“I tried to connect our Lync Server to Exchange Online. Now we can’t use voice mail. What went wrong?”

VERY good question. Let’s tackle it.

Connecting an Internal Lync Server to an External Exchange Server?

Let’s take a step back from this. What they did was try to connect a Lync Server to Office 365′s Exchange Online package. One internal system (Lync), interoperating with an external one (Exchange Online).

There are several reasons you might want to do this.

• Sharing of calendar information and Out of Office messages
• Voice mail interoperability
• IM and Presence status showing up in Outlook Web App (as in, outside the organization)

Yes, it’s possible to connect these two services. But it’s more complicated than you’d think at first. Several management steps are required for Lync and Exchange Online to see each other, THEN talk to each other.

In fact, there’s a whole checklist you need to follow to make it all work:
http://help.outlook.com/en-us/140/gg702674.aspx

Microsoft posted this late last month. Many people missed it due to the holidays. (But that’s why we have the Lync Insider blog, right?)

How-To, Step 1 – Provide Lync Users with Voice Mail on Exchange Online

(Please note, I’m starting at #2 on the checklist linked above. #1 is deploying Lync Server 2010, with Edge Servers and Enterprise Voice. If you need help with those, read our Path to Lync Server – Step 6: Install Lync Server post.)

A) Create a DNS SRV Record for integration.

1. Log on to your external DNS server (as a DnsAdmins group member!).
2. Click Start / Administrative Tools, and then click DNS.
3. In the console tree for your SIP domain, expand Forward Lookup Zones. Select the SIP domain where your Lync Server is installed (e.g. “edge1.yourdomain.com”).
4. Right-click the SIP domain, and click Other New Records.
5. Click “Service Location (SRV)” under Resource Record Type.
6. Click “Create Record.”
7. In the New Resource Record window, click Service. Enter _sipfederationtls (don’t forget the underscore).
8. Click Protocol. Enter _tcp
9. Click Port Number. Enter 5061
10. Click “Host offering this service.” Enter the FQDN of the Lync Server Edge pool that provides access to external clients.
11. Click OK. Then click Done.

Make sure the domain used in the SRV record you’re creating here matches the domain used in the DNS Host (A) record.

B) Set up external Edge Certificates.

You may already have certificates set up on the external Edge Server. If they’re set up for federation, then you’re fine here. If not, use these instructions:

• Switch to a member login with higher permissions (e.g. the RTCUniversalServerAdmins group).
• Follow the steps at this TechNet page:  http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg398409.aspx
• They will guide you through creating the certificate request, submitting it, importing & assigning the certificate to your Edge Servers.

C) Configure the Edge Server for integration.

1. Configure your Edge Server for federation. Start the Lync Server Management Shell (under Start / All Programs / Microsoft Lync Server 2010). Enter this cmdlet:

Set-CsAccessEdgeConfiguration -UseDnsSrvRouting -AllowFederatedUsers 1 -EnablePartnerDiscovery 0

It indicates that Edge Servers will use DNS SRV records for federation requests, allows federated users, and specifies that Lync should use DNS records to discover a partner domain (in this case, the Exchange Online service).

2. Still in the Management Shell, we’ll create a hosting provider on the Edge Server. Do this using the New-CsHostingProvider cmdlet.

New-CsHostingProvider -Identity ExchangeOnline.com -Enabled $True -EnabledSharedAddressSpace $True -HostsOCSUsers $False -ProxyFQDN “proxy.ExchangeOnline.com” -IsLocal $False -VerficationLevel UseSourceVerification

Where I’ve inserted “ExchangeOnline.com” – for the Identity and ProxyFQDN parameters – enter the URLs for your Exchange Online setup.

3. Verify that the Central Management Store data replicates to your Edge Server. See this TechNet link if you need help.

D) Enable your users for hosted voice mail.

Still in the Management Shell, use the Set-CsUser cmdlet:

Set-CsUser -HostedVoiceMail $True -Identity “YourDomain\JoeSmith”

Identity parameter can use either the user’s SIP address, their domain\logon name (like the above), their AD-DS display name or their User-Principal-Name. Easy to do – but you’ll have to enable every user this way!

E) Create Contact Objects for Exchange UM Online.

You’ll need contact objects for each auto-attendant (AA) number and subscriber access (SA) number in your deployment. Set these in Management Shell with the New-CsExUmContact cmdlet:

New-CsExUmContact -SipAddress “sip:ExampleAddress@YourDomain.com” -RegistrarPool “LocalPool.YourDomain.com” -OU “Exchange Online Integration” -DisplayNumber “+14085551111″ -AutoAttendant $True

New-CsExUmContact -SipAddress “sip:ExampleAddress@YourDomain.com” -RegistrarPool “LocalPool.YourDomain.com” -OU “Exchange Online Integration” -DisplayNumber “+14085551111″

SipAddress should be a new address, not in use by a user or contact object in AD-DS. RegistrarPool is the FQDN for the pool where your Registrar service runs. OU specifies where your contact object will be. DisplayNumber must be a unique number for each contact object. If AutoAttendant is set to True, the contact object is set as an Auto Attendant Object. If set to False, it’s a Subscriber Access object.

This is a lot to go through, I know.  Stay sharp – that’s just Part 1 of the setup!

In Part 2 next week, I’ll go through configuring Exchange Online so its Unified Messaging works with Lync. See you then!

Last week we received this question:

“Can we set up a global policy so everyone has a 5-minute idle in Lync?”

The answer to this question is yes – and no.

Right now, you can’t use a GPO (Group Policy Object) to set a Lync 2010 client’s default idle limit – when Lync switches from Available to Away.

You could go around changing each client’s idle settings, of course. But that’s way too time-consuming (and no self-respecting sysadmin would work that slow).

Don’t worry though! There IS a way to enforce a default idle for Lync users: Use a Management Shell script.

Run a Script at Startup to Set Global Idle

That’s right. One simple script will enforce global idle limits on all clients.

In a moment I’ll show you the script. But before that, a quick reminder: the Lync Server Management Shell isn’t set to run scripts by default! You’ll have to modify the execution policy so you can run scripts.

Which is easy. Just enter this command in the Management Shell prompt:
Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned

With that done, let’s move to the script itself. Copy the following into Notepad and save it as “set-global-idle.ps1″.

$computer = "."
$registry = [Microsoft.Win32.RegistryKey]::OpenRemoteBaseKey("CurrentUser", $computer)
$key = $registry.OpenSubKey("SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Communicator", $True)
$key.SetValue("IdleThreshold",5,"DWORD")

Those of you who are familiar with PowerShell will see how this script works at a glance. Even if you aren’t, this script’s pretty easy to understand: It makes a small change to the client PC’s registry, relating to Lync’s registry keys.

In this case, we’re changing the “IdleThreshold” or idle timeout point.

You will have to run Set-Global-Idle.ps1 on everyone’s PCs at startup. It’ll act like a pseudo-GPO, making a background change during boot. We’ve tested it and had no errors.

Modify the script as you like! Setting idle isn’t all you can do with this method. But be careful; this causes a change to client PC registries. The wrong parameters could cause registry corruption…and nobody wants every single PC in the office to crash at once!

Bravely Standing In for Lync GPO

We’re sure Microsoft will release a Lync Server patch that lets you control global idle soon. Use our Set-Global-Idle.ps1 script as a stand-in/workaround for now. It works, but it’s an extra step imposed on your Lync setup.

Have you modified your Lync Server installation using Management Shell? How?

1. It gives you a log of Lync activity everyone can draw upon. How many times have you tried to remember what Jane said about the Michaels project? Thanks to Archiving Server, you have a saved copy of that IM conversation.
2. It helps you fulfill legal compliance requirements. Many organizations must keep track of project steps, client files, and so on to meet compliance regulations. Since Archiving Server tracks automatically, its archive database acts as a regulatory resource.

What DOES it track though? It’s important to know what is and is not archived by Archiving Server. Otherwise, you might assume it just grabs everything. It doesn’t.

What Lync Archives on the Archiving Server

• Instant messaging conversations (both person-to-person, and between multiple parties)
• Content uploaded in Web conferences
• Conference events (joins, parts, etc.)

What Lync DOES NOT Archive on Archiving Server

• File transfers
• Conferencing annotations and polls
• Audio & video for person-to-person IM and conferences
• Application sharing for IM and conferences
• Diagnostic reports for session failures (those come from Monitoring Server)

Caution – There’s a Time Limit on Archived Materials

It’s important to note: Archiving is NOT intended to work indefinitely! As you can imagine from the above lists, storing uploaded files and daily IM logs will fill up space fast.

The server will keep archives until one of two things happens:

1. You tell it to purge old archived files.
2. Its storage fills up.

Obviously, you don’t want to reach #2.

In the Lync Server 2010 Control Panel, there’s a setting that dictates when to purge old archive files. You can control the time interval for this under Archiving Configuration. How long you keep archived files depends on your legal compliance requirements. 1 year, 2? Talk to Legal.

Then head to this page for a how-to: Enable or Disable Purging for Archiving – TechNet.

Want to add Archiving Server to your Lync setup? Use this deployment guide to help you.

If you’re having trouble with Archiving Server (e.g. conversations aren’t showing up in Conversation History), use NextHop’s “Troubleshooting Archiving Server” post as a guide.

Do you use an Archiving Server? What’s the big value from it, for you?

As promised, a second comparison of its training lists. As this package is geared toward training users on the Lync 2010 client, we’re talking about the Help Desk list today.

Training List 2: Help Desk

Last post I pointed out that each of the training packages is based off a “standard set” of materials. FAQs, Quick Reference cards, introductory How-To videos, and Self-Paced Training.

With Help Desk, we see how Microsoft adapts the training package for different roles. Specifically, 2 more resources included above this standard (1 new, 1 at higher priority).

A. The addition of “Help Desk Troubleshooting,” a 110-page reference document for common Lync client problems.You’ll find guidelines for everything from “(Sharing) Participants See a Black Window” to “Agent Unable to See Some Response Groups.”

The Troubleshooting document alone makes this worthwhile. It’s a great keep-on-hand reference. Our Support department has already used it to help a client. (I may pull some how-to’s for future posts in fact.)

B. The Instructor-Led Training mentions go from “Optional” to “Strongly Recommended.” Often the only difference between training lists is what priority each material element is assigned. However, because the Help Desk will field most of the (initial) support calls, it’s important they be fully informed on Lync’s capabilities.

If you want to see what’s available for Instructor-Led Training, look here. There are four courses (registration required, but free):

1. Introducing Microsoft Lync
2. Best Practices for Microsoft Lync Conferencing
3. Facilitating a Successful UC Rollout
4. Effective Conferencing with Microsoft Lync: Transitioning from Office Live Meeting

How to Start Lync Training with the Instructor-Led Courses

These 4 are the only courses for the whole Lync Training Package (at least for now). You’ll find them, at different priority levels, in almost every training list.

I don’t think all of these benefit the Help Desk most, though. Pick and choose which are the most relevant to the role you’re training for.

Here’s what I would suggest: Use the Instructor-Led training in the following order (by role).

• Executives and Information Workers sign up for 1 & 2 in succession
• Information Workers sign up for 3 & 4 afterward
• Early Adopters sign up for all 4
• Help Desk signs up for 1, 2 & 4
• New Hires and Admin-Receptionists sign up for 1

This way everyone receives at least an overview. From there, more technical roles take on more technical training. All without disrupting everyday workflow.

Next week – we’re talking about Archiving Server. The recent post on Monitoring Server got a lot of attention, so I’m tackling its cousin. Watch for it!

Microsoft Lync 2010 Training Download Package

From the overview:

“The Lync Training Download Package contains all of the available training and user education resources for Lync.”

All of these resources are sorted for you in an Excel workbook, & divided up by office role.  Information Worker, Early Adopters, New Hires, Admin-Receptionists, Executives, Help Desk and Lync Online.

Each list is broken up by a category, defined by Lync Server Role or communication method.  They are:

• IM and Presence
• Collaboration and Conferencing
• Voice and Video
• Devices
• Group Chat
• Attendee
• Lync Web App
• Lync for Mobile Clients
• Lync for Mac

The training material for each category is ranked, from “Optional” to “Strongly Recommended.”  Some of the material comes in the training package download.  The rest is available on Microsoft’s support websites.

Organizes Current Lync Training Material For You

Why use this new training package?  It makes Microsoft’s Lync education resources neat & easy to find.

Everything (to date!) is included:

–WorkSmart Guides
–Quick Reference Cards
–FAQs
–Training Videos
–Instructor-Led Training (registration needed)

However, it’s important to know:  This is NOT recommended as a resource for Lync certification.  There’s almost no server-side material.   The package is clearly intended to help you train to support Lync’s client-facing functions.

Training List 1:  New Hires

The “New Hires” category is a good starting point.  It lists out what I’ll call the “standard set” of training materials.  FAQs, Quick Reference Cards, introductory How-To  Videos, and Self-Paced Training.

You’ll find these in every other category, with additional resources and/or different recommendation levels depending on the role.  Pay attention to Recommendation levels…they’ll give you a path to follow.  Start with “Strongly Recommended” and work down from there.

For instance, under Collaboration & Conferencing for New Hires, a Quick Reference Card and Self-Paced Training are “Strongly Recommended.”  A How-To Video is “Recommended.”  And Instructor-Led Training is “Optional.”

Catch-All for Microsoft Lync Education

How effective will this training package be?  That depends on how you decide to use it.  The download includes a lot of information, some of it new.  (I’m putting the “Help Desk Troubleshooting” doc on our SharePoint right after this post.)

Microsoft has written the workbook as a catch-all and a starting point.  So you can build training into your office’s activities by grabbing certain elements and putting them in front of the people who need them most.

Next week I’ll go into more detail with comparisons between categories.  Until then – planning to use this download?  How?

Microsoft has released brand new clients for every major mobile platform – iPhone, Android, Windows Phone, even the iPad. Twitter’s abuzz over the new clients.

All of the clients will work with both on-premises Lync Server or Office 365′s Lync Online. (However, some features are not available to Lync Online users.)

Let’s go through what’s available, shall we?

Lync for iPhone

Download Lync for iPhone at the iTunes App Store.
What it does: Presence, IM, Email Contacts, Enterprise Voice Calls, Voicemail, Dial-Out Conferencing, Call Forwarding.
The iPhone client is surprisingly comprehensive. It even has capabilities (Enterprise Voice Calls) the Android client doesn’t right now. Microsoft really pushed to make the iOS client as complete a duplicate of Lync 2010 (desktop) as possible.

Lync for iPad

Download Lync for iPad at the iTunes App Store.
What it does: Presence, IM, Email Contacts, Enterprise Voice Calls, Voicemail, Dial-Out Conferencing, Call Forwarding.
Virtually identical to the iPhone client (adjusted for iPad screens of course). However, the reviews for this version gave it a slightly lower rating the iPhone client. One reviewer noted that push notifications didn’t work for her.

Lync for Android

Download Lync for Android at the Android Market.
What it does: Presence, IM, Email Contacts, Voicemail, Dial-Out Conferencing, Call Forwarding.
The Android client is a fairly basic mobile app. Some features are not supported yet (VoIP, video). Right now it appears to function best as a connector between the phone’s capabilities and Lync Server.

Also, note: Lync for Android runs in the background, all the time. Push notifications aren’t necessary. Something to keep in mind for Android users!

Lync for Windows Phone 7

Download Lync for Windows Phone from the Windows Phone Marketplace.
What it does: Presence, IM, Enterprise Voice Calls, Conferencing, Call Forwarding.
Of all the clients, this one looks the sharpest to me. Look at this screenshot. Slick, isn’t it? Almost a step up from the Lync 2010 interface.

Appearances aside, the Windows Phone client packs in every feature the iOS clients have. Several more than Android, like taking delegate calls & using Call via Work.

However, one thing is missing: access to Lync voicemail. I’m honestly not sure why Microsoft didn’t include this. The system has the same base from server (Lync Server) to hardware platform (Windows Phone). What prevented voicemail?

What’s Missing in Mobile Lync (For Now)

Please note: According to the Microsoft Lync Mobile Client Comparison Tables, NONE of the mobile clients can do the following.

• Automatically log IM conversations in Exchange
• Manage delegates
• View video in meetings
• Conduct two- or more-party calls with external users
• Share desktop or use presentation tools

Looks like we’ll have to wait until V2 for these features.

What’s your experience with a Lync mobile client? Is there something you’d want to see added?

To correct the issue, please switch to this feed URL: http://lyncinsider.com/feed/

That should avoid any future problems. Sorry about any spam posts that showed up in your feeds!

So he’s looking for a way to stop call forwarding to certain numbers. At certain times.

It’s an unusual request. And after checking, we determined that such a setting isn’t currently available in Lync.

That doesn’t mean it’s not possible to configure call forwarding on a more granular level, though. In fact we came across two options for advanced call forwarding configuration. Here they are.

Tweak Call Forwarding with the “Set-CsClientPolicy” PowerShell Command

If you prefer administering in PowerShell, the Set-CsClientPolicy gives you dozens of configuration options for Lync client policies. Including call forwarding options.

For example, you could use the -HotdeskingTimeout switch to log a user out of their Lync Phone Edition after a short period of time (default is 5 minutes, but it can go down to as short as 30 seconds).

Or use -BlockConversationFromFederatedContacts to stop certain users from receiving outside calls initiated by the outside-the-office party. (Users can still call out though.)

Reserve Policy Control to the Admins with PolicyPak for Lync

We also located a third-party solution which allows you to manage Lync using Group Policy – PolicyPak for Lync. It operates like a layer on top of GPO, building in new options. Geared toward controlling which parts of the Lync client interface users can (and cannot) access.

The introductory video shows how to enable/disable a few common client settings. In terms of configuring call forwarding, PolicyPak for Lync essentially removes the control from users and puts it all in the administrator’s hands. Setting the policies you want becomes a piece of cake.

Want to test it out? A free Community Edition is available if you attend a PolicyPak webinar.

I’d recommend using Set-CsClientPolicy before trying PolicyPak. Just because there’s a lot of options available on that page, and it’s all built into Lync Server already. Still, both are useful ways of configuring many Lync client options. Including where & when calls can be forwarded.

P.S. – If you’re still on OCS 2007 R2 and you want to configure call forwarding, try Unify2′s Call Forwarding Configuration Utility. It lets OCS administrators configure simultaneous ring and call forwarding settings for users, from the same interface. Some of this functionality IS available in Lync Server though; if you haven’t upgraded, now’s the time to do it!

The Duo variant of the BIZ 620 USB. Image courtesy of Jabra.com.

Didn’t we already review this headset? Well, yes and no.

I titled this a “mini-review” because I did post a review on the Jabra BIZ 620 USB headset last month.

But one thing’s different today. Last month’s review was done on the Mono (single earpiece) model.

The Jabra BIZ 620 Duo has two earpieces.

Like its Mono brother, it has an adjustable microphone arm on one earpiece. The mic swivels to either side, so you can use it on the left or right ear (I prefer the right).

In fact switching the headset around is easier to do with the Duo model, since both ears are covered anyway.

Headset controls are located in the same call control knob as the Mono model. Located on the headset’s cord, it has four buttons for adjusting volume up/down, answering a call, and ending a call.

Advantages of the Jabra 620 Duo: Better Focus on Conversations, Music Playback

As someone who’s always used one ear with their phone, the Jabra 620 Duo takes a little bit of adjustment. The good kind – with two earpieces, it’s easier to tune out background noises when you have a call.

Test calls revealed the same audio quality, in and out, as the 620 Mono. That and the dual earpieces make Lync calls easy to make, pay full attention to, and end with a button-push.

Oh, and the 620 Duo will play music through its earpieces ( the Mono wouldn’t).

Comfort Warning: Don’t Fiddle With It Too Much

The only disadvantage I note is the weight of the control knob. It can pull down on the headset if you move it too much. With the Mono headset this isn’t too big a deal.

But with the Duo headset, you’re aware of the other ear piece slipping off your ear when it pulls down. More to adjust. So you notice it more quickly.

Still, pretty small price to pay for an immersive VoIP headset with good sound quality and an adjustable mic!

What headset do you use with Lync?