Switch
Expert 6.0 - Frequently Asked Questions
1.
What
is Switch Expert?
2.
Is
there any special MSL/DMS hardware required to interface
with Switch Expert?
3.
Who
is using the Switch Expert product?
4.
Why
should I purchase the Switch Expert product?
5.
Can
I access Switch Expert from home?
6.
Is
there an online demonstration on the Switch Expert
product?
7.
Which
DMS MSL Operational Measurements (OMs) does Switch Expert
process?
8.
How
often does Switch Expert update?
9.
Does
Switch Expert provide long-term traffic studies?
10.
How
far back does Switch Expert maintain module data?
11.
What
happens when the Switch Expert server’s hard drive
fills up?
12.
Can
I restrict a client’s access privileges?
13.
Can
Switch Expert combine multiple overflow groups into one?
14.
What
engineering blocking formulas does Switch Expert use?
15.
Are
the engineering blocking formulas adjustable?
16.
Does
Switch Expert have graphing capabilities?
17.
How
many clients can connect to the Switch Expert server at
one time?
18.
Does
Switch Expert assist with analyzing system events?
19.
Can
Switch Expert notify me when a particular system event
occurs?
20.
Can
Switch Expert notify me if a system alarm has been on
longer than a predetermined amount of time?
21.
Does
Switch Expert have customizable audio notifications?
22.
Can
I attach multiple notes to individual system events?
23.
Can
SE 6.0 clients maintain simultaneous connections to
multiple Switch Expert servers?
24.
Can
Switch Expert clients automatically maintain the server
connections in case of a network fault or outage?
25.
Can
SE 6.0 provide short- and long-term snapshots of the MSL/DMS system’s performance?
26.
Can
Switch Expert provide DS1 link utilization for remote
peripherals?
27.
Does
SE 6.0 allow querying of CDR records based on a
particular authorization code?
28.
Can
I use Switch Expert to access the MSL/DMS switch?
29.
Can
Switch Expert automatically track authorization code
abuse on a real-time basis?
30.
Can
Switch Expert export data to other applications?
31.
Can
Switch Expert reports be customized?
32.
Is
the Switch Expert Graphical User Interface (GUI)
customizable?
33.
Is
there any training on the Switch Expert product?
1.
What is Switch Expert?
Switch
Expert Ô
6.0 (SE 6.0) is a Windows 2000,2003, XP and Vista, TCP/IP
client/server software application that collects,
compiles and stores Operational Measurements (OM),
System Events (Logs), and Call Detail Recording (CDR)
and provides System Alarm Notifications.
2.
Is
there any special MSL/DMS hardware required to interface
with Switch Expert?
No,
all data is sent to the SE 6.0 server via standard
one-way down stream RS232 IOC/IOM port connections.
The clients connect to the server through
standard Ethernet TCP/IP socket connections.
The MSL/DMS alarms are interfaced through
standard loop contact closures.
3.
Who
is using the Switch Expert product?
SE
6.0 is currently deployed at approximately forty-
percent (40%) of the commercial, government and higher
education MSL-100 sites and growing.
Please contact RTMI for reference accounts and
contacts.
4.
Why
should I purchase the Switch Expert product?
With
converging technologies, it is imperative to protect
your current switching system investment.
Switch Expert interfaces with your current
system’s hardware and software, maximizing this
investment. SE
6.0 is a fully automated down-stream processor that
provides you with the ability to initiate ad hoc queries
along with custom reports and graphs.
SE 6.0 provides system wide reporting that
Maintenance Technicians, Switching System Managers,
Systems Engineers, ACD, UCD and Console Supervisors can
use on a daily basis. With SE 6.0, the aforementioned
personnel will now have an intuitive and easy-to-use
tool that will provide the detailed reports they need to
perform their respective duties in an accurate and
timely manner.
5.
Can
I access Switch Expert from home?
Yes,
you may use the client to access the server via the
Internet as long as the firewall protecting your network
allows the IP packets that contain only encrypted data
to pass to and from the SE 6.0 server.
6.
Is
there an online demonstration on the Switch Expert
product?
Yes,
RTMI has teamed with two prestigious universities to
produce a live, on-line demo of the Switch Expert
application through the Internet; please call RTMI to
schedule the demo.
7.
Which
DMS MSL Operational Measurements (OMs) does Switch Expert
process?
SE
6.0 currently processes the following ten (10) module
groups:
1.
ACD
Groups: The
Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) module displays
traffic statistics on individual and multiple ACD
groups.
2.
Attendant
Consoles: The
Console Sub-Group (CSG) features statistics on group
performance and individual attendants.
3.
Hunt
Groups: The Hunt
Group (HNT) module displays traffic statistics on
individual and multiple hunt groups.
4.
Office
Traffic: The Office
module displays total traffic statistics on the overall
office traffic.
5.
SLU
Traffic: The
Subscriber Line Usage (SLU) module displays traffic
statistics on individual lines assigned the SLU line
feature.
6.
Trunk
Groups: The Trunk
Group (TRK) module displays traffic statistics on
individual and multiple TRK groups.
This module features busy-hour capacity studies
on the physical connections between the telephone system
and the local and or long distance carriers.
7.
UCD
Groups: The Uniform
Call Distribution (UCD) module displays traffic
statistics on individual and multiple UCD groups.
When used in conjunction with the SLU module,
this module provides a complete traffic on voice mail
interfaces.
8.
Virtual
Facility Groups: The Virtual Facility Group (VFG) module displays traffic statistics on
individual and multiple VFG groups.
VFG usage includes call throttling and screened
usage studies.
9.
SPMS:
The Switch
Performance Monitoring System (SPMS) module feature over
300 colored indices providing a wide range of switch
performance indicators.
10.
LMD
Traffic: The Line
Module Traffic (LMD) module displays traffic and
performance statistics on all line modules and remote
link capacities.
8.
How
often does Switch Expert update?
The
MSL/DMS provides the Operational Measurements (OM) to
the SE 6.0 server on a thirty-minute rotating schedule.
The SE 6.0 server then updates all active clients
with their respective module information. The system events (LOGS) and alarms are produced and
processed in real-time; and the call detail recording
(CDR) records are processed and retrievable upon call
termination. All reports are dynamically updated; no
refreshing at the client is necessary.
9.
Does
Switch Expert provide long-term traffic studies?
Yes,
one of the core designs of the SE 6.0 application is to
provide short- and long-term traffic studies on all
module groups. You
may submit queries for a small thirty-minute snapshot or
a full-blown ninety-three (93) day floating busy hour
study. Multiple
busy-hour studies may be combined together creating
multiple year studies.
10.
How
far back does Switch Expert maintain module data?
This
depends on the storage capacity of the SE 6.0 server’s
hard drive. In
a large MSL/DMS that produces 10,000 logs /day, 1,000
Operational Measurements (OM) module groups/day and
100,000 CDR records/day, the required disk space is 1.75
MB/day. Therefore,
a 9 GB drive will provide approximately fourteen (14)
years of storage.
11.
What
happens when the Switch Expert server’s hard drive
fills up?
SE
6.0 automatically deletes the oldest data to make room
for the new.
12.
Can
I restrict a client’s access privileges?
Yes,
SE 6.0 allows you to assign a client’s access
privileges based on individual module groups.
For example, you provide an ACD supervisor with a
user name and password that only allows the supervisor
to view/access his/her respective ACD group’s
information.
13.
Can
Switch Expert combine multiple overflow groups into one?
Yes,
the SE 6.0 report wizard and templates allows you to
merge multiple overflow groups into one logical group.
You may then apply the appropriate engineering
formulas to the newly defined group.
14.
What
engineering blocking formulas does Switch Expert use?
SE
6.0 uses the standard Poisson, Erlang B and Erlang C
when calculating required circuits or servers.
15.
Are
the engineering blocking formulas adjustable?
SE
6.0 incorporates report options for the standard
blocking probabilities P.001, P.005, P.010 and P.050. If the desired blocking probability is other than the
aforementioned, you may access the integrated Traffic
Formulas dialog, which allows you to query for a
specific grade of service.
16.
Does
Switch Expert have graphing capabilities?
Yes,
SE 6.0 allows you to easily create 2D and 3D bar, line,
pie and area graphs using predefined chart templates.
You simply highlight the desired report’s data
and press the create chart button then choose one of the
predefined templates.
You may also use these predefined templates as a
starting point for customizing your own templates.
17.
How
many clients can connect to the Switch Expert server at
one time?
SE
6.0 features an unlimited client license from a software
standpoint. The
number of simultaneous client connections is limited to
the processing power and memory of the server.
SE 6.0 is a true multi-threaded application
written in the extremely powerful and fast C++ language
that takes full advantage of multiple Pentium
processors. To
maintain reasonable performance for fifteen (15)
concurrent client connections, a typical SE 6.0 server
would be configured with 256 MB RAM and a single Pentium
III 650 processor.
A second processor is recommended if the SE 6.0 server is processing Call Detail Records (CDR) and/or
for more than fifteen simultaneous client connections.
18.
Does
Switch Expert assist with analyzing system events?
Yes,
the System Event Monitor (SEM) maintains an integrated
Dynamic Filters folder that displays all the system
events for a particular time span broken down by event
type and/or alarm type.
The items in this folder may be sorted
alphabetically or by event count, allowing you to
quickly view and identify problem areas.
19.
Can
Switch Expert notify me when a particular system event
occurs?
Yes,
SE 6.0 incorporates user definable triggers for all
system events. The
notifications are sent via e-mail and/or SNMP.
SE 6.0 allows you to set system triggers on any
system event (LOG) or number of like system events
(LOGS) within a particular time frame. You may even
drill down into the system events and trigger on only
those events that contain a particular hardware or
software resource. Multiple notifications may be assigned to each trigger.
20.
Can
Switch Expert notify me if a system alarm has been on
longer than a predetermined
amount of time?
Yes,
SE 6.0 incorporates user definable delay times for all
hardware loop alarms. The critical, major and minor are
typical alarms used with delay timers.
For example, when the major system alarm is
activated, a SE 6.0 timer starts and if the major is
still active after the defined delay time is reached,
e-mail and/or SNMP notifications are sent. You may also
insert a custom message that indicates the alarm’s
elapsed time within the e-mail and/or SNMP notification.
21.
Does
Switch Expert have customizable audio notifications?
Yes,
SE 6.0 allows you to assign default or custom .wav files
to all hardware contact closures along with defined
system events.
22.
Can
I attach multiple notes to individual system events?
Yes,
the System Event Monitor (SEM) allows a privileged user
to attach notes to system events that can maintain a
chronological order of actions taken.
Each note is dated and time stamped along with
indicating the user name of the person attaching the
note.
23.
Can
SE 6.0 clients maintain simultaneous connections to
multiple Switch Expert
servers?
Yes,
SE 6.0 maintains an integrated connection manager, which
allows you to enter the user name and server information
for each DMS / MSL in your organization.
Pressing the logon button will connect you to all
defined servers simultaneously.
This allows SE 6.0 to display the current alarm
status of each system via the System Alarm Manager (SAM)
window.
24.
Can
Switch Expert clients automatically maintain the server connections in case
of a network fault or outage?
Yes,
SE 6.0 clients maintains an auto-connect feature, which
when enabled will automatically reconnect to the SE 6.0 servers once network service has been restored.
25.
Can
SE 6.0 provide short- and long-term snapshots of the MSL/DMS system’s
performance?
Yes,
the Switch Performance Monitoring System (SPMS) module
enables you to create a monthly overall switch
performance report and graph with a 0 – 100 rating on
the following system indices: Office Performance (OFCPERF),
Service (SERVICE), Maintenance Service (MTCESERV) and
Provisional Service (PROVSERV).
Also, there are approximately 320 other
color-coded indices that you may view to assist in
identifying and correcting switch performance.
26.
Can
Switch Expert provide DS1 link utilization for remote
peripherals?
Yes,
SE 6.0 uses the Line Module (LMD) OM data and the Group
As One feature to determine the amount of usage on the
links and then applies a generic blocking probability to
calculate the capacity used and required links.
27.
Does
SE 6.0 allow querying of SMDR records based on a
particular authorization code?
Yes,
the Call Detail Recording (SMDR) module enables you to
search records using one or a combination of the
following fields:
-
Start and Stop Times, - Originating ID, - Terminating ID
-
Called Digits, - Out pulsed Digits, - Authorization Code
-
Account Code
- Calling Number
28.
Can
I use Switch Expert to access the MSL/DMS switch?
Yes,
SE 6.0 has an integrated VT320 emulator that allows access
to the MSL/DMS through direct connect, modem or
telnet.
SE
6.0 also incorporates a Secure Switch Access (SSA) feature
that allows encrypted telnet sessions from the client to
the server, the server then decrypts the data and places
it on a designated server's communication port or accessible
IP address. By default, this feature is disabled
and can only be enabled from the server.
29.
Can
Switch Expert automatically track authorization code
abuse on a real-time basis?
Yes,
the System Event Monitor (SEM) allows you to enable the
Auth-Code abuse-tracking feature that will notify you
via e-mail and/or SNMP when a predetermined number of
auth-code failures have been generated from any
particular line or trunk group within a given time
frame.
30.
Can
Switch Expert export data to other applications?
Yes,
you may use the copy and paste features to paste any
data into a MS Excel spreadsheet or use the Save As
command to save the data into a tabbed delimited text
file.
31.
Can
Switch Expert reports be customized?
Yes,
SE 6.0 features default report templates that are
accessed via tabs on the bottom of each report. You may use the default report layouts or completely
customize your own using the Customize Layout feature.
You may also export and import all layout
templates.
32.
Is
the Switch Expert Graphical User Interface (GUI)
customizable?
Yes,
SE 6.0 features a sophisticated GUI that allows you to
customize tool bars, dock and undock system windows,
split report screens and view multiple server reports.
33.
Is
there any training on the Switch Expert product?
Yes,
when you purchase SE 6.0, RTMI will schedule a remote
train the trainer session to get you started in the
right direction. For
most people, Switch Expert’s intuitive layout and
integrated help system provide adequate support through
the context sensitive help (i.e., F1 for all reporting
modules) along with descriptive tool tips.
