NIIF videoconference services Tamás Máray NIIF/Hungarnet maray@niif.hu Green Workshop Copenhagen 04 Feb 2010
NIIF videoconference history Goals of the project that started in 2003: Establish R&E national VC service Create local VC usage culture Increase competitiveness of Hungarian R&E Help international project participation Enhance cost-effectiveness Large scale equipment testing: Polycom (gatekeeper, MCU, endpoints) Radvision (gatekeeper, MCU) Tandberg (endpoints) GnuGK (gatekeeper) NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 2
NIIF videoconference history Procurement results: Polycom MGC-100 MCU (being able to serve up to 96 parallel video calls) 40x Polycom ViewStation FX meeting room category endpoint (2 screens, CIF @ 30fps, people & content, etc.) Gatekeeper: open source solution (GNU GK) Directory server, booking system own development NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 3
NIIF videoconference history Endpoints were installed at universities and research institutions across the country Education for the local managers, preparation of leaflets, usage manuals, etc. Continuous development of the infrastructure during the years: more endpoints (VSX), recording and streaming server, soft codec licenses (50x PVX), voice call integration introduction of High Definition terminals (Polycom, Lifesize) Currently ~60 NIIF endpoints (HW codecs) Additional, institution-owned terminals: approx. 30-40 NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 4
Equipment coverage NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 5
Equipment coverage NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 6
Typical VC usage Collaboration meetings: local/international Administrative meetings (between remote campus sites): Management University senate International university partnerships Knowledge exchange/transfer Consultation University lectures/seminars: Allow viewers from remote campus sites Save professors time from travelling to remote campus sites Conference presentation delivery from remote site Interviews NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 7
Network architecture NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 8
Gatekeepers HU-GK: 0036 (Hungarian national GDS GK) No endpoint registrations NIIF-GK: 0036100 Restricted GK service for institutions Hosts MCU FZ-GK: 0036900 Free gatekeeper Anyone can connect and get a temporal GDS number Neighboring gatekeepers: Institutions with own GK (having more EPs) Any commercial company requesting NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 9
MCU booking service Web based booking/reservation using MCU XML API Mostly reserved conferences, ad-hoc meeting rooms for projects User can supply: Conference type (Voice Switched / CP) Conference start date/time Conference duration Layout (CP) Bandwidth Estimated number of participants Conference IVR password Conference recording and streaming Basic ongoing conference control: Terminate, turn recording on/off, etc. NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 10
MCU booking service NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 11
Problem reporting and support Test numbers are available on 7/24 basis to test equipment connectivity MCU Dedicated terminal Manned support in working hours e-mail Telephone Trouble Ticketing System NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 12
Public endpoint information NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 13
Online endpoints NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 14
Public statistics Overall network usage NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 15
Public statistics Overall MCU usage NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 16
Public statistics International (GDS) call statistics NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 17
Public statistics Endpoints statistics NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 18
Videoconference recording and streaming service Established in 2006: Recording: conserved material (people+content!) Streaming: open up for more participants with PC+browser only Central digital recording: Based on Codian IP VCR 2200 Recording initiated through the MCU booking system Web accessible interface for live/on-demand streaming H.323 dial-in interface for playback (!) H.239 slides recorded Converted WMV file provided for users NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 19
Videoconference recording and streaming service VCR user web interface NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 20
Other services Community mailing list Service website (Shibboleth AAI) PSTN dial-in service: Ordinary phone or mobile participation PSTN dial-in number provided IVR based VC dialing Technical consultation Permanent MCU meeting rooms for projects (e.g. GN3, FEDERICA, etc.) On-line directory service for endpoints Documents, FAQ Services are all free of charge NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 21
Service management No vendor management apps/servers Only MGC Manager for MCU In-house developed customized tools Endpoint information in SQL DB Call Detail Records (CDRs): Provided by gatekeepers Used for debugging and statistics Gatekeeper: Endpoint authentication (SQL DB based) Debugging: logs and admin interface Monitoring & Alarm: MCU, gatekeepers, VCR and servers Nagios: L3 and application level reachability Munin: server resources (CPU, RAM, etc.) NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 22
Collecting CDRs Gatekeepers log into an SQL DB NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 23
CDRs for debugging NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 24
Current developments High Definition upgrade: 2010 Q1-Q2 HD MCU 32x HD endpoints for institutions Webconferencing service: Support PC + webcam + browser users Compatibility with existing deployments Development of a CDR analyzing tool for the automated computation of CO2 savings NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 25
CO2 savings computation Analyzing call data records (CDR) produced by gatekeepers IP addresses of the conference participants can be retrieved From IPs the geo location can be identified (WHOIS, GEO IP tool, etc.) Based on the participating locations the length of travel routes can be computed (google map service used by API) Summarizing the travels, the total CO2 emission can be calculated NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 26
CO2 savings computation Simplifications: Domestic travels are calculated as road transports International travels are calculated as non-stop air travel between major cities + road transport One person / site travels The CO2 emission of the videoconferencing service should be deducted: endpoints+ gatekeeper+ MCU (if involved)+ network usage not yet implemented! Monthly and yearly reports can be generated NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 27
CO2 savings calculation The computation is far not perfectly precise (theoretically impossible), but pessimistic, therefore the real life saving is even better Limitation: Only Gnu GK CDR format is recognized Why? Because NIIF is forced to have and implement a sustainable development strategy and we need supporting numbers and arguments Because we want to persuade more and more users, and this is a nice argument NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 28
Cisco Telepresence calculator NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 29
Cisco Telepresence calculator NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 30
The GEANT Nemzeti projects Információs and Infrastruktúra videoconferencing Fejlesztési Intézet In the second phase of GN2 there was a related task. Result: educonf http://educonf.geant2.net/ Although there was a proposal, in the first phase of GN3 this topic could not be continued. People changed their mind, and now it is getting important again: there will be a GN3 study about the possibilities of European level cooperation (coordination, central services, joint infrastructure, etc.) NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 31
Educonf NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 32
Conclusion If you want to foster the usage of videoconferencing, it is not enough to have expensive endpoints You must provide rich, high level, complex services, continuous support, easy access, simple user interface, thorough statistics NIIF/Hungarnet videoconference services 33
Thank You! Tamás Máray maray@niif.hu