Release Notes for Cisco Conference Connection, 1.2(2)

These release notes include up-to-date documentation notes and descriptions of known problems for Cisco Conference Connection 1.2(2).

Documentation Roadmap

Use these publications to learn how to install and use Cisco Conference Connection. All Cisco Conference Connection documents are available online at:

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Cisco Conference Connection Administration Guide (DOC-7814554=)—Describes how to plan for, install, configure, manage, use, and troubleshoot Cisco Conference Connection. An Adobe Acrobat (PDF) version of this manual is available in the Cisco Conference Connection online help.

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Cisco Conference Connection User's Guide—Describes how to use Cisco Conference Connection to create and manage conferences. The guide is only available online at the above URL, or in a PDF file available on the Cisco Conference Connection Information page.

New and Changed Information

This section describes new features and changes pertinent to this release of Cisco Conference Control.

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Increases the number of ports supported— Cisco Conference Connection 1.2(2) supports up to 180 ports on Cisco Media Convergence Server 7845 or equivalent. See your Cisco representative for information about obtaining a license for additional ports.

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Increases the number of conferences supported— Cisco Conference Connection 1.2(2) supports up to 25 conferences concurrently on the current high-end platforms.

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Identify time-zone of server—Cisco Conference Connection 1.2(2) displays the time zone in which the server is located for all start and end times.

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Allow user to select an alternative server when current server has insufficient resources to establish conference—The Cisco Conference Connection administrator can create links to alternative CCC servers in the message that appears to user scheduling a conference when the current server has insufficient resources to schedule the conference. The link launches the login page of the alternative server.

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Allow administrator to generate a conference information file—The administrator can generate a file that provides information about all CCC conferences completed during a specified period of time. You can use this file to extract data about the conferences.

Important Notes

This section contains important information that may have been unavailable for the initial release of Cisco Conference Connection 1.2.

Improving Security

Step 1

Create an access control list on the router or switch to which the CCC connects.

Step 2

Restrict all H.323 traffic so that only CCM nodes may communicate with CCC.

Note Refer to your router or switch documentation for information about creating an access control list and restricting H.323 traffic.

Using Cisco Conference Connection v1.2(2) with Windows 2000

Cisco Conference Connection v1.2(2) does not support the following versions of Microsoft Windows 2000:

Using Apps Administration with Windows 2000 v2.3 or Later

The Apps Administration pages do not work properly when Windows Hot Fix Q274450 is installed on a CCC server with Windows 2000 version 2.3 or later. To resolve these Apps Administration page problems, you can do one of the following:

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Download and install the Cisco CallManager Extended Services 2.2(5) Support Patch B software. You can find this software at the following URL:

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Cisco CallManager Extended Services 2.2(5) Support Patch B is located on Cisco Connection Online (CCO). You must have a CCO login account to access this software.

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Manually remove Windows Hot Fix Q274450 from the CCC server. (Refer to your Windows 2000 documentation for instruction about removing software programs.)

Ensuring Audio Quality

If conference participants hear echo, jittery voices, or clipped voices, it may be due to a problem on the network. These problems are more likely when participants join a conference through gateways and in a highly routed or switched environment.

Cisco recommends taking the following precautions to ensure conference audio quality:

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Ensure that your voice network implementation is consistent with quality of service (QoS) guidelines.

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Configure the switch port to run at 100Mbps Full Duplex (do not set it for automatic detection).

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Configure the Network Interface Card (NIC) on the Cisco Conference Connection server to run at 100Mbps Full Duplex mode.

Upgrading from Cisco Conference Connection 1.1

If you are upgrading a Cisco Conference Connection 1.1(3) server, follow the instructions in Cisco Conference Connection Administration Guide for upgrading the product. Ensure that you completely remove metalink agreements and uninstall the software, as described in the administration guide, before you install Cisco Conference Connection 1.2.

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The cccadmin user—To log into Cisco Conference Connection 1.2 as an administrator (for the first time), you must use the cccadmin user name. You must create the cccadmin user name in Cisco CallManager before you can use it. See the administration guide for information on creating the cccadmin user.

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Updating the administrator list—The Cisco Conference Connection administrators you configured in 1.1 no longer apply in 1.2. You must create a new list of administrators based on Cisco CallManager user names. The administration guide explains how to do this; the software preserves your old list of administrators to help you create the new list.

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Set a default password (optional)—The Conference Director IVR application now includes a default password parameter. If you set a default password, then conference attendees must enter a password for every conference, even if the conference owner does not set a password. If you decide that this level of security is required, update the Conference Director configuration as described in the administration guide.

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Configure password requirements (optional)—Through the Cisco Conference Connection web interface, you can force conference owners to set passwords for all new or modified conferences. You can also force owners to select randomly-generated passwords, rather than passwords they select. Finally, you can choose whether all conferences with passwords are also hidden conferences. See the administration guide for more information on these system settings.

Resolved Caveats

Table 1 lists and describes caveats that were resolved in Cisco Conference Connection at the time this document was released.

Table 1 CCC Resolved Caveats
Identifier	Headline
CSCdz36025	Intermittent one-way audio with CCC calls
CSCdz63707	CCC limits password update to 8 characters.
CSCdx49278	CCC access point delay 15 seconds after the failover completed.
CSCdy40890	CCC database overflow allowed size.
CSCdx87373	Password should be checked during install.
CSCea59776	APPADMIN: Unable to access Appadmin after installation.

Open Caveats

This Open Caveats section lists unexpected behavior or defects in of Cisco Conference Connection 1.2(2). Severity 1 caveats are the most serious caveats, severity 2 caveats are less serious, and severity 3 caveats are still less serious. Table 2 provides information about these caveats in Cisco Conference Connection 1.2(2) that were not resolve the time this software was released.

You can search for information about these and other caveats found after this release on the Cisco bug tracking tool, called Bug Toolkit. You must have a Cisco Connection Online (Cisco.com) account to access caveats. To access information about these caveats, enter the URL listed for the caveat in your browser. To access information about other caveats in the Bug Toolkit, open http://www.cisco.com/support/bugtools in your web browser.

Table 2 Open Caveats for Cisco Conference Connection 1.2(2)
Identifier	Headline
CSCea16259	Media Processor Connection Failure on FD -1. not audio/video. http://wwwin-metrics.cisco.com/protected-cgi-bin/ddtsdisp.cgi?id=CSCea16259
CSCdy37804	Minor clipping and robotic voice heard in conference. http://wwwin-metrics.cisco.com/protected-cgi-bin/ddtsdisp.cgi?id=CSCdx77346
CSCdz76055	Irregular packet timing causes problems with some endpoints. http://wwwin-metrics.cisco.com/protected-cgi-bin/ddtsdisp.cgi?id=CSCdz76055

Documentation Updates

This section provides information about how to configure those new features that need to be configured.

Creating Links to Alternative CCC Servers

When a CCC server has insufficient resources to schedule a conference, the server posts the Conference Scheduling Failed message to the user. You can configure the CCC server to include URL links to alternative CCC servers in this message. The user can use these links to access an alternative CCC server to schedule the conference.

To configure the CCC server to include URL links for alternative CCC servers in the Conference Scheduling Failed message, perform the following steps:

Step 4

In the Alternate Conference Connection Resources section, do the following:

<a href="server information" target="_blank">Sample Alternate Server Link</a>

where server information is the IP address or web page URL of the server that you want users to use.

Exporting a File of Cisco Conference Connection Calls

You can export a file containing information about CCC conferences. You specify the information that you want to collect and the interval over which the information is collected. This information is collect for all CCC conferences that occur during that interval. You can use Microsoft Notepad and Microsoft Wordpad on the Windows desktop and Microsoft Excel to open the file.

Step 3

In the From section, specify the starting date from which you want the file to list CCC conference records.

Step 4

In the To section, specify the ending date to which you want the file to list CCC conference records.

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Click the Automatic radio button to assign as the name of the file Export-FROM-yyyy-mm-dd-TO-yyyy-mm-dd.csv

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Click the Specify radio button and enter the string you want to use for the file name in the first field and the extension you want to use for the file in the second field.

Step 6

In the Header Field section, check Include header lines in export file if you want to specify the type of data you want the file to collect.

Step 7

In the Export Options section, select the types of data that you want this file to contain.

Table 3 Export Options
Information Type	Description
Name	The name of the conference.
End Time	The time the session ended.
Owner	Cisco Conference Connection user that scheduled the conference.
Password	Password participants use to access the conference.
Information	This is the information entered in the Description field of the conference profile.
Conference ID	Identification number Cisco Conference Connection assigns to this conference.
Number of Participants	Maximum number of concurrent participants that are allowed to join the conference.
Record ID	Identification number assigned to this CCC session.
Start Time	Time the conference started.
Repeat ID	Identification number assigned to conferences that are scheduled to have multiple sessions.
Hidden Conference	This value specifies to which CCC users this conference listing is visible: 0—Listing visible to all CCC users 1—Listing visible to owner and CCC administrator
Participant Information	Provides information about the session participants including the participants number, time joined the conference, and the length of time the participant remained in the session.

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Click the Open this file from its current location radio button to open the file in Microsoft Excel.

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Click the Save this file to disk radio button to specify where you want to save the file.

Viewing an Exported File

You must open the export file in Microsoft Notepad and Microsoft Wordpad on the Windows desktop to get all the collected data rendered correctly. For ease of viewing the data, you can open the file in Microsoft Excel. However, date and time information are not rendered correctly in Excel. Table 4 provides information about the headings that appear in the file.

Notepad and Wordpad open the export file as a text file. All Export Option headings that you chose are listed on the top line and separated by commas. The sets of conference data appear on subsequent lines.

Table 4 Headings Used In CCC Export File
Heading	Description
MeetingName	The name assigned to the conference.
MeetingInformation	Information taken from in the Description field of the conference profile.
Meeting Owner	Cisco Conference Connection user that scheduled the conference.
E.164 Alias	Identification number CCC assigns to this conference.
Conference StartDateTime	Date and time this conference session starts.
Conference EndDateTime	Date and time this conference session ends.
ConferenceRecordIdentifier	Identification number assigned to this CCC session.
RepeatID	Identification number assigned to conferences that are scheduled to have multiple sessions.
HiddenMeeting	Specifies the CCC users to which this conference listing is visible: 0—Listing visible to all CCC users. 1—Listing visible to owner and CCC administrator.
MeetingPassword	Password participants use to access the conference.
RequiredResource	Maximum number of concurrent participants that are allowed to join the conference.
ConferenceDuration	Length of time this conference session is open in seconds.
ConferenceParticipantCount	Total number of participants that participate in the session.
Participants	Dial number of conference participant.
Start Time	Time this participant joined this conference.
Duration	Length of time in seconds that this participant remained in this conference.

Note The export file provides Participants, Start Time, and Duration information for each participant that joins the conference. However, these headings are listed for the first participant only. This information is listed in the same order for the remaining participants.

Obtaining Documentation

Cisco provides several ways to obtain documentation, technical assistance, and other technical resources. These sections explain how to obtain technical information from Cisco Systems.

Cisco.com

You can access the most current Cisco documentation on the World Wide Web at this URL:

Documentation CD-ROM

Cisco documentation and additional literature are available in a Cisco Documentation CD-ROM package, which may have shipped with your product. The Documentation CD-ROM is updated monthly and may be more current than printed documentation. The CD-ROM package is available as a single unit or through an annual subscription.

Registered Cisco.com users can order the Documentation CD-ROM (product number DOC-CONDOCCD=) through the online Subscription Store:

Ordering Documentation

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Registered Cisco.com users (Cisco direct customers) can order Cisco product documentation from the Networking Products MarketPlace:

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Registered Cisco.com users can order the Documentation CD-ROM (Customer Order Number DOC-CONDOCCD=) through the online Subscription Store:

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Nonregistered Cisco.com users can order documentation through a local account representative by calling Cisco Systems Corporate Headquarters (California, U.S.A.) at 408 526-7208 or, elsewhere in North America, by calling 800 553-NETS (6387).

Documentation Feedback

You can submit comments electronically on Cisco.com. On the Cisco Documentation home page, click Feedback at the top of the page.

You can submit your comments by mail by using the response card behind the front cover of your document or by writing to the following address:

Cisco Systems
Attn: Customer Document Ordering
170 West Tasman Drive
San Jose, CA 95134-9883

Obtaining Technical Assistance

Cisco provides Cisco.com, which includes the Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) Website, as a starting point for all technical assistance. Customers and partners can obtain online documentation, troubleshooting tips, and sample configurations from the Cisco TAC website. Cisco.com registered users have complete access to the technical support resources on the Cisco TAC website, including TAC tools and utilities.

Cisco.com

Cisco.com offers a suite of interactive, networked services that let you access Cisco information, networking solutions, services, programs, and resources at any time, from anywhere in the world.

Cisco.com provides a broad range of features and services to help you with these tasks:

To obtain customized information and service, you can self-register on Cisco.com at this URL:

Technical Assistance Center

The Cisco TAC is available to all customers who need technical assistance with a Cisco product, technology, or solution. Two levels of support are available: the Cisco TAC website and the Cisco TAC Escalation Center. The avenue of support that you choose depends on the priority of the problem and the conditions stated in service contracts, when applicable.

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Priority level 4 (P4)—You need information or assistance concerning Cisco product capabilities, product installation, or basic product configuration.

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Priority level 3 (P3)—Your network performance is degraded. Network functionality is noticeably impaired, but most business operations continue.

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Priority level 2 (P2)—Your production network is severely degraded, affecting significant aspects of business operations. No workaround is available.

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Priority level 1 (P1)—Your production network is down, and a critical impact to business operations will occur if service is not restored quickly. No workaround is available.

Cisco TAC Website

You can use the Cisco TAC website to resolve P3 and P4 issues yourself, saving both cost and time. The site provides around-the-clock access to online tools, knowledge bases, and software. To access the Cisco TAC website, go to this URL:

All customers, partners, and resellers who have a valid Cisco service contract have complete access to the technical support resources on the Cisco TAC website. Some services on the Cisco TAC website require a Cisco.com login ID and password. If you have a valid service contract but do not have a login ID or password, go to this URL to register:

If you are a Cisco.com registered user, and you cannot resolve your technical issues by using the Cisco TAC website, you can open a case online at this URL:

If you have Internet access, we recommend that you open P3 and P4 cases through the Cisco TAC website so that you can describe the situation in your own words and attach any necessary files.

Cisco TAC Escalation Center

The Cisco TAC Escalation Center addresses priority level 1 or priority level 2 issues. These classifications are assigned when severe network degradation significantly impacts business operations. When you contact the TAC Escalation Center with a P1 or P2 problem, a Cisco TAC engineer automatically opens a case.

To obtain a directory of toll-free Cisco TAC telephone numbers for your country, go to this URL:

Before calling, please check with your network operations center to determine the level of Cisco support services to which your company is entitled: for example, SMARTnet, SMARTnet Onsite, or Network Supported Accounts (NSA). When you call the center, please have available your service agreement number and your product serial number.

Obtaining Additional Publications and Information

Information about Cisco products, technologies, and network solutions is available from various online and printed sources.

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The Cisco Product Catalog describes the networking products offered by Cisco Systems as well as ordering and customer support services. Access the Cisco Product Catalog at this URL:

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Cisco Press publishes a wide range of networking publications. Cisco suggests these titles for new and experienced users: Internetworking Terms and Acronyms Dictionary, Internetworking Technology Handbook, Internetworking Troubleshooting Guide, and the Internetworking Design Guide. For current Cisco Press titles and other information, go to Cisco Press online at this URL:

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Packet magazine is the Cisco monthly periodical that provides industry professionals with the latest information about the field of networking. You can access Packet magazine at this URL:

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iQ Magazine is the Cisco monthly periodical that provides business leaders and decision makers with the latest information about the networking industry. You can access iQ Magazine at this URL:

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Internet Protocol Journal is a quarterly journal published by Cisco Systems for engineering professionals involved in the design, development, and operation of public and private internets and intranets. You can access the Internet Protocol Journal at this URL:

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Training—Cisco offers world-class networking training, with current offerings in network training listed at this URL:

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