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Table Of Contents
Task List: Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use VPIM Networking
Procedures for Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use VPIM Networking
Making Design Decisions and Gathering Needed Information
Verifying Connectivity Between Exchange and the Remote Voice Messaging System
Resolving Names with IP Addresses
Extending the Active Directory Schema
Setting Up the Voice Connector for VPIM Networking
Customizing the Primary Location
Setting the Addressing, Directory Handler, and Automated Attendant Search Scopes
Setting the Addressing Search Scope
Setting the Directory Handler Search Scope
Setting the Automated Attendant Search Scope
Creating VPIM Delivery Locations
Before Creating Subscriber Accounts
Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard to Create Multiple Subscriber Accounts
Using the Cisco Unity Administrator to Create VPIM Subscriber Accounts
After Creating Subscriber Accounts
Gathering Information About Cisco Unity to Configure Another Voice Messaging System for VPIM
Voice Connector and VPIM Networking
How the Voice Connector Processes Outgoing VPIM Messages
How the Voice Connector Processes Incoming VPIM Messages
Messaging Similarities and Limitations
Blind Addressing and VPIM Networking
Subscriber Experience with Blind Addressing
Subscriber Experience with VPIM Subscribers
Call Transfer Settings and VPIM Subscribers
Determining How VPIM Subscribers Appear in the Outlook Address Book
Preventing Contacts From Appearing in the Outlook Address Book
Modifying How Contacts Appear in the Outlook Address Book
Migrating Subscribers from Another Voice Messaging System to Cisco Unity
Migrating Subscribers One at a Time
Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers
VPIM Delivery Location Profile Settings
Leaving a Message Versus Sending a Message
VPIM Networking
Overview: VPIM Networking
Cisco Unity supports the Voice Profile for Internet Messaging (VPIM) protocol, which allows different voice messaging systems to exchange voice, fax, and text messages over the Internet or any TCP/IP network. VPIM is based on the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) and the Multi-Purpose Internet Mail Extension (MIME) protocol.
VPIM 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 VPIM Networking. The Cisco Unity server configured for VPIM Networking is referred to as the bridgehead server. For more information about obtaining licenses for Cisco Unity features, refer to White Paper: Licensing for Cisco Unity, which is available at http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/voice/c_unity/whitpapr/licenses.htm.
No special permissions are required for VPIM Networking beyond those required for Cisco Unity itself. For detailed information about the permissions required by Cisco Unity, see the help file for the Permissions Wizard, which is available in Tools Depot on the Cisco Unity server.
In this chapter, you will find procedures for setting up VPIM Networking. See the following sections:
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Task List: Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use VPIM Networking—This task list provides a high-level view of all of the tasks you need to complete, and the order in which they should be completed.
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For a list of VPIM-compliant voice messaging systems that Cisco Unity supports, refer to Cisco Unity System Requirements, and Supported Hardware and Software, available at http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/voice/c_unity/sysreq/40_sysrq.htm.
Task List: Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use VPIM Networking
Use this task list to set up VPIM Networking in Cisco Unity. The list assumes that Cisco Unity is already installed on the servers and that they are connected to the network. The cross-references take you to detailed procedures for the setup.
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On the Cisco Unity server that will be set up for VPIM Networking:
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Procedures for Setting Up Cisco Unity to Use VPIM Networking
This section contains all of the procedures necessary to set up Cisco Unity for VPIM Networking.
Making Design Decisions and Gathering Needed Information
Before you begin setting up Cisco Unity for VPIM Networking, be sure to plan for the following, and gather the applicable information:
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Verifying Connectivity Between Exchange and the Remote Voice Messaging System
Verify that the Exchange server on which the Voice Connector and the VPIM Transport Event Sink will be installed has network and SMTP connectivity with the remote voice messaging server, and vice versa.
VPIM messages are sent over the Internet (or any TCP/IP network) via SMTP. With Cisco Unity, the processing of VPIM messages occurs on the Exchange server on which the Voice Connector and the VPIM Transport Event Sink are installed. An SMTP service runs on the Exchange server; this may not be the case on the remote voice messaging server. Therefore, before proceeding, verify that the SMTP service or gateway has been installed on the remote voice messaging server. Refer to the remote voice messaging system documentation for information on installing the SMTP service or gateway.
To Verify Network Connectivity Between Exchange and the Remote Voice Messaging Server
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If you receive no reply, troubleshoot the network connectivity problem until the problem is resolved. Then continue with Step 3.
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Then, enter ping <Server name> where <Server name> is the name of the remote voice messaging server.
If you received a reply when pinging the IP address in Step 2, but no replies when pinging the domain name and server name, see the "Resolving Names with IP Addresses" section. When the problem(s) are resolved, continue with Step 4.
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If any of the above ping tests fail, there is a basic network connectivity problem that needs to be resolved before proceeding with the VPIM Networking setup.
When you verify that you have basic network connectivity, continue with the following procedure "To Verify SMTP Connectivity Between Exchange and the Remote Voice Messaging Server."
To Verify SMTP Connectivity Between Exchange and the Remote Voice Messaging Server
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If any of the telnet tests fails, there is a basic SMTP connectivity problem that must be resolved before proceeding with the VPIM Networking setup.
Resolving Names with IP Addresses
Both the Exchange and remote voice messaging servers require some mechanism for name resolution. While any method or combination of methods may be used, two common ways to accomplish name resolution are through Domain Name System (DNS), and by using HOSTS files.
If the Exchange server and/or the remote voice messaging server are in a network that uses DNS, the servers should have a host address resource ("A") record and a mail exchange ("MX") record in DNS. If the A and MX records for the servers have not already been added, do so now before continuing. Refer to your operating system documentation for more information about adding A and MX records in DNS.
A HOSTS file is a text file that contains the mappings of IP addresses to host and domain names. If the Exchange server is in a network that does not use DNS, you will need to edit the HOSTS file to add host and domain entries for the remote voice messaging server. The HOSTS file on the Exchange server is located in the C:\Winnt\System32\Drivers\Etc directory. If the remote voice messaging server is in a network that does not use DNS, you will need to edit the HOSTS file on the remote voice messaging server to add host and domain entries for the Exchange server. The location of the HOSTS file on the remote voice messaging server depends on the operating system that is used. Some systems may have a user interface for editing the HOSTS file. Refer to the remote voice messaging system documentation for more information.
Extending the Active Directory Schema
Before Cisco Unity is installed, the Active Directory schema is extended to store Cisco Unity-specific information. To support VPIM Networking, the schema must be further extended to add attributes to the Cisco Unity location object class. To see the schema changes that need to be made to support VPIM Networking, browse to the directory Schema\LdifScripts on Cisco Unity Disc 1, and view the file vpimgateway.ldf.
To Extend the Active Directory Schema for VPIM Networking
Do this procedure only if you have not already modified the Active Directory schema to support VPIM Networking during the Cisco Unity installation. A log file is generated each time the schema is updated. A shortcut to the directory where the log file is located is placed on the Windows desktop.
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Setting Up the Voice Connector for VPIM Networking
Although there are two Voice Connector installation programs included on Cisco Unity Disc 1, the Voice Connector for Exchange 2000 is the only one supported for VPIM Networking.
Install Voice Connector version 11.0(1) or later on any Exchange 2000 or Exchange 2003 server that is not part of an Exchange cluster (Microsoft does not support third-party connectors on an Exchange cluster server). Although the Voice Connector can be installed on the Cisco Unity server (if Exchange 2000 or Exchange 2003 is also on the server), this is not recommended for performance reasons.
If the Cisco Unity subscriber accounts are homed on Exchange servers in routing groups other than that in which the Voice Connector is installed, routing group connectors must be configured to allow routing among these routing groups.
To Install the Voice Connector for Exchange 2000
As a best practice, back up the Exchange server before installing the Voice Connector.
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If you are installing the Voice Connector on multiple Exchange servers, in most cases you need to install the VPIM Transport Event Sink only once. The Exchange server on which the VPIM Transport Event Sink is installed should be the Exchange server that will receive incoming VPIM messages. Only one instance of the VPIM Transport Event Sink is necessary if all VPIM messages will be routed through a single Exchange server. If incoming VPIM messages will be routed through multiple Exchange servers, the Voice Connector and VPIM Transport Event Sink should be installed on each of these servers.
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To Determine if the Microsoft Windows 2000 Script Host Should Be Updated
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To update the Windows Script Host, go to the downloads page on the Microsoft website, and do a keyword search for Windows Script Host. Follow the installation instructions.
Customizing the Primary Location
Carefully consider the Dial ID that you will assign to the primary location, particularly if your organization has multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together. See the "Guidelines for Assigning Dial IDs and Extensions" section on page 7-2 for detailed information about choosing a Dial ID.
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To Customize the Primary Location
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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.
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Setting the Addressing, Directory Handler, and Automated Attendant Search Scopes
In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, set search scopes on all Cisco Unity servers, not just those that you are setting up for VPIM Networking.
Before changing the directory handler or automated attendant search scopes, see the "Call Transfer Settings Unavailable" section.
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Do the following procedures to set up the addressing, directory handler, and automated attendant search scopes.
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The automated attendant search scope must be set to search the dialing domain in order for identified subscriber messaging between networked Cisco Unity servers to work.
Setting the Addressing Search Scope
For detailed information about the addressing search options, see the "Primary Location Addressing Option Settings" section on page 7-5.
To Set the Addressing Search Scope
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Setting the Directory Handler Search Scope
For detailed information refer to the "Directory Handler Search Options Settings" section in the "Directory Handler Settings" chapter of the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide. (The Cisco Unity System Administration Guide is available at http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/product/voice/c_unity/unity40/sag/sag403/ex/index.htm.)
To Set the Directory Handler Search Scope
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Setting the Automated Attendant Search Scope
By default, callers who reach the opening greeting for your organization can be transferred only to subscribers associated with the local Cisco Unity server. If you want to set up the automated attendant so that callers can be transferred to subscribers associated with other Cisco Unity servers in the same dialing domain, change a registry setting as described in the following procedure.
The automated attendant search scope must be set to search the dialing domain in order for identified subscriber messaging between networked Cisco Unity servers to work.
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To Set the Automated Attendant Search Scope
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You do not need to restart Cisco Unity to enable the change.
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Creating VPIM Delivery Locations
Create a VPIM delivery location on your local Cisco Unity server for each remote voice messaging system to which subscribers will send messages. In installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers, you create the VPIM delivery location only on the designated VPIM bridgehead server.
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 7-2 for detailed information about choosing a Dial ID.
To Create VPIM Delivery Locations
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Creating VPIM Subscribers
You can create VPIM subscriber accounts by using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard or the Cisco Unity Administrator. See the following sections:
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Before Creating Subscriber Accounts
This section lists—in order—the issues that you must consider before creating subscriber accounts.
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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 procedure to run the SysCheck diagnostic tool.
To Check Cisco Unity Setup and Permissions by Using the Cisco Unity SysCheck Tool
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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 VPIM 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, refer to the "Class of Service Settings" chapter in the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide.
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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 VPIM subscribers because they cannot log on to Cisco Unity or use the Cisco Personal Communications Assistant (PCA), administrators can enter call transfer numbers for VPIM subscribers. For security purposes, you should modify the restriction table used for transfers in the COS to which VPIM subscribers belong, as necessary. For details, refer to the "Restriction Tables" chapter in the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide.
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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, refer to the "Public Distribution List Settings" chapter in the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide.
Public distribution lists correspond to distribution groups in Active Directory. The distribution lists are listed in the address book for Microsoft Outlook (or other e-mail client), unless they are explicitly hidden. To help prevent e-mail from being sent to VPIM subscribers, you may want to create lists that contain only VPIM subscribers, and hide these distribution lists from the Outlook address book. The option to hide distribution lists is available on the Subscribers > Public Distribution Lists > Profile page in the Cisco Unity Administrator. Additionally, you may also want to exclude VPIM subscribers from the All Subscribers distribution list or any other distribution list that contains regular subscribers.
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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, refer to the "Subscriber Template Settings" chapter in the Cisco Unity System Administration Guide.
VPIM subscribers correspond to contacts in Active Directory. The contacts are listed in the address book for Microsoft Outlook (or other e-mail client), unless they are explicitly hidden. You may prefer that the associated contacts do not appear in the Outlook address book at all, or you may want to alter how contacts appear in the Outlook address book. See the "Determining How VPIM Subscribers Appear in the Outlook Address Book" section for details.
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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 the user data contained in the CSV file is formatted correctly, you can use it to create new Active Directory contacts at the same time that you create subscriber accounts, or you can use it to create subscriber accounts with existing Active Directory contact data.
If you choose to create subscriber accounts with existing Active Directory contact data, note that the e-mail addresses for the imported contacts are overwritten with extension addresses 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 the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard online Help.
To Prepare a CSV File for Creating VPIM Subscriber Accounts
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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.
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Abade,Alex,2001,3000
Bader,Kelly,2002,3100
Campbell,Terry,2003,3200
Cho,Li,2004,3300
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LAST_NAME,FIRST_NAME,DTMF_ACCESS_ID,REMOTE_USER_ID
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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 Import wizard prompts for is used as a default. You can import external subscribers for multiple delivery locations by using one CSV file.
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To Create VPIM Subscriber Accounts by Using the Cisco Unity Bulk Import Wizard
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To learn more about the options presented in the dialog boxes that appear as the wizard proceeds, click Help.
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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. Once you correct 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, do the following procedure "To Correct Errors That Occurred When Importing Data from a CSV File."
To Correct Errors That Occurred When Importing Data from a CSV File
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Using the Cisco Unity Administrator to Create VPIM Subscriber Accounts
By using the Cisco Unity Administrator, you can create VPIM subscriber accounts one at a time. When you add a new VPIM subscriber account, Cisco Unity creates a contact in Active Directory.
To create an VPIM subscriber account, do the following procedure "To Add a New VPIM Subscriber by Using the Cisco Unity Administrator."
To Add a New VPIM Subscriber by Using the Cisco Unity Administrator
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This number is used by the Voice Connector to construct a VPIM address for messages to the VPIM subscriber. When constructing a VPIM address, the Voice Connector modifies this number when a prefix is defined on the associated VPIM delivery location page.
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After Creating Subscriber Accounts
After creating VPIM subscriber accounts, consider the following:
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Gathering Information About Cisco Unity to Configure Another Voice Messaging System for VPIM
Configuring another voice messaging system to exchange VPIM messages with Cisco Unity may require the following information:
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VPIM messages destined for Cisco Unity should be sent to the Exchange 2000 or Exchange 2003 server on which the Voice Connector and VPIM Transport Event Sink are installed. When defining a location for Cisco Unity on the other voice messaging system, this Exchange server should be specified.
Cisco Unity expects incoming VPIM messages to be formatted as follows: <UnityPhonePrefix+UnitySubscriberExtension@PrimaryLocationSMTPDomainName>. These specific properties are configured on Cisco Unity, but to ensure a successful message flow, similar information should be provided when configuring the other voice messaging system.
VPIM Concepts and Definitions
The following sections explain VPIM concepts in detail:
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Introduction to VPIM
VPIM Networking allows the exchange of voice, fax, and text messages between different voice messaging systems over the Internet or any TCP/IP network. VPIM is an industry-standard protocol based on the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) and the Multi-Purpose Internet Mail Extension (MIME) protocol.
VPIM enables organizations to link different voice messaging systems and to provide seamless voice message sending, receiving, forwarding, and replying between these systems. With VPIM Networking, organizations may be able to save long-distance toll charges for network messages. An organization can exchange messages over a TCP/IP-based intranet, or over the Internet, or a combination of the two.
The VPIM specification defines the format of messages and message addresses, and how messages are exchanged between mail servers. VPIM does not specify how the mail servers interact with client applications, or how they interface with end users. This allows many different kinds of existing systems to support VPIM. For more information about VPIM, refer to the Open Group VPIM website.
VPIM Messages
VPIM messages are made up of one or more MIME-encoded parts. The VPIM specification allows for optional MIME parts for spoken name and for forwarded, fax, and text messages. VPIM messages may also include a vCard, an electronic business card attachment, that includes phone number, text name, and e-mail address. Cisco Unity allows you to specify whether the voice name and vCard of the sender will be sent with outgoing messages. If incoming messages include a voice name, it is played as part of the message. If a vCard is attached to an incoming message, the recipient can look at the vCard data in ViewMail for Microsoft Outlook. Cisco Unity does not update the directory with the voice name or the vCard data from incoming messages.
VPIM voice message parts are encoded by using the ITU G.726 32-kbps ADPCM standard. VPIM fax encoding is based on the TIFF-F specification, and the vCard format is based on the Internet adaptation of the Versit vCard specification.
VPIM Addresses
A VPIM address is in the same format as a typical SMTP e-mail address: localpart@hostpart. The right-hand side of the address is the domain name of the system on the TCP/IP network that handles messages. The left-hand side of the address is a unique identifier for the user. Typically, the left-hand side is the subscriber mailbox number or the mailbox number with a prefix.
For example, an outgoing VPIM message to Terry Campbell with the remote mailbox number 2233 could be addressed:
To: 2233@remotevoicemailsystem.com
If it is necessary to accommodate the numbering plan for your organization, the address can also contain a prefix:
To: 8882233@remotevoicemailsystem.com
VPIM addresses are created by the Voice Connector when sending VPIM messages; they are not entered by subscribers when addressing messages.
Locations and VPIM Networking
Central to how you set up VPIM Networking 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 VPIM Networking, you use the Cisco Unity Administrator to give the primary location a new name and a Dial ID (which is an identifier for the location within Cisco Unity), enter the SMTP domain name, and customize other properties as applicable. See the "Primary Location Profile Settings" section on page 7-1 for more information.
You create a delivery location in the Cisco Unity Administrator 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 VPIM-compliant voice messaging systems. A VPIM delivery location contains the SMTP domain name of the system on the TCP/IP network that handles messages for the remote voice messaging system. See the "VPIM Delivery Location Profile Settings" section for more information.
Location data is stored both in the SQL database on the Cisco Unity server and in Active Directory. In organizations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together, the location data replicates to all the Cisco Unity servers in the network. This means that delivery locations need to be created only on one Cisco Unity server in the network. The Cisco Unity server on which delivery locations are created is referred to as the bridgehead server. See the "Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers" section for more information.
Voice Connector and VPIM Networking
Cisco Unity makes use of Exchange 2000 or Exchange 2003 to provide messaging between Cisco Unity and other VPIM-compliant voice messaging systems. Exchange 2000 and Exchange 2003 are VPIM-transport compliant and provides the ability to send and receive messages across the Internet or any TCP/IP network to computers that support SMTP.
Before an outgoing message to a VPIM-compliant voice messaging system can be sent, it must be encoded as a MIME message. The Cisco Unity Voice Connector for Exchange 2000 handles the conversion to and from the MIME format.
The Voice Connector must be installed on an Exchange 2000 or Exchange 2003 server. If the Exchange and Cisco Unity servers are in different routing groups, a routing group connector must be installed. Although the Voice Connector can be installed on the Cisco Unity server (if Exchange 2000 or Exchange 2003 is also on the server), this is not recommended for performance reasons.
The Voice Connector must not be installed on a server in an Exchange cluster. Microsoft does not support third-party connectors on an Exchange cluster server.
See the "Setting Up the Voice Connector for VPIM Networking" section for information about installing the Voice Connector.
How the Voice Connector Processes Outgoing VPIM Messages
When subscribers use the phone to address a message to a VPIM recipient, Cisco Unity constructs a To address for the message in the form VPIM:<Location Dial ID>_<Remote Mailbox>. As with any other message, Cisco Unity hands it off to Exchange for delivery. Because the message has a VPIM address type, it is first passed to the Voice Connector for processing.
The Voice Connector performs the following tasks:
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The newly formatted message is put in the SMTP pickup directory of the Windows 2000 server for delivery to the VPIM-compliant voice messaging system.
How the Voice Connector Processes Incoming VPIM Messages
When the Voice Connector is installed, it registers a transport event sink with the Windows 2000 SMTP server. A transport event sink is code that is activated through a defined trigger, such as the receipt of a new message.
The VPIM Transport Event Sink is registered by the Voice Connector and monitors all incoming messages. Messages that have the content type Multipart/Voice-Message and are addressed to the SMTP domain defined during the Voice Connector installation are readdressed to the Voice Connector by the VPIM Transport Event Sink.
When the Voice Connector receives the message, it first verifies that the message is from a domain specified in a VPIM delivery location. If a VPIM delivery location with a matching domain name is not found, the Voice Connector rejects the message and sends a non-delivery receipt (NDR) to the sender.
If a VPIM delivery location with a matching location is found, the Voice Connector does the following:
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Message Addressing Options
Cisco Unity provides the following ways to address messages to individuals by using a VPIM-compliant voice messaging system:
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Messaging Similarities and Limitations
For the most part, messaging between Cisco Unity subscribers and individuals on a VPIM-compliant voice messaging system is the same as messaging among Cisco Unity subscribers. For example:
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Note the following exceptions:
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Blind Addressing and VPIM Networking
Blind addressing is one of the methods that Cisco Unity provides for addressing VPIM messages to users of another voice messaging system. Blind addressing allows Cisco Unity to address messages without having specific information about the recipients on the remote voice messaging system (such as their names and mailbox numbers). One of the steps to setting up blind addressing is to change the Blind Addressing setting on the Primary Location > Addressing Options page to something other than None. You also create a VPIM delivery location that corresponds to each voice messaging system with which Cisco Unity communicates.
You provide the following key information for each delivery location:
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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 that a voice name was recorded for the delivery location).
Subscriber Experience with Blind Addressing
Subscribers can address messages by using the phone, ViewMail for Microsoft Outlook, or the Cisco Unity Inbox. To address a message by using ViewMail or the Cisco Unity Inbox, subscribers enter the address in the following format:
[VPIM:<Delivery Location Dial ID>_<Remote Mailbox Number>]
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Because your Cisco Unity server does not have access to the names, extensions, and recorded voice names of the people who use the other voice messaging system, subscribers will encounter some limitations with blind addressing:
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VPIM Subscribers
VPIM subscribers are a representation in Cisco Unity of individuals who use another voice messaging system. VPIM 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 VPIM subscribers are sent to the voice messaging system that they use.
To set up VPIM subscribers, you first create a VPIM delivery location that corresponds to each remote voice messaging system with which Cisco Unity communicates. After creating the delivery locations, you create a VPIM subscriber for each remote user. When creating each VPIM subscriber, you specify the user mailbox number on the other voice messaging system, and select a VPIM delivery location with which to associate the subscriber. The Voice Connector uses the information on the associated delivery location when delivering a message to the VPIM subscriber. Note that VPIM subscribers can be created only on the VPIM bridgehead server on which the associated VPIM delivery location has been created.
You create and manage VPIM 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 VPIM subscriber accounts one at a time, and you can use the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard to create and modify multiple VPIM subscriber accounts.
Extensions are mandatory for VPIM subscribers. The extension is the number that subscribers dial when addressing a message to a VPIM subscriber. This number may or may not be the same as the mailbox number of the VPIM subscriber on the remote voice messaging system. Callers who reach the opening greeting of your organization can dial the extension of a VPIM subscriber or look up a VPIM subscriber in directory assistance and leave a message.
VPIM subscribers in Cisco Unity are represented as contacts in Active Directory. When you delete VPIM subscribers in the Cisco Unity Administrator either by deleting individual accounts or by deleting a delivery location with which the VPIM subscribers are associated, the underlying contacts are deleted automatically.
Other than receiving messages, VPIM subscribers do not have access to other Cisco Unity features, and some sections of the Cisco Unity Administrator are disabled for VPIM subscribers. VPIM subscribers:
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Setting up VPIM subscribers requires more overhead for administrators of Cisco Unity than blind addressing does. However, the VPIM subscriber option allows other subscribers to address messages to VPIM subscribers the same way that they address messages to regular subscribers. In general, setting up VPIM subscriber accounts is a good solution in the following circumstances:
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Because of the administrative overhead of setting up and maintaining many VPIM subscriber accounts, you may prefer a combination of blind addressing and VPIM subscribers. For example, you might want to set up VPIM subscriber accounts for senior sales staff, but not for other employees.
Subscriber Experience with VPIM Subscribers
Provided that VPIM subscribers are listed in the phone directory and have had voice names and greetings recorded for them:
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When Cisco Unity records a message from an unidentified caller for a VPIM subscriber, "non-mail-user@<Domain Name>" is used as the sender of the message, as required by the VPIM specification. Although VPIM subscribers can reply to these messages, the messages are returned to the Unity Messaging System mailbox as NDRs.
Call Transfer Settings and VPIM Subscribers
VPIM subscribers have call transfers settings, can be listed in the phone directory, and have recorded voice names and greetings just like regular Cisco Unity subscribers. Callers who call into the Cisco Unity server on which the VPIM subscribers were created can enter an extension of a VPIM subscriber or look up the extension in the phone directory. When VPIM subscribers do not have phones on the phone system that Cisco Unity is integrated with, you should configure the call transfer settings to sends calls directly to the subscriber's greeting. In this case, Cisco Unity plays the greeting of the VPIM subscriber, records the message, and sends it via VPIM to the remote messaging system.
If you have configured call transfer settings for VPIM subscribers so that calls are transferred to an extension on the phone system that Cisco Unity is integrated with or to another number, depending on how you configure the other call transfer settings, messages left by callers for VPIM subscribers may be recorded directly by the remote voice messaging system, or they may be recorded by Cisco Unity and sent to the remote voice messaging system. If the transfer type is:
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Note that in installations with multiple Cisco Unity servers, call transfer settings are not replicated among the Cisco Unity servers. See the "Call Transfer Settings Unavailable" section for more information.
Deleting VPIM Subscribers
Each VPIM subscriber is associated with an Active Directory contact. When you delete VPIM subscribers in the Cisco Unity Administrator by deleting the subscriber accounts individually, the underlying contacts are automatically deleted. To delete all the VPIM subscribers associated with a delivery location, the underlying contacts associated with the subscribers, and the delivery location itself, use the Global Subscriber Manager, available in Tools Depot.
Extension Addresses
When you create a VPIM subscriber, Cisco Unity automatically generates an e-mail address in the following format:
VPIM:<Delivery Location Dial ID>_<Remote Mailbox Number>
This special e-mail address is called an extension address. The extension address is a combination of the delivery location Dial ID with which the VPIM subscriber is associated, and the Remote Mailbox Number of the VPIM subscriber. Each contact in Active Directory that corresponds to a VPIM subscriber contains an extension address.
When subscribers use the phone to address messages to a VPIM subscriber, they dial an extension. Cisco Unity recognizes the recipient as a VPIM subscriber and retrieves the extension address from the SQL database on the Cisco Unity server.
Extension addresses are generated automatically when you create VPIM subscribers, and as of Cisco Unity 4.0(3), extension addresses are automatically updated if you change the Dial ID of a delivery location. (Because the extension addresses are now updated automatically, the Extension Address utility is no longer included with the tools that ship with Cisco Unity.)
Determining How VPIM Subscribers Appear in the Outlook Address Book
Depending on your installation, the users of the remote voice messaging system may already have Windows accounts and Exchange mailboxes on your local network. Therefore, when VPIM subscriber accounts are created for them, the Exchange address lists will contain duplicate listings—the existing user account and a new contact. Both listings are included in the Outlook address book. This means that people may inadvertently send e-mail messages to the contact, which should be used only for addressing voice messages.
To discourage people from inadvertently sending e-mail messages to VPIM subscribers, you can prevent the associated contact from appearing in the Outlook address book. Alternatively, you can change how the display name for the contact appears in the Outlook address book so that subscribers can distinguish the contact from a user account. In this way, you can reduce the number of e-mail messages inadvertently sent to contacts and simplify addressing for those sending voice messages to VPIM subscribers at the same time.
If you prefer that the associated contacts for subscribes do not appear in the Outlook address book at all, see the "Preventing Contacts From Appearing in the Outlook Address Book" section.
Alternatively, if you want to alter how contacts appear in the Outlook address book, see the "Modifying How Contacts Appear in the Outlook Address Book" section.
Preventing Contacts From Appearing in the Outlook Address Book
Either before or after you create VPIM subscriber accounts, you can prevent the associated contact from appearing in the Outlook address book by hiding them from Exchange address lists. When you do so, Exchange will still deliver e-mail messages addressed to an existing user account (if one exists) and to the contact. However, the number of e-mail messages sent to the contact may be reduced because subscribers cannot inadvertently pick the contact from the Outlook address book when addressing messages to them.
To prevent subscribers from appearing in Outlook address books, you can use the Cisco Unity Administrator, the Cisco Unity Bulk Import wizard, Bulk Edit, or Windows Active Directory for Users and Computers:
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Modifying How Contacts Appear in the Outlook Address Book
As an alternative to preventing a contact from appearing in the Outlook address book altogether, you may want to alter the display name for the contact so that subscribers can distinguish the contact from the user account. For example, you could append " - Voice mail" to the display name of each VPIM subscriber, and the names would appear in the Outlook address book as follows:
Abade, Alex
Abade, Alex - Voice mail
Bader, Kelly
Bader, Kelly - Voice mail
Campbell, Terry
Campbell, Terry - Voice mail
Cho, Li
Cho, Li - Voice mailIn this way, subscribers can easily determine which address is appropriate to use when they send voice messages to VPIM subscribers. Additionally, when subscribers use the Outlook address book to address a message to a contact, they can be confident that the address is formatted correctly.
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 VPIM subscriber information. See the following sections for more information:
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Migrating Subscribers in Bulk
Following are the general steps for migrating VPM 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.)
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Migrating Subscribers One at a Time
If you have set up VPIM subscriber accounts for the subscribers on another voice messaging system, and if they have existing Exchange mailboxes, you may want to use the Migrate Subscriber Data utility when the time comes to migrate them to Cisco Unity. The Migrate Subscriber Data utility creates a Cisco Unity subscriber account by combining the Cisco Unity-specific data from an existing VPIM subscriber account (such as the voice name) with an existing mail user. The utility then deletes the VPIM subscriber account and the associated Active Directory contact.
The Migrate Subscriber Data utility is available in Tools Depot (the Tools Depot icon is installed on the Cisco Unity server desktop). Refer to the Help file that comes with the utility for more information.
Considerations for Networked Cisco Unity Servers
A small subset of subscriber and distribution list data is stored in Active Directory, as is all location data. In organizations with multiple Cisco Unity servers networked together such that they access a common directory, the Cisco Unity-specific data replicates to all Cisco Unity servers in the network. Therefore, all Cisco Unity servers on the network have the information that subscribers need to address messages to users at a VPIM location.
Because of directory replication, VPIM delivery locations and VPIM subscribers need to be created only on one Cisco Unity server in the network. If allowed by the primary location addressing options on each server, all subscribers, no matter which Cisco Unity server they are associated with, can send messages to a VPIM delivery location or to a VPIM subscriber created on another server. The Cisco Unity server configured for VPIM acts as the VPIM "bridgehead" server for the other Cisco Unity servers in the network.
Phone Prefixes
Each VPIM delivery location provides the following prefixes, which are used to accommodate various numbering plans:
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If all VPIM delivery locations have a unique domain name, prefixes are optional. If you have multiple delivery locations with the same domain name, the Remote Phone Prefix is required. Within the set of delivery locations with the same domain name, the Remote Phone Prefix must be a unique number.
For example, assume that an organization has implemented a 10-digit numbering plan, in which the mailbox numbers for Cisco Unity subscribers begin with 206, and the mailbox numbers of subscribers on a VPIM voice messaging system begin with 425.
Assume the following has been set on the VPIM delivery location:
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By setting both the Remote Phone Prefix and the Dial ID to 425, the number that a subscriber enters when blind addressing a message to someone at the VPIM location is the same number that the subscriber enters when calling the person.
Because of the prefix, VPIM subscribers are assigned a 7-digit Remote Mailbox Number. In this example, for outgoing messages the Voice Connector would add the prefix 425 to the beginning of the remote mailbox number, creating a 10-digit recipient mailbox number.
Audio Formats Supported
The Voice Connector always sends outbound VPIM messages in the G.726 format. The Voice Connector can receive VPIM messages with voice attachments in the G.711, GSM 6.10, and G.726 audio formats. The Audio Format Conversion setting on the VPIM Delivery Locations page allows you to control whether incoming messages are converted to another format, or are stored in the same format in which they were sent. See the "VPIM Delivery Location Profile Settings" section for details about the Audio Format Conversion setting.
VPIM Reference
This section contains tables that define the fields on the Cisco Unity Administrator web pages related to VPIM setup, and briefly explain the options for correctly entering information in the fields.
VPIM Delivery Location Profile Settings
VPIM 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 a VPIM 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 a VPIM location.
Notable Behavior
This section describes notable behavior of VPIM Networking. See the following sections for more information:
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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 VPIM-compliant voice messaging system is set to the global directory. It is not possible to limit the inbound search scope to either a dialing domain or to the local Cisco Unity server.
If two (or more) Cisco Unity subscribers have identical extensions, messages from the remote voice messaging system will not be delivered by the Voice Connector to any of the Cisco Unity subscribers with the duplicate extensions. When the Voice Connector detects duplicate extensions, it logs a warning to the Windows Application Event log. If you are concerned that there might be duplicate extensions among Cisco Unity subscribers, you can check the Application Event log on the Exchange server on which the Voice Connector is installed for warnings from the Exchange 2000 Voice Connector.
Leaving a Message Versus Sending a Message
When a person on the remote voice messaging system who has a corresponding VPIM subscriber account calls a Cisco Unity subscriber and leaves a message, Cisco Unity does not identify the message as being from the VPIM subscriber. In this case, when the phone system forwards the call to Cisco Unity, the message is handled as though it came from an unidentified caller. This means that:
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However, when a person on the remote voice messaging system records and sends a message to a Cisco Unity subscriber, Cisco Unity can identify the message as being from the corresponding VPIM subscriber. In this case, the phone system is not involved and the recipient phone does not ring. Instead, the message is sent directly from the remote voice messaging server via VPIM to Cisco Unity, and then to Exchange, which delivers the message to the recipient. Thus, when the recipient listens to the message, Cisco Unity plays the recorded name of the VPIM subscriber, and allows the recipient to record a reply.
