MAS rel.4 demo server specs

[marcustherock]

Hi, i am wanting to install a MAS rel.4 on a msl server and have looked at the compatibility charts,
but frankly i feel its overkill for the demo version, especially prce wise.
does anyone have ideas about what would be suitable to run this version?
the license includes
UCA Base with 3 x desk phone licenses, 3 x softphone licenses, 3 x UCA Mobile client licenses, 3 x UCA Web / mobile licenses and 1 x UCA console license

MCA Base with 5 x audio & web conference licenses

NPM Base with 8 x mailbox & personal call director licenses, 5 x std UM and 5 x adv UM licenses. 10 corporate directory names, 1 Text to Speech port, 1 Speech Auto-Attendant port, and 1 Fax port with 2 outgoing fax user licenses

UCM Base with 2 x UC mobile licenses

MBG Base with 2 x TW licenses and 2 x SIP trunk proxy licenses

13 Application Connection licenses for use with MCD

looking forward to your feedback.

 

[NTEDave]

The qualified hardware list has some fairly heavy duty servers but when we bought MAS with the Dell server from Mitel it turned out to be a Dell Optiplex Desktop machine!

As it's only a demo unit and you aren't going to be using all the features all the time I think you'll be fine with something like the Dell Optiplex, if it's good enough for Mitel?

Or you could take a punt on installing it on something you already have.

 

[danramirez]

why not trying the virtual version? do you have vmware?

http://www.hatkana.com

http://www.wtelecom.com

 

[marcustherock]

@NTEDAVE. I currently have a P4 3GHZ with hyperthreading and 2 gig ram, i am looking at doing a test run on that, also we have a blade server with 32gig ram with AMD phenom A8 running windows server 2008 but cannot use because it is currently our authentication server/ file server/ print server.

@DANRAMIREZ. i dont have vmware, i would have wanted to try the virtual version, but would it be possible to run as a virtual linux on an existing windows server package?

 

[LoopyLou]

For a demo you should not need all that powerful a server but it does have some minimal requirements. You might get it to work on a P4 but I think the experience will suck. Remember that the MAS is built on Centos Linux and it or the Red Hat HCL would also be an option. Mitel's HCL is only for stuff they have verified and are prepared to support.

So back to your question. The Engineering guides refer to Nahalem processorts as a requirement. That definitely leaves out the P4. If the AMD is multicore and multithreaded that might be your best option. It will be trail on error on your part as I have tried installing the MCD ISS ( uses the MSL as well ) on some hardware and it refuses.

To Danramirez's point the VMware version is to my thinking the way to go. You do have to stick to VMWares HCL but a much better option for a demo in my opinion. As an expample I have a portable demo with a vMCD and vMAS runnig on a ASUS N53 laptop. I don't have all the options you are looking for configed but did use it to demo working phones and Nupoint to a customer. You just need a little Netgear PoE switch to run the phones.

If you don't want to work with ESXi I have also tried getting vMCD working in VMWare Workstation 8 with no success and am now looking at Virtual box.

I'd tell you a UDP joke but I'm afraid you won't get it. TCP jokes are the best because you always get them.

 

[marcustherock]

Thanks LoopyLou,
would you mind elaborating on how you deployed the vmware installed on ur Asus?
i have decided that my only option is trial by error with existing hardware,
please provide me with as much info as possible, look forward to your ideas.

thanks

 

[IrwinMFletcher]

FWIW, I have MCA and AWC running on VMWare on a P4 3GHz 4GB Ram system for testing, and it 'works' although I tend to turn off whatever VM I'm not interested in at the time to give the other enough juice. Having said that, it's probably not something you'd want to demo. There is lag, so it won't look the smoothest, and MCA has some problems at times with the audio stuttering (if something else is running on the machine).

I've not tried Nupoint, I would suspect it's too much for my setup.

You're talking about running native, so you'd get about twice the performance I would out of the VM, so it would be cutting it close.

So yes, I'd say it's functional, but you'd have to check your expectations on the quality.

 

[marcustherock]

@IrwinMFletcher
I have very little expectations in terms of performance at this stage,
i think as a project to burn and learn i would like to install
on a entry level p4 3ghz, i do have also have an amd laptop running at 3ghz+,
or pretty much anything i can get my hands on right now
as a means of learning the hard way, on which OS platform did you deploy ?

 

[IrwinMFletcher]

Ok, by 'demo' I thought you meant to show it to customers etc. But to just get a feel for the install, that should be fine.

I put it on VMWare (ESX3i), I'm not sure what you mean by 'OS'. MAS includes it's own rolled flavor of linux so you don't need an OS, it'll just wipe whatever is on the system. Something to keep in mind, by doing that, you'll be wiping whatever Windows install you have, so make sure you have the install disks and product code if you plan on trying to put it back on, otherwise you've now got a linux box

 

[LoopyLou]

On the ASUS laptop I am using the ESXi software as the operating system. Once that is complete I setup the ESXi on the laptop then close its lid and ignore it. I then take a W7 laptop and browse to the ESXi laptop and download the VMWare client. Once downloaded and installed I use it ( the VMWAre client ) to control the ASUS and install the vMCD .ova file. Once you have the .ova installed you further use client to configure the MSL portion of the vMCD. When that is done you can browse to the vMCD ESM and program up the MCD portion.

So the ASUS N53 ( quad core i7 with 16 G RAM and 750 Gig hard drive ) to act as the VMWare enviroment. A second laptop to install the VMWare client to manage and configure the ESXi on the ASUS. I also bought a little Netgear layer 2 with 4 ports of PoE to run my phones. I plug the ASUS, my second laptop and a couple of phones into the netgear and boom Bob's your uncle you got a great demo kit. For another wrinkle I added a wireless router to allow me to add an Apple itouch as a SIP Wifi phone. I then can show off handoff between a deskphone and a "cell" phone using PRG's. I configured the vMCD as a small system and still have enough CPU's on the ASUS host to install a vMAS for Nupoint and UCA ( haven't configured that bit yet ).

I'd tell you a UDP joke but I'm afraid you won't get it. TCP jokes are the best because you always get them.

 

[marcustherock]

Thanks Loopy and Irwin,
Will give feedback in a few.
With the info you have given I don't see why I would even consider going the MSL route with xeon.
With respect to the platform, loopy has already answered that one.
Thanks all
Will keep you posted.

 

[LoopyLou]

Ultimate White box always had a good listing of platforms that ESXi had been run on with problems encountered. Looks like its being updated for ESXi 5. Vmware forums another good option to find out about test hardware.

I'd tell you a UDP joke but I'm afraid you won't get it. TCP jokes are the best because you always get them.