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8
Region Configuration
Use regions to specify the bandwidth that is used for audio and video calls within a region and between
existing regions. Use the following procedures to add, update, or delete regions, and to synchronize
configuration changes with affected devices:
•
Region Configuration Settings, page 8-1
•
Finding a Region, page 8-4
•
Configuring a Region, page 8-5
•
Synchronizing a Region With Affected Devices, page 8-9
•
Deleting a Region, page 8-9
•
Related Topics, page 8-10
Refer to the “Regions” section in the Cisco Unified Communications Manager System Guide for more
information about configuring regions and selecting audio codecs.
Region Configuration Settings
Use regions to specify the bandwidth that is used for audio and video calls within a region and between
existing regions.
Note
•
The audio codec determines the type of compression and the maximum amount of bandwidth that is
used per audio call.
•
The video call bandwidth comprises the sum of the audio bandwidth and video bandwidth but does
not include overhead.
The default audio codec for all calls through Cisco Unified Communications Manager specifies G.711.
If you do not plan to use any other audio codec, you do not need to use regions. See the “Related Topics”
section on page 8-10 for more information.
Cisco Unified Communications Manager supports up to 2000 regions. The following limitations and
restrictions apply:
•
Configure as many regions as possible to Use System Default for inter-/intra-region audio codecs
and video bandwidth.
•
This enhancement requires an MCS 7845H1 or higher server.
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Region Configuration Settings
•
Refer to the “Regions” subtopic under the “Administration Considerations” topic of the “IP Video
Telephony” chapter of the Cisco Unified Communications Solution Reference Network Design
(SRND) for the current release, which provides recommendations as to how the video bandwidth
should be set for regions and locations, so the video portion of video calls will succeed, and the
video calls will not get rejected nor set up as audio-only calls.
Table 8-1 summarizes the audio codec and video call bandwidth settings that can be specified for
regions. For related procedures, see the “Related Topics” section on page 8-10.
Table 8-1
Region Configuration Settings
Field
Description
Region Information
Name
Enter a unique name for this region. This name can comprise up to 30
characters. Valid characters include letters, numbers, dashes, dots
(periods), blanks, and underscores.
Note
Cisco recommends that you reset devices after changing a region
name.
Region Relationships
Region
The entries in this column display all regions for which non-default
relationships have been configured.
Note
If the relationships between the region that you are configuring
and this region specify only default values, this region does not
display in this column.
Audio Codec
The entries in this column specify the audio codec relationship between
the region that you are configuring and the region that displays in the
corresponding row.
Video Call Bandwidth
The entries in this column specify the video call bandwidth relationship
between the region that you are configuring and the region that displays
in the corresponding row.
Link Loss Type
The entries in this column specify the link loss type relationship between
the region that you are configuring and the region that displays in the
corresponding row.
Modify Relationship to Other Regions
Regions
The entries in this window pane specify all existing regions, including the
Default region, the region that you are configuring, and all other regions.
Choose a region in this pane prior to configuring the relationships
between the region that you are configuring and the chosen region.
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Region Configuration Settings
Table 8-1
Region Configuration Settings (continued)
Field
Description
Audio Codec
For each region that is specified in the Regions window pane, choose the
corresponding value from the drop-down list box in this column to set the
audio codec to use for calls between this region and the specified region.
To choose the default setting, choose the Use System Default value.
Video Call Bandwidth
Link Loss Type
•
Cisco recommends that you choose the default settings that you
configured in the Cisco Unified Communications Manager
Administration Service Parameters Configuration window. See the
“Configuring Default Values” section on page 8-5.
•
Because of bandwidth constraints at most remote-site deployments,
use G.729 as the recommended default audio codec setting between
a new region and existing regions.
For each region that is specified in the Regions window pane, click one
radio button in this column as specified:
•
Keep Current Setting—Click this button to use the current setting for
the video call bandwidth.
•
Use System Default—Click this button to use the default value. The
default value normally specifies 384 kb/s, unless the default value
has been set to a different value in the Service Parameters
Configuration window.
•
None—Click this radio button if no video call bandwidth is allotted
between this region and the specified region.
•
kbps—Click this button to allot video call bandwidth between the
region that you are configuring and the specified region. Enter the
bandwidth that is available for each video call between these two
regions. Valid values range from 1 to 32256.
For each region that is specified in the Regions window pane, choose the
corresponding value from the drop-down list box in this column to set the
link loss type to use for calls between this region and the specified region.
Choose from the following values:
•
Keep Current Setting—Choose this value to keep the link loss type
between the region that you are configuring and the region that you
specified in the Regions window pane.
•
Use System Default—Choose this value to use the system default
value for link loss type between the region that you are configuring
and the region that you specified in the Regions window pane.
•
Low Loss—Choose this value to specify a low-loss link loss type
between the region that you are configuring and the region that you
specified in the Regions window pane.
•
Lossy—Choose this value to specify a lossy link loss type between
the region that you are configuring and the region that you specified
in the Regions window pane.
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Region Configuration
Finding a Region
Finding a Region
Because you may have several regions in your network, Cisco Unified Communications Manager
Administration lets you locate specific regions on the basis of specific criteria. Use the following
procedure to locate regions.
Note
During your work in a browser session, the cookies on the client machine store your find/list search
preferences. If you navigate to other menu items and return to this menu item, or if you close the browser
and then reopen a new browser window, the system retains your Cisco Unified Communications
Manager search preferences until you modify your search.
Procedure
Step 1
Choose System > Region.
The Find and List Regions window displays. Records from an active (prior) query may also display in
the window.
Step 2
To find all records in the database, ensure the dialog box is empty; go to Step 3.
To filter or search records
•
From the drop-down list box, select a search pattern.
•
Specify the appropriate search text, if applicable.
Note
Step 3
To add additional search criteria, click the + button. When you add criteria, the system searches
for a record that matches all criteria that you specify. To remove criteria, click the – button to
remove the last added criterion or click the Clear Filter button to remove all added search
criteria.
Click Find.
All matching records display. You can change the number of items that display on each page by choosing
a different value from the Rows per Page drop-down list box.
Note
Step 4
You can delete multiple records from the database by checking the check boxes next to the
appropriate record and clicking Delete Selected. You can delete all configurable records for this
selection by clicking Select All and then clicking Delete Selected.
From the list of records that display, click the link for the record that you want to view.
Note
To reverse the sort order, click the up or down arrow, if available, in the list header.
The window displays the item that you choose.
Additional Information
See the “Related Topics” section on page 8-10.
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Configuring a Region
Configuring a Region
Use the following procedure to add or update a region.
Before You Begin
For every region, an association exists with that region in other regions; therefore, the addition of regions
occurs in a matrixlike fashion. For example, if you add regions A, B, and C, a matrix with region A,
region B, and region C as both columns and rows results, as shown in the following matrix:
Region A
Region B
Region C
Region A
Region B
Region C
If you assign 20 regions, the database adds 400 entries (20 x 20). Some performance limitations exist
when large numbers of regions are assigned.
Note
Cisco Unified Communications Manager allows addition of a maximum of 2000 regions.
Configuring Default Values
Region entries contain the following values:
•
Audio Codec—You define audio codec values that are to be used within the same region, and you
also define audio codec values that are to be used between regions.
•
Video Call Bandwidth—You define video call bandwidth values that are to be used within the same
region, and you also define video call bandwidth values that are to be used between regions.
•
Link Loss Type—You define the link loss types that are to be used within the same region, and you
also define link loss types that are to be used between regions.
Tip
If you set both the audio codec values and the video call bandwidth values to use the default, the system
optimizes its performance by making more efficient use of resources.
Note
Regions have default values for use within a region (the recommended default value specifies G.711),
and regions have default values for use between regions (the recommended default value specifies
G.729).
You configure the default values for regions in the Cisco Unified Communications Manager
Administration Service Parameters Configuration window. Use the following procedure:
1.
Choose System > Service Parameters.
2.
From the drop-down Server list box, choose the Cisco Unified Communications Manager server that
you want to configure.
3.
From the drop-down Service list box, choose Cisco CallManager (Active) as the service.
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Configuring a Region
4.
The Cisco Unified Communications Manager Administration Service Parameter Configuration
window displays.
5.
Scroll down to Clusterwide Parameters (System - Location and Region) and configure the
parameters in this section.
6.
Click the Save icon that displays in the tool bar in the upper, left corner of the window (or click the
Save button that displays at the bottom of the window).
Use the following procedure to add or update a region.
Procedure
Step 1
Choose System > Region.
The Region Configuration window displays.
Step 2
Perform one of the following tasks:
•
To add a new region, click the Add New button and continue with Step 3.
•
To update an existing region, locate the appropriate region as described in the “Finding a Region”
section on page 8-4 and continue with Step 3.
Note
Cisco recommends that you reset devices after changing a region name.
Step 3
In the Name field, enter the name that you want to assign to the region.
Step 4
To save the new region in the database, click the Save icon that displays in the tool bar in the upper, left
corner of the window (or click the Save button that displays at the bottom of the window).
Step 5
To configure the default codecs to use within this region, click the name of this region to highlight it in
the Regions window pane.
a.
From the Audio Codec drop-down list box, choose a default audio codec value to use within this
region.
The audio codec determines the type of compression and the maximum amount of bandwidth that is
allocated for these calls. See Table 8-2 for a summary of the available codec types and bandwidth
usage.
b.
In the Video Call Bandwidth column, click the appropriate radio button to configure the default
value to specify the video bandwidth to use for video calls within this region.
If you specify None, the system does not allow video calls.
c.
Note
From the Link Loss Type drop-down list box, choose a default link loss type to use within this
region.
For enhanced scalability, Cisco recommends that you properly set the default values in the
Clusterwide Parameters (System - Location and Region) section of the Cisco Unified
Communications Manager Administration Service Parameters Configuration window for the
audio codec, video call bandwidth, and link loss type values and then choose Use System Default
in the Cisco Unified Communications Manager Administration Region Configuration window.
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Configuring a Region
Step 6
To configure the default codecs to use between this region and other regions, click another region name
(other than this region) to highlight it in the Regions window pane.
a.
From the Audio Codec drop-down list box, choose a default audio codec value to use between this
region and the region that you highlighted.
The audio codec determines the type of compression and the maximum amount of bandwidth that is
allocated for these calls. See Table 8-2 for a summary of the available codec types and bandwidth
usage.
b.
In the Video Call Bandwidth column, click the appropriate radio button to configure the default
value to specify the video bandwidth to use for video calls between this region and the region that
you highlighted.
If you specify None, the system does not allow video calls between this region and the specified
region.
c.
Note
From the Link Loss Type drop-down list box, choose a default link loss type to use between this
region and the region that you highlighted.
For enhanced scalability, Cisco recommends that you properly set the default values in the
Clusterwide Parameters (System - Location and Region) section of the Cisco Unified
Communications Manager Administration Service Parameters Configuration window for the
audio codec, video call bandwidth, and link loss type values and then choose the Use System
Default entries in the Cisco Unified Communications Manager Administration Region
Configuration window for these fields.
Step 7
To save the new region in the database, click the Save icon that displays in the tool bar in the upper, left
corner of the window (or click the Save button that displays at the bottom of the window).
Tip
The Region Configuration window displays an Items per page drop-down list box that allows you to list
25, 50, 100, 150, 200, or 250 configured regions. If you choose to display 100 or more regions, Cisco
Unified Communications Manager may experience performance degradation.
Next Step
After adding a new region to the database, you can use it to configure device pools. Devices acquire a
region setting from the device pool to which they are assigned. See the “Configuring a Device Pool”
section on page 9-11 for information on configuring device pools.
Additional Information
See the “Related Topics” section on page 8-10.
The total bandwidth that is used per call stream depends on the audio codec type as well as factors such
as data packet size and overhead (packet header size). The bandwidth figures shown in Table 8-2 apply
for 30-ms data packets and include IP headers. Each call comprises two call streams.
Note
The codecs that Table 8-2 specifies correlate to an approximate bandwidth usage per call. For
information on bandwidth usage for each codec, refer to Cisco Unified Communications Solution
Reference Network Design (SRND) for the current release of Cisco Unified Communications Manager.
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Table 8-2
Bandwidth That Audio Codecs Use
Audio Codec
Bandwidth Used Per Call
(Including IP Headers) With
30-ms Data Packets
G.711
80 kb/s
This codec represents the default codec for all
Cisco Unified Communications Manager calls.
G.722
80 kb/s
Video endpoints typically prefer this codec.
G.723
24 kb/s
The system supports this low-bit-rate codec for
use with older Cisco IP Phone 12 SP Series and
Cisco IP Phone 30 VIP.
G.728/iLBC
26.66 kb/s for G.728
Video endpoints support the G.728 low-bit-rate
codec.
24 kb/s for iLBC
Description
Internet Low Bit Rate Codec (iLBC) enables
graceful speech quality degradation in the case of
lost frames and is suitable for real-time
communications.
G.729
24 kb/s
The system supports this low bit-rate codec for
Cisco Unified IP Phone 7900.
Wideband/AAC
272 kb/s
The system supports this high-quality,
high-bandwidth audio codec for IP-phone-toIP-phone calls that the Cisco Unified IP Phone
7900 supports.
Use this audio codec if you want to configure the
Advanced Audio Codec (AAC) for calls between
phones that are running SIP.
Advanced Audio Codec (AAC) specifies a
wideband voice codec that provides improved
voice fidelity and equal or better sound quality
over older codecs.
GSM
29 kb/s
The Global System for Mobile Communications
(GSM) codec enables the MNET system for GSM
wireless handsets to interoperate with Cisco
Unified Communications Manager.
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Synchronizing a Region With Affected Devices
Synchronizing a Region With Affected Devices
To synchronize devices with a Region that has undergone configuration changes, perform the following
procedure, which will apply any outstanding configuration settings in the least-intrusive manner
possible. (For example, a reset/restart may not be required on some affected devices.)
Procedure
Step 1
Choose System > Region.
The Find and List Regions window displays.
Step 2
Choose the search criteria to use.
Step 3
Click Find.
The window displays a list of Regions that match the search criteria.
Step 4
Click the Region to which you want to synchronize applicable devices. The Region Configuration
window displays.
Step 5
Make any additional configuration changes.
Step 6
Click Save.
Step 7
Click Apply Config.
The Apply Configuration Information dialog displays.
Step 8
Click OK.
Additional Information
See the “Related Topics” section on page 8-10.
Deleting a Region
This section describes how to delete a region from the Cisco Unified Communications Manager
database.
Before You Begin
Note
You cannot delete a region that any device pools are using.
To find out which device pools use the region, choose Dependency Records from the Related Links
drop-down list box on the Region Configuration window and click Go.
If the dependency records feature is not enabled for the system, the dependency records summary
window displays a message that shows the action that you can take to enable the dependency records;
the message also displays information about high CPU consumption that is related to the dependency
records feature. For more information about dependency records, see the “Accessing Dependency
Records” section on page A-2.
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Related Topics
If you attempt to delete a region that is in use, Cisco Unified Communications Manager displays a
message. Before deleting a region that is currently in use, you must perform either or both of the
following tasks:
•
Update the device pools to use a different region. See the “Configuring a Device Pool” section on
page 9-11.
•
Delete the device pools that use the region that you want to delete. See the “Deleting a Device Pool”
section on page 9-13.
Procedure
Step 1
Find the region by using the procedure in the “Finding a Region” section on page 8-4.
Step 2
From the list of matching records, choose the region that you want to delete.
Step 3
To delete the region, click the Delete Selected icon that displays in the tool bar in the upper, left corner
of the window (or click the Delete Selected button that displays at the bottom of the window).
Tip
The Region Configuration window displays an Items per page drop-down list box that allows you to list
25, 50, 100, 150, 200, or 250 configured regions. If you choose to display 100 or more regions, Cisco
Unified Communications Manager may experience performance degradation.
Additional Information
See the “Related Topics” section on page 8-10.
Related Topics
•
Region Configuration Settings, page 8-1
•
Finding a Region, page 8-4
•
Configuring a Region, page 8-5
•
Synchronizing a Region With Affected Devices, page 8-9
•
Deleting a Region, page 8-9
•
Regions, Cisco Unified Communications Manager System Guide
•
Call Admission Control, Cisco Unified Communications Manager System Guide
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