Video Conferencing Global Dialing Scheme (GDS) Zeeshan Aamir

What is video-conferencing? Transmission of image and speech back and forth between two or more separate locations. Similar to making a phone call An opportunity to talk to and see others in real time Zeeshan Aamir

What are the benefits of video- conferencing? The visual interaction can enhance communication Increases connections with the world It can save time and other valuable resources It can heighten motivation Zeeshan Aamir

How is video-conferencing being used? Meetings Education Telemedicine Courts and judicial system Telecommuting Security Zeeshan Aamir

What is a gatekeeper? Physically it is a server that can be located anywhere on the network Functionally very similar to a DNS server that does Address lookup Adds some control functionality Creates an “H.323 zone”

H.323 Zone Definition –A single gatekeeper and all of the end points (clients, MCUs, and gateways) that register with the gatekeeper. Typically is a community –E.g. University or organization Zeeshan Aamir

Gatekeepers Provide: Admission Control Call Authorization Address Translations Bandwidth Management Zone Management Call Signal Routing Management Functions Zeeshan Aamir

Basic Operation Endpoints register with gatekeeper -This is a one time administrative task Endpoint asks gatekeeper for permission to place call to another endpoint Endpoint signals call with other endpoint Endpoints exchange media directly Endpoints disconnect, notify gatekeeper Zeeshan Aamir

Technical description Uses TCP port 1720, UDP Port 1719, for Q.931 call control 1719 H.225 Registration, Admission, and Status messages (RAS) 1718 GK discovery Deals with H.225, H.245, Q.931 H.225: RAS as above but also call control and call setup messages H.245: Media control and Transport signaling Zeeshan Aamir

Gatekeeper Functionality Services: Gives access to multipoint conferences and gateways Neighbor Gatekeepers: Provides inter-zone communication Network Topology: Allow administrator to employ traffic shaping Zeeshan Aamir

Internet2 Commons specific settings Adopted GDS Only need two neighbors North American Root main: GDS serves as Dial Plan Open registration mode “Direct” routing mode Services are XXX + YYYY XXX digits to identify MCU and conference YYYY digits for a specific users conference Have not adopted LDAP or H.350 Currently is a Radvision ECS 500 concurrent calls, 3000 concurrent registrations Zeeshan Aamir

Global Dialing Scheme (GDS) A structure for peering between gatekeepers, such that any endpoint associated with a ViDeNet zone may dial an endpoint in any other ViDeNet zone ViDeNet Version 3 Dial Plan A numbering plan for global video and voice over IP  Video Development Initiative (ViDe)  Founded by representatives from universities and education networks Zeeshan Aamir

Four parts of a GDS Number 1.International Access Code (IAC) always 00 2.A Country Code (CC) –Follows the ITU international access code system 3.An Organizational Prefix (OP) –In North America, ViDeNet lets you chose between E164 space and Super Space (more later) –Some countries use area code/exchange prefix 4.An Endpoint Number (EN) –A unique number assigned to each endpoint following organization practices GDS numbers are dialed: IAC CC OP EN (without the spaces) Zeeshan Aamir

Benefits of GDS Provides a static address in a dynamic world If you have a DHCP IP address, your GDS number can stay the same If you travel, your GDS number can travel with you All Internet2 Commons Conferences have GDS Dial Strings Zeeshan Aamir

Making a GDS Call 00 World GK 001 North American GK Internet2 Commons GK Megan Troyer 0044 United Kingdom GK 0092 Pakistan GK HEC GK Endpoint Zeeshan Aamir

Gatekeepers Available on the Market Standalone Gatekeeper (e.g., RADVISION ECS) System Blade (e.g., RADVISION ECS on a blade of a ViaIP) Embedded in an Endpoint (e.g., A gatekeeper embedded in a RADVISION OnLAN MCU or gateway) Backup Gatekeeper (e.g., RADVISION Alternate Gatekeeper) Other Gatekeepers: Polycom PathNavigator Tandberg Gatekeeper GNU Gatekeeper (Based on Open323) Cisco (RADVISION code running on Cisco IOS) VCON Media Exchange Manager, MXM Zeeshan Aamir

Registering with a Gatekeeper 1.Register with a GDS Gatekeeper, if you need to borrow space go here: Make sure you are connecting at 384 kbps 3.Dial (no spaces) 4.Call xxxx for technical support Many new users have never done this Typically an administrative chore and requires administrative access to the endpoint’s settings This does take a few minutes and can require some rebooting, so be prepared If your campus is already GDS, make a note of that on the cheat sheet in VC room Zeeshan Aamir

How to register with the Commons Gatekeeper 1.In your videoconferencing endpoint unit, navigate to the H.323 settings menu 2.Enter your address as your endpoint’s H.323 Name  This gives administrators some idea of who is registering and from where 3.Assign yourself an E.164 number in this format  your 10 digit phone number  If your phone number is (111) , your GDS number would be  Your endpoint's system may need to be rebooted. 4.Navigate back to the H.323/Gatekeeper setting 5.Enter the following IP address:  Again, your endpoint may need to be rebooted 6.Congratulations! You should now be registered with the Internet2 Commons Gatekeeper Zeeshan Aamir

Global Dialing Scheme The Global Dialing Scheme (GDS) provides a structure for peering between gatekeepers, such that any endpoint associated with a ViDeNet zone may dial an endpoint in any other ViDeNet zone See Zeeshan Aamir

Special Thanks Some information on the slides used from the presentation of Megan Troyer Technology Coordinator The Ohio State University Zeeshan Aamir Site Coordinator Training: VC by VC