Exchange Unified Messaging Overview

Unified Messaging Functionality

Unified Messaging provides Voice Mail, Email and FAX into one Inbox, which can be accessed either from any Telephony System or from Internet Connected PC. To provide Unified Messaging functionality Exchange Server with Unified Messaging role can be integrated directly with IP PBX or with Legacy PBX using Media Gateway. Unified Messaging provides the following functionality.
· Accepts incoming SIP or RTP Signal.
· Call Answering to the incoming voice messages and Fax messages.
· Accessibility to the mailbox from any Telephony device using Outlook Voice Access (OVA).
· Receives Faxes and delivers to the intended user’s Mailbox.
· Voice or Touch tone enabled Auto Attendant.
· Record and play back of voice messages from the Mailbox.

Unified Messaging role can be installed on any AD member server that may or may not have another role configured.

Unified Messaging Voice and Fax Calls

Unified Messaging provides receiving of incoming voice messages and fax from the internal as well as external users. It then delivers voice message and fax to the intended user’s mailbox as an attachment. It also provides Call Answering functionality to Unified Messaging enabled users so that the callers can leave voice message in case if the user is not in position to answer the call. The users can then access the information from anywhere using any telephony device or internet connected PC.

PBX uses call convergence information to direct the call to the Pilot number of Exchange Unified Messaging Server. For Exchange Unified Messaging Server the Pilot number is the same as the Pilot number of the Media Gateway. Media Gateway converts the Circuit-Switched Call (CSC) to the VOIP Protocols such as Session initiation Protocol (SIP) or Real-time Transport Protocol (RTP) for voice messages and T.38 protocol for Fax messages. When a Unified Messaging enabled user calls to the Subscriber Access Number using OVA, the call is transferred by PBX to the Exchange Unified Messaging Server. Exchange Unified Messaging Server then communicates with the Exchange Mailbox Server for retrieving mailbox information. If the user delivers mail using OVA, then Mailbox Server communicates with the Exchange HUB Server for further delivering internally or externally as usual.

Unified Messaging Auto Attendant
Unified Messaging Auto Attendant is the collection f voice prompts that a caller hear instead of Human Operator. To interact with Auto Attendant, callers can use voice input if Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) or Dual Tone Multi Frequency (DTMF ) also known as Touch Tome inputs is enabled. Auto Attendant gives ability to
· Create customized Menu for external Callers
· Define Information greeting, Business hours greeting and non business hour greeting.
· Define how to search Organization’s directory, so that callers can call a specific user.
· Describe how to connect to user’s extension, so external callers can call a user by specifying the extension.

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