Microsoft has announced something many Lync users have clamored for – connectivity between Lync Server and Skype is now available.

For what? What does it do? Well, how about:

• Adding Skype contacts into Lync, and Lync contacts into Skype
• Instant Messages between both platforms
• Making calls between both platforms

For starters?

Microsoft’s announcement has details and instructions on how to use the new connectivity.

2 things to do first: Provision with Microsoft, and Configure Lync Server

Hold up though! We have to configure Lync Server a little before it’ll talk to Skype properly. There are two things to implement first.

One: Provision the Lync Server for Public IM Connectivity (PIC) with Microsoft.

Briefly, you will have to report some information about your Lync Server to Microsoft for PIC provisioning. To do this you’ll need your Microsoft agreement number, Access Edge Service FQDN and SIP domain.

These are used in a Provisioning Request for use rights. The guide below has the steps to follow.

Two: Configure the Lync Server to accept Skype connectivity.

Once your server is provisioned with Microsoft, it’s simply a matter of setting up proper Federation & PIC in the Lync Server Control Panel.

Both of these steps are documented here: Provisioning Guide for Lync-Skype Connectivity: Lync Server 2013 and Lync Online – Microsoft Downloads

Grab that document, your SIP information, and pretty soon your users will be able to talk between Lync and Skype!

And this is how they’ll get started. By adding Skype contacts into Lync.

How to Add a Skype contact in Lync

1. In the Lync window, click the “Add a Contact” icon (the small icon just above & to the right of the contacts list; looks like a person with a plus sign).
2. Go to “Add a Contact Not in My Organization”. A menu will appear to its right.
3. If your administrator has completed configuration, you’ll see Skype among the options. Click Skype.
4. Enter the IM address (the contact’s full Skype address, including domain – contact@domain.com).
5. Under “Add to contact group:” select the group to which you want this contact to belong.
6. Under “Set privacy relationship:” set the level of privacy you want. This governs how much of your Presence information is visible to the Skype contact.
7. Click OK. Sit back and watch the new contact appear!
8. From here, you can get a hold of the Skype contact like every other Lync user. Double-click and start talking!

Don’t forget the provisioning.  Configuring Lync Server for Skype connectivity is easy…but it won’t work without provisioning in place.

Connectivity between Lync and Skype contacts is Step 1, I think, of merging the two platforms completely. What form will that take? Well, I have speculated on this before…but for now, I’m glad we have interconnectivity as a start.

A reader I’ll call “Mr. BV” emailed last week. He asked if there was a way to change the ‘Incoming Call’ popup Lync displays.

This popup is called the “Toast”.  Normally it displays basics: name, number, etc.  Mr. BV was interested in displaying some additional details about the caller in the Toast popup.

Hmmm, could we do this? I did some research to find out. But as far as I can tell, directly modifying the Toast popup is not permitted in Lync.

Why Can’t We Modify Toast?

This inability is a little puzzling. It’s all digital information, right? Calls come to Lync through VoIP, so the caller ID data IS available. Why not display full contact details by default, or at least allow for modification to add them in?

However, I can think of one good reason not to: Phone systems are not consistent.

Not all phones are VoIP. Varying systems & standards exist for voice communication throughout the world. There’s a lot of consistency built in, of course. Otherwise people couldn’t call a PBX from their cellphone, or make an overseas call from Lync.

But without some universal standard, picking contact details from an incoming call is not guaranteed to retrieve the same details every time.

What if Lync can determine an incoming caller’s name, but they don’t have the company name? What should the Lync Server do? Ignore the call? Fail to display the Toast popup due to insufficient data?

Any hesitation or failure to display could result in a missed or lost call. Thus defeating Lync’s purpose.

I think this is why the Lync SDK doesn’t allow direct modification of the Toast popup.

What CAN You Do? Two Options

That doesn’t meant there’s nothing you can do with Toast.

During research, I came across two possibilities for modifying Lync *around* call popups.

1. Create a second Popup. Using Lync’s SDK, you can create a secondary popup to activate whenever Toast pops up. THIS popup you can configure all you want, displaying whatever details are available.I’ve seen multiple comments saying this in Lync support forums. However none had specific directives on how to go about it. I looked, but came up dry.

I’m sure there’s an answer in the SDK documentation:
Lync 2010 SDK Documentation
Lync 2013 SDK Documentation

I will keep looking for more on this one. SDK-related posts are overdue on the Lync Insider.

2. Third-Party Add-ons. Matt Landis posted about a couple third-party Lync extenders, SuperToast and LyncPopper. I think I referenced SuperToast the other day; it’s an add-on that creates additional notifications if you miss a conversation. (Geared mostly toward IM.)

The SuperToast download page is: http://www.modalitysystems.com/software/super-toast

Sadly, this means I must give Mr. BV some bad news. His query about changing the Toast popup’s contents when you receive a new call just won’t work. (Today at least; maybe in the future we’ll be able to modify it.) But there are ways to extend the popup if you really want to.

But at the same time: Lync is extremely open to modifications, through the Management Console, PowerShell and its SDK. Inability to modify one minor aspect does not take away from Lync’s overall utility.

Have you coded an addition to Lync’s Toast popup? Please share your ideas in a comment!

We’ve been really busy lately. Which is great – new sites to build, new Lync systems to architect, and more besides.

Unfortunately, this means I’m head-down on a few projects, and my loyal Lync Insider readers will have to wait a bit longer for the next post. Hope everyone had a good Memorial Day, you have good work to do, and you’ll be back here next time!

Welcome to the second half of the Persistent Chat discussion!

We learned two things about Persistent Chat logs in the last post:

They are conversations which are accessible to other Lync users.
AND
You can add more to stored Chat logs later.

This functionality makes them very useful as an information asset.

Last time I compared chat logs to notes from a meeting. How do you use notes in your office? How would you, if you could share the notes with others & update them whenever necessary?

If you’re not sure, let me give you some ideas.

8 Uses for Persistent Chat Logs

FOR BUSINESS

• Change Log: A chat room window is great for tracking changes to software development, web design, content development and a whole lot more.
• Client Notes: We all have that 1 client who likes things done a certain way, and we need to make sure everyone knows it…
• Project Management Reference: Every project generates notes, specifications, directives, and so on. Keep them in one log and everyone has easy access.
• Team Collaboration: SharePoint Sites make a great platform for collaborating team members. But if you aren’t running SharePoint, Lync’s Persistent Chat provides a simple way to keep teams on track with what each person’s doing.

FOR ORGANIZATIONS/NONPROFITS

• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ): As new questions come in, someone will update the FAQ log. Any good questions can be posted to the website.
• Project Coordination: A project manager can use a chat room log as the central location for project steps and goals.
• Emergency Updates: With Lync for Mobile, organizations dealing with emergencies such as the Moore Tornado can update the main office from the site. (PlanetMagpie extends every sympathy to those affected. I have personally donated to assist recovery efforts.)
• PR: Storing talking points, public relations contacts and media messaging in one place? Sounds like an easy way to keep PR consistent!

8 uses. Many of which overlap, and can extend other daily processes. Sounds even more valuable now, doesn’t it?

So how do you start using Lync’s Persistent Chat? You’ll have to create a chat room. Chat rooms are logged and updated live for all chat room members (like Skype). Here’s how to start off.

How to Create a Persistent Chat Room in Lync 2013

1. In Lync 2013, click the Chat Rooms icon between Contacts and Conversation History.
2. Click the gray plus icon on the right, above the chat room list. Its tooltip says, “Add a Room.”
3. A dropdown menu will appear. To follow (join) an existing chat room, click “Follow a Room…” We will create a new chat room here, so click “Create a Chat Room…”
4. A browser window will open. Navigate to the My Rooms page.
5. Click “Create a New Room” to open the Room Creation page.
6. Enter the details in the page fields:
1. Room Name – A name for the chat room. Keep chat room names descriptive & consistent (e.g., “Project Management Reference-UI”).
2. Check Names – Click this to make sure the name is not in use already.
3. Description – Explain your chat room’s purpose, so others will recognize it.
4. Privacy – Choose a privacy setting for your room from the options:
1. Open: Anyone can search for, read and write in the chat room.
2. Closed: Members (those who follow the chat room) can open, read and write in the room. Non-members can search for the room and see who’s a member, but nothing more. (Default)
3. Secret: Only members can see, read or write in this chat room.
5. Manager (Optional): Enter names of any managers you want for the chat room into the Managers field. Managers can add room members and change room settings. As the one who created the chat room, you’re already a manager. creators are automatically added as managers. Separate names by semicolons. When done, click the “Check Names” button to make sure Lync can recognize their identities.
6. Members: Enter names of anyone you want to have access to the chat room. (You’re automatically a member.)
7. Notifications: Do you want the new members you’ve identified to receive a notice that they’ve been added to your chat room? Then select “Inherit invitation setting from category (True).” Otherwise, select “No invitations sent to members.”

Finally, click the Create button. This will take you back to the My Rooms dialog, where you’ll see a confirmation that your new chat room is ready.

In Lync’s Chat Rooms window, you saw three options earlier: Followed, Member of, and New. Your new chat room should be listed under both Followed and Member Of. (If not, right-click the chat room name and select “Follow This Room.”)

Double-click the chat room and start typing!

You have a new chat room. Make use of it!

I hope this pair of posts will help to make businesses aware of Persistent Chat. It’s an underdog in the Lync communications family, though it’s arguably one of the most flexible tools.

Look for more Persistent Chat-related posts coming soon!

I’ll end with the same question I asked last week: Do you currently use Persistent Chat or Group Chat in Lync? What do you use it for the most?

While talking with our Lync team about training subjects to cover, I realized I hadn’t blogged about Chat in a while. And I should! It’s a very useful part of Lync Server (especially in 2013).

So, this will be the first of a double-post on Persistent Chat. The first post will go over what persistent chat is, and what’s been changed from Group Chat in Lync Server 2010. The second post will cover how to use Persistent Chat’s chat rooms, as well as some potential roles these chat rooms can play in your organization.

Ready? Open up Lync and let’s go!

Persistent Chat: Group Chat’s Stronger Successor

Last year I posted a ‘Group Chat 101′, saying Group Chat “provides text-based chat rooms where chats are recorded and searchable.”

Persistent Chat for Lync Server 2013 is still centered around this idea of recorded chat rooms. But it’s received some upgrades from the 2010 version.

Persistent Chat lets you create Chat Rooms within the Lync client. These Chat Rooms are spaces where you and other Lync users can share information. This information is archived in the Chat Room log. In the future, if you or someone else needs to refer to that information, they can look up the Chat Room log. And if necessary, update it with new information. Which is again archived for future reference.

Okay, so how is Persistent Chat different from Group Chat then?

The upgrades came in the form of integration. Group Chat was a separate download from Lync Server 2010. You had to use a separate client for chatting, too. Within the client you created a Chat Room, which users joined like they would a multiparty IM. Except Group Chat logs were accessible to everyone (who had proper permissions).

For those of you who used IRC (Internet Relay Chat), Group Chat was almost identical. But that same functionality also meant Group Chat was a less flexible, less dynamic communication tool than Lync’s Instant Messaging.

With Persistent Chat, a lot changed. Persistent Chat is now an included server role in Lync Server 2013. Install it via Topology Builder during Lync setup. (For a how-to, visit Matt Landis’ blog: Step by Step Installing Lync Server 2013 Persistent Chat Collocated on Standard Edition Front End – Windows PBX & UC Blog)

Chat Room functionality is also built into the Lync 2013 desktop client. You can access chat rooms as easily as you do IM.

See? It’s right there on Lync’s top nav bar, between Contacts and Conversation History.

Create a chat room in Lync, or access existing rooms (those you have permission to access, of course!). I’ll cover specifics on how to use chat rooms in the next post.

Right now, you may be wondering something.

“Why would we use Persistent Chat in the first place? It sounds a lot like IM already!”

Both are text-based conversations, yes. Both allow for multiple users to chat, share links or files, and so on. But Instant Message and Persistent Chat aren’t quite the same. And it’s their differences that make Persistent Chat valuable.

See, IM is a LIVE conversation. If someone’s offline, you can’t talk with them. Also, IM logs are stored locally, in your own Conversation History. If you want to review a conversation someone else had, you’ll have to ask them to send you the log. You can’t access it on your own.

IM conversations are, essentially, private. Persistent Chat conversations are not.

How are non-private chat logs valuable? Because Persistent Chat logs turn a business conversation into an information asset for everyone. Think of a chat log like notes from a meeting – valuable insight from those events, captured for everyone’s future reference.

Sounds pretty valuable to me!

Next post, I’ll show you how to use Persistent Chat in Lync, and list some potential uses you can derive from it. See you then!

Do you currently use Persistent Chat or Group Chat? What do you use it for the most?

I admit to being stumped. Not only regarding a solution to today’s question, but I’m also stumped as to why it’s necessary.

The other day I received an email from a consultant. They were asked to create a means by which a Lync user could IM multiple people at once. WITHOUT starting a conference or using Multiparty IM.

Did I know of a way to do this?

Multiparty IM without the Multiparty? Why?

The only way I can think to IM multiple people outside of a group conversation, is to just IM each person separately. That would take a little time, sending one IM after one IM. But it’s doable without any programming.

I don’t think Lync would respond well to multiparty IM, without the multiparty. Even with good coding. The Lync client depends on your IM conversations grouping, as this makes it easy for any user to add extra services (audio, video, app sharing).

I was curious though…if you could code a Lync process to IM multiple people at once, what form would it take?

The only thing I can think of, would be to code a PowerShell script to auto-open separate IM windows for users you select.

(Except you can do this now, without PowerShell. Just double-click on each user in your contacts list. Lync Server 2013 will load each IM into a separate tab in its Conversation Window. To send each person a message, just type it into their IM window.)

Coding Privacy into Private IM Conversations – Much Ado About Nothing?

The reason given for this was stated as security. In theory, excluding other Lync users from seeing a particular Instant Message would act like BCC in email.

Don’t get me wrong. Security IS important, especially during communications. But the thing is, an ordinary IM conversation between two people is already private! There’s no inherent need for extra separation.

I’m NOT passing judgment on the person who contacted me. They were asked to create this functionality, and came up dry on possible methods. Why they were asked, I’m not sure…but it’s not their fault!

Perhaps someone has a need to separate IMs for compliance with an internal process. Or they want to IM multiple people at once, to use for announcement purposes.

Either way, I’m baffled.

So I’m opening this post up to the Lync community. Have you ever encountered a desire for multiple simultaneous Instant Messages, without creating a multiparty IM conversation?

If so, how would you code a solution?

I’ve seen a rise in new visitors to the blog lately. Welcome!

Sometimes I forget that many people still have no idea what Lync Server does. They’ve heard that “it runs your phones” or “it’s an IM system” and that’s it.

The good news is: it does both, and more! For those of you who are new to Lync, let me take a half-step back and give you some ideas about its capabilities.

I’m doing so through parallels – illustrating how Lync Server and its clients mirror (or in some cases simplify!) your everyday communications. Like phone calls and texts.

Everyday Communication Methods, and How They Work in Lync

Making a phone call
EVERYDAY: Pick up the phone and dial.  Or scroll through contacts.
LYNC: In your Lync client, click the dial pad, enter the number.  Or scroll through your contacts list.

Sending a text
EVERYDAY: Texting via phone. Hunched over, thumbs flailing.
LYNC: Use an Instant Message. Type and send from your computer or phone.

Listen to voicemail
EVERYDAY: Dial your voicemail on your phone, listen in.
LYNC: Listen to your voicemails on your phone’s Lync client. Or on your desk phone. Or listen to the voicemail recording delivered to your inbox.

Hold a conference call
EVERYDAY: Set up a call via a third-party conferencing provider like WebEx or GoToMeeting. Arrange a good time for all parties.
LYNC: Start an Online Meeting, and email attendees the URL. No third-party needed.

Manage calls from the front office
EVERYDAY: Use a PBX phone system, often specialized, to hold & route calls. Or a third-party reception service (sometimes resulting in long hold times and calls lost in limbo).
LYNC: Use the Lync Attendant Console on the front office computer. Route, hold, forward, all from Attendant.

Forward calls according to priority
EVERYDAY: “Let me put you on hold (while I scramble to find someone who might be here today)…”
LYNC: Response Groups automatically forward to other team members you delegate ahead of time.

Skype calls (with/without video)
EVERYDAY: Turn on the webcam and run Skype.
LYNC: Turn on the webcam and run Skype! (Skype and Lync are friendly with one another. And heading for further integration.)

This should give you a nice overview of Lync Server 2013′s voice and text systems. (And I didn’t even mention its video or presentation capabilities!)

Now, if our newest Lync Insider readers would kindly answer a question for me…
What’s the first objection you’d have to using Lync Server?

Please leave a comment, or email me. Exploring Lync Server and its uses in the office is why this blog exists!

A Lync Insider reader emailed me the other day, asking about Mobility Services. His external users couldn’t log in using Lync Mobile, and he wasn’t sure why.

After reviewing what he said, I thought it sounded similar to a problem we encountered during the Moving to Lync Server 2013 process.

The Problem: Everything’s Working, Except Mobility Services for External Users

The reader (let’s call him Bob) runs Lync Server 2010 Standard Edition. A 2010 Front End pool and a 2010 Edge Server, in place and properly configured. Voice, video, chat, mobility services, and federation all work fine.

Bob introduces a Lync Server 2013 Front End server in a new pool, in co-existence mode. Following configuration, Bob finds that just about everything is–still working fine!

Except for one thing. A Lync 2013 user, when signing in externally with Lync Mobile, experiences an error. Can’t Connect to Server. It may be busy or unavailable.

What’s going on here? Bob checks his Edge Server. DNS and push settings are configured. Internal Lync users on both Lync 2010 and Lync 2013 have no issues. External users can use voice and video.

It’s just Mobility Services which aren’t working on the Lync 2013 server. Why not?

The Solution: A 2013 Edge Server is Needed

In Part 7 of the Moving to Lync Server 2013 series, I mentioned a change we made after implementing the 2013 Edge Server:

“Larry also pointed the 2010 topology to the 2013 Edge server. External DNS must point to new Edge only. The new Edge Server (provided DNS is updated) will work for both 2013 and 2010 users.”

Here is the solution for Bob’s problem.

You do need a 2013 Edge Server to fully use Mobility Services. The new Mobility Services in 2013 is designed to take tablets into account; Lync 2010 didn’t have that functionality native. (Cumulative Updates did allow for tablet support, but it’s better-supported in Lync Server 2013.)

We encountered a Lync Mobile error similar to Bob’s while troubleshooting the 2013 Edge. Even though most of our users still used Lync 2010 clients, we moved all users from the 2010 Edge Server to the new 2013 Edge Server.

Everyone’s Lync clients worked without a hitch, irrespective of platform, after that. Including Lync Mobile.

Bob thought he’d just missed a settings tweak. He didn’t; in fact, he’d done a very thorough job on his topology. What he was missing was an additional Edge Server. With that in place, Mobility Services for Lync 2013 works!

If you’re planning to use Co-Existence Mode to transition from Lync Server 2010 to Lync Server 2013, take note. A 2013 Edge Server is critical to begin transitioning Lync users. Not to mention mobile access.

Have you encountered a mobility error like this? Let’s discuss!

The Polycom CX700 phone ships with version 7577.4100 of the Lync Phone Edition operating system. It’s an older version, from OCS days.

You can still use this phone with Lync Server 2010 and 2013, by installing the latest version of Lync Phone Edition.

However, attempting to upgrade it via the direct route fails. Turns out there’s an error in its upgrade path.

We encountered this error, and after some online research plus talking to Microsoft, came to the solution. Here it is, for your future reference!

The Problem: CX700 Won’t Allow Upgrades OR Login

Like all Polycom phones, the CX700′s OS is upgradeable. We found out about the latest version of Lync Phone Edition, Cumulative Update 7 (CU7). Hey, new version! Let’s upgrade!

Except we couldn’t. We tried logging into the phone for upgrading…and failed. The phone stalled, eventually giving us a Certificate Authentication Error.

Why would the phone resist upgrading? Were we missing a setting? Did we have the wrong process?

Time to find out. To the Internet!

The Solution: CX700 Requires CU5 Before CU7

Thanks to a call to Microsoft and one of Jeff Schertz’s excellent blog posts, we discovered the problem. It’s an error between version upgrades of Lync Phone Edition. Microsoft has not listed this error on their websites, but they will confirm the error exists if asked.

In order to upgrade to CU7, you must first install a prior update, Cumulative Update (CU5). Once CU5 is installed, the CX700 will recognize CU7 as a valid upgrade path for its OS, and the install will go through.

Jeff Schertz, a Lync Server MVP and blogger at http://Blog.Schertz.Name, has posted an explanation and workaround for the CU5-to-CU7 upgrade issue:
Lync Phone Edition CU6 Upgrade Issues – Jeff Schertz’s Blog

(His post discusses upgrading to CU6. The same process can be used for CU7.)

You must manually install CU5 to the phone, and verify its certificate, before attempting to install CU7. The steps for doing are listed in “Workaround” on the above-linked blog post.

(Using this process, you can even skip upgrading to CU6 and use CU7 instead.)

CU5 Not Available for Download at Microsoft; Download the Update File Below

Lync Phone Edition CU7 is available from Microsoft Support. However, Microsoft does not have CU5 posted on their Downloads site anymore! If you search for it, you will find a CU5 KB page. But clicking Download will give you a copy of CU7 instead.

Unfortunately, this is standard Microsoft practice. But it leaves all of us in the lurch on these phones!

Jeff Schertz again came to the rescue. He posted the CU5 download file (in .cab format) on his blog. In order to continue the goodwill, we’re offering the same file for download here:
UCUpdates_tanjay_CU5.cab

So there you have it. Download Lync Phone Edition CU5, install it on your CX700s following the Schertz procedure, and THEN you can upgrade the phones to CU7. It’s a workaround, yes. But for now, it does accomplish the goal.

Have you upgraded your Lync-enabled phones? How’d it go?

Cisco and Avaya, two major VoIP system providers (among other things) are criticizing Lync Server 2010/2013. And not just for missing one thing – it’s an outright attack.

They’re saying Lync is not suitable for full-time use. Microsoft doesn’t supply all the infrastructure elements needed to run it, causing too much complexity and producing an unreliable product.

The objections are documented in a NetworkWorld article titled, Unified communications Battle Royale: Cisco, Avaya feel the heat from Microsoft Lync. I think “feeling the heat” is apt – because it sounds like Cisco and Avaya are suffering from a serious case of sour grapes.

I’m a bit late to the party here – the smear campaign began in late February – but examination of these criticisms is still fair game. Let’s go through the issues Cisco and Avaya are jabbing at Lync with.

The Strategy: Tear Down Instead of Innovate

The attack takes the form of an online campaign + a white paper from Cisco, with Avaya chiming in. They’re attacking several points about Lync Server, from voice & video reliability to total deployment cost.

The white paper is available at Cisco.com: Key Considerations when Evaluating an Enterprise Collaboration Solution
Links to other campaign efforts are in the NetworkWorld article above.

The white paper is even in tone. But it’s definitely more of a push against Microsoft’s Lync than neutral advisory on Unified Communications.

The entire issue with this campaign is: They’re attacking competition, instead of examining your own product for improvements you can make.

When was the last time we heard of Cisco innovating? I don’t know of anything really impressive lately.

This is an old, old tactic. And one that has a terrible track record. Yet it’s pulled out almost every time companies want a competitor to go away.

Now Avaya, I kind of like their VoIP. They have a good-quality product. We actually haven’t replaced many Avaya systems with Lync yet…their customers like what they have. Great. No problem here.

So I don’t quite understand why Avaya’s jumping on Cisco’s bandwagon. If your product IS solid and well-supported, then it’s just a competition in the marketplace. Something we ALL have to do.

“Limitations” of Lync, and Why The Objections are Hollow

Let me address a few of the points Cisco and Avaya make in their campaign. From one perspective, they might be considered negatives.

Of course, they might be applied to Cisco and Avaya too. Or maybe they’re just options made available to customers. We’ll see.

Cisco (from the article): “Microsoft doesn’t provide phones, video endpoints, voice and video gateways, networking and cloud PSTN connections – leaving customers to find them elsewhere, increasing cost and complexity to implement, manage and troubleshoot Lync installations.”

Maybe this is intentional? Microsoft doesn’t try to take on all of that, leaving the choice up to service partners and clients? They get to choose which providers for things like SIP and cloud hosting, maybe saving money in the process?

(Full disclosure: PlanetMagpie is one of those service partners. We make several provider options available to Lync Server clients. We tested all of them ourselves, so we could recommend appropriate providers to the right size companies. This way smaller firms only pay for the bandwidth they need.)

Cisco (from the white paper): In attacking what it sees as Microsoft’s strategy for Skype, Cisco says that Skype will evolve to run better on Microsoft’s own software than on others. They point to a statement from Steve Ballmer: “We always want Skype to be first and best on Windows.”

One could easily interpret this line to also mean that they want Skype to remain in its dominant position for Windows voice communications. The position it gained over years of great functionality, on its own before the acquisition. Maybe Microsoft just wants to keep that ball rolling? Who wouldn’t?

Avaya (from the article): “[Avaya] questions whether Lync is resilient enough to provide 99.999% uptime for telephony services, long the industry standard among telecom carriers, says Vincenzo Signore, vice president of marketing.”

This is a dodge. The Lync Server software IS perfectly capable of 99.999% uptime. However, because Lync’s setup brings in other elements such as networking and gateways, Lync cannot be expected to muscle each of these into 99.999% uptime all day every day. It’s perfectly reasonable to want full uptime from VoIP hardware – and we take every step in deployment to assure it.

But let’s face it. Glitches happen. A line goes down now & then. This happens in ALL voice & video networking…even Cisco’s and Avaya’s.

What’s this attack really about? Market Share, and they’re losing it

The NetworkWorld article is well worth a read. It has a lot to say, and more to link to.

My impression of Cisco and Avaya’s campaign? They’re scared, and they’re trying to discredit Lync before it eats into more of their market share. Lync is doing great–but rather than improve their own products to continue competition, they’re resorting to attack ads and mudslinging.

Problem is, when you sling mud, a lot of it ends up on you too.

Is Lync Server perfect? No. It’s still a younger piece of software, bound to have a few kinks and support issues. That’s okay. It gives us a HUGE assortment of communications tools in exchange.

I’ll end this post by paraphrasing a military saying: “If you’re catching flak, you’re over the target.”
Looks like Lync Server is definitely over the target!

Do you currently use Cisco or Avaya for your communications? What’s your experience been like?