Product Introduction

Subscribers interact with an SESM web portal using a standard Internet browser. They do not need to download any software or plug-ins to use the SESM web portal. After a subscriber successfully authenticates, the SESM web portal presents a list of services that the subscriber is currently authorized to use. The subscriber can gain access to one or more of those services by selecting them from the web portal. Alternatively, an automatic connection feature can automatically connect subscribers to services after authentication.

For service subscribers, the SESM solution offers flexibility and convenience, including the ability to access multiple services simultaneously.

For service providers, the SESM solution provides a way to control the subscriber experience and promote customer loyalty. Service providers can change the look and feel of their SESM web application, brand the application, and control the content of the pages displayed to their subscribers.

Note   The SESM product was previously called the Cisco Service Selection Dashboard (Cisco SSD).

SESM Deployment Options

Two SESM deployment options are available:

SESM includes the following sample portal applications that can be installed and configured for demonstration purposes or used as a starting point for customizations:

You can optionally install the following applications to configure an SESM captive portal solution:

• Captive Portal application—A gateway application between the SSG and other applications in a captive portal solution. The default configuration for this application redirects subscriber browsers to either the Message Portal application or the NWSP application.
  
  
• Message Portal application—Produces sample greetings and advertising pages to demonstrate SESM captive portal features.
  
  

• Cisco Distributed Administration Tool (CDAT)—Web-based interface for administrators that manages data in the SPE extensions to the LDAP directory.
  
  
• RADIUS/DESS Proxy (RDP) server—A RADIUS server that can proxy profile requests or use the SPE components to query the LDAP directory for profile information.
  
  

SPE is installed when SESM Release 3.1(3) is deployed in LDAP mode to provide the following enhanced features and capabilities:

• Use of an LDAP directory to manage subscriber, service profile, and policy information
  
  
• Subscriber account self-care
  
  
• Subscriber sub-account management
  
  
• Subscriber self-subscription to services
  
  
• Bulk administration of large subscriber populations
  
  
• Delegated administration
  
  
• Allow service publishers and business partners access to service creation and management
  
  
• Allow service providers and business partners to publish services to targeted subscribers
  
  

Demo mode is an SESM deployment mode for SESM portal applications. You can install and run the sample portal applications (NWSP, WAP, and PDA) in any of the SESM deployment modes: RADIUS, LDAP, or Demo.

Although you can install the captive portal solution in Demo mode, you cannot demonstrate the solution without an SSG redirecting traffic to the Captive Portal application.

Deployers can customize this application to detect the type and make of various WAP devices used by their subscribers, and tailor the pages to the features of each device.

Deployers can customize this application to detect the type and make of various PDA devices used by their subscribers, and tailor the pages to the features of each device.

The Cisco Subscriber Edge Services Manager Web Developer Guide provides detailed information about each of these sample portal applications.

A sample captive portal solution is included with SESM that illustrates all supported types of redirection. The sample solution includes the following applications:

Most deployers will use the captive portal application as installed but provide their own content applications for the HTTP redirections. The content applications can be any web application. When they are SESM web portals, they can use all of the features in the SESM web development kit, including the device and locale awareness features.

This mode does not affect service authorizations. Regardless of the mode, RDP obtains all service authorizations from information in the LDAP directory.

RDP is a Java2 application that uses the services of a JMX server for configuration. It is not a web application and therefore does not run in a J2EE container.

CDAT is a J2EE web application. It runs in a J2EE container and uses the services of a JMX server for configuration.

This guide describes how to install and configure CDAT. For information about using CDAT, creating profiles in the RBAC model, and the SPE directory extensions, see the Cisco Distributed Administration Tool Guide.

See the Cisco Distributed Administration Tool Guide for information about the RBAC model, the DESS and AUTH extensions to an LDAP directory, and how to develop subscriber and service profile information in the RBAC model.

During SESM installation, the sample portal applications and CDAT and their corresponding configuration files and startup scripts are set up to use the Jetty server components from Mort Bay Consulting. If desired, web developers at your site can deploy a J2EE-compliant server other than the Jetty server.

JMX Server

The installed sample applications, the configuration files, and the startup scripts are set up to use the Sun example JMX server from Sun Microsystems. The SESM installation program installs the JMX server along with the Jetty server. If desired, web developers at your site can deploy a JMX-compliant server other than the Sun example server.

For information about SSG in the Cisco IOS Release 12.2(4)B, see the following documents:

The port-bundle host key feature provides the following advantages to SESM portal applications:

• It allows SESM portal applications to robustly handle overlapping IP addresses, nonroutable IP addresses, and dynamically assigned IP addresses.
  
  
• It eliminates the need to explicitly map subscriber subnets to SSGs.
  
  

When port-bundle host key is enabled on the SSG, the SSG preserves the port number of the incoming HTTP request. This remote port number becomes the key that uniquely identifies each subscriber. The key is included in the request that is forwarded to the SESM web application.

• An SESM portal application deployed in RADIUS mode—This deployment requires user and service profile information in a RADIUS database.
  
  
• An SESM portal application deployed in LDAP mode with an RDP running in Proxy Mode—This deployment requires user profiles in a RADIUS database. In Proxy mode, the RDP proxies authentication requests to a RADIUS database. RDP obtains service authorizations through SPE, based on the information in the directory.
  
  
• An SESM portal application deployed in either RADIUS or LDAP mode when you want to use the SSG accounting features—For any SESM deployment, you can configure the SSG to generate accounting records and send them to a RADIUS server. The RADIUS accounting features are implemented independently from the RADIUS authentication and authorization features.
  
  

An LDAP directory allows interactive updates, a feature that is not readily supported by a RADIUS server. The LDAP mode uses this update capability to offer SESM features that the RADIUS mode cannot provide, such as:

• Subscriber account self care features—Subscribers can change their account information and see those changes take effect immediately.
  
  
• Subscriber self subscription—Subscribers can subscribe to new services and have immediate access to the newly subscribed services.
  
  
• Sub-account creation—Subscribers can create sub-accounts to their main account and use the sub-accounts immediately.
  
  

• Cisco 6400 Universal Access Concentrator (UAC). Each node route processor (NRP) on the Cisco 6400 UAC runs its own Cisco IOS Software and can be an SSG host device.
  
  
• Cisco 7200 Series high-performance multifunction routers
  
  
• Cisco 7400 Series Internet routers
  
  

SESM provides support for applications on any platform that supports the Java Runtime Environment (JRE). Platforms tested in our labs are listed below.

• Sun Ultra10 or Sun E250 (or later version)
  
  
• Solaris Version 2.6 (or later version) operating system
  
  

• Pentium III (or equivalent) processor
  
  
• Windows NT Version 4.0, Service Pack 5 (or later version)
  
  

Windows 2000

• Pentium III (or equivalent) processor
  
  

• Red Hat Linux Version 7.1
  
  
• SuSE Linux