I can’t get into the conference! …and other problems encountered Megan Troyer The Ohio State University Internet2 Site Coordinator Training March 2005 Atlanta, GA
Follow Directions Commons Dialing Directions come with a date and time (with time zone) reminder and directions like: 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
Timing is everything Time zone confusion can be problematic Don’t be surprised if your Tuesday conference is empty on Wednesday, or simply wont let you in!
Registering with a Gatekeeper 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
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
How to register with the Commons Gatekeeper 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.
How to register with the Commons Gatekeeper 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
Again, why should I use GDS? Achieves a static address or number in dynamic world If you move your system around from room to room on DHCP network, you can always be called using the same number Allows for “long distance” dialing without having to change Gatekeepers Facilitates use of MCUs by people in different organizations or countries
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
Check your speed! Some MCUs will not let you in if you dial at an incorrect speed Some will only give you partial connection Only audio Only video Frozen image Faster is not always the best way to go!
Check your digits! One added or missing number may put you in a completely different place Some MCUs have predefined meeting “rooms” where a mistyped dial string will cause fail to connect You do not enter the spaces in a GDS dial string, the spaces are for readability like the parenthesis and dashes in telephone numbers
Do you have a Firewall or NAT? Firewall + H.323 = Bad NAT + H.323 = Bad Firewall + NAT + H.323 = Bad
Still can’t get in? Some endpoints require you to specify for them to dial by IP or LAN Is your endpoint ISDN or ATM? You will need a gateway to convert your signal to IP and back Check to make sure the Ethernet cable is plugged into the right place Some of the older Polycoms have an Ethernet jack AND a hub port
Okay, now I’m in but it looks terrible! Do you have enough bandwidth? A dedicated T1 for video might not be enough Say you have 4 endpoints all videoconferencing at 384 kbps 4 * 384 kbps = 1536 kbps which is your WHOLE T1 and that doesn’t allow room for overhead Network congestion can cause a poor videoconferencing experience Did you check your duplex settings Duplex mismatch is the “silent killer” of videoconferencing
Another word on etiquette Remember to mute your microphone Try to stay in the frame of the video for the other end’s pleasure There’s nothing more distracting that looking at the top of someone’s head or out their window Cut down on visual and audio distractions in the room Air conditioners, fans, and poor mic placement Busy backgrounds and clothing
And never forget… Test TEST!!! Murphy’s law: If something can go wrong it will
Questions? Thank you Megan Troyer (614)