Cisco Cisco TelePresence MCU 4510 Release Notes
New features in version 4.3
Cisco TelePresence MCU 4.3(2.30) Software Release Notes
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Cisco TelePresence MCU 4501 Series
Cisco TelePresence MCU MSE 8420
Cisco TelePresence MCU MSE 8510
The products are generically referred to as
‘the MCU’ in this document.
This document lists and describes the new features introduced by the point release 4.3(1.68), and issues resolved by
subsequent maintenance releases.
subsequent maintenance releases.
In call menus
Version 4.3 includes the ability to control many aspects of a conference while participants are on a call without
needing to access the web interface. These are controlled using menus accessed via the control keypad. Pressing *
on the keypad activates the in call menus.
needing to access the web interface. These are controlled using menus accessed via the control keypad. Pressing *
on the keypad activates the in call menus.
The in call menus can be made available to chairs only, or to both chairs and guest participants, or disabled
completely. Chairs can be configured to have access to the in call menus at one of three command levels:
completely. Chairs can be configured to have access to the in call menus at one of three command levels:
Level 1
Local commands - request floor, mute/unmute audio and video, change layout, view participants.
Local commands - request floor, mute/unmute audio and video, change layout, view participants.
Level 2
Level 1 commands plus Conference commands - assign floor to a participant, mute/unmute audio or video of
participants, lock the conference, disconnect all participants, change a participant’s volume, send DTMF tones to a
participant, disconnect a participant.
Level 1 commands plus Conference commands - assign floor to a participant, mute/unmute audio or video of
participants, lock the conference, disconnect all participants, change a participant’s volume, send DTMF tones to a
participant, disconnect a participant.
Level 3
Levels 1 and 2 plus Advanced commands - add participant, add/change PIN/guest PIN.
Levels 1 and 2 plus Advanced commands - add participant, add/change PIN/guest PIN.
Guests can be given access to Local commands only.
To configure access to in call menus, go to the Participant controls
section of the conference’s configuration page -
click Conferences, click the conference to be configured then click the Configuration tab. Set the In call menu for
chair and In call menu for guests parameters as required.
chair and In call menu for guests parameters as required.
Note that in call menus are not currently supported over cascade links.
Hybrid and passthrough content
In previous versions, the MCU decoded all content video such as presentations, and encoded a single new stream to
send out to all participants within a conference. In Version 4.3, the MCU can be configured to pass through a content
stream without decoding and encoding it. This can reduce latency and increase quality, and does not require a video
port on the MCU.
send out to all participants within a conference. In Version 4.3, the MCU can be configured to pass through a content
stream without decoding and encoding it. This can reduce latency and increase quality, and does not require a video
port on the MCU.
Sending a single video stream to everyone in a conference, whether encoded or passed through, can result in a
single participant reducing the quality for everyone. If one participant can only receive SD video while everyone else
can receive HD, then everyone receives SD video. This means that everyone receives a lower resolution than if only
HD participants had been present.
single participant reducing the quality for everyone. If one participant can only receive SD video while everyone else
can receive HD, then everyone receives SD video. This means that everyone receives a lower resolution than if only
HD participants had been present.
Hybrid mode helps avoid this issue. In hybrid mode the incoming content stream is passed through, giving the best
possible quality. It is also decoded and used to create a second, lower resolution stream for anyone who cannot
receive the passthrough stream. This uses up a video port but ensures that users get the advantages of both
transcoding and passthrough.
possible quality. It is also decoded and used to create a second, lower resolution stream for anyone who cannot
receive the passthrough stream. This uses up a video port but ensures that users get the advantages of both
transcoding and passthrough.
In addition, in previous releases the codec used for content had to be setup manually, to either H.263+ or H.264. This
can now be set to automatically choose the codec so that as many people as possible in the conference receive
content video.
can now be set to automatically choose the codec so that as many people as possible in the conference receive
content video.
To enable these settings go to the Content
section of the conference’s configuration page (Conferences then click
on the conference to be configured).