Chapter 16. Introduction to Cisco Cloud Collaboration

This chapter covers the following topics:

Cloud Collaboration Solutions: This topic will provide and overview and understanding of Collaboration solutions to include Hosted Collaboration Solutions (HCS), Cisco Webex, and CUCM Cloud.

Cisco Webex Components: This topic will explain the Webex components like Meetings, Messaging, and Calling.

Cisco Webex Hybrid Services: This topic will review the Webex Hybrid Integrations such as Hybrid Calendar Integrations, Hybrid Directory Integration, Hybrid Calling Integration, Hybrid Messaging Integration, Hybrid Security Integration, and Hybrid Meeting Integration (Video Mesh).

Chapter 16 focused on the Cisco Cloud Collaboration

This chapter covers the following objectives from the Implementing Cisco Collaboration Cloud and Edge Solutions (CLCEI) exam 300-820:

4.2.a Calendar Service (Office 365, Microsoft Exchange, One Button to Push)

4.2.b Message Service (Deployment requirements; expressway requirements, certificates, Call Manager pre-requisites, IM and Presence (IM&P) prerequisites, deployment models)

4.2.c Directory Services (Deployment requirements; deployment models, infrastructure requirements, active directory configuration, synchronization, Webex user service assignment)

4.2.d Video Mesh (Deployment requirements including bandwidth, clustering, endpoint support, video call capacity, ports and protocols, deployment models)

“Do I Know This Already?” Quiz

The “Do I Know This Already?” quiz allows you to assess whether you should read this entire chapter thoroughly or jump to the “Exam Preparation Tasks” section. If you are in doubt about your answers to these questions or your own assessment of your knowledge of the topics, read the entire chapter. Table 16-1 lists the major headings in this chapter and their corresponding “Do I Know This Already?” quiz questions. You can find the answers in Appendix A, “Answers to the ‘Do I Know This Already?’ Quizzes.”

1. The Cisco Hosted Collaboration Solution (HCS) is positioned with which stakeholder’s cloud infrastructure?

a. Cisco Cloud

b. Partner Cloud

c. Customer Cloud

d. Public Cloud

2. Cisco UCM Cloud supports multiple PSTN connectivity models. Which one of the following is not a supported model?

a. Central (cloud) breakout

b. Mixed mode

c. Local breakout

d. Fiber breakout

3. Which encryption standard does Webex Meetings utilize to secure its data?

a. AES-256

b. Triple DES

c. RSA

d. MD5

4. Cisco Cloudlock is utilized as what kind of integration for Webex Messaging?

a. Archiving Solutions

b. Productivity Tools

c. Pro Pack

d. Data Loss Prevention Solutions

5. What color is seen for the OBTP feature on enabled video devices right before an upcoming scheduled meeting?

a. Blue

b. Green

c. Red

d. Purple

6. Which of the following Webex Hybrid Service synchronize Microsoft Active Directory users with Cisco Webex user management (creating, updating, deleting), so that users are always current in Cisco Webex?

a. Hybrid Data Security Service

b. Hybrid Meeting Service

c. Hybrid Messaging Service

d. Hybrid Directory Service

Foundation Topics

Cloud Collaboration Solutions

“The cloud” started off as a tech industry slang term. In the early days of the Internet, technical diagrams often represented the servers and networking infrastructure that make up the Internet as a cloud. As more computing processes moved to this servers-and-infrastructure part of the Internet, people began to talk about moving to “the cloud” as a shorthand way of expressing where the computing processes were taking place. Today, “the cloud” is a widely accepted term for this style of computing.

Today’s enterprises are looking at cloud innovations to enable a digital workplace. Cloud can enable enhanced collaboration and increases employee productivity and engagement while enhancing customer experience. Organizations are looking for a flexible deployment model to protect their existing on-premises investments while providing new innovations and features. Cisco’s Cloud Collaboration solutions are built with the years of experience of on-premises based audio, video, and web communication.

Hosted Collaboration Solutions

Work today requires collaboration and involves teams that are spread across continents and time zones. Organizations everywhere are seeking stronger employee engagement and customer experiences to enable more productivity and greater business agility. More effective collaboration helps organizations work smarter. To achieve such high levels of collaboration and productivity, people use a variety of collaboration tools: IP telephony for voice calling, web and video conferencing, voice mail, mobility, desktop sharing, instant messaging, presence, and more. Unified Communications (UC) solutions deliver integration of these tools to help people work together more effectively.

The Cisco Hosted Collaboration Solution (HCS) incorporates industry-leading Cisco cloud collaboration applications and services to bring real-time, integrated communications from phone and conferencing solutions together with messaging, chat, and more, including everyday business applications via Application Programmer Interface (API) integration. Cisco HCS and the Cisco UC applications provide seamless user experiences for end customers. Cisco cloud provider partners can implement Cisco HCS for end customers as a partner-hosted solution or a partner managed solution in a Unified Communications-as-a-service (UCaaS). Figure 16-1, as shown, outlines the many Cisco HCS deployment options available.

If you are already using Cisco Unified Communications Manager (UCM) on-premises, you can maintain the same familiar user interfaces and experiences, reducing training and deployment costs as you transition to HCS to benefit from the cloud model.

Significant features and capabilities of Cisco HCS include:

Industry-leading UC services - Get all the capabilities of UCM hosted in our partners’ clouds.

Endpoint choice - Cisco HCS supports the full line of Cisco voice and video endpoints.

Deployment customization and flexibility - A dedicated, virtualized instance of UCM allows you to set a class of restrictions, deploy flexibility with dial plans, and more.

Interoperability - Cisco HCS is standards-based and open, enabling seamless integration with existing third-party systems and applications.

Data sovereignty - Cisco HCS is hosted in over 50 countries, helping to meet compliance and regulatory requirements.

Proven - Introduced in 2011, Cisco HCS is used by more than six million people and deployed at thousands of customer sites worldwide.

Delivered through flexible Cisco Cloud and Data Center Validated Designs. A Cisco Validated Design (CVD) is a specific bundle of Cisco products as well as products from our partners designed to address the business needs of customers. CVDs are created based on Cisco’s observation of market trends and inside knowledge of future directions of Cisco and its partners. As a complete solution, each CVD consists of both hardware and software. Implementing a CVD optimizes the capabilities of the Cisco HCS components to maximize speed, performance, stability, and reliability. Most important, each CVD has been extensively tested, validated, and documented. The CVDs were designed to facilitate faster, more reliable, and more predictable customer deployments. In addition to CVDs, employing the Cisco SAFE Security architecture bolsters the security strategy of the deployments. The Cisco SAFE security reference architecture model helps to ensure a secure infrastructure design for the edge, branch, data center, campus, cloud, and WAN. The framework encompasses operational domains such as management, security intelligence, compliance, segmentation, threat defense, and secure services.

Cisco HCS system capacity that is deployed upon these architectures is determined by system performance requirements rather than by strict limits. Overall system performance is impacted by key parameters such as customer size, network topology, subscriber feature profile, redundancy, and call profile. Dedicated virtual applications per customer and separation of network and data traffic secures the end customer’s applications and helps to ensure that the traffic is coming only from trusted customers. These capabilities are delivered via a combination of the Cisco Unified Computing System^™ (Cisco UCS®), VMware vSphere, Fibre Channel SAN storage, and Cisco Nexus® switching platforms. Figure 16-2 shows these components in a data center model.

With hosted collaboration, partners can deliver the most up-to-date collaboration services, everywhere. Partners can employ the growing portfolio of Cisco Collaboration applications, which are delivered from a single infrastructure and architecture. As a result, partners can spend minimal time and effort deploying and upgrading applications and avoid the risk of technology obsolescence.

Cisco HCS partners use mobility solutions and a variety of deployment models, including private cloud and managed services. Enterprise service delivery is carrier-grade on a virtualized architecture that supports collaboration services and maintains high security, flexibility, and application functionality. An end-to-end validated management system, designed for cloud services, is utilized to oversee the Cisco HCS service.

Cisco Webex

In the year 2000, there were many rememberable events. From the world ending Y2K bug to one of the most memorable volleyballs from the movie “Castaway”. In particular, there was a Webex Super Bowl commercial which addresses a group of folks barely listening to a boring presentation in what appears to be a traditional boardroom setting. Enter the fabulous RuPaul, who says: “Girl, you could be at home, sipping a latte in lingerie and still make this meeting. Don’t you have better places to be?” As everyone escaped from the boring boardroom, the commercial ended with the phrase “We got to start meeting like this!”.

Now, more two decades later, we live in a world that continues to push the boundaries of the changing face of work: from new work styles (people collaborating and contributing from anywhere at any time), new workflows, and new workspaces. Especially with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic closed schools and workplaces across the nation and forced all aspects of our lives into the digital realm of remote work, remote education, remote socializing.

The Cisco Webex platform protects user information without compromising on must-have features like secure search for stored and shared content. Cisco Webex end-to-end encryption keeps your messages, documents, and whiteboard content encrypted from one device to another. And you can integrate Webex Messaging with your existing Data Loss Prevention applications to keep your sensitive information safe. This is achieved along with making the most of the management and metrics trough Cisco Webex Control Hub. IT can manage users, define policies, assign meeting and calling services, and quickly configure new Cisco devices. Users get new services in a snap, so you can drive adoption, and ROI.

CUCM Cloud

The Cisco Unified Communications Manager Cloud (Cisco UCM Cloud) delivers enterprise-grade unified communications and collaboration as a service from the Cisco Webex cloud. Cisco UCM Cloud is hosted and operated by Cisco in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific. The service offers voice, video, messaging, meeting, presence, and mobility solutions with the features and benefits of Cisco IP phones, mobile devices, and desktop clients. Cisco UCM Cloud for Government is a separate cloud offer that is FedRAMP-authorized. It serves the U.S. federal, state, and local governments, educational institutions, government contractors, and critical infrastructure deployments in the United States.

Cisco UCM Cloud is part of Cisco’s cloud calling portfolio powered by Cisco’s core call control engine, Cisco Unified Communication Manager. It provides enterprise-class call control, session management, voice, video, messaging, mobility, and conferencing services in a way that is efficient, highly secure, scalable, and reliable. Cisco UCM Cloud also offers a standards-based Instant Messaging and Presence (IM&P) service. It allows users to securely exchange presence and instant messages with others. The IM&P service enables instant messaging between individuals or groups using the Cisco Jabber IM client. The Jabber client supports instant messaging, presence, click-to-call, voice, video, and visual voicemail. Users can also utilize with a voice messaging service that is based on Cisco Unity. The voice messaging service allows users to leave, retrieve, and record voice messages from their voice mailbox, including support for voice commands, speech-to-text transcription, and even video greetings. Cisco UCM Cloud also supports video calls inbound and outbound from the enterprise to and from external video services or customers over the Internet, while traversing the corporate firewalls in a secure fashion.

Cisco Emergency Responder (CER) enhances the existing emergency 9-1-1 functionality offered in Cisco UCM Cloud. It assures that Cisco UCM Cloud will send emergency calls to the appropriate Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) for the caller’s location, and that the PSAP can identify the caller’s location and return the call if necessary. In addition, the system automatically tracks and updates equipment moves and changes. Deploying this capability helps ensure more effective compliance with legal or regulatory obligations, reducing the risk of liability related to emergency calls as a result.

Mobile and Remote Access (MRA) lets endpoints (hard and soft clients) register and access calling, messaging, and presence services over the top (OTT) for those users who are outside the enterprise network. By default, endpoint registration support will be enabled for 100% of Flex 2 knowledge workers and Flex 3 professional users. For example, a 10,000-knowledge worker count customer will be enabled with an audio call registration capability for up to 10,000 endpoints. Additional endpoint registration capacity can be purchased.

Services are based on the Cisco Collaboration Flex Plan subscription model. The Flex Plan now bundles Cisco UCM Cloud with Webex Teams, with the option to add Webex Meetings for a complete collaboration application suite. Partners can then complete the package by adding Webex devices and integrate a customer’s existing Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) service, with customer support, for an end-to-end customer solution. Customers can buy the technology using the Enterprise Agreement or Named User options.

Initially, Cisco will support two calling package options:

Knowledge Worker – the full-featured Private Branch Exchange (PBX) replacement, with unified communications (Webex Teams, Jabber, and all Cisco endpoints) and meetings (Webex Meetings for up to 1000 participants)

Common Area – basic dial tone for common area phones (for example, the lobby, break room, etc.)

Cisco UCM Cloud addresses the need for telephony with an opportunity to include Webex Teams and Webex Meetings within one subscription.

Cisco UCM Cloud Direct Connect is a set of services that allow customers to connect directly to Cisco UCM Cloud in the Cisco Webex cloud. Each of these options are available on a regional basis (Americas, EMEAR, or APJC). Mixing different Direct Connect types across regions is supported.

Cisco Webex Edge Connect for Cisco UCM Cloud enables customers to connect dedicated, managed, redundant IP links from their premises to the Cisco UCM Cloud (calling workload only). Customers connect directly to the Cisco Webex backbone via the Equinix cloud exchange.

Virtual Peering enables customers to securely extend their private network virtually over the Internet to the Cisco UCM Cloud without the need to own and support the remote infrastructure and dedicated circuits. The supported options include: Cisco SD-WAN (formerly Viptela) or VPN. In both cases, Cisco hosts, manages, and assures redundant customer dedicated routers (VPN router or SD-WAN Edge device) with Internet access, in the Cisco UCM Cloud data center region(s) where service is required. The customer is responsible for the corresponding premises equipment and SD-WAN licenses.

Fiber Connect enables customers to securely connect their private network via their point-to-point fiber circuit directly to the Cisco UCM Cloud. Cisco provides the customer the ability to securely terminate redundant fiber connections in the Cisco UCM Cloud data center region(s) where service is required. The customer is responsible for the fiber circuit and the corresponding premises equipment.

Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) Connect enables customers to securely connect their private network via their MPLS connection directly to the Cisco UCM Cloud. Cisco provides the customer the ability to securely terminate redundant MPLS connections in the Cisco UCM Cloud data center region(s) where service is required. The customer is responsible for the MPLS circuit and the corresponding premises equipment.

PSTN services (telephone numbers, number porting, minutes, listings, DA/OS, emergency calling, etc.), and all related regulatory and commercial obligations are the explicit responsibility of Cisco’s partner. Cisco will not provide, nor is responsible for, any of the underlying PSTN services or obligations. Cisco UCM Cloud supports multiple PSTN connectivity models:

Central (cloud) breakout - partner provided and/or procured PSTN that is integrated with Cisco UCM Cloud (bring your own SIP trunk)

Local breakout - interconnect with the customer’s existing PSTN carrier via a local gateway on premises

Mixed mode - multinational enterprises will require the ability to support a complex mix of both central and local PSTN interconnects based on site locations

Cisco UCM Cloud supports various application and third-party integrations. Developers can use the APIs provided by the collaboration applications that are hosted in Cisco UCM Cloud to develop custom solutions and extend collaboration services. You can find documentation and sample code on the dedicated technical center for each API.

APIs are available for:

Cisco Unified CM

Call Control

Serviceability

SIP and CTI

Cisco IM&P

Cisco AJAX XMPP Library (CAXL)

IM&P APIs

Cisco Unity Connection

Provisioning

Messaging interface

Telephony interface

Notification interface

Cisco Webex Components

Never have we seen business innovation this rapid, and competition this intense. With Businesses will rise and fall by the strength of the teams that fuel their agility. Collaboration often includes not only internal colleagues, but ecosystems of external experts and partners as well. To support your teams, you need tools that bring people together easily and enable them to work together productively. At the same time, you need to meet increasingly complex security and compliance requirements, which are key to keeping your information safe and secure. Webex is your secure place for connecting and getting things done in one inclusive app. It is an easy-to-use and a powerful collaboration solution that keeps people and teamwork connected anytime, anywhere, on any device.

Webex, you can create secure virtual work spaces for everything, from completing short-term projects to solving longer-term business opportunities. Simplify day-to-day interactions with messaging and file sharing that can be enhanced with third-party app integrations for a seamless workflow. You can start calls instantly, have high-quality video meetings with screen-sharing at the touch of a button, and stay connected after. When teamwork flows into meeting rooms, bring the Webex experience with you. Just connect the app to a Webex device to start meetings wirelessly, share your screen, capture life-size whiteboard drawings, and more.

Meetings

Although the digital age has made it easier to connect across borders without the cost and hassle of travel, the human connection is still critical. Video has saturated every corner of our daily interactions, from social media to personal calls with friends and family. Strong businesses start with strong relationships. Sturdy relationships are forged on a foundation of strong communication. That is why Cisco Webex Meetings puts video at the forefront of communication and collaboration to empower hundreds of millions of people put their best face forward. Its simple video-centric experience allows effective collaboration with an easy, consistent experience.

Cisco Webex Meetings offers highly secure integrated audio, video, and content sharing conferencing services from the Cisco Webex cloud to any device with simple joining and scheduling. No downloads and plug-ins required. Join from the Webex web app for the best browser experience, with full meeting functionality on all major browsers. If quality is a focus, add Webex Rooms, Desk, or even third-party video devices to your meeting.

Customize how you want to view your meeting with layout options, including active speaker plus five participants. Choose a full-screen video layout with the ability to switch to a grid view that shows equal-sized windows for up to 25 video streams at once. Toggle back and forth between your content share and your video, depending on your meeting preference. Easily navigate your meeting with the centralized control bar for easy access to all your meeting controls. Lock and pin individual videos so that you can focus on the participant of your choosing and see their reactions. Chat privately or publicly with participants during a meeting and monitor interest with real-time polls. Customize your look with virtual or blurred backgrounds supported on iOS, Android, Mac, and Windows platforms.

Meet even faster in your own, always ready personal room. Schedule ahead or leave your room open, lock it, and easily admit people waiting in your lobby. If you are unavailable to attend your meeting, choose an alternate host to start and run the meeting in your personal room. Save time and join Cisco Webex Meetings from your Cisco Webex app, or easily continue your discussions with messaging in the Webex app after your meetings ends. Share an application or your entire screen with remote attendees in real time. Attendees can take control and share content or annotate yours. On the go, share your content or screen from your browser, Android devices, or iPhone or iPad. With the Webex desktop app, easily share your screen wirelessly via Proximity sharing.

Offer an interactive meeting experience with Cisco Webex Meetings integrated audio that is available through the Cisco Webex Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) or Webex Cloud Connected Audio administered by your company or a certified service provider. You can also use a range of third-party audio options. Choose toll or toll-free, or call-in or call-back. Or give attendees the option to connect using Voice over IP (VoIP) or your computer’s built-in audio. Wideband audio support using VoIP provides outstanding audio quality, even over low-bandwidth networks.

Virtual corporate training, classrooms, conferences, or just any large team can now break out into sub-groups, directly from within Webex Meetings. Break out to 100 rooms with 100 participants for sidebars, brainstorming, and small group work. Breakroom rooms support video, audio, and content just as in any Webex meeting. Additional features include the ability to assign people to groups automatically or manually, broadcast messages to the groups, create timed sessions, and much more.

Cisco Webex Assistant for Webex Meetings is the first digital in-meeting assistant for the enterprise. AI-powered and voice activated with “OK Webex” lets you automate common meeting tasks so you can focus on interacting with other participants. Webex Assistant for Meetings features real-time transcription and closed captioning with leadership word accuracy, which can be especially helpful for participants who are hearing-impaired. Ask Webex Assistant to take a note, highlight it yourself, or automatically capture the note with pre-determined trigger words. Recorded transcripts make sure you never miss a meeting detail, and speaker labeling within the transcript lets you know exactly what was said by whom. Finally, post-meeting features let you edit highlights, notes, and transcripts; create and share meeting highlights and recaps with your team; and search all your recorded meetings using keyword search so you can find that exact place where something was discussed. Cisco is the only provider with in-house data management, preserving your security. Other conferencing vendors may depend on third parties for transcription, which exposes your data to additional security risks.

With People Insights for Webex Meetings, you are armed with the relevant information you need to better understand and relate to your colleagues, partners, clients, and prospects. This information includes position, contact information, location, and even reporting structure for internal colleagues. You can also review the latest company news, including an overview, market capitalization, and stock price. Make faster connections and build better relationships, right from your meeting space. Instantly learn more about your meeting participants and the company they work for with people profiles right at your fingertips. You can edit or hide your information at any time, including an overview, market capitalization, and stock price. Make faster connections and build better relationships, right from your meeting space.

Enjoy great meetings right where you work, using the tools you love. Webex Meetings has deep integrations with the leading productivity tools, including Microsoft Teams, Slack, Workplace by Facebook, Salesforce, and many others. Easily schedule meetings in Microsoft 365, Google Calendar, and Lotus Notes. Use single sign-on to access Cisco Webex. Meet where you learn in learning management systems such as Canvas, Moodle, Blackboard, Desire 2 Learn, Sakai, and Schoology. Take advantage of integration and interoperability with Cisco collaboration products such as Cisco Jabber, Cisco Webex Teams, and Cisco video devices.

Securely create encrypted and password-protected recordings of your meetings for future reference, training, or demonstrations. Play back meetings from mobile devices as well. Replay your recordings along with transcripts. Engage your audience by incorporating multimedia into your presentations, including PowerPoint, animations, audio, and web-based and video files. In addition, the multimedia experience supports third-party closed captioning services that offer streaming live text or a sign language interpreter video feed. Stream your Webex meeting via Facebook Live, YouTube, Twitter, Vbrick, and any platform using the Real-Time Messaging Protocol for even broader reach.

Enjoy a rich meeting experience with high-quality audio, high frame-rate video, and advanced collaboration tools across smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, and more. Whether meeting on the go or working from home, Cisco Webex Meetings on mobile delivers industry-leading collaboration for the modern enterprise. Experience amazing ways to improve and sustain your productivity with features like custom virtual backgrounds (on both Android and iOS), optimized video sharing, and 3-D augmented reality file sharing. Use voice commands, widgets, or any of your preferred calendaring apps to easily join your next meeting. Support for Apple CarPlay, Ford SYNC AppLink, and Toyota Smart Device Link lets you take your Webex meetings hands-free in the car.

Webex Meetings is built with Cisco’s industry-leading security expertise. A global architecture and network help ensure speed and performance with data centers located throughout the globe, so you will get secure, high-quality video meetings without compromise. Webex security encrypts both at the file level and at the logical volume level. The file key is a 256-bit block AES GCM key. This file key is then encrypted with a master key based on AES HmacSHA256 that is rotated based on policy and saved to a DB. This same process is also used during the viewing, playback or downloading of Webex data, where the encrypted media is then decrypted before, during and after the session. In addition, industry-leading data loss prevention and compliance capabilities also protect meeting artifacts including recordings, Webex Assistant transcriptions, action items, and highlights. Cisco Webex Meetings helps reduce costs and allows IT to focus on core priorities. It is a cloud service on the Cisco Webex platform, making it easy to deploy and scale as your organization grows. The global, enterprise-grade Cisco Webex platform is designed specifically for highly secure delivery of real-time applications. It offers a scalable architecture, consistent availability, and multilayer tenant security validated by rigorous independent audits, including SSAE-16 and ISO 27001. For more Webex Meeting security information, please reference the Cisco Webex Meetings Security White Paper.

Messaging

Productivity should not stop just because your meeting has finished. Webex messaging connects your team before, during, and after a meeting to create an immersive, real-time collaboration experience. Connect one to one-to-one, or as a group, and express your personality with messages, GIFs, emojis, and reactions. Easily delete or edit messages, start a conversation thread, add people to conversations, see read receipts, and more.

Share all your project files and content in a secure space that is organized, searchable, and saved right alongside all your chats, so it is easy to find what you need. Also share, open, and simultaneously edit documents sourced within SharePoint and OneDrive directly from a Webex one-to-one or team space. Whiteboard or draw with your team and share the interactive drawing in chat. Keep expressing yourself, whether you are in a live meeting or not.

Webex messaging keeps your information safe by utilizing end-to-end encryption. This means your messages, files and whiteboard drawings are fully encrypted, all the way from your device to your recipients’ devices. You can also have the control to what is shared and keep teamwork private by locking spaces so only moderators can add others. Integrate with Data Loss Prevention (DLP) tools including Cisco Cloudlock, to protect sensitive information even when you are working with others outside your company, or to block users from sharing files, to maintain company data policies.

Calling

Communication and collaboration go hand in hand. When you call on Webex, whether in the office, at home, or on the go, you will have the same calling features you expect from an enterprise-grade collaboration service to keep your business moving. You can start a voice, or a video call in just one click for impromptu conversations.

Webex Calling (formally Cisco Spark Calling) is a cloud-based service that offers the benefits of traditional phone systems without the complexity of on-premises deployment. Transfer an existing number you want to keep or get a new one. You can add phone numbers for all members of your organization as well. Control your incoming calls with an automated phone menu and intelligent call routing that directs your calls to the right destination. Connect to your voicemail and access a visual voicemail. Quickly move your call from one device to another or turn it into a video meeting without missing a word.

Get powerful cloud calling features like recording important calls to transcribe, listen to later, or share with other team members. Merge calls seamlessly or quickly go from a one-to-one call to a conference call. Easily place a call on hold and resume or transfer it to another colleague. Never miss a call with features like Call Pickup that gives the ability to answer a colleague’s phone or a Hunt Group that searches for an available colleague to answer the call. Also get complete visibility and see who is calling with Call Waiting.

Webex Calling is a proven cloud calling solution that delivers enterprise-grade calling, enabling you to replace your PBX network with a globally trusted cloud calling solution. It easily extends to a complete collaboration experience that includes market-leading calling, meetings, messaging, contact center, and integrated devices for all situations. Important qualities include:

Integrated collaboration

One application for calling, messaging, and meetings

Consistent and intuitive experience

Collaboration-enabled workflows

Intelligent devices

Proximity awareness between the Webex application and Webex devices

Seamless call hand-off between devices

Designed for every workspace and every workflow

Enterprise performance

Complete enterprise feature set

Trusted quality and reliability with geo-redundant data centers around the globe

End-to-end Cisco security

Globally available

Protection of existing investment in any on-premises Cisco Unified Communications Manager (UCM) licenses, including devices, through the Cisco Collaboration Flex Plan

Exceptional control

Complete, integrated service management

One centralized and comprehensive administrative portal

Advanced analytics and reporting

Tools and commercial licenses to enable smooth migrations from on-premises calling solutions, including UCM or hybrid deployments

Cisco Webex Hybrid Services

More and more, organizations are choosing collaboration services from the cloud. Why? Cloud services are easier and faster to deploy, they do not require the upfront capital of on-premises systems, and they can free up IT staff to focus on what matters most to the business. Many organizations, however, are unable or do not want to move all their services to the cloud. Often, they are not ready to replace everything they have on-premises or they want to augment their current collaboration tools with those from the cloud. However, having tools from both the cloud and the premises can create poor user experiences with tools that do not work together as one. Webex Hybrid Services brings cloud and premises-based services together as one solution to deliver the best meeting experience from any location while maximizing the ROI of existing investments. If you like the capabilities of Webex, you can integrate those capabilities with what you currently deploy for an even better end-user and administrator experience. Hybrid Services can be deployed together or individually.

Cisco Webex Hybrid Services use Hybrid Service Connectors to securely connect Cisco Webex to an organization’s premises or to the Cisco Hosted Collaboration Solution (HCS) in a partner cloud. The connectors are software applications that are installed on-premises or in the Cisco HCS partner cloud and that enable integration with Cisco Webex. The Call Connector, Message Connector, and Calendar Connector run as modules within Cisco Expressway. The Directory Connector runs as a service on a Microsoft Windows Server for Microsoft Active Directory synchronization. Data Security Service uses software similar to the Video Mesh software and can be installed on VMware ESXi.

Hybrid Calendar Service

Cisco Webex Hybrid Calendar Service integrates your on-premises Microsoft Exchange, Office 365, hybrid Exchange, or Google Calendar deployment to Cisco Webex. This service makes it easier to schedule and join Cisco Webex meetings and Cisco Webex meetings from your calendar client, especially for mobile users, because no extra plugins are required.

From a calendar client, in the field where meeting location is normally added, users can:

Add @webex or their Personal Room URL to automatically share the host’s Webex Personal Room and join information in the invitation.

Add @meet to automatically create a Cisco Webex space and corresponding join link for the space. This information is shared with all meeting invitees for before, during, and after-meeting information and document sharing.

From Outlook, people can share their out-of-office status in Cisco Webex. As soon as someone sets an automatic reply and date range, others can see the status in Cisco Webex in these locations:

In @mentions directed at the out-of-office user.

In the People space for that user.

In search results for that user’s name.

In the expanded People roster for a space.

Hybrid Calendar Service also enables Cisco Webex users to utilize One Button to Push (OBTP) so that when a scheduled meeting includes video devices, a green Join button appears on the devices right before the meeting begins, just as it does in the Cisco Webex app. To provide One Button to Push on video devices, you would deploy the Cisco Webex Hybrid Calendar Service. The details of the deployment depend on the type of calendar environment that you have, and on the type of device.

Hybrid Directory Service

Cisco Directory Connector automatically synchronizes Microsoft Active Directory and Azure Active Directory users into the web-based management portal, Webex Control Hub (creating, updating, deleting) so that user account information is always current in the cloud. The Active Directory remains the single source for all user account information that is mirrored in Control Hub. Simplify your day-to-day user administration and management tasks. Provide accurate and up-to-date directory content for all Cisco Webex users when they click to call, message, or to add people to meetings.

Hybrid Calling Service

This service is ideal for organizations that want the capabilities of Cisco Webex Teams and Webex Meetings but already have or would prefer to use Cisco Unified Communications Manager, Business Edition 6000 or 7000, or a Cisco Powered cloud service from a certified Cisco Hosted Collaboration Solution partner for call control. Hybrid Call Service can enable you to use the Cisco call control you have and integrate it so tightly with Cisco Webex Teams and Cisco Webex Meetings that your end users will never know they are not a single service. It makes the Cisco Webex aware of all calls across the unified communications system and connects them, so they work together. Capabilities include instant desktop sharing, using the Cisco Webex Teams app as a mobile client, integration of Cisco video devices with your dial plan, and an integrated call history in the Cisco Webex Teams app.

Hybrid Messaging Service

This service is ideal for organizations that have users on Cisco Webex Teams that need to exchange messages with users on the on-premises Cisco Unified Communications Manager IM and Presence (UCM IM&P) Service. Hybrid Message Service enables exchange of one-to-one instant messages between a Cisco Webex Teams client and a Cisco Jabber client registered to Cisco UCM IM&P Service. Hybrid Message Service enables Cisco Jabber user to see the Presence status of Cisco Webex Teams users based on the user’s Teams client activity.

Hybrid Data Security Service

From day one, data security has been the primary focus in designing the Cisco Webex. The cornerstone of this security is end-to-end content encryption, enabled by Cisco Webex clients interacting with the Key Management Service (KMS). The KMS is responsible for creating and managing the cryptographic keys that clients use to dynamically encrypt and decrypt messages and files.

By default, all Cisco Webex customers get end-to-end encryption with dynamic keys stored in the cloud KMS, Cisco’s security realm. Cisco Webex Hybrid Data Security moves the KMS and other security-related functions to your enterprise data center, so nobody but you hold the keys to your encrypted content.

Hybrid Meeting Service (Video Mesh)

Cisco Webex Video Mesh dynamically finds the optimal mix of on-premises and cloud conferencing resources. On-premises conferences stay on premises when there are enough local resources. When local resources are exhausted, conferences then expand to the cloud.

Webex Video Mesh provides these benefits:

Improves quality and reduces latency by allowing you to keep your calls on premises.

Extends your calls transparently to the cloud when on-premises resources have reached their limit or are unavailable.

Manage your Webex Video Mesh clusters from the cloud with a single interface: Cisco Webex Control Hub.

Optimize resources and scale capacity, as needed.

Combines the features of cloud and on-premises conferencing in one seamless user experience.

Reduces capacity concerns because the cloud is always available when additional conferencing resources are needed. No need to do capacity planning for the worst-case scenario.

Provides advanced reporting on capacity and usage in https://admin.webex.com.

Uses local media processing when users dial in to a Cisco Webex meeting or Cisco Webex meeting from on-premises standards-based SIP endpoints and clients:

SIP based endpoints and clients (Cisco endpoints, Jabber, 3rd party SIP), registered to on-premises call control (Cisco Unified Communications Manager or Expressway), that call into a Cisco Webex meeting or Cisco Webex meeting.

Cisco Webex app (including paired with room devices) that join a Cisco Webex meeting.

Cisco Webex room and desk devices (including Cisco Webex Board) that directly join a Cisco Webex meeting.

Provides optimized audio and video interactive voice response (IVR) to on-net SIP based endpoints and clients.

Cisco Webex clients (internal and external) continue to join meetings from the cloud.

H.323, IP dial-in, and Skype for Business (S4B) endpoints continue to join meetings from the cloud.

Supports 1080p 30fps high-definition video as an option for meetings, if meeting participants that can support 1080p are hosted through the local on-premises Hybrid Media Nodes. (If a participant joins an in-progress meeting from the cloud, on-premises users continue to experience 1080p 30fps on supported endpoints.)

Exam Preparation Tasks

As mentioned in the section “How to Use This Book” in the Introduction, you have a couple of choices for exam preparation: the exercises here, Chapter 22, “Final Preparation,” and the exam simulation questions in the Pearson Test Prep Software Online.

Review All Key Topics

Review the most important topics in this chapter, noted with the Key Topics icon in the outer margin of the page. Table 16-2 lists a reference of these key topics and the page numbers on which each is found.

Complete Tables and Lists from Memory

There are no Memory Tables or Lists in this chapter.

Define Key Terms

Define the following key terms from this chapter and check your answers in the glossary:

Application Programmer Interface (API)

Data Loss Prevention (DLP)

Hosted Collaboration Solution (HCS)

IM and Presence (IM&P)

Jabber

Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS)

Mobile and Remote Access (MRA)

One Button to Push (OBTP)

Private Branch Exchange (PBX)

Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)

Unified Communications (UC)

Cisco Unified Communications Manager (UCM)

Voice over IP (VoIP)

Webex

Q&A

The answers to these questions appear in Appendix A. For more practice with exam format questions, use the Pearson Test Prep Software Online.

1. What is a Cisco CVD?

2. When utilizing the Webex Hybrid Calendar Service, what is the difference between @webex and @meet?

Answers

1. A Cisco Validated Design (CVD) is a specific bundle of Cisco products as well as products from our partners designed to address the business needs of customers. CVDs are created based on Cisco’s observation of market trends and inside knowledge of future directions of Cisco and its partners. As a complete solution, each CVD consists of both hardware and software.

2. Add @webex or their Personal Room URL to automatically share the host’s Webex Personal Room and join information in the invitation. Add @meet to automatically create a Cisco Webex space and corresponding join link for the space. This information is shared with all meeting invitees for before, during, and after-meeting information and document sharing.