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Call Control Server Software (V6.0)

Features and Benefits

• Standards-based call control server software
  - Eliminates risk
• Support for most popular telephone systems
  - Easily integrates into existing telephone system environments
• Runs under Windows NT* and Windows 2000* server platforms
  - Choice of server platform that best fits your application requirements
• Multiple client platforms
  - Greater flexibility in selecting platforms for developing business applications
• Industry-standard network environments
  - Reduces costs using current networking environment interfaces
• Multiple application programming interfaces (APIs)
  - Shortens development time by offering a choice of APIs matching popular development environments
• Expert services, training, and support lowers the overall cost of ownership

 Applications

• E-CRM
• Workforce management
• Contact center
• Help desk

CT Connect™ V6.0 is computer telephony call control server software capable of connecting a wide range of telephone switches to a variety of data processing environments. Perhaps you've already discovered the benefits of CT Connect, the leading call control server software available today for connecting a wide range of telephone switches to a variety of data processing environments. Because CT Connect client/server software technology supports industry-standard hardware, operating systems, network services, and call control programming interfaces such as C, C++, Java*, TAPI*, and ActiveX*, it allows application developers to easily integrate more intelligent call control features into their existing business applications.

With Version 6.0, CT Connect software can now operate in a distributed server environment. Server-to-server communication means that you can track and manage calls between multiple CT Connect servers and telephone switches when the servers are in a TCP/IP network. Version 6.0 also allows the automated transfer of call-associated data (for example, a customer ID or trouble ticket) from one site to another for switches that do not already provide this feature. Build applications that make more efficient use of system resources or use CT Connect Version 6.0 for inter-premises call load-balancing over private networks.

CT Connect server software runs under Microsoft Windows NT*, and Windows 2000* operating system environments and supports comprehensive call control and monitoring through links to many popular telephone switches. The server software:

• Implements the necessary communications protocols to work with each switch's computer telephone integration (CTI) link
  - provides maximum call control and monitoring functionality to business applications
• Maps the differing protocols and messages to a common Computer Supported Telecommunications Applications (CSTA)* based call and information model
  - application developers only deal with a standard set of call control functions
• Manages the flow of telephony service requests and status messages between the server and multiple concurrent application systems
  - provides performance and stability CT Connect software provides OEMs, application developers, and integrators with the ability to implement complete telephony routing, monitoring, and call control functions inside their applications. It offers a more effective call control model for handling chaotic peak periods or managing telephone resources during non-peak hours. CT Connect software includes client application programming interfaces for Microsoft Windows 95*, Windows 98*, Windows 2000*, Windows NT*, Hewlett-Packard HP-UX*, and Compaq Tru64 UNIX* and OpenVMS* operating systems. Client API software modules can be used in any combination, on any number of network nodes, with a single CT Connect server.

CT Connect Configurations

The CT Connect package includes server software and a set of client programming API modules that provide programming interfaces to applications. CT Connect server software operates under either Microsoft Windows NT on industry-standard Intel?architecture processor platforms. For the latest details on supported operating system versions and hardware platforms, consult the most recent CT Connect Product Description.

CT Connect software is available in six configurations:

• A full configuration supporting an unlimited number of client systems
• A configuration supporting up to 75 monitored telephony devices**
• A configuration supporting up to 32 monitored telephony devices**
• An Enterprise Server configuration that enables business applications to manage, monitor and control calls across multiple locations within mixed PBX and H.323 telephony switching environments**
• A monitor configuration allowing applications to monitor telephone resources and receive information about calls but not control telephone devices
• A WindowsNT/Windows 2000 evaluation configuration with a two-hour execution limit each time the CT Connect server is started
  - This configuration can be downloaded from the Web site

**Available only for CT Connect software on Windows NT

Some CT Connect software licenses enforce a limit on concurrently monitored devices. In order for an application to receive event messages or exercise functional control over a telephone device, it must "ask" the CT Connect server to create an association between itself and that device. The device is then considered "assigned" to that application or applications. A single device can be assigned to multiple applications simultaneously; these are counted as a single assigned device within the server. For example, a desktop application assigned to one telephone extension would count as one association. If there were 20 such desktops in concurrent operation, each monitoring all 20 extensions, there would be a total of 20 associations active in the server. If, at the same time, a call logging application needed to monitor the same 20 extensions, these would not count as additional associations; the total devices assigned would still be 20. A call routing application that needed to monitor one or more route points or ACD queues would require additional device assigns.

CT Connect has no usage-based license charges and all client modules are included with each CT Connect server software program at no additional charge.

Telephone System Configurations

The standard version of CT Connect V6.0 supports telephone systems with ECMA* CSTA-compliant CTI links as well as two popular telephone systems whose CTI links are similar to the CSTA call model: Nortel Network's Meridian 1* with Meridian Link*, or Symposium Call Center Server* or Symposium Express* and Avaya DEFINITY G3* with CallVisor ASAI*. CT Connect V6.0 supports both CSTA Phase 1 and CSTA Phase 2 protocol specifications. A single CT Connect server can operate Phase 1 and Phase 2 CSTA links as well as Meridian Link and CallVisor ASAI links simultaneously.

Intel also offers special CT Connect software versions and link modules, each of which supports the proprietary CTI link protocol, call model, and special call handling features of a particular non-CSTA-compliant telephone switch. Corresponding client modules are available for each of these special versions. The native CT Connect APIs are similar but not identical to the client modules for the standard CT Connect product, and not all features of the standard CT Connect product are available in each special version. In addition to automatically handling standard CSTA data elements, the native CT Connect API permits applications to send and receive non-standard ("private") data elements used by specific CSTA-compliant switches. The telephone systems currently known to interoperate with the CT Connect standard and special versions are shown in Table A. This list changes from time to time. Consult the CT Connect area of the Web site for the most current list and associated versions of CT Connect software. Configuration options and environment requirements are listed in the CT Connect Product Description available from the Web site or from your local sales office. Read this to ensure that your planned configuration is supported.

Table A: Telephone Systems Interoperating with CT Connect Software

Standard CT Connect Software Version

When using CT Connect software, and with proper attention to the feature differences between telephone systems, an application developer can design an application that operates across a range of different PBXs. More extensive design changes may be required to modify an application to support non-CSTA-compatible telephone systems, such as some ACDs, because of their unique features.

Most CT Connect API modules can be connected to the CT Connect server through any network operating system that provides standard OSF Distributed Computing Environment (DCE) remote procedure call services. The CT Connect API for Java* connects through any network operating system that provides a Remote Method Invocation (RMI) services-compliant interface to a Java Virtual Machine (JVM)*. As a result, CT Connect can fit almost any computing environment, from mainframe to client/server, to small PC/LAN.

Application Configurations

CT Connect software can be used in a wide variety of application configurations. Many business applications can benefit from adding the CTI functionality that CT Connect software can provide. These configurations differ according to the point of interface in the server to CT Connect software and the type of application software employed.

Host-Based Client

In some configurations, a single mainframe or mini-computer application host serves a group of users. Users normally have so-called "dumb terminals," such as 3270* or VT-100* compatibles, or network computers that implement a Web browser or other thin-client application architecture. To support such a configuration, a single CT Connect client module is installed on the central host or server. A CTI application on the same machine uses CT Connect software to monitor and control all of the application's telephone lines from a central point.

The CTI application can be an existing business application modified to add CTI features; a new application built from the start to be CTI-aware; or a "middleware" application that monitors a group of telephones and triggers the required actions in other applications when telephone-related events occur.

Desktop Client

With the desktop approach, each user is given a personal computer or workstation instead of a dumb terminal. A CT Connect client module is installed on each personal computer along with a desktop CTI application. The CTI application monitors the corresponding user's phone.

When telephone-related events occur, the desktop CTI application triggers the related business applications. For example, when a user's phone rings, the desktop CTI application can send appropriate database retrieval commands to a mainframe using a terminal emulator application, causing the required data screens to be displayed by screen pops.

The desktop approach is well suited to an incremental or rapid-application-development (RAD) methodology. A desktop CTI application can be custom-built using tools such as Microsoft Visual Basic* or Sybase PowerBuilder*, or commercially available CTI middleware applications can be used eliminating the need for software development.

Server-Based Applications

Server-based applications can be CTI-enabled with CT Connect software either at the server or at the desktop. In the former case, the CT Connect client module is installed on the application server where it monitors and controls all users' telephone lines, triggering server application actions as appropriate. In the latter case, the client module is installed on each personal computer. The desktop portion of the client/server application interacts with the API to monitor and control one user's telephone line and to trigger appropriate actions within the client/server application system.

Mixed Environments

CT Connect software can support mixtures of all of these environments simultaneously. Each application tells the server which telephone lines it wishes to monitor and/or control and multiple applications can monitor and control the same line simultaneously. However, multiple applications controlling the same telephone line require some application-level coordination. CT Connect software replicates all information for a given line and sends it to each application requiring it. Conflicting operation requests from different applications - for example, to place a call on a line when another application already has a call in progress - are detected by the server and reported to the applications involved.

Application Programming Interfaces

CT Connect software is unique in the range of APIs it offers. All of the APIs described below are available for the standard version of CT Connect. Subsets of these APIs are available for the special versions. Please consult Intel for the latest information on available APIs and commercial application software packages that are compatible with CT Connect software.

• All client modules provide a consistent CSTA-based programming interface (CTC API) for use by developers of advanced call center applications
• Support for Version 2.1 of the Microsoft Telephony API (TAPI)* on Windows systems, supporting desktop telephony applications through CT Connect software and eliminating the need for individual desktop telephone interface devices
• Support for ActiveX* controls on Windows systems that model a single CT Connect telephone device, simplifying integration with many ActiveX-compatible desktop applications. ActiveX controls support a subset of the CTC API call controls).
• A platform-independent CT Connect API for Java for creating a single portable application. This API simplifies integration with any desktop - or server-based application supporting the Java Runtime Environment (JRE).
• An open management API on all supported client systems for creating management and monitoring applications. This API provides an interface enabling the monitoring and management of the CT Connect Server and retrieval of server statistical information.

CT Connect software supports multiple applications using all of these APIs interchangeably and concurrently.

The CTC API software including Java is shipped with the CT Connect product. Software for TAPI and ActiveX can be downloaded without charge from the CT Connect area of the Web site .

As the CTI market evolves, Intel will continue to develop and enhance the client APIs for CT Connect server software. Please consult the Web site for the latest information.

Application Integration Techniques

CT Connect software supplies the communication path between a telephone switching environment and CTI applications. Several techniques can be employed to make use of the telephone-related information in an application environment.

• A new business application can be written, or an existing application enhanced to interact directly with CT Connect software using any of the available APIs
• A Web browser based application can be used or CTI-enabled to interact with CT Connect software using the API for Java
• An application development tool that interacts with CT Connect software using any of the available APIs
• A turnkey CTI middleware application that interacts with CT Connect software and then triggers other applications through standard inter-application communication techniques
• A shrink-wrapped CTI-aware application that interacts with CT Connect software using a standard CTI API such as TAPI
• A shrink-wrapped non-CTI application that interacts with CT Connect software using ActiveX

CT Connect software supports multiple applications using all of these methods interchangeably and concurrently.

CT Connect Enterprise Server

If you're a developer or reseller with existing call center or customer relationship management (CRM) applications, you know how quickly the call center landscape is changing. Two major developments have revolutionized the business: the Web-enabled call center and the geographical dispersion of call center agents and facilities.

The benefits of providing Web access to call center customers hardly needs reiteration. Web-based browsing, combined with click-to-talk Internet calling applications increases sales, improves customer service, and enhances technical support. Dispersed call centers help resolve staffing problems and extend calling hours by locating agents in different geographical time zones.

The companies that succeed in this competitive and fast-changing marketplace will be those that can adapt their existing products to these new service environments in the shortest time. Intel is ready to help. The CT Connect Enterprise Server not only allows you to run your existing applications within a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) environment, but it is specifically designed to manage VOIP calls within the CSTA Gatekeeper's domain.

The CT Connect Enterprise Server is a separately licensed version of CT Connect with an advanced set of call control features that allow a single application to manage calls across an enterprise with both PBX and H.323 calling environments. The CT Connect Enterprise Server will run on any Windows NT based server.

Server-to-Server Communication (PBX to PBX) Example

Here's one possible server-to-server configuration.

1. A call arrives from the public network (PSTN).
2. The application uses Automatic Number Identification (ANI) or Dialed Number Identification Service (DNIS) to perform a database lookup.
3. The application applies data to the call. Server A maintains the call data from this point on, even when the call leaves the switch.
4. The call is transferred to a second PBX, directly or via a queue. The server (A) keeps the call data for a specified period, and waits for contact.
5. The call arrives at the second switch. The transmitted ANI information is used to identify the source PBX or CT Connect server. Server B queries Server A to obtain the call data, which it then stores locally.
6. The application receives a call information event that includes the application data. The data can be used to look up additional database information, customer records, etc.

Server-to-Server Communication

CSTA Gatekeeper

The CSTA Gatekeeper works with CT Connect Version 6.0 to enable new or existing CTI applications that manage and control calls in the same manner as they would within a PBX switching environment. The unique approach of CT Connect provides a CTI linkage from a fixed, basic-function Gatekeeper Module, so that external CTI-style applications can implement the policy logic. Multiple external CTI applications can be handled and implemented on any convenient system platform, resulting in lower costs and more flexibility for IP telephony call processing. This approach enables CT Connect applications to monitor and control calls in an H.323 environment just as easily as they do in a traditional PBX environment. The CSTA Gatekeeper provides Make Call, Route Call, Deflect Call, Associate Data, and Clear Call controls.

The CSTA-Enabled Gatekeeper is the focal point for implementing features in an H.323 environment. It is preferable to have a thin gatekeeper with an external CSTA connection than to implement features directly in the gatekeeper. Current industry thinking favors the second approach, but in our experience, it inevitably leads to expensive, complex, and inflexible implementations. The CSTA-Enabled Gatekeeper lets you deploy your existing contact management and customer service and support applications within an IP environment, with virtually no changes.

Any of the CT Connect application program interfaces will translate telephone call event messages from messages supported by any calling environment you select including:

• Premises equipment like ACD, PBXs, or station sets
• H.323 Internet Protocol (IP) networks like the Internet

You can sell your existing applications for use over IP networks or develop new ones. The CSTA-Enabled Gatekeeper will give you easy access to the expanding call center marketplace.

What Does the CSTA-Enabled Gatekeeper Do?

The CSTA-Enabled Gatekeeper is software used to handle call signaling and management tasks within an H.323 Internet telephony environment. The Gatekeeper supervises all calls within its defined area of control, called a "domain." It performs the following functions:

• Call control
  - Connects, disconnects, or cancels a call
  - Provides calling features such as Deflect, Call Forward, Do Not Disturb, Message Waiting, and Associate Data - Monitors a device
  - Routes a call to a location within the domain
• Sends and receives Computer Supported Telecommunications Applications (CSTA) messages to and from CT Connect using a CSTA CTI link
• Tracks and translates telephone numbers to TCP/IP addresses using H.323 aliases including E.164 telephone numbers
• Monitors and manages registration of each H.323 endpoint as it enters and leaves the domain
• Manages Internet bandwidth to facilitate transmission
• Authorizes access permission for callers

System Architecture

The CSTA-Enabled Gatekeeper is the focal point within the H.323 calling environment and each H.323 Gateway and PC client within a Gatekeeper's domain must register with it. The Gatekeeper tracks all available H.323 endpoints (gateways, H.323 phones, and H.323 PC-based phones), providing address and phone number resolution for directing the H.323 calls to the correct endpoint.

Example

When a call is placed from a PSTN phone to an H.323 Gateway, the Gateway retrieves the network call data such as calling and called party information. The Gateway uses this information to set the appropriate source and destination information for the resulting VOIP leg of the call. The destination chosen by the Gateway can be any endpoint registered with the same Gatekeeper or a route point configured in the Gatekeeper.

At the same time the call arrives, the Gatekeeper passes an inbound-call event through the CTI link and CT Connect to a CT Connect application, where a number of different events can occur:

• The call can be routed to a specific agent or gateway
• The call can be deflected
• The call can trigger a "screen pop" at the agent's desktop

The Gatekeeper also provides a set of management controls through a separate API. These controls are used to set up and configure the Gatekeeper's domain and control the H.323 calling environment (setting of alias endpoint names, IP address ranges, route points, call and endpoint limits, etc.).

Required Components

Gatekeeper Environment

CT Connect Family of Components

In addition to CT Connect server software, Intel offers several software components that can assist you in developing or CTI-enabling business applications. Each of the following CT Connect components provides complex functions from which CTI applications can be built. In many cases, these components can be used to provide CTI capabilities to an existing business application without having to CTI-enable the application.

• CT Connect Enhanced SDK, providing an intuitive higher-level telephony programming interface that shields developers from many of the variations of different telephone switches
• CT Connect Call Information Manager, to manage call-related data as the call is routed through the enterprise
• CT Connect Call Routing Manager, a call routing engine handling the technical aspects of call routing applications. Just add the business logic
• Intel?Internet Phone SDK, a software development kit that enables developers and ISPs to create applications that include H.323 VOIP calling features

Related Information

Like other Intel?communications systems building blocks CT Connect software components represent a foundation technology, not an end-user solution. The value of computer telephony becomes apparent when CTI technology is integrated with other systems and applications. Intel can provide many of the required base technologies for building CT applications that address specific business needs. Intel has identified and collected a number of solution sets that combine various products to address specific customer needs. Intel relies on a network of application developers, VARs, and OEMs to incorporate its technology into solutions custom-tailored for specific end-customer business needs. Intel maintains a directory of businesses and their CT Connect software compatible products and services at the address below.

Intel also offers specialized computer-telephone consulting, design, and implementation services. CT Connect application developers and integrators can call upon the consulting services group for assistance with any phase of a CTI project. Or for a fast-paced, accelerated start to your development project, Jump Start services are available. The consulting services group also offers several popular courses in CTI technology and integration strategies at locations worldwide. This expertise is available to business partners as well as to end users to help them design and implement computer-telephone systems.