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Networking Guide for Cisco Unity Release 5.x (With Microsoft Exchange)
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Chapter 5 AMIS Networking
AMIS Concepts and Definitions
Blind Addressing and AMIS Networking
AMIS blind addressing is one of the methods that Cisco Unity provides for addressing AMIS messages
to users of another voice messaging system. Blind addressing allows Cisco Unity subscribers to send
messages to subscribers on the remote voice messaging system even though the recipient mailbox
number, name, and recorded name are not in the directory. Even though Cisco Unity cannot provide
voice name confirmation (hence the term “blind addressing”), the message is addressed and sent.
One of the steps to setting up blind addressing is adjusting the Blind Addressing setting on the Primary
Location > Addressing Options page. You also create a delivery location that corresponds to each voice
messaging system with which Cisco Unity communicates.
You provide the following information for each delivery location:
• Delivery Phone Number—The number that Cisco Unity dials to reach the other voice messaging
system.
• AMIS Node ID—The number that is used by Cisco Unity to identify the remote voice messaging
system during an AMIS transmission. For incoming calls, Cisco Unity searches the AMIS delivery
locations for an AMIS Node ID that matches the value transmitted by the originating node. If a
corresponding location is not found, Cisco Unity follows the AMIS protocol and rejects the call
without recording messages.
• Dial ID—A unique number that identifies the location to Cisco Unity. This is the number that
subscribers dial when blind addressing messages to individuals who use the remote voice messaging
system.
When blind addressing a message, subscribers dial a number that is made up of the delivery location
Dial ID and the mailbox number of the recipient. Before addressing the message, Cisco Unity parses the
number that the subscriber entered and searches for a matching delivery location. If Cisco Unity does
not find a matching location, it reports the error to the sender and does not address the message. If a
matching delivery location is found, Cisco Unity addresses the message without verifying that the
remote mailbox number exists. Cisco Unity does provide voice name confirmation that the delivery
location exists before addressing the message (assuming that a voice name was recorded for the delivery
location).
Because your Cisco Unity server does not have access to the names and extensions of the users on the
other voice messaging system, subscribers cannot use spelling mode when blind addressing a message
to someone on the other system.
Subscribers can also address voice messages in ViewMail for Outlook and in the Cisco Unity Inbox to
someone on the remote voice messaging system by using the following format: [AMIS:<Location Dial
ID>_<Remote Mailbox>]. For example, to send a message to Dial ID 206, mailbox 555, the address is:
[AMIS:206_555]; the brackets must be included in the address.
For administrators of Cisco Unity, blind addressing is the option that requires the least amount of work
to set up. However, subscribers will encounter some limitations when blind addressing messages to users
on the other voice messaging system. Subscribers can address the message only by using number mode,
so they must know the delivery location Dial ID and the mailbox number for the recipient. Additionally,
Cisco Unity cannot verify that the number entered is correct, so subscribers may inadvertently address
a message to the wrong person or to a non-existent mailbox.
Subscribers can use the Cisco Unity conversation to add and delete blind addresses in their private
distribution lists. In contrast, subscribers cannot use the Cisco Unity Assistant to add blind addresses to
their private lists, though they can use it to view list members and to delete any blind addresses that were
added by phone. The Cisco Unity Administrator also does not allow you to add blind addresses to private
lists, but you can use it to view and delete list members.