Introducing Number to Name service for CME and CM

[paolo bevilacqua]

This is a TCL/IVR script that uses a file with a list of numbers and names to make so your caller's name is displayed on the phone when receiving a call from a number in the list.

The file must reside in flash. This is because the "file" command that I use in the script fails for tftp. There is also a version what works  via HTTP queries.

The file is accessed for reading on the first call only, so it should be possible to handle very large lists.

To reload a the file, do:

show call application sessions

and then

call application session stop id <ID-from-show>

Update. The script can now be acquired at ciscoscripts.com

[paolo bevilacqua]

Hmmm normally TCL/IVR scripts work exclusively under incoming DP... if you managed to have working for outgoing, let us know how you did ..

Transfer in TCL/IVR is a whole story in itself. The programming manual dedicates some 30 pages about that topic only.

The bottom line, either the script does a "leg setup" and then handles the transfer request with code similar to the one I wrote (that is the absolute minimum), or it can "handoff" to the default session application, this way the script is not involved anymore when there is a transfer request. That is the method used by B-ACD/AA when transferring to extension.

[sdekooter]

I do not understand what you mean with 'if you managed to have working for outgoing, let us know how you did'

I only have it working on incoming DP, the name shows up in the display so lookup works.

While I was tranfering an incoming ('looked-up') call to check if the DisplayInfo(name) was kept, I noticed that while completing the tranfers, the originating call is disconnected.

However, because I can not see the script running (sh call appl sess), I was assuming that you, after running the script, handled over to the default sess application.

Can you tranfer an incoming 'looked up' call?

[paolo bevilacqua]

Ok, evidently I broke the transferring support, not surprising considering I didn't test that.

Will fix and let you know. Can you add basic authentication to the test server ?

[sdekooter]

The following url should do the job:

http://dev.vannoorloos.net/num2name/lookup.php?ani=$ani

username: user

password: password

Just let me know

[paolo bevilacqua]

You want me to work ...

Authentication coded and transfer fixed. Check it out.

[sdekooter]

nice work! Name however doesn't seem to survive a transfer? (doesn't show up in the screen of phone to which call is transfered?)

[paolo bevilacqua]

Transfer is a strange thing. You can see that scripts copies back the name in the display field when transferring. Then if doesn't show I'm not sure what I should do.

On the other not even when doing transfer with phones the name/number of the original caller shows.

[sdekooter]

Is the reason why it is difficult to make an outgoing TCL/IVR because you can't handle over to some default session app?

I was just coming to the idea of an outgoing version of the script as it is. That way a caller would see the same of the called person in his screen while establishing an outgoing call.

Also I am thinking of something like an 'external bulk speeddial list' by which TCL would send http query with the speeddial (eg *9123) and then return both the name and E164 number of the destination and establishing the call.

Your note about difficult outgoing TCL/IVR however makes me consider..

[paolo bevilacqua]

When you do handoff to the default application, the only parameter that I'm sure you can set, is the destination number as a kind of environment variable. See, B-ACD/AA does like that. I don't know if one would be able to pass a calling name.

Also I'm not sure if you would be able to update the display on the caller phone. I think that a good xml directory service is better for that.

You can have "outgoing" tcl scrips, that is they make calls, in fact number2name belongs to this category.

The complication came when you want to hook the script to an outgoing DP with the command "service xxx outgoing". This require some script linking that honestly I did not quite understood. So I'm happy with scripts triggered by incoming DP only for now.

[sdekooter]

Considering the handling by default session application; I am quite sure there is a different in this since 12.4(11)XW /cme4.2 and BACD 2.1.2.2. With CME4.0 you couldn't see the name of the phone that was ringing if you called BACD. In cme4.2 it does, the same like when calling a normal hunt-group. The display is updated every time a call switches over to the next hop.

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/ios/voice/tcl/developer/guide/tclivrv2_ch3.html#wp1076619

[paolo bevilacqua]

Ok, but b-acd/aa does not contain "leg callerid" commands, so the display update working is probably due to some IOS internals improvement.