Cisco WebAttendant

Document ID: 5270

Contents

Introduction
Prerequisites
      Requirements
      Components Used
      Conventions
Understanding Cisco WebAttendant Users, Devices and Accounts
Task 1: Creating a New User on the Cisco CallManager Server
Task 2: Sharing the Users Folder to Provide Access to the User Database
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Introduction

This document is part of a document set. For information on each of these documents, refer to the index for this set: Installing and Configuring Cisco WebAttendant for CallManager 3.1.

The Cisco WebAttendant client displays user and line information in the Directory section of its user interface. The Cisco TCD Database Path field in the Cisco WebAttendant client Settings dialog box controls where the Cisco WebAttendant client looks for its directory information.

By default, the Cisco WebAttendant client is configured to use cached user directory information directly from the Cisco CallManager server's user database. This is the preferred option. In this case, the Cisco WebAttendant client's path to the database is [\\<ip-address>\WAUSERS], where <ip-address> is the address of the Cisco CallManager server or [\\<dns-name>\WAUSERS], where <dns-name> is the name of the CallManager server.

There are other options for allowing Cisco WebAttendant clients to access the user database. The Cisco WebAttendant client PC can be configured to point to a local copy of the database on its own hard drive or on the hard drive of a remote server. If you decide to implement one of the alternative options, the database must be manually refreshed on a regular basis (copied from the Cisco CallManager server) to the location that you are using to provide access for the Cisco WebAttendant clients in order for the WebAttendant clients to have the most up-to-date database.

All of the options for making the user database available to the Cisco WebAttendant client require that the proper access permissions have been granted for the folder that the database resides in. Networks that use a Domain based security model might also require that the PC running the Cisco WebAttendant client application is granted access to the network. This is explained in more detail in the Understanding Cisco WebAttendant Users, Devices and Accounts section.

Prerequisites

Requirements

There are no specific requirements for this document.

Components Used

This document is not restricted to specific software and hardware versions.

Conventions

Refer to Cisco Technical Tips Conventions for more information on document conventions.

Understanding Cisco WebAttendant Users, Devices and Accounts

This section explains some of the issues related to providing access to the Cisco CallManager user database for the WebAttendant user. It also explains the relationship between the Cisco CallManager WebAttendant users and the CallManager users that are stored in the DC Directory. If you already understand how to share folders and assign access rights, how to allow devices (PCs, servers) to access an NT or Windows 2000 environment, and the relationships between the different Cisco CallManager users, you can skip this section and proceed to the next section.

The creation of a functional Cisco WebAttendant environment involves several different user accounts, possibly device accounts and other security issues. The goal of this section is to expose the reader to these issues.

This figure shows the Workgroup model for allowing Cisco WebAttendant clients to access the user database.

In the next example, the network security is based on a Windows Workgroup model. The Cisco WebAttendant client application is accessing the user database on the Cisco CallManager server using the default method.

This table shows the steps involved:

In the following explanation, the network security is based on a Windows NT Domain. The Cisco WebAttendant client application is accessing the user database on the Cisco CallManager server using the default method.

This table shows the steps involved:

Note: A thorough explanation of the issues related to security and other network related issues in a Microsoft Windows environment is beyond the scope of this document. There are many third party books available that explain these issues in detail.

For information from Cisco on these subjects, refer to the Windows Networking Design Implementation Guide and How to Enable Browsing Using NetBIOS Over IP for more information.

Task 1: Creating a New User on the Cisco CallManager Server

If your network uses the Workgroup authentication model, you will need to create a new user account on the Cisco CallManager server for each Cisco WebAttendant client. This task explains how to do this.

If your network is using the Domain authentication model, you will need to create the new accounts on the primary domain controller or master database server. The process is very similar to steps 7 and 8 below.

The default configuration for Windows 2000 on the Cisco CallManager server does not have the User and Group management application installed on the menus. In addition to explaining how to add a new user, this task also explains how to add the application to the menu system.

Note: Windows 2000 has very good context sensitive help that is accessible by selecting F1. Press F1 during any step in this task to see the help that is available.

Complete these steps:

1. Go to the Start menu on the Cisco CallManager server and select Run.

   

2. Enter MMC and press OK.

   This starts an instance of the Console application.

   

3. From the Console menu, select Add/Remove Snap-in.

   

4. Click Add from the screen that appears.

   

5. Scroll down the menu, locate the Local Users and Groups snap-in and click Add.

   

6. You should see a screen similar to this. Choose the Local Computer option.

   

7. Click Finish, then Close.

   You should see a screen similar to this:

   

8. Click OK.

9. Right click Users and select New User.

   

   In this example, wa is used as the username and cisco as the password. Select the password options as appropriate for your security guidelines.

   

   Note: This username and password combination is not the same as the User ID and password used by the Cisco CallManager WebAttendant user configuration task. Many customers use the same values. The values, however, are held in separate databases and must be managed separately.

10. When you close the MMC Console1 screen, you might see a message asking if you would like to save the configuration to make it available from the Cisco CallManager server's menu system. It is recommended that you select Save from this screen to ensure the Users and Group management application is easily accessible in the future.

    

    In this case, the new console is saved as Manage Users and Groups. It will appear on the Start > Programs > Administrative Tools menu list. This completes this task. Proceed to the next task to share the folder for the new user.

Task 2: Sharing the Users Folder to Provide Access to the User Database

This task explains how to share a folder on a server and assign the correct permissions so that the Cisco WebAttendant client application users can access the user database on the Cisco CallManager server.

Note: The steps in this task are similar for both Workgroup and Domain based networks.

By default, the Cisco WebAttendant client is configured to use cached user directory information directly from the Cisco CallManager server's user database. This is the preferred option. In this case, the CiscoWebAttendant client's path to the database is [\\<ip-address>\WAUSERS], where <ip-address> is the address of the Cisco CallManager server or [\\<dns-name>\WAUSERS], where <dns-name> is the name of the CiscoCallManager server.

The next screen shows that the Cisco TCD Database Path is currently blank. Therefore, it will use the default method to access the user database.

In order to ensure that this default setting works properly, the Cisco CallManager administrator must share the C:\Program Files\Cisco\Users folder as WAUSERS and set permissions so that all Cisco WebAttendant client users have read and write access. This must be done on all Cisco CallManagers in the cluster.

This task explains how to configure this.

1. Double click the My Computer icon on the Cisco CallManager server's desktop to begin navigating to the Users folder, then the Cisco folder.

   

   Note: If you see a message similar to this next one, you need to select the Show Files option in order to complete the process of navigating to the Users folder.

   

   You should see a screen similar to this:

   

2. Double click the C: drive.

   You should see a screen similar to this:

   

3. Double click the Program Files folder.

   You should see a screen similar to this:

   

4. Double click the Cisco folder.

   This screen shows the location of the Users folder.

   

5. Right click it and select Properties.

   You should see a screen similar to the following. The Sharing tab has been selected and the name WAUSERS has been entered.

   Note: When you are using the default method for providing access to the database, as explained in this task, you must use the name WAUSERS. The use of any other name will prevent the WebAttendant client application from being able to access the user database.

   

6. Choose Share this folder.

7. The new user (wa) must have Read and Write access permissions on C:\Program Files\Cisco\Users\ folder. In order to assign these permissions, click the Security tab.

   The other permissions shown here will be assigned in step 10 of this task.

   

8. Click Add.

   You should see a screen similar to this:

   

9. Scroll down to the wa user name, then click Add and OK.

10. You should see a screen similar to the following. Select the Read and Write options, and uncheck the Allow inheritable permissions from parent to propogate to this object box.

    

11. Click OK.

    This completes this task.

    Return to the index page.

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