Glossary
Automatic gain control is an adaptive system found in many electronic devices. The average output signal level is fed back to adjust the gain to an appropriate level for a range of input signal levels. For example, without AGC the sound emitted from an AM radio receiver would vary to an extreme extent from a weak to a strong signal; the AGC effectively reduces the volume if the signal is strong and raises it when it is weaker.
Application programming interface. The means by which an application program talks to communications software. Standardized APIs allow application programs to be developed independently of the underlying method of communication. A set of standard software interrupts, calls, and data formats that computer application programs use to initiate contact with other devices (for example, network services, mainframe communications programs, or other program-to-program communications). Typically, APIs make it easier for software developers to create the links that an application needs to communicate with the operating system or with the network.
The Administration via Telephone application is a telephony-based interface that allows Cisco Unity Express that offers the following capabilities:
Administrators can record new audio prompts or delete existing custom audio prompts without using a PC or sound-editing software, such as with the telephone user interface (TUI). These prompts can then be used in various Cisco Unity Express application scripts, such as the Welcome prompt in the default auto-attendant. The Emergency Alternate Greeting (EAG) is an option within the AvT that allows subscribers to record, modify, and enable or disable a special greeting to be played before the regular greeting, notifying callers of some temporary event or message.
Administrators can rerecord existing prompts.
Administrators can send broadcast messages. Subscribers who have the broadcast privilege can access a limited set of AvT capabilities.
Administrators can record spoken names for remote locations and remote subscribers.
Administrative XML layer is a SOAP-based API that enables remote provisioning of CUCM.
Bulk Administration Tool. An application that performs bulk transactions to the database.
Busy Hour Call Attempt is the number of telephone calls attempted at the busiest hour of the day (peak hour), and the higher the BHCA, the higher the stress on the network processors. BHCA is not to be confused with busy hour call completion (BHCC) which measures the throughput capacity of the network.
Busy Hour Call Completion. The number of calls that a telephone system can complete during the busy hour of the day.
Call admission control is the practice or process of regulating traffic volume in voice communications, particularly in wireless mobile networks and in VoIP.
Call Forward All. A Cisco IP phone feature that forwards all calls to a given phone number.
Call Forward Busy. A Cisco IP phone feature that forwards call when the line is busy.
Call Forward No Answer. A Cisco IP phone feature that forwards call if no one answers.
Call Forward No Coverage. A Cisco IP phone feature.
Call Forward Unregistered. A Cisco IP phone feature that forwards calls if the phone is unregistered to CUCM for any reason.
Consolidated Object Backup and Restore Application Suite (COBRAS) is a set of tools designed to allow administrators to backup all subscribers, call handlers, interview handlers, name lookup handlers, public distribution lists, and schedules and to restore some or all of that information onto another Unity or Connection server.
Class of service. An indication of how an upper-layer protocol requires a lower-layer protocol to treat its messages. In SNA subarea routing, CoS definitions are used by subarea nodes to determine the optimal route to establish a given session. A CoS definition comprises a virtual route number and a transmission priority field. Also called ToS (type of service).
Central processing unit. The hardware within a computer system or smartphone that carries out the instructions of a computer program by performing the basic arithmetical, logical, and input-output operations of the system.
Calling search space. A Cisco CUCM object that works with partitions to determine where calls can and cannot be made.
The Cisco TAPI Service Provider (TSP) uses the Computer Telephony Interface Quick Buffer Encoding (CTIQBE) to communicate with Cisco CallManager on TCP port 2748.
Direct-attached storage is a local hard drive in a server.
Dialed number is a number that a caller dialed to initiate a call (for example, 800-555-1212).
Distinguished name. Global, authoritative name of an entry in the OSI directory (X.500).
Domain Name System. System used on the Internet for translating names of network nodes into addresses.
Digital signal processors are hardware based processors that designed to convert analog voice to digital voice over IP.
Dual-tone multifrequency. Tones generated when a button is pressed on a telephone, primarily used in the United States and Canada.
Emergency Alternate Greeting (EAG) allows the Cisco Unity Express administrator to record an alternate AA greeting to be used in case of an emergency or other short-term event, such as a holiday or snow day.
Enterprise License Manager. This is a Cisco Collaboration Systems licensing feature that has been replaced by the Prime License Manager (PLM).
VMware vSphere ESXi. ESXi is not an acronym. VMware’s enterprise software hypervisor for guest virtual servers that runs directly on host server hardware without requiring an additional underlying operating system.
EWS provides access to much of the same data that is made available through Microsoft Office Outlook. EWS clients can integrate Outlook data into Line-of-Business (LOB) applications.
Fibre Channel over Ethernet is a computer network technology that encapsulates Fibre Channel frames over Ethernet networks. This allows Fibre Channel to use 10 Gigabit Ethernet networks (or higher speeds) while preserving the Fibre Channel protocol.
A standard voice codec that describes the 64-kbps PCM voice coding technique. In G.711, encoded voice is already in the correct format for digital voice delivery in the PSTN or through PBXs. Described in the ITU-T standard in its G-series recommendations.
A standard voice codec that describes CELP compression where voice is coded into 8-kbps streams. There are two variations of this standard (G.729 and G.729 Annex A) that differ mainly in computational complexity; both provide speech quality similar to 32-kbps ADPCM. Described in the ITU-T standard in its G-series recommendations.
Generation 2.
A GDM is associated with a group profile in the Cisco Unity Express configuration and does not have a login user ID or a PIN associated.
Greenwich mean time.
Global System for Mobile Communications.
HyperText Transfer Protocol Secure.
Internet Low Bitrate Codec is a free speech codec suitable for robust voice communication over IP. The codec is designed for narrow band speech and results in a payload bit rate of 13.33 kbps with an encoding frame length of 30 ms and 15.20 kbps with an encoding length of 20 ms.
Internet Message Access Protocol. Method of accessing e-mail or bulletin board messages kept on a mail server that can be shared. IMAP permits client e-mail applications to access remote message stores as if they were local without actually transferring the message.
IOPS (Input/Output Operations Per Second, pronounced eye-ops) is a common performance measurement used to benchmark computer storage devices like hard disk drives (HDD), solid state drives (SSD), and storage area networks (SAN).
IP Security. A framework of open standards that provides data confidentiality, data integrity, and data authentication between participating peers. IPsec provides these security services at the IP layer. IPsec uses IKE to handle the negotiation of protocols and algorithms based on local policy and to generate the encryption and authentication keys to be used by IPsec. IPsec can protect one or more data flows between a pair of hosts, between a pair of security gateways, or between a security gateway and a host.
Internet Small Computer Systems Interface. Works on top of the Transport Control Protocol (TCP) and allows the SCSI command to be sent end-to-end over local-area networks (LANs), wide-area networks (WANs), or the Internet.
An Integrated Services Router is a Cisco physical router with added technologies to make it into a voice gateway that specifies the elements to guarantee QoS on networks. For example, an ISR can be used to allow video and sound to reach the receiver without interruption. Every application that requires some kind of guarantee has to make an individual reservation.
Interactive voice response. Term used to describe systems that provide information in the form of recorded messages over telephone lines in response to user input in the form of spoken words or, more commonly, DTMF signaling. Examples include banks that allow you to check your balance from any telephone and automated stock quote systems.
Java Telephony Application Programming Interface. Sun Microsystems developed this call control model.
Lightweight Directory Access Protocol is a protocol that provides access for management and browser applications that provide read/write interactive access to the X.500 Directory.
Linear pulse-code modulation (LPCM) is a specific type of PCM where the quantization levels are linearly uniform. This is in contrast to PCM encodings where quantization levels vary as a function of amplitude (as with the A-law algorithm or the µ-law algorithm).
MACD is a common term referring to a request to create a new configuration.
A metropolitan-area network is a network that interconnects users with computer resources in a geographic area or region larger than that covered by even a large local-area network (LAN) but smaller than the area covered by a wide-area network (WAN).
Messaging Application Programming Interface (MAPI) is a messaging architecture and a Component Object Model-based API for Microsoft Windows. MAPI allows client programs to become (e-mail) messaging-enabled, aware, or based by calling MAPI subsystem routines that interface with certain messaging servers.
Message waiting indicator is an audio or visual signal that a voicemail or other type of message is waiting.
The North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is a telephone numbering plan that encompasses 25 distinct regions in twenty countries primarily in North America, including the Caribbean and the U.S. territories. Not all North American countries participate in the NANP.
Network-attached storage is a file-level computer data storage server connected to a computer network providing data access to a heterogeneous group of clients. NAS is specialized for serving files either by its hardware, software, or configuration.
Network Address Translation. A mechanism for reducing the need for globally unique IP addresses. NAT allows an organization with addresses that are not globally unique to connect to the Internet by translating these addresses into globally routable address space. Also known as Network Address Translator.
Network File System. As commonly used, a distributed file system protocol suite developed by Sun Microsystems that allows remote file access across a network. In actuality, NFS is simply one protocol in the suite. NFS protocols include NFS, RPC, XDR, and others. These protocols are part of a larger architecture that Sun refers to as ONC.
Network interface card is a circuit board in a server that provides network communication capabilities to and from a computer system. A NIC is also called an adapter.
The named telephone events are carried as part of the voice stream and use the same sequence number and time-stamp base as the regular voice channel.
NT LAN Manager. Also known as Microsoft Windows Challenge/Response, NT LAN Manager is the authentication protocol that is used on Windows systems and networks.
Network Time Protocol. A protocol that is built on top of TCP that ensures accurate local timekeeping with reference to radio and atomic clocks that are located on the Internet. This protocol is capable of synchronizing distributed clocks within milliseconds over long time periods.
Open Systems Interconnection. International standardization program created by ISO and ITU-T to develop standards for data networking that facilitate multivendor equipment interoperability.
An Open Virtual Appliance is merely a single file distribution of the same file package, stored in the TAR format.
An Open Virtualization Format is not only the name of the packaging format standard, but it also refers to the package when distributed as a group of files.
Port Address Translation. Translation method that allows the user to conserve addresses in the global address pool by allowing source ports in TCP connections or UDP conversations to be translated. Different local addresses then map to the same global address, with port translation providing the necessary uniqueness. When translation is required, the new port number is picked out of the same range as the original following the convention of Berkeley Standard Distribution (SD).
Pulse code modulation is a method used to digitally represent sampled analog signals. It is the standard form of digital audio in computers, Compact Discs, digital telephony and other digital audio applications.
The Cisco Unity PBX IP Media Gateway (PIMG) is an 8-port, stackable integration device that emulates a digital or analog phone (station) on the PBX side and connects to the Cisco Unity server over a LAN or WAN using the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP).
Public switched telephone network. General term referring to the variety of telephone networks and services in place worldwide. Sometimes called POTS.
Quality of service is a measure of performance for a transmission system that reflects its transmission quality and service availability.
Real-Time Monitoring Tool. Runs as a client-side application; uses HTTPS and TCP to monitor system performance, device status, device discovery.
Real-Time Transport Protocol. Commonly used with IP networks. RTP is designed to provide end-to-end network transport functions for applications transmitting real-time data, such as audio, video, or simulation data, over multicast or unicast network services. RTP provides such services as payload type identification, sequence numbering, time-stamping, and delivery monitoring to real-time applications.
A storage-area network is a high-speed network of storage devices that also connects those storage devices with servers.
Skinny Client Control Protocol is a proprietary network terminal control protocol originally developed by Selsius Systems, which was acquired by Cisco Systems in 1998. SCCP is a lightweight IP-based protocol for session signaling with Cisco Unified Communications Manager, formerly named CallManager.
Small Computer Systems Interface. A set of parallel interface standards developed by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) for attaching printers, disk drives, scanners and other peripherals to computers. SCSI (pronounced “skuzzy”) is supported by all major operating systems.
Session Description Protocol is a set of rules that defines how multimedia sessions can be set up to allow all end points to effectively participate in the session. In this context, a session consists of a set of communications end points along with a series of interactions among them.
Session Initiation Protocol. Protocol developed by the IETF MMUSIC Working Group as an alternative to H.323. SIP features are compliant with IETF RFC 2543, published in March 1999. SIP equips platforms to signal the setup of voice and multimedia calls over IP networks.
The Cisco ® ASR 1000 Series SPA Interface Processor (SIP), based on the Cisco I-Flex design, combines shared port adapters (SPAs) and SPA interface processors (SIPs), taking advantage of an extensible design that facilitates service prioritization for voice, video, and data (triple-play) services.
A service level agreement is a contract between a service provider (either internal or external) and the end user that defines the level of service expected from the service provider. SLAs are output-based in that their purpose is specifically to define what the customer will receive.
Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. Internet protocol providing e-mail services.
Simple Network Management Protocol. Network management protocol used almost exclusively in TCP/IP networks. SNMP provides a means to monitor and control network devices, and to manage configurations, statistics collection, performance, and security.
Simple Object Access Protocol is an XML-based messaging protocol. It defines a set of rules for structuring messages that can be used for simple one-way messaging but is particularly useful for performing RPC-style (Remote Procedure Call) request-response dialogues.
The Cisco Services Ready Engine (SRE) modules are router blades for the second generation of Cisco Integrated Services Routers (ISR G2) that provide the capability to host Cisco, third-party, and custom applications.
Survivable Remote Site Telephony. Cisco Unified SRST provides Cisco Unified CM with fallback support for Cisco Unified IP phones that are attached to a Cisco router on your local network.
Protect your communications with voicemail survivability for your organization’s remote sites, such as branch offices or other small sites. When a remote site does not have access to your central voicemail system, as during a network service interruption, Cisco Unified Survivable Remote Site Voicemail provides voicemail backup services. This helps to ensure your remote site continues to have voicemail and auto-attendant service.
Secure Shell. Protocol that provides a secure remote connection to a route through a TCP application.
Secure Sockets Layer. Encryption technology for the web used to provide secure transactions, such as the transmission of credit card numbers for e-commerce.
Cisco Technical Assistance Center.
The Cisco Unity T1 IP Media Gateway (TIMG) is a single-span, rack-optimized device that translates the digital voice channel of a T1 trunk into SIP for transmission over a LAN or WAN to the Cisco messaging system.
Telephone Record and Playback.
Tested Reference Configuration.
TTS is a feature that converts written text to audible speech.
Telephone user interface represents the options available via the buttons on the phone (1-9, *, and #).
Cisco’s server hardware platform.
Uniform resource identifier. Type of formatted identifier that encapsulates the name of an Internet object, and labels it with an identification of the name space, thus producing a member of the universal set of names in registered name spaces and of addresses referring to registered protocols or name spaces. [RFC 1630]
Voice activity detection is a software application that allows a data network carrying voice traffic over the Internet to detect the absence of audio and conserve bandwidth by preventing the transmission of “silent packets” over the network.
ViQ allows video callers to be queued within a call center.
In computing, a virtual machine (VM) is an emulation of a particular computer system. Virtual machines operate based on the computer architecture and functions of a real or hypothetical computer, and their implementations might involve specialized hardware, software, or a combination of both.
Cisco Virtual Machine Fabric Extender (VM-FEX) is a Cisco technology that addresses management and performance concerns in a data center by unifying physical and virtual switch management. The Cisco VM-FEX collapses virtual and physical networking into a single infrastructure.
Virtual Machine File System. The VMware VMFS is a high-performance cluster file system that provides storage virtualization optimized for virtual machines.
Cisco Unity Connection ViewMail for Microsoft Outlook lets you send, listen to, and manage voice messages from Outlook. In the ViewMail for Outlook form, you use the controls on the Media Master to play and record voice messages.
Video on demand. System using video compression to supply video programs to viewers when requested via ISDN or cable.
Similar to music on hold, video on hold can play video for video callers waiting in a call center queue.
Voice Profile for Internet Mail.
VMware vSphere Switch provides a centralized interface for virtual machine networking configuration.
A voice-user interface (VUI) makes human interaction with computers possible through a voice/speech platform in order to initiate an automated service or process. A VUI is the interface to any speech application.
VoiceXML is an application of the Extensible Markup Language (XML) which, when combined with voice recognition technology, enables interactive access to the Web through the telephone or a voice-driven browser.
Wide-area network. Data communications network that serves users across a broad geographic area and often uses transmission devices provided by common carriers. Frame Relay, SMDS, and X.25 are examples of WANs.
WebDAV (World Wide Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning) is the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) standard for collaborative authoring on the Web: A set of extensions to the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) that facilitates collaborative editing and file management between users located remotely from each other on the Internet.