings control attributes of outgoing AMIS calls. These settings apply to messages sent to all AMIS delivery locations and AMIS subscribers created on your Cisco Unity server.

One of the settings that you specify here is the Local Dial Restriction Table. This restriction table and the AMIS schedule together determine when outgoing AMIS calls are made. See the "Restriction Tables" chapter of the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide for general information about restriction tables. (The guide is available at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_administration_guide_book09186a008043ea45.html.)

Use the following table to learn more about AMIS delivery options settings.

Table 5-3 Network > AMIS Options > Delivery Options Page 

Field
Considerations
Deliver Urgent Messages Immediately

Check this check box to allow messages marked urgent to be delivered immediately. Checking this check box overrides both the Local Dial Restriction Table and the AMIS schedule. When the check box is unchecked, Cisco Unity handles urgent messages the same as non-urgent messages.

Local Dial Restriction Table

Select a restriction table that determines which AMIS delivery numbers can be processed immediately. If an AMIS delivery number is allowed by the restriction table, messages to this number are delivered immediately. If the delivery number is not allowed by the restriction table, messages are queued in the UAmis mailbox until the AMIS schedule becomes active.

By default, the Local Dial Restriction Table field is set to the predefined Default AMIS restriction table. You can modify the Default AMIS restriction table or select another restriction table. For example, you may want to modify this restriction table to disallow long distance delivery numbers, and adjust the AMIS schedule to become active when the long distance phone rates are lower.

If the Remote System Does Not Answer:
Hang Up After This Many Rings

Specify the number of rings that Cisco Unity waits for the remote node to answer when making an AMIS call. After the specified number of rings, Cisco Unity hangs up. The default value is 4.

If the Remote System Does Not Answer:
Try Calling This Many Times

Specify the number of times that Cisco Unity makes AMIS redelivery attempts when the remote system did not answer the initial call. The default value is 4.

When the schedule that allows AMIS deliveries becomes inactive, the count that Cisco Unity maintains for this setting is reset to 0.

If the Remote System Does Not Answer:
Retry After This Many Minutes

Specify the number of minutes that Cisco Unity waits after an AMIS call is not answered before attempting the call again. The default value is 5 minutes.

If the Remote System Is Busy:
Try Calling This Many Times

Specify the number of times that Cisco Unity makes AMIS redelivery attempts when the initial attempt resulted in a busy signal. The default value is 4.

When the schedule that allows AMIS deliveries becomes inactive, the count that Cisco Unity maintains for this setting is reset to 0.

If the Remote System Is Busy:
Retry After This Many Minutes

Specify the number of minutes that Cisco Unity waits after receiving a busy signal before attempting the AMIS call again. The default value is 5 minutes.


AMIS Schedule Settings

The AMIS schedule and the AMIS restriction table together determine when outgoing AMIS calls are made. If a delivery number for an outgoing AMIS message is allowed by the AMIS restriction table, the message is sent immediately—the schedule settings do not apply. If the delivery number is not allowed by the AMIS restriction table, the schedule determines when the message is sent. Therefore, the schedule determines when messages are sent for delivery numbers that are disallowed by the AMIS restriction table.

Cisco Unity batches messages to a delivery location, with a maximum of nine messages per batch. If an AMIS transmission is in progress when the schedule becomes inactive, the transmission of the entire batch of messages is completed. However, any other messages remaining in the queue, but not in the batch that was in the process of being transmitted, are queued until the next active time in the schedule. Queued messages are placed in the UAmis mailbox.

Because the transmission of AMIS messages may tie up voice ports for long periods of time, you may want to schedule outgoing AMIS calls during closed hours or at times when Cisco Unity is not processing many calls. Additionally, if most or all of your AMIS delivery numbers are long distance, you may want to schedule the AMIS calls when the long distance phone rates are lower.

Use the following table to learn more about AMIS schedule settings.

Table 5-4 Network > AMIS Options > Schedule Page 

Field
Considerations
Click Individual Blocks to Set Hours

Click the blocks in the grid to change from inactive to active hours. Click the block again to undo your change. Messages queued in the UAmis mailbox are sent only during the active hours on the schedule. Note that you can set active and inactive hours for one day, then use the Copy Day's Schedule box to copy the settings to other days.

Copy Day's Schedule

To avoid clicking the same blocks for more than one day, use the Copy Day's Schedule and >> functions. Select a day to copy, then select which days to copy the schedule setting to.


Troubleshooting

For information on troubleshooting problems with AMIS messages, see the following sections in the Cisco Unity Troubleshooting Guide, at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/prod_troubleshooting_guide_book09186a008043ea3b.html.

In the "Logs and Traces" chapter:

"AMIS Diagnostic Traces"

In the "Messages" chapter:

"Troubleshooting Problems with Outbound AMIS Messages"

"Troubleshooting Problems with Inbound AMIS Messages"

For detailed information about the touchtones that are transmitted during an AMIS call, see the White Paper: AMIS Analog Networking Definitions, at http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps2237/products_white_paper09186a00800875e3.shtml.

You can use the Port Status Monitor, available in the Switch Integration Tools section of Tools Depot, to observe call progress, and the Port Usage Analyzer, available in the Reporting Tools section of Tools Depot, to monitor port usage.

Notable Behavior

This section describes notable behavior of AMIS Networking. See the following sections for more information:

Call Transfer Settings for AMIS Subscribers

Inbound Messages Are Delivered Only to Primary Extensions

Inbound Search Scope

Call Transfer Settings for AMIS Subscribers

In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked via Digital Networking, the number that Cisco Unity uses for call transfers to a subscriber is the only number replicated among the Cisco Unity servers; none of the other settings on the Subscriber > Call Transfer page in the Cisco Unity Administrator are replicated. For example, in Figure 5-2, call transfers are set to ring the subscriber at the number 9,5551212. The only call transfer setting that is replicated to other Cisco Unity servers is the call transfer number 9,5551212. If the setting was "Yes, ring subscriber's extension" instead, the number 3047 would be replicated.

Figure 5-2 Only the Call Transfer Number Is Replicated

When the call transfer setting is set to "No (send directly to subscriber's greeting)," the call transfer number is automatically set to the subscriber extension (3047 in the example above), which is replicated to the other networked Cisco Unity servers.

Call transfers to AMIS subscribers created on other Cisco Unity servers are always handled by the phone system (release to switch)—rather than by Cisco Unity (supervised transfer)—even if the subscribers are set up for supervised transfers (as in the above example). The release to switch call transfers happen when:

A Cisco Unity subscriber chooses to call the sender (live reply) after listening to a message left by an AMIS subscriber. (Live replies to AMIS subscribers are always done release to switch, even when the reply is to an AMIS subscriber on the same Cisco Unity server.)

A caller enters the extension of an AMIS subscriber from the automated attendant (for example from the opening greeting), and the AMIS subscriber account is on another Cisco Unity server.

A caller spells the name of an AMIS subscriber from a directory handler, and the AMIS subscriber account is on another Cisco Unity server.

On a release to switch transfer, Cisco Unity dials the call transfer number configured for the AMIS subscriber and hangs up, leaving the phone system to handle the call. Note the following limitations with release to switch transfers:

The AMIS subscriber call screening, call holding, and announce features are ignored.

The call transfer setting "No (Send Directly to Subscriber's Greeting)" is ignored. Cisco Unity dials the AMIS subscriber extension and hangs up. If the subscriber extension is a valid extension on the phone system that Cisco Unity is integrated with, then the subscriber phone rings. If the subscriber extension is not a valid phone extension, what happens to the call after that depends on the phone system and how it is configured. If you do not configure the phone system to handle calls to the subscriber extensions, the caller may be disconnected.

Inbound Messages Are Delivered Only to Primary Extensions

When addressing a message to a Cisco Unity subscriber, users on the remote voice messaging system must use the primary extension of the Cisco Unity subscriber; alternate extensions are not supported. Senders will receive an NDR if they address a message with the alternate extension of a Cisco Unity subscriber.

Note also that Cisco Unity does not accept messages from a remote voice mail system that are sent to Cisco Unity public distribution lists, call handlers, and interview handlers. Cisco Unity accepts messages from a remote voice mail system only when they are sent to a subscriber primary extension.

When designing the numbering plan for Cisco Unity subscribers, as a best practice, configure the primary extension of all Cisco Unity subscribers with the extension that will be used for addressing from the remote voice mail system. Configure all other required extensions as alternate extensions, as all other functionality in Cisco Unity can use alternate extensions.

Inbound Search Scope

In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, the search scope for a matching subscriber extension for inbound messages sent from another AMIS-compliant voice messaging system is controlled by the primary location addressing options in the Cisco Unity Administrator. The search scope for inbound AMIS messages can be set to the local Cisco Unity server, to the dialing domain that the local Cisco Unity server is a member of, or to the entire global directory. Note that only subscriber extensions are searched. Incoming AMIS messages cannot be delivered to distribution lists.