Jabber vs Cisco IP Communicator

[LibinBenedict]

Hi,

We are going to provide a solution to the customer so that the call center agents can work from home.

We are planning to use CIPC 8.6 version for the requirement. But I heard that CIPC will be phased out soon. Is that true? If yes, by when?

Can we use Jabber instead of CIPC or does it still require Presence server to deploy phone only mode?

Are there any other considerations when using Jabber which we do not need to look into when using CIPC?

Thanks in advance,

Libin Benedict

[Jaime Valencia]

In the long run, yes, Jabber is meant to replace CIPC, however, right now, there's no 1:1 feature parity between them.

Jabber 9.7+ can do softphone mode without IM&P

You probably want to look exactly into what features your users require to determine if Jabber is a good solution for you, or if you need to use CIPC to meet the requirements.

I'd suggest you to gather your customer requirements and POC this with both endpoints to choose the right one for your deployment.

[Terry Cheema]

+5 to my friend Jaime and mmorais for the useful posts.

-Terry

[Marcelo Morais]

Hi Libin,

 beyond what was said by Jaime Valencia ...

 CIPC 8.6(1) is validated by Cisco up to version 9.0(1) of CUCM. CUCM versions 10.0 and 10.5 are not, in other words, it's the beginning of CIPC's end ... although, for me, CICP's end will only happen when Jabber incorporate all CIPC's feature set ... I think it will take some time.

Check the link:

http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/voice_ip_comm/uc_system/unified/communications/system/versions/IPTMtrix.html

The newest Jabber release is 10.5(4). Cisco is still building out the core CIPC feature set into Jabber, but this didn't happen yet on Jabber version 10.6 (trial version) and will not happen in Jabber 11.0 ... one of the major gaps for me, is the absence of multiline.

Hope this helps.

[LibinBenedict]

Hi All,

Now that CIPC EoL is announced, can you please advise how we can use Jabber for work from home agents. The points to note is about configuring service URL for logging into extension mobility. Or do we have to hardcode the IPCC extn onto Jabber configuration?

Thanks,

Libin Benedict

[Jaime Valencia]

http://docwiki.cisco.com/wiki/Jabber_FAQ#Can_I_use_Extension_Mobility_with_Jabber.3F.3F

[Mike_Brezicky]

Hi, so even with Jabber 12 and multiline, not having Jabber using EM similar to CIPC still creates challenges for remote workers.  Unless I am missing something, the Agent line can still only be on one device.  So if I configure a user Jabber device with their agent line, I cannot place it on the desk phone.  If i place it on the desk phone, I can do phone control from jabber, but when remote, I have no options.

So is there any option or future considerations to be able to have the agent line capable of being used on Jabber and the deskphone.  With CIPC and Extension Mobility, our CUCM is configured to not allow multiple logins, so when an agent goes home and logins to CIPC, the desk phone auto logs out.  We are unable to expect agents to remember to log out of the EM on the desk phone every day they plan or even unplanned work from home days.  So for me its more of the seamless transition from device to device that I do not see yet with Jabber.

[LibinBenedict]

Hi Mike,

My thoughts, precisely.

Thanks,

Libin Benedict

[LibinBenedict]

Hi Java and mmorais,

Thank you..that information was helpful.

[Marcelo Morais]

Hi Libin,

 you are welcome ... please do not forget to mark as "Answered", it will facilitate future references.

[jonathan.salter]

So you mention Call Center Agents....be mindful that Jabber cannot support 2 lines. Many Call Center designs require a 2 line deployment.

[CiscoSA]

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@jonathan.salter wrote:

So you mention Call Center Agents....be mindful that Jabber cannot support 2 lines. Many Call Center designs require a 2 line deployment.

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Sorry Jonathan, that is incorrect.  Jabber 12 introduced multiline support back in April.

(source: https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/voice_ip_comm/jabber/Windows/12_0/RN/jabw_b_release-notes-for-cisco-jabber_12.html )

What's New in Release 12.0

Telephony

• Multiline Support—Cisco Jabber introduces Multiline support for desktop clients. Multiline allows your users to perform various tasks using more than one configured line or phone number. You can configure up to 8 lines in softphone mode. When you enable multiline and your users access Cisco Jabber using a Mobile and Remote Access (MRA) deployment, only the primary line is supported. .

  Cisco Jabber for Windows 12.0 supports Cisco Hosted Collaboration Solution (HCS), Cisco Packaged Contact Center Enterprise (PCCE), Cisco Contact Center Enterprise (CCE), and Cisco Unified Contact Center Express (CCX) 11.6 (up to 4 lines). For information on features and configuring Multiline, see the Feature Configuration Guide for Cisco Jabber 12.0.

[jonathan.salter]

I know ver 12 supports (2) line....I was under the impression he was not at the latest version.