Cisco Network Consulting

Exchanging real-time voice and video over Internet Protocol has evolved from simply being being a savvy technique to cut phone carrier bills to being an indispensable tool for collaboration and worker productivity. Unified communications, once restricted to integrating Internet-based voice and faxes on one platform to replace expensive PBX equipment, now includes VoIP and video, mobile communications, chat, presence, services, and much more within a cohesive framework that is manageable, scalable, protected, fault-tolerant, cost-effective, and intuitive.

Cisco is the leader in supplying the hardware and software infrastructure for supporting the current paradigm of unified communications (UC). Cisco's UC product line adds to the productivity of information systems by cutting operating costs; combining multiple collaboration features with familiar software applications to improve worker output; facilitating collaboration among workers, associates, and suppliers to save effort and improve business results; and simplifying the support of your communications environment.

Cisco's Unified Communications solutions cover several main product areas:,

• Call Control Platforms for managing rich media calls and sessions
• IP Phones and Softphones to optimize end-user engagement
• Unified Communications Applications for integrated access to presence, IM, voice and video, phone messages, white boarding, and conferencing
• IP Gateways for connecting to public networks and teleworkers

Call Processing Software - Unified Communications Manager/CallManager
Cisco's call-processing agent is the centerpiece of Cisco's IP Communications portfolio infrastructure and provides the versatility to implement a centralized call-processing design, a decentralized design, or a mix of both. In a centralized deployment, Unified Communications Manager (UC Manager or CUCM) expands enterprise phone features to packet telephony devices such as VoIP handsets, media processing appliances, VoIP gateways, and mixed media programs across the IT environment. Unified Communications Manager supports extra multimedia services including unified messaging, multimedia conferencing, and collaborative client communication networks.

The latest version of Unified Communications Manager, formerly named Cisco CallManager, offers a wealth of enhancements that speed up ROI by lowering administrative and support expenses, increasing worker productivity, enhancing teamwork, accommodating the bring-your-own-device (BYOD) model of working, strengthening security, and making efficient utilization of network resources. Headline new features include Global Dial Plan Replication (GDPR), streamlined certificate management, expanded support for single sign-on for administrators and users, hardware-agnostic call recording, mobile connectivity without the need for VPN, a new self-care interface that makes it simple for users to select their preferences for all endpoints, and support for Transport Layer Security and Secure Real-Time Transport Protocol for mobile clients.

In cases where you deploy a central Cisco Unified Communications Manager cluster to control call processing for customers at distributed sites, administrators can help achieve continuous phone availability through Cisco SRST, a Cisco IOS Software image for Cisco routers. If a Wide Area Network link fails, Cisco SRST incorporated in the Cisco router provides core UC Manager functions until the connection is restored. For information about Progent's consulting services for Cisco ISR routers, refer to consulting and troubleshooting services for Cisco ISR routers.

For small business networks, branch locations, and retail environments that do not need the full functionality offered by Unified CM, Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express, formerly named CallManager Express provides an economical PBX alternative that handles the requirements of sites with up to 450 users. Since Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express Unified Communications Manager Express (Unified CCX) is built into the IOS Software operating on a Cisco Integrated Services Router (ISR), smaller offices can quickly set up a converged voice and data environment.

Cisco's Business Edition 6000 is a line of end-to-end solutions that provide essential collaboration features such as routing, gateway, high definition voice and video, messaging, chat and real-time presence, voice and video conferencing, and paging services, allowing any user to connect on any device from any place. All Business Edition 6000 systems are delivered preinstalled with virtualization and Unified Communications applications, making deployment fast and easy and cutting cost of ownership for organizations with as many as 1000 workers. All BE6000 solutions come packaged preconfigured with virtualization and collaboration applications. Organizations can instantly enable Unified Communications applications when their requirements dictate.

The small-scale Business Edition 6000S supports five standard unified communications software applications preloaded on a single integrated 2921V router/gateway/virtualized E1600 M2 server platform and can handle a maximum capacity of 150 workers and 300 devices. The mid-market Business Edition 6000M supports four UC application options activated on a virtualized C220 M4 server platform and can handle a maximum capacity of 1000 workers, 1200 endpoint devices, and 100 contact center agents. The high-end Business Edition 6000H includes 8 unified communications application options enabled on a single virtualized Cisco UCS C220 M4 server and can handle as many as 1000 users, 2500 endpoint devices, and 100 contact center agents.

For additional details about Progent's expertise with Unified Communications Manager (CallManager), see Unified Communications Manager and CallManager planning, integration, migration and troubleshooting.

Cisco IP Phones: VoIP and IP Video Phones
An IP communications endpoint is a user instrument, either a physical phone or a soft phone program that runs on a desktop or handheld computer. In the Internet Protocol world, each VoIP handset or soft phone is Ethernet connected. IP phones have all of the functions that an analog telephone has, but Voice over IP phones can also have extra features such as the ability to connect to websites or run business software.

Unlike traditional Private Branch Exchange systems, in a Cisco IP phone environment you can implement virtually instant relocations, additions, and changes. You simply move the VoIP phone to your new location, attach it to an Ethernet jack, and the phone registers itself with Cisco Unified Communications Manager (formerly CallManager). All user permissions and settings are automatically re-established, doing away with the expense and delay of sending support personnel to rewire connections. An additional useful feature is extension mobility, which allows you to sign into any Cisco IP device and receive your personal phone ID and privileges.

Cisco provides a wide selection of collaboration hardware endpoints. The entry-level Small Business SPA 300 Series are no-frills IP and DECT devices offering wide-band audio, compatibility with hosted Internet Protocol telephony systems or an IP private branch exchange (PBX), simple installation and secure online provisioning, transparent software updates, and web-based set up. The low-end SPA301 is a one-line IP phone with no display or speakerphone, a base dialer that has one Ethernet port, and a corded handset without a keypad. The SPA302D, intended exclusively for operation with the Cisco SPA232D Multi-Line DECT ATA (Analog Telephone Adapter), is a multiple-line wireless Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT) handset that offers 10-lines, a TFT 176 x 220 pixel color display, and a keypad with a speakerphone. Cisco's SPA303 is an entry-level 3-line IP phone with dual switched Ethernet ports, a 128x64 monochrome graphical display and a speakerphone.

Cisco's SPA500 family IP phones are low-cost devices with support for both SIP and SPCP call control protocols, two integral switch ports, speakerphones, PoE, and conferencing support. Most models have a 128 x 64 monochrome screen display, The SPA501G VoIP phone supports eight lines and has eight programmable keys but no hi-res screen. The SPA502G has a single line and has no soft keys. The SPA504G VoIP phone supports four lines and has four programmable keys. The SPA508G IP Phone supports eight lines and eight programmable keys. The SPA509G supports 12 lines and has 12 programmable buttons. The SPA512G has four lines, no soft buttons and supports 1xGb Ethernet. The SPA514G IP Phone supports four lines, has programmable keys, and supports Gigabit Ethernet. The top-of-the-line SPA525G2 VoIP phone has a 320 x 240 color screen, supports five lines, and features five soft keys.

Cisco's IP Phones 3900 Series and IP Phones 6900 Series are specialty IP voice endpoints intended for infrequent-use settings like cafeterias, hallways, and conference facilities. The Unified SIP Phone 3905 IP Phone features a 128 x 32 mono screen, a 10/100 Ethernet switch, a speakerphone, and Power over Ethernet. The simple Cisco Unified IP Phone 6901 is a single-line endpoint with no display and uses a hook switch for transferring a call and joining a conference.

The 7800 line of value-priced IP phones are VoIP desktop endpoints featuring backlit mono displays, four programmable keys, 11 dedicated buttons, an Ethernet port with Power over Ethernet (PoE), and an integral speakerphone. Cisco's 7800 Series support only the SIP signaling protocol. All models in Cisco's 7800 line incorporate the same advanced speakers and microphones as Cisco's 8800 Series IP phones to deliver a state-of-the-art audio solution. Cisco's EnergyWise power-save feature, offered on the advanced 7800 units, cuts off-hours energy usage by up to 60 percent. The Cisco IP Phone 7811 is a one-line phone designed for shared locations and for workers with infrequent voice communications requirements. The IP 7811 comes with a 3.28-inch 384 x 106 screen and a narrow-band speakerphone. Wideband audio is offered via an extra-cost wideband handset. Cisco's IP Phone 7821 is a two-line endpoint with a 396 x 162 screen. The IP Phone 7841 is a four-line phone with a 396 x 162 display and is the only device in the 7800 family that provides Gigabit Ethernet. The high-end IP Phone 7861 VoIP phone is a 16-line endpoint targeted for administrators, contact center agents, and supervisors who have significant voice communications requirements.

The Cisco Unified IP Phone 7900 Series are SIP and SCCP IP voice and video endpoints with a 320 x 240 color display, a Gigabit Ethernet switch, Class 3 Power over Ethernet, 10 fixed-feature keys and a speakerphone. The Cisco Unified IP Phone 7945G is a dual-line unit and the Cisco Unified IP Phone 7965G includes four lines. Both IP phones have a 5-inch screen and four soft buttons. The Cisco Unified IP Phone 7975G device is an eight-line IP voice and video phone with a 5.6-inch touch screen and five programmable keys.

Cisco's IP Phone 8800 Series is a line of SIP-only IP phones that includes desktop units, a conference IP phone, and mobile wireless IP Phones. The desktop models are five-line IP phones featuring a 5-inch 800 x 480 display, a Gigabit Ethernet switch, a speakerphone, four soft keys and 12 dedicated keys. Cisco's IP Phone 8811 features a monochrome display and supports Class 2 Power over Ethernet (PoE). Cisco's IP Phone 8841 has a WVGA color screen and supports Class 2 PoE. Cisco's IP Phone 8845 has a WVGA color display, 720p HD video, an adjustable camera, Bluetooth, Cisco Intelligent Proximity for Mobile Voice, and supports Class 2 Power over Ethernet. The Cisco IP Phone 8851 has a WVGA color screen and one USB port with charging capability, supports Intelligent Proximity for Mobile Voice and Class 3 Power over Ethernet, and is offered in Bluetooth and non-Bluetooth models. The Cisco IP Phone 8861 has a WVGA color display, Bluetooth, two USB connections with charging capability, and supports Cisco Intelligent Proximity for Mobile Voice, Wi-Fi, and Class 4 PoE. The Cisco IP Phone 8865 has a WVGA color display, 720p HD video, a tiltable camera, Bluetooth, two USB ports with charging capability, and supports Cisco Intelligent Proximity for Mobile Voice, Wi-Fi, and Class 4 Power over Ethernet.

Cisco's wireless IP phones are hardened Wi-Fi devices designed for workers who are on the move within campus, warehouse, health-care or other environments where management wants user endpoints that offer more administrative control, security and ruggedness than is achievable with the BYOD mode of mobile communications. Cisco's 8821 and 8812-EX wireless VoIP phones provide mobile onsite workers the advantages of voice over wireless LAN communications in environments with 802.11x Wi-Fi infrastructure. Cisco's 8821 Wireless VoIP Phone includes a hi-res color screen, a rugged case designed for shock resistance and compliant with IP67 for particulate and splash resistance, extended batteries, a speakerphone, and an integrated Bluetooth transceiver to support cordless headsets. The 8821-EX Wireless IP Phone adds protection against sparking for potentially combustible work sites. Cisco's 8821-EX also has a case fabricated out of yellow plastics, which makes the device easier to locate during an emergency. Find out about Progent's Cisco Wireless VoIP Phone integration and troubleshooting support.

Cisco's discontinued 9900 Series of high-performance VoIP phones combine high-quality voice with hi-res color video to deliver a productive collaborative unified communications solution for knowledge professionals, managers, and executives. Both IP phones in this line have an SD VGA color screen, a Bluetooth 2.0 radio to support a broad choice of headsets, and a built-in 10/100/1000 Ethernet switch. The Cisco EnergyWise power-save feature is offered as an option and can lower off-work power consumption by up to 90 percent. The IP Phone 9951 features a 5-inch screen and allows up to 2 Cisco IP Expansion Modules for adding scalability to customizable line and function keys. The IP Phone 9971 features a 5.6-inch screen, an integrated 802.11a/b/g Wi-Fi transceiver for connecting to Voice-over-WLAN networks, and 4 soft-label touchscreen keys to invoke Cisco Unified Communications features. The 9971 VoIP phone supports up to 3 IP Color Key Expansion Modules for adding customizable line and feature keys.

Cisco Unified Communications Applications
Under Cisco's Unified Communications architecture, IP phone, IP video, and other UC applications are separate from the call-processing and voice-processing infrastructure, and they may be anywhere within the system. A single network infrastructure provides an open platform for feature-rich business applications and acts as a firm basis for future convergence-based applications. Cisco works with leading IT industry partners to offer a wide range of IP voice and video software applications and devices. Cisco also supports the capability to develop and manage specialized in-house applications.

UC applications offered by Cisco and supported by Progent include:

Cisco Jabber
Cisco Jabber is a converge media application that provides presence, IM, business-quality voice, high-definition video, voicemail, screen sharing, and online conferencing functions for Windows PCs, Apple Macs, iPads and Android tablets as well as iPhones, Android phones, and Blackberries. Jabber is an evolution and integration of the Cisco Unified Personal Communicator soft phone, Cisco Mobile, and Cisco WebEx Connect, with major improvements to video features and desktop screen sharing, and expanding the team environment to more operating systems and devices. Cisco Jabber operates with Unified Communications Manager for call and session management, Cisco Unified Presence for IM and presence, Cisco Unity Connection for voice messaging and automated attendant, and Cisco WebEx Meeting for conferencing and online meetings.

Since Jabber utilizes key communication standards, it can interoperate with a wide selection of third-party products. For example, Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol enables Cisco Jabber to exchange instant messaging and presence information with other XMPP clients including as Adium for Mac, Sametime, and Microsoft Lync and Office Communications Server. Cisco Jabber collaboration features are available from Microsoft Office programs such as Outlook and SharePoint. This cross-platform support maximizes output by providing a consistent user experience and fully enabling the BYOD paradigm of computing. Progent offers the services of certified Exchange and Outlook consultants and SharePoint programmers who can help you to use Jabber with Microsoft's powerful collaboration platforms. Progent also offers help with iPhone integration and management and Android phone integration to help your organization to increase the productivity of your BYOD ecosystem.

Cisco WebEx Meeting Center
Cisco WebEx Meeting Center enables online conferencing for users with a web browser or almost any desktop or mobile computer. Cisco WebEx is offered as software as a service via Cisco's WebEx Cloud. This makes it simple to deploy and scale, streamlines administration, eliminates major up-front investment, offers maximum uptime and world-class data protection, and delivers fast throughput. Important capabilities include support for sharing specific content or your whole screen display with remote attendees in real time, the ability to embed multimedia into your presentations including PowerPoint and Flash videos, session recording plus playback for future reference and training, single sign-on (SSO) and support for Cisco collaboration applications such as Jabber and Cisco TelePresence, plus stringent data protection and encrypted access with strict policy management.

WebEX Meeting Center runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux-powered desktops and notebooks and permits mobile workers to start, schedule, and take part in conferences on Android smartphones and tablets, Apple iPhones and iPads, BlackBerry handhelds, and Windows Phone. You can also initiate web conferences with a few clicks from Microsoft Office, Outlook, Lotus Notes, and a selection of IM solutions.

Cisco TelePresence Products for On-premises Teleconferencing Ecosystems
For midsize organizations and larger enterprises who want to create a local or hybrid in-house/cloud solution for teleconferencing, Cisco offers a selection of Cisco TelePresence products that enable high-definition teleconferencing for users with almost any endpoint device at any location. Cisco TelePresence Server is a scalable teleconferencing bridge that works in conjunction with Cisco Unified CM to provide multiparty telepresence to unified communications deployments and can expand conferences to support cloud-connected Cisco WebEx Meeting Center participants. Cisco TelePresence Conductor software simplifies the control of the way video conferencing bandwidth and features are allotted for every individual attendee, allowing managers to specify the precise service level and user experience required for each user. Cisco TelePresence Content Server collects video and presentations for live distribution and on-demand viewing.

Cisco's Unity Connection Platform and Unity Express for Unified Voicemail
Cisco's Unity Connection, an extension of Cisco Unified Communications Manager, is a unified voice messaging solution that accelerates productive collaboration by offering flexible set of options for accessing voice messages within a framework that is simple to deploy and administer. Cisco Unity Connection allows you to access and manage voice messages from your email inbox, web browser, Jabber, a Cisco Unified IP Phone, an iPhone or other smartphone, or a tablet. Unity Connection also provides sophisticated speech-recognition features for hands-free management and powerful Automated Attendant capabilities that include smart routing for inbound phone calls and custom call-screening and message-alert options. The Unity Connection system operates as a fully virtualized system that can reside on a Business Edition 6000 server or a Cisco Services Ready Engine 910 router blade service module and can accommodate as many as 20,000 mailboxes on each server.

Unity Express (CUE), available in select Cisco Integrated Services routers, provides cost-effective voicemail, unified messaging, interactive voice response (IVR), and greeting functions for small to medium businesses (SMBs) and enterprise branch offices with as many as 500 workers. Unity Express permits users to access and manage voicemail using a Cisco IP Phone display, your web browser, or an email client. Integrated Services Routers for which Cisco Unity Express is offered as a network module or advanced integration module include Cisco's 1861, 2800, 2900, 3800, and 3900 families. Progent offers certified consulting and troubleshooting services for Integrated Services Routers.

Cisco Unified Contact Center
Cisco Unified Contact Center Enterprise (Unified CCE) integrates closely with CUCM and desktop agent applications like Finesse to provide automatic call distribution capabilities that allow an organization to match customers with the right sales or service agent. Unified CCE provides intelligent call distribution, computer telephony integration (CTI), support for multichannel customer contact management, network call queuing, interactive voice response and consolidated company-wide reporting to simplify the creation and administration of a large-scale customer contact center. Cisco products incorporated in Unified CCE's customer contact management solution include Cisco Unified IP Phones, Voice, and Cisco LAN/WAN technology.

Cisco Unified Contact Center Express (Unified CCX) offers an out-of-the-box solution for creating a customer interaction management center for branch or midmarket systems that support up to 400 agents. Several packages are offered, plus a selection of optional enhancements. Cisco Unified Contact Center Express integrates with Cisco Unified Communications Manager and offers smart call distribution, client interaction management, reporting, IVR, and management of voice, email, web chat, and social media inquiries. Cisco Unified CCX comes with Cisco Finesse, a web-based customizable desktop agent that requires no client-side software setup. Optional enhancements include conditional routing, estimated-wait-time messages, and workforce quality management.

Cisco Mobile Connect and Single Number Reach (SNR)
Mobile Connect, commonly known as Single Number Reach (SNR), allows users to be reached from a single number that rings simultaneously on their Cisco IP Phone and their smartphone. Users can transfer active calls between their Cisco VoIP phone and their smartphone without disruption. Unanswered calls can be transferred to a Cisco Unity or Unity Connection voicemail account. Users can create personal access lists that specify which calls are directed to alternate endpoints.

Prime Collaboration Provisioning
Prime Collaboration Provisioning provides an automated process for first-time installs as well as for “day 2” moves, additions, changes, and deletions. An intuitive interface provides a single look at a user and the user's services. Cisco Prime Collaboration substantially accelerates site rollouts and minimizes the effort required for future changes. Prime Collaboration in addition provides advanced analytics that show technology adoption and usage trends, allowing organizations to make more efficient use of IT resources and further reduce TCO.

Cisco Collaboration Gateways
Cisco's collaboration gateways permit Cisco converged communications environments to communicate with public systems and with clients operating beyond the firewall. Cisco's portfolio of communication gateways provide UC services for a wide variety of gateway and session-border-control deployments.

Collaboration gateways available from Cisco and supported by Progent include:

Cisco Expressway Converged Communication Gateway
Cisco's Expressway is a powerful unified communications and collaboration gatekeeper that enables organizations to allow team members, vendors, customers and prospects, or partners who are working on different network environments, workgroup platforms, or endpoint equipment to connect to Unified Communication features. Cisco's Expressway collaboration gateway works with an enterprise Cisco Communications Manager deployment or Cisco BE6000, or can be accessed through the cloud with Cisco Hosted Collaboration Solution (HCS) to make collaboration more pervasive. Key features of Cisco Expressway include:

• Mobile and Off-site Connectivity: Remote workers with any Jabber-compatible desktop or handheld computer or telecommuters with Cisco TelePresence endpoints get the convenience of single-sign-on (SSO) and of TLS security and are able to connect to all their Jabber applications (high-definition video, high-quality voice, rich content IM, and presence) without the inconvenience establishing a VPN. In addition, telecommuters have the ability to utilize their Cisco TelePresence endpoints without the need for a VPN tunnel, delivering a user environment at home that is identical to the office.
• Cisco Jabber Guest Support: Cisco Expressway is critical for enabling the Cisco Jabber Guest, which permits “guests” to communicate with your organization easily and safely via streamlined browser and mobile video calls.
• Cisco Cloud Connectivity: Cisco Expressway can function as a gateway that connects between onsite Cisco or non-Cisco systems and Cisco's WebEx cloud. By offering support for Cisco Collaboration Meeting Rooms, Expressway offers a world-class, scalable meeting environment that seamlessly combines business-quality voice, video, and content sharing to anyone, at any location, using any endpoint.
• Interoperability: If your company currently has third-party video technology, Cisco Expressway can assist you to move efficiently to a Cisco solution when it makes business sense. Cisco Expressway offers video interoperability with standards-based H.323, H.264 SVC, or Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) environments. Internetworking standards supported by Expressway include IPv4 to IPv6, H.323 to Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), and Microsoft Lync 2013 H.264 SVC to AVC.

• Cisco WebEx Cloud Connected Audio for SIP-based conferencing
• Voice/Video recording
• SIP-based Call-center and interactive-voice-response (IVR) solutions
• Policy-led security evaluation of phone calls
• B2B teleconferencing over SIP

Cisco's End-of-Life UC520, UC540 and UC560 VoIP Gateways
The legacy Cisco Unified Communications 500 (UC500) Series is an all-in-one VoIP gateway appliance and software package for small businesses. UC500 packages deliver voice, data, voicemail, automated attendant, IP video, firewall, and wireless capabilities, run with older Cisco IP Voice phones, and support various public switched telephone network (PSTN) connections.

All UC500 packages include a compact switch with 8 PoE interfaces plus additional FXS and foreign exchange office (FXO) ports, a firewall, and VPN support. Integrated WiFi is optional. VoIP user capacity can be increased by connecting with Cisco Catalyst Express companion switches. Each UC500 model also includes licenses for Cisco Unified Communications Manager for VoIP call processing as well as Cisco Unity Express software for voice messaging and automated attendant. The Cisco UC520 package supports 8 to 16 users and incorporate 4 foreign exchange stations and 4 FXO ports. The Cisco UC540 system supports 24 to 32 users and has 8 FXO ports. The Cisco UC560 system allows 48 users and 12 foreign exchange office interfaces.

Progent's seasoned VoIP consultants can assist you to maintain your legacy UC500 VoIP system or plan and implement an efficient upgrade to a current VoIP solution like the Cisco Business Edition 4000.

How Progent Can Assist You with Cisco IP Voice and IP Media Phones, CUCM, and Telepresence
Progent can provide remote or on-premises help from a Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE) Collaboration expert to assist you to plan, install, administer and repair unified communications networks supported by Cisco Unified Communication products in an in-house, distributed, or hybrid environment. Progent's Cisco consultants have in-depth experience with Unified Communications Manager and CallManager, Voice over IP and video phones and soft phones, UC applications like Cisco Jabber and WebEx Meeting Center, Cisco's immersive telepresence products, collaboration gateways, tools incorporated into Cisco switches and routers. Progent can also provide expertise with related technologies such as Cisco Survivable Remote Site Telephony, Cisco Unified Border Element, H.323 gateways, CAC, IP voice trunks, PSTN, and AVVID. Progent's SIP integration experts can in addition assist you to build SIP connectivity solutions that incorporate SIP VoIP phones and video endpoints, SIP-based CUBE trunks, and SIP management tools with CUCM.

Progent's custom application programmers can create specialized unified communications software that will help your business to integrate the features of Cisco Unified Communications Manager into your company processes for enhanced productivity. Progent can audit your current network and Internet access infrastructure to determine whether your environment is configured to support business-quality IP voice and HD video, assist you to choose and deploy Cisco hardware and software appropriate for your present situation and downstream expansion plans, and interface your Cisco Unified Communications solution with technology from other vendors. Progent's CISSP-ISSAP certified network security consultants can assist you to develop, deploy, and test a comprehensive security strategy for your unified communications solution. In addition, Progent can assist your organization to configure Cisco fault-tolerant technologies such as Cisco Unified Survivable Remote Site Telephony for affordable call control redundancy in remote-branch and telecommuter environments, and Progent's disaster recovery and business continuity planning experts can help you create a viable disaster recovery plan to protect your business-critical unified communications system.

Unified Communications Manager/CallManager Migration Consulting
Releases of Unified Communications Manager 8.6 earlier than 8.6 and every release of CallManager have arrived at end-of-life. Therefore Cisco will cease to develop, fix, or validate the product software. Security patches for this business-critical product will stop, which in certain circumstances could create regulatory compliance or even potential liability problems.

Progent will continue to provide premiere consulting and support for end-of-life versions of Cisco Unified CM and CallManager, but if your business is still using an out-of-dated release of this essential software your organization should start now to prepare for your upgrade. Progent's Cisco-certified consultants can help you to upgrade efficiently to the current release of Unified Communications Manager and can routinely save clients as much as 50% off consulting costs versus competing IT service firms because of Progent's documented procedures and experience in this practice area. By following best practices, Progent can ensure that your organization sees a quick return on your IT investment by showing you how to benefit fully from the enhanced feature set, reduced management and maintenance costs, more productive collaboration capabilities, and stronger data protection offered by the newest edition of Cisco Unified CM.

Progent's upgrade services include return-on-investment assessment, project management, system testing, Cloud connectivity, configuring endpoint devices from Cisco and third-party suppliers, smartphone and tablet integration, data protection services, streamlined management, business continuity planning, network topology design, training for IT staff and end users, and continuing consulting and technical support. Progent also offers ultra-affordable migration service bundles to make sure your costs are visible and under control.

To learn additional information about Progent's engineering help for Cisco networking products, pick a subject:

• Introduction to Progent's Cisco Network Support
• Timely Online Support from a Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE) Consultant
• Cisco Firepower NGFW Firewalls: Configuration and Management Support
• Cisco ASA 5500-X Firewall with Cisco Firepower: Configuration and Troubleshooting Services
• ASA 5500 Firewalls Upgrade. Migration Help
• PIX Series Firewall Upgrade. Migration Support
• Cisco Routers Configuration and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Cisco Wireless Network Design Help
• Aironet APs Engineering Help
• Cisco Small Business 100, 300 and 500 WiFi Access Points Engineering Help
• Cisco Wireless Controllers Consulting
• Meraki Wireless Access Points Consulting Expertise
• Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM or Unified CM) and CallManager Consulting and Troubleshooting
• Cisco Jabber Deployment Expertise
• Catalyst Switches Consulting and Support Expertise
• Nexus Switches Support and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Cisco Meraki Switches Configuration and Maintenance Expertise
• Cisco VPN Engineering Expertise
• SIP and CUBE Integration Solutions: SIP Trunking and CUBE Integration Expertise
• Design and Support for Cisco-powered Data Centers
• Data Center Optimization Services for Service Providers
• Streamlined Management Technologies for Cisco-based Infrastructure

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