Test Review Reveals Much Improvement in Microsoft OCS 2007 R2

When the Miercom team took a look at a RTM (Release to Manufacturing) version of Microsoft OCS 2007 last year, we saw the path Microsoft was taking to integrate and deliver VoIP capabilities into the office—capabilities such as IM, email, voice and video calling and structured conferencing (our No Jitter review of the first Microsoft OCS 2007 release can be found here). Now Microsoft is out with Release 2 of OCS 2007 (OCS R2), and we recently tested this newest version out in our labs.

OCS 2007 had proved scalable--it could handle up to 125,000 users--and the new OCS 2007 R2 goes even further, as it can handle up to 200,000 users. Services can be handled by one server, or split when additional resources are required. Used in conjunction with Microsoft Outlook, communications options are enhanced, with new functionality that extends voice features for remote and mobile users; new audio-conferencing functionality that can reduce operating costs; and advanced administration tools designed to improve business communication through a Unified Communications (UC) infrastructure.

OCS R2 is a real-time communications server, providing the infrastructure, instant messaging, presence, file transfer, peer-to-peer and multiparty voice & video calling, ad hoc & structured conferences (audio, video and web) and PSTN connectivity. These features are available within an organization, between branch locations, and with external users on the public Internet, or with standard phones on the PSTN.

OCS R2 continues to deliver on Microsoft’s promise to streamline communications for users, give IT organizations the flexibility and control needed to manage communications infrastructure efficiently, and provide an extensible communications platform. We looked at OCS R2 with the new Microsoft Office Communicator, Office 2007, Exchange 2007 and some reference designs for Microsoft Certified Endpoints.

Features and Enhancements of OCS 2007 R2
Building upon the previous version, Microsoft's OCS 2007 R2 continues to deliver a viable communications infrastructure platform, introducing enhanced communications features, along with significant improvements to existing functionality. OCS R2 provides streamlined communications, operational flexibility and control, with an extensive platform to manage the communications network efficiently.

OCS R2 presents a smooth integration of server and client features. On the client side, OCS R2 provides these new and enhanced features: new Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Attendant, Office Communicator phone, mobile and Group Chat enhancements. The OCS R2 provides a platform for presence, IM, conferencing and enterprise voice, encompassing a vast amount of enhanced functionality. Within this article, we cover some of the "heavy-hitter" features and functionality that Microsoft has integrated into OCS R2.

Office Communicator 2007 R2 for Clients
The main component on the client side is Office Communicator 2007 R2 (OC R2), which now includes a wide range of new and enhanced UC services. Desktop-sharing, Group Chat, Call Delegation, Voice and Video enhancements are among the most significant features.

No matter where a user is physically located, the new call delegation-call forwarding feature enables delegation of phone duties to other persons and quickly routes them to the intended recipients, and can perform other required functions. Within Office Communicator, managers and/or users can now select from the many Call Forwarding Settings, located on the new pull-down menu, e.g., "Ring me and my delegates," or "Ring my delegates only."

A Desktop Sharing Feature allows others to see your desktop while a session is taking place, allowing multiple user access to the PC. This can be a useful tool for designs, calendar planning and other shared projects. Collaboration can take place while using enhanced audio conferencing features, instant messaging or Communicator Web Access. Sharing can be initiated when enabled for any conference hosted by the server.

Not only is there a user delegation feature, a new attendant delegation feature enables users to effectively manage high-call volume and conferences on behalf of others, through rapid call handling, instant messaging and on-screen routing. Calls can be quickly and systematically routed, while the integrated caller history and conversation notes provide context for those callers as the calls appear on the screen. Also included in the delegation feature, users can select the call and accept or decline calls for another person.

Video calls can now be received in high definition. Previously, Office Communicator supported a video format with a 352 x 288 resolution. With OC R2, the enhanced media resiliency and voice quality offer both VGA display (640 x 480) and High Definition (1280 x 720). When selecting the video size, the appropriate format is selected. In large mode, the video format is VGA, while in full screen mode, the format is High Definition. Currently HD and VGA video are not supported for multi-endpoint conferences.

Voice quality has been enhanced by suppressing typing noise during calls; and new video and voice icons were added to the OC conversation window. The icon indicates whether the person joining the conversation is using a phone or video endpoint, and is displayed in a screen window.

Mobile and single-number features extend the Office Communicator functionality. The mobile feature resides on both the server and client side, and provides messaging for mobile devices integrating with IM, presence, and telephony. It can be accessed anywhere with wireless or network service providers and allows communications using presence, IM and voice as an extension of the PBX. OC mobile also includes a variety of enhanced usability, performance, and search improvements.

The Group Chat feature allows users to participate in IM conversations that persist over time, and the entire session can be stored, with searchable, topic-based chat rooms that can be set up. In the previous OC 2007, after the group IM session ended, its state was lost; additionally, only four parties could chat during one session. With OC R2 Group Chat, the conversation persists together with files, Web links, and associated data, making it possible to have a record of the session.

A nice embellishment to the Office Communicator 2007 R2 (OC R2) is the enhanced mobile presence status. When users sign into OC R2 Mobile on their mobile device, the "mobile" icon is added to the presence status, next to a person’s name, displaying presence information. The screen also displays the presence and status of all users, and if Outlook's "Out of Office" message is on, that information appears as well.

Additionally, the Group Chat feature allows a user to invite others into a call, or use high-def video while text-chatting at the same time; they can cut and paste the text from the conversations, and can leave and re-enter the conversation. OC R2 stores all chat call information once a call has ended. Users can also change the size of the video screen (small, large, full) and control to pause the video, flip video, or switch users inside small and main video windows. A user can also block one's presence from other users, when joining a chat call.

Office Communications Server 2007 R2
Office Communications Server 2007 R2 delivers four new server application components that enhance the server’s existing voice and conferencing functionality: Conferencing Attendant, Conferencing Announcement Services, Response Group Service and Outside Voice Control. OCS R2 simplifies deployment of voice by enabling a connection of the voice network to a service provider offering PSTN origination and termination, i.e., SIP trunking. This new SIP trunking feature can reduce costs by providing a direct VoIP connection between an Internet telephony service provider and OCS R2, without requiring on-premise gateways, delivering calls to the PSTN without use of legacy equipment.

OCS R2 introduces several new call management features, specifically, the management of incoming calls. As previously mentioned, call delegation allows managers and/or users to delegate call handling to one or more persons. The added team-call feature enables users to forward incoming calls to a defined team, and when a team-call group receives a forwarded call, all the group members’ phones ring, and all group members can see who forwarded the call. When a team user answers the call, the other phones stop ringing.

A new response group service feature enables administrators to create and configure one or more small response groups, to route and queue incoming phone calls to the designated agents. These response groups can be deployed in departmental or workgroup environments and in new telephony installations. Depending on permissions delegated by the manager, the assistant can initiate a conference call, transfer calls, listen to voicemail and more. The manager can also configure options within the Office Communicator client as well.

OCS R2 introduces dial-in conferencing, allowing users to join an audio/video conference by dialing-in with a PSTN phone. This dial-in conferencing requires the Conferencing Attendant and Conferencing Announcement Service applications when the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 is deployed internally.

Configuration
Office Communications Server 2007 R2 is only available in a 64-bit configuration, which requires 64-bit hardware and the 64-bit edition of Windows Server. Client computers are not required to have 64-bit hardware or software.

All server roles of Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Enterprise Edition require one of the following operating systems:

* 64-bit edition of Windows Server 2008 Standard or Enterprise operating system,

* Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard or Enterprise x 64 Edition operating system with SP2

* Windows Server 2003 Standard or Enterprise x64 Edition operating system with SP2

The Standard version of OCS R2 is installed on a single Windows Server 2003/2008 64-bit edition and uses SQL Server 2005/2008 Express Edition for storage and archiving.

With OCS R2 you can upgrade from the Standard Edition to the Enterprise Edition, as long as the Standard Edition and Enterprise Edition are the same release. To perform migration from previous OCS versions, you needed to meet the hardware and software requirements.

The previous version of Office Communications Server is supported on a 32-bit platform, while OCS R2 uses a 64-bit platform and cannot be upgraded from the older software to R2. A complete new installation of OCS R2 is required, in order to migrate from OCS 2007 to OCS 2007 R2. This requirement of a forklift upgrade for those who have already deployed OCS 2007 is one of the drawbacks to the new release.

Installation
As discussed in our original OCS 2007 review for the Enterprise installation, service can be shared among multiple Windows 2003/2008 servers, up to 8 servers supporting up to 200,000 users to increase scalability. At the core is the Microsoft OCS Enterprise Pool, a collection of servers that handle presence, messaging, and OCS management functions. An external Microsoft SQL server is required for database services. Voice conferencing, Instant Messaging conferencing, and Web conferencing services can be moved to separate servers for increased scalability. The final core interaction is with the Microsoft Exchange server's Unified Messaging component, which also requires a 64-bit server environment for delivery of voice mail to user mailboxes.

There has not been any improvement of the installation process of the Office Communications Server. The installation of the original release of OCS 2007 was problematic and we encountered similar difficulties when working on installing OCS 2007 R2. Due to the complexity of the separate components required to install, such as schema changes to Active Directory, installation of certificates, configuration of dial plans, deployment of a Mediation Server for connecting to the PSTN, and configuration of VoIP and SIP, a Microsoft Certified Engineer is highly recommended for this task.

Throughout the installation process, the browser-based Wizard provides sufficient guidance regarding the order of component installation, and provides a three step process for the installation of each component. First, it verifies that the operating system meets the prerequisites, followed by the actual installation of the component and finally, it verifies that the installation is successful.

Administration
Within the enterprise, the IT and Telecommunications departments manage cost control, security, integration with existing infrastructure and compliance requirements. OCS R2 delivers the tools needed for administrators to manage secure, compliant communications and on-premise audio conferencing, placing IT in control of the audio conferencing infrastructure. This significantly reduces audio conferencing relative to the use of a conferencing service. In addition, video monitoring allows IT staff to monitor the quality of network video calls and conferences, and perform necessary adjustments to the network.

In the previous release of OCS 2007, businesses were not able to build upon communications-enabled applications. Now, the APIs and Visual Studio Integration developer tool, available with OCS R2, enables businesses to build communications-enabled applications and embed the communications into these.

As noted, voice mail is stored on the Exchange server. Administrators must define a Unified Messaging Mailbox policy which sets the basic parameters: greeting length, automatic email messages and PIN settings. PINs can be assigned or automatically generated and sent to the users via email. Text can also be appended to voice mail and fax notifications. Different policies can be applied to different users.

Interoperability
We were able to co-locate the phones with the OC R2 and use the phone as the audio device, instead of USB headsets or other items. Third party endpoints and full Unified Communications solutions such as NEC, Polycom and Snom, are interoperable with Microsoft OCS R2. The OC R2 firmware is embedded into the approved MS endpoint devices. We made calls and established connectivity between the hard and soft endpoints and we were successful in defining performance measurements on the hard and soft endpoints, including MOS, Jitter and R-Value data.

Based on our experience with endpoint compatibility and OCS R2, we feel conducting additional interoperability testing is crucial. The endpoint devices featured in this review worked, others we have tested did not--so more detail will follow, in the next OCS interoperability article. Miercom is conducting ongoing testing of interoperability of endpoints and OCS R2 and the results will appear in a future issue of NoJitter. If you would like the opportunity for Miercom to perform interoperability testing for your product, contact: www.reviewsatmiercom.com.

Performance
Miercom did basic performance testing of the hard and soft endpoints, and performance measurements were achieved using the ClearSight Analyzer 6.0 and Touchstone’s WinEyeQ 1.7.1 We tested the performance of calls from Snom (beta) phones to the Office Communicator softphone, calls placed from the OC softphone to Snom (beta) phones, calls placed from Snom (beta) phones to Snom (beta) phones, and calls placed from the OC to another OC. We did notice a performance gain using the SIP phones as compared to using the OC with a Windows device.

The Microsoft OCS R2 evaluation consisted of Dell Power Edge 1950 Servers. OCS R2 was installed on Win Server 2008 as well as the Domain Controller. Exchange 2007 and SQL 2005 were installed on Win Server 2003. All Windows server software was 64-bit Enterprise Edition. As endpoints we used an HP Compaq dc7900 Desktop, Dell D610 Laptop, Snom 360 (beta), and Snom 320 (beta) SIP phones. Both Office Communicator endpoints were XP Professional SP 3. The two Snom (beta) hard points were using Snom OCS beta r73ocs-wbc02.

Performance Testing Results

Security
Security was examined to determine OCS R2’s ability to prevent and block attacks from inside the security boundaries of the network. TLS, HTTP, IPv4, TCP and UDP were some of the security test suites used for this evaluation. Since Microsoft Server Enterprise 2008 and 2003 are considered semi hardened, Miercom did not expect to find any security vulnerabilities. To verify that the OCS R2 did not create or expose any new vulnerabilities, we applied several batteries of security tests using the IxDefend, IxLoad, and MU Dynamics 4000. To further evaluate the security of the OCS, specifically we disabled Windows-embedded internal firewalls of the respective servers being evaluated, and performed the same battery of tests; OCS achieved the secure results that we expected. Additional security measurements will be performed and described in future Microsoft OCS articles.

Test Bed Diagram

How We Did It
The security assessment was conducted with Ixia’s IxDefend. It was used to generate exploits and attacks. Ixia’s IxDefend is an advanced security assessment tool that can quickly find quality, resiliency, and security exposures across a broad array of applications. It provides identification of known and zero-day threats. IxDefend tests over 40 protocols from link layer communications all the way up to application protocols. Each protocol in each bundle includes thousands of tests, each with its own detailed online documentation.

We used Ixia’s IxLoad to generate the HTTP and FTP traffic to the OCS 2007 R2 suite. IxLoad is a scalable solution for testing converged multi-play (voice, video and data) services and application delivery platforms. IxLoad emulates data, voice, and video subscribers and associated protocols for performance testing. In addition, we used the Mu Dynamics 4000 Service Analyzer to perform multi-protocol conformance and security assessments. The Mu Service Analyzer provides a complete service assurance solution for determining the reliability, availability and security of IP-based applications and services. The Mu solution is highly automated, with lights-out fault isolation. The Mu analyzer speeds the remediation of software flaws by providing actionable reports and complete data on any faults. Mu-based testing is managed via a variety of interfaces, including its highly visual web-based graphical user interface or remotely controlled using REST- or XML-based APIs for integration into common laboratory automation frameworks such as HPQC or STAF. The Mu Dynamics 4000 PVA subscription distills information from the most recently discovered root-cause vulnerabilities into test cases that target the vulnerabilities that lie behind tens of thousands of unique exploit vectors.

The ClearSight Analyzer 6.0 and Touchstone WinEyeQ 1.7.1 were used to conduct performance testing as well as verify the performance of hard and soft endpoints.

Licensing and Cost
For OCS installation, Microsoft Office Communications Server and a CAL (Client Access License) for each user is required. The Standard Servers cost $699 for the license, and $31 per user with one year of assurance software. The Enterprise Server is $3,999, and $139 per user license with one year of assurance software. The addition of voice mail requires installation of Unified Messaging to the Exchange server. The costs include the additional hardware and other operating system upgrades used throughout the solution.

On the client side, Office Communicator is required; the user license is included with Office Pro Plus 2007 and Office Enterprise 2007. No additional user licenses are needed for Exchange or SQL.

Support
Although there is an extended on-line Q & A help available on the Microsoft website, Microsoft also offers optional technical support for an additional cost. Microsoft has different types of support, depending upon the type of the solution. MS Premier support (Enterprise) for large enterprises; MS Services Essential for midsize enterprises, and MS Small Business Support Center for small enterprises.

Bottom Line
Through the integration of Microsoft Office, Exchange Server, Office SharePoint server and Office Communications server, organizations can have one infrastructure for communications and user experience, without the need to deploy different applications for a viable unified communications solution.

With OCS, Microsoft has rolled out the foundation for integrating voice into the daily work flow of the office user in a similar manner as users employ instant messaging and email now. The addition of contact-based presence allows users to ensure they are available to communicate with who they want, when they want; this increases their productivity.

OCS R2 still will not completely replace the PBX for large enterprise environments, since it lacks some of the basic features. But new call center type functions, conference features, voice mail and all the other office enhancements, will increase the viability of this product. The degree of integration into applications will help push voice further away from how it has always been done and into how it will be done in the future.

Robert J. Smithers is CEO of Miercom. With over 20 years of testing experience, he has worked in testing, consulting and network planning as well as hands on implementations of converged networks. Miercom is a leading independent product test center that works with TechWeb and No Jitter.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Qualified Gateways for Office Communications Server 2007 R2
Information regarding supported IP-PBX and gateway configurations can be found here. At the time of writing the following gateways and versions were listed on the website:

* ApplianX Gateway for Office Communications Server 2007
* AudioCodes Mediant 1000, Mediant 2000, Mediant 2000 Hybrid
* Cisco 2851 Integrated Services Router, 3845 Integrated Services Router
* Dialogic 2000 and 4000
* Ferrari electronic AG OfficeMaster Gate
* Mitel 3300
* NEC SV70 OCS-GW-A
* NET VX1200
* Nortel Secure Router 4134 and CS 1000
* Nuera Communications GX-1K and GX-2K
* Quintum Tenor DX and Tenor Hybrid Gateway 60
* Seltatel SAMoffice 4
* Tango Networks Abrazo (qualified with Audiocodes Mediant 2000 5.20A.043)
* VegaStream Vega400

Capacity Planning