Cisco Cisco Unified Contact Center Enterprise 9.0(2) Release Note
Cisco Unified ICM/Unified CC Enterprise & Hosted Editions, Release 7.2(x)
Rev. 1.30
Hardware and System Software Specification
3BServer Hardware Configuration Guidelines
©2010 Cisco Systems, Inc.
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• RAID 10 (A Stripe of Mirrors) – This is the required RAID level for all medium to large Unified ICM/Unified CC
Logger and HDS nodes. RAID 10 offers the highest performance needed to meet the demands of SQL Server and
the Logger or HDS, while still maintaining a safe level of redundancy.
the Logger or HDS, while still maintaining a safe level of redundancy.
Unsupported configurations:
• Fibre Channel Arbitrated Loop (FC - AL) fabric topology
• Software based RAID provided by the operating system or other software
• Proprietary RAID solutions
• RAID 5 (Block Interleaved Distributed Parity)
• RAID 0 (Striped Disk Array without Fault Tolerance)
• RAID 0+1 (A Mirror of Stripes)
• Software based RAID provided by the operating system or other software
• Proprietary RAID solutions
• RAID 5 (Block Interleaved Distributed Parity)
• RAID 0 (Striped Disk Array without Fault Tolerance)
• RAID 0+1 (A Mirror of Stripes)
Caution
Typically used for redundancy in file server applications, RAID 5 has been observed in product testing to manifest
considerable performance degradation in write intensive applications. RAID 5 is thus not supported for new
deployments. When “technology refresh” upgrading, configure the target server array (that which is replacing the
existing RAID 5 array) for RAID 10.
RAID 0 is not supported due to the lack of fault tolerance. If one drive fails, then all data in the array is lost.
RAID 0+1 is not supported due to increased risks of data loss or down time in the event of a failure.
considerable performance degradation in write intensive applications. RAID 5 is thus not supported for new
deployments. When “technology refresh” upgrading, configure the target server array (that which is replacing the
existing RAID 5 array) for RAID 10.
RAID 0 is not supported due to the lack of fault tolerance. If one drive fails, then all data in the array is lost.
RAID 0+1 is not supported due to increased risks of data loss or down time in the event of a failure.
• Network Attached Storage (NAS)
NAS solutions pose unacceptable risk due to the variability of the interface between the server and the NAS
device; specifically, latency and bandwidth of the network link can introduce performance delays that put the
solution at risk. Because of this variability, Cisco cannot support NAS for Unified ICM or Unified Contact
Center.
device; specifically, latency and bandwidth of the network link can introduce performance delays that put the
solution at risk. Because of this variability, Cisco cannot support NAS for Unified ICM or Unified Contact
Center.
Alternative storage option:
Unified ICM and Unified CC server components are qualified and tuned for optimal operation on a dedicated
storage solution – direct attached (internal/external) SCSI or SAS. However, recognizing that some deployments
have data retention needs that exceed the storage capabilities of direct attached disk arrays, Cisco is prepared to
endorse the use of a Storage Area Network (SAN) under the following conditions:
storage solution – direct attached (internal/external) SCSI or SAS. However, recognizing that some deployments
have data retention needs that exceed the storage capabilities of direct attached disk arrays, Cisco is prepared to
endorse the use of a Storage Area Network (SAN) under the following conditions:
1.
The SAN must be dedicated to Unified ICM/CC only; the SAN may not be shared with other applications.
2.
The SAN may be used for historical databases (HDS) only.
3.
The SAN host interface (e.g. Fibre Channel) must meet or exceed the performance specifications of
supported (direct attached) SCSI/SAS interfaces (see Storage Hardware, Required Controllers above).
4.
Each individual drive in the SAN array must meet or exceed the performance specifications of supported
(direct attached) disk drives (see Storage Hardware, Disk Speed above). (Note: SATA drives are not
supported.)
supported.)
5.
The SAN disk array must be configured as RAID 10, for added performance and fault tolerance.
SAN solutions are typically deployed in a shared environment where multiple applications are contending for
storage access. Because of the real-time nature of the Unified ICM/Unified CC application, such an environment
cannot be supported; the conditions listed above are necessary to ensure that the deployment performs within
published capacity limits. If the SAN storage deployment is identified as affecting the functions of the contact
center solution, the customer will be required to deploy a direct attached storage solution instead. Moreover, if in
the process of troubleshooting, the SAN itself is identified as the problem, the customer must contact the system
integrator or the SAN vendor for resolution.
storage access. Because of the real-time nature of the Unified ICM/Unified CC application, such an environment
cannot be supported; the conditions listed above are necessary to ensure that the deployment performs within
published capacity limits. If the SAN storage deployment is identified as affecting the functions of the contact
center solution, the customer will be required to deploy a direct attached storage solution instead. Moreover, if in
the process of troubleshooting, the SAN itself is identified as the problem, the customer must contact the system
integrator or the SAN vendor for resolution.