This chapter describes how to deploy and configure the Whisper Announcement feature in a non-Parent/Child deployment. To deploy and configure Whisper Announcement in a Parent/Child deployment, see Whisper Announcement in a parent-child deployment
You must create audio files for each different Whisper Announcement you want to use on your system; for example, "Sales, English" or "Soporte Técnico en Español." Create the files using the recording tool of your choice.
When recording your files, follow these rules:
The media files must be in wave (.wav) format. Your wave files must match Unified CVP encoding and format requirements (G.711, CCITT A-Law 8 kHz, 8 bit, mono).
To avoid cutting off files when they are played, make sure they do not exceed the Whisper Announcement play limit (15 seconds, by default).
Test your audio files. Ensure that they are not cut off and that they are consistent in volume and tone.
To reduce the likelihood of scripting errors, decide ahead of time on a file-naming convention that is easy for you and others to remember. For example, en_sales.wav, sp_support.wav.
Deploy Whisper Announcement Audio Files to Media Server
Deploy your whisper audio files to your Unified CVP media server using whatever file-transfer method you prefer. The most important consideration is where on the server to place the files. HTTP requests for media server audio files are constructed as
If you store your files in a different locale and application directory, your routing scripts must include variable nodes that define those alternate locations. Make note of the directories in which you place your files and communicate the locations to your script authors.
Make sure that the directories in which you deploy your files have the appropriate permissions to allow Read access.
Optionally, CVP lets you define a default media server. (You do this in the CVP Operations Console; see your CVP documentation for more information.) If a default media server is defined in CVP, script authors need not identify the media server in their call routing scripts provided the files that they request are available from that server.
Configure Whisper Service Dialed Numbers
For Whisper Announcement, Unified CVP uses two different dialed numbers when transferring a call to an agent:
The first number calls the ringtone service that the caller hears while the whisper plays to the agent. The CVP default for this number is 91919191.
The second number calls the whisper itself. The Unified CVP default for this number is 9191919100.
Whisper Announcement dialed number is always an extension of Ringtone dialed number extra two zeros at the end.
For Whisper Announcement to work, your dial plan must include both of these numbers. The easiest way to ensure coverage is through the use of wild cards such as 9191*.
You configure the dialed numbers for Whisper Announcement in the Unified CVP Operations Console at System > Dialed Number Pattern > Add new. For the Dialed Number Pattern Types, select Enable Local Static Route. Once Enable Local Static Route is checked, select either Route to Device or Route to SIP Server Group for VXML gateways. Then save and deploy the dialed number.
It may be necessary to override the dialed number plan for the default Whisper DN, if the default DN conflicts with the overall dial number plan. To override the DN pattern from the SIP subsystem level in CVP OAMP:
In addition to configuring the dial plan in Unified CVP, examine your IOS dial-peer. Make sure that the dialed number setting in your dial-peer configuration accommodates both of the whisper service dialed numbers.
Add Whisper Announcement to Routing Scripts
To enable Whisper Announcements, use the Script Editor to modify your routing scripts as follows:
Specify the WhisperAnnouncement call variable
Specify the Unified CVP media server and location of whisper audio files
To include Whisper Announcement in a script, insert a Set Variable node that references the WhisperAnnouncement call variable. The WhisperAnnouncement variable causes a whisper to play and specifies the audio file it should use. Typically, you use a single whisper prompt for a single call type. As a result, you use only one WhisperAnnouncement set node for each script. However, as needed, you can set the variable at multiple places in your scripts to allow different announcements to play for different endpoints. For example, for skills-based routing, you can specify the variable at each decision point used to select a particular skill group or Precision Queue.
Only one Whisper Announcement can play for each call. If a script references and sets the WhisperAnnouncement variable more than once in a single path through a script, the last value to be set is the one that plays.
Use these settings in the Set Variable node for Whisper Announcement:
Object Type: Call.
Variable: Must use the WhisperAnnouncement variable.
Value: Specify the filename of the whisper file. For example: "my_whisper.wav" or "my_whisper".
Specify the filename only, not its path.
You must enclose the filename in quotation marks.
The filename is not case sensitive.
The filename cannot include spaces or characters that require URL encoding.
The .wav extension is optional. If you omit it, Unified CVP adds it automatically in the HTTP request.
Specify Unified CVP Media Server Information
If you define a default media server in your CVP Operations Console and it is the server from which you serve your whisper files, then you need not specify the media server in your routing scripts. However, if you do not define a default media server, or if you store your whisper file on a server other than the default, then your scripts must include a Set Variable node that identifies that server.
To specify your media server, use the following settings in the Set Variable node:
Object Type: Call.
Variable: Must use the user.microapp.media_server ECC variable.
Value: Specify the HTTP path to the server. For example: "http://myserver.mydomain.net." You must enclose the path in quotes.
Alternately you can specify an IP address in place of a DNS. Include the listening port number if the media server web server listens on a port other than 80 (for HTTP) or 443 (for HTTPS).
Specify Whisper File Locale and Application Directories
CVP uses a default storage directory for media files: <web_server_root>/en-us/app. To take advantage of this, Unified CCE call routing scripts automatically add "en-us/app," to the server name when constructing HTTP requests for media files. For example:
If the script node that defines the media server has a value of "http://myserver.mydomain.com" and...
The script node that defines which audio file to play has a value of "en_sales.wav," then...
The HTTP request for the file is automatically constructed as
If your whisper audio files are stored in a different locale directory, you must add a Set Variable node to your script that identifies the locale directory. Similarly, if your whisper files are stored in a different application directory, you must add a Set Variable node that identifies that directory.
Use these settings in the Set Variable node to specify your locale directory:
Object Type: Call.
Variable: Must use the user.microapp.locale ECC variable.
Value: Specify the directory name. For example: "pt-br," You must enclose the path in quotes.
Specify application directory
Use these settings in the Set Variable node to specify your application directory:
Object Type: Call.
Variable: Must use the user.microapp.app_media_lib ECC variable.
Value: Specify the directory name. For example: to use a directory "wav_files" in place of the default directory "app," enter "wav_files." To use a sub-directory "wav_files""app," enter "app/wav_files." You must enclose the path in quotes.
Variable length for media server locale and application directory variables
If you do include Set Variable nodes for the media server, locale, or application directories, ensure that the values you set for them do not exceed the Maximum Length settings for their corresponding ECC variables.
For example, if you include a Set Variable node for the media server with a value of "http://mysubdomain.mydomain.co.uk," the string is 33 characters long. Therefore, the Maximum Length setting for the user.microapp.media_server ECC variable must be 33 or greater. If it is not, you must increase the Maximum Length setting. Otherwise, the server name is truncated in the HTTP request for the file and the file is not found. You configure ECC variables in the Unified CCE Configuration Manager at List Tools > Expanded Call Variables List.
Test Whisper Announcement File Path
To test the path to the whisper file that you defined in you script variables, enter the complete URL into a browser. The wave file should play. For example:
If your script includes: default media server + default locale + default application directory + whisper.wav, then the path is "http://<default_media_server>/en-us/app/whisper.wav"
If your script includes: http://my_server.my_domain.com + default locale + "app/wav_files" + whisper.wav, then the path is "http://my_server.my_domain.com/en-us/app/wav_files/whisper.wav"
Other Script Settings That Are Required for Whisper Announcement
These additional settings are required for Whisper Announcement to work:
Enable Target Requery on all script nodes that follow the WhisperAnnouncement variable and target an agent. These include Queue (to Skill Group or Precision Queue), Queue Agent, Route Select, and Select. If Target Requery is not enabled, the Whisper Announcement does not play.
When you run an agent transfer or a conference script, use a SendtoVRU, a TranslationToVRU, or a Run Script Request node before you target an agent.
Configure Whisper Announcement Play Length
This section contains information about configuration options that you can use to fine-tune Whisper Announcement.
Fail-Safe Timeout for Whisper Announcement in Unified CCE
Unified CVP sends one message to Unified CCE each time a Whisper Announcement begins and a second message when the announcement ends. The time stamps from these messages are used to calculate Whisper Announcement data in Unified CCE reports.
If Unified CVP fails to send a Whisper Announcement end message to Unified CCE, the following occurs:
The agent cannot control the call (for example, put it on hold or transfer it) because these controls are disabled while a Whisper Announcement is playing.
To prevent this, Unified CCE has a Whisper Announcement timeout setting. The value for this setting represents the maximum Whisper Announcement play time that Unified CCE uses to calculate its report data.
The default is 20 seconds. This default is based on the default Whisper Announcement play time (specified in Unified CVP) of 15 seconds. The extra 5 seconds in the Unified CCE fail-safe timeout is a buffer against latency. If you modify the maximum Whisper Announcement play time in Unified CVP, modify the Unified CCE Whisper Announcement fail-safe timeout accordingly.
The Unified CCE Whisper Announcement fail-safe timeout value should be equal to or (preferably) greater than the maximum Whisper Announcement play time setting in Unified CVP. Otherwise, Whisper Announcement play time in Unified CCE reports are under-reported.
To change the fail-safe timeout value, complete the following steps:
In Unified CCE Configuration, select Tools > Explorer Tools > PG Explorer.
Select Retrieve to return a list of PGs (Peripheral Gateways).
Double-click the PG with the Generic client type (for example, Generic_PG). The Generic PG has four VRU Peripherals associated with it.
Select the first VRU Peripheral listed.
On the Peripheral tab, enter the following text in the Configuration Parameters field:
/WHSTMOUT <value in seconds>
Repeat this process for all of the listed VRU Peripherals.
Once you are finished, select Save.
Whisper Announcement Sample Scripts
Unified CCE includes sample routing scripts that demonstrate Whisper Announcement. You can use them as learning tools and as models for your own Whisper Announcement scripts. They are the following:
WA.ICMS—This script plays a Whisper Announcement.
WA_AG.ICMS—This script plays both a Whisper Announcement and an Agent Greeting to play on the same call flow.
The script files are located in the c:\icm\bin directory. In Unified CCE Script Editor, they are installed to the application root directory.
To use these scripts you must have a default media server configured in Unified CVP, and have the Whisper file stored in the default location on the media server. For that reason, they do not include variables that specify the media server, locale, or application directories.
This script sets up a Whisper Announcement by setting the Whisper Announcement variable to the desired wave file and then queuing the call to a skill group or Precision Queue. After an agent is selected from the skill group or Precision Queue and the call routed to the agent, the whisper plays to the agent.
This script causes both a Whisper Announcement and an Agent Greeting to play.
Import Sample Whisper Announcement Scripts
To view or use the sample Whisper Announcement scripts, you must first import them into Unified CCE Script Editor. Follow this procedure to import the scripts:
Open Script Editor.
Select File > Import Script and select the first of the two scripts to import.
In addition to importing the script, Script Editor tries to map imported objects. Some objects that are referenced in the sample scripts, such as the external Network VRU scripts or the skill groups or Precision Queues, do not map successfully. You must create these maps manually or change these references to point to existing Network VRU scripts, skill groups, and Precision Queues in your system.