Planning and Deploying Lync 2010 Mobility

 

A few days back I wrote about the Lync 2010 mobile been released. A few of my friends asked me on how can they plan and implement it in their organization. So here I am sharing some information which Microsoft has shared on Planning and Deploying Lync Mobility.

When you deploy cumulative update for Lync Server 2010: November 2011, you can deploy the mobility feature to provide Microsoft Lync 2010 functionality on mobile devices. This section provides details about the mobility feature and how to plan for deploying it.

Microsoft has released Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Mobility Guide on 8-Dec-2011 which guides you through the process of deploying the Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Mobility Service and the Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Autodiscover Service. When you deploy the Mobility Service, users can use supported iOS, Android, Windows Phone, or Nokia mobile devices to perform such activities as sending and receiving instant messages, viewing contacts, viewing presence. The Mobility Service also enables mobile devices to use some Enterprise Voice features, such as click to join a conference, Call via Work, single number reach, voice mail, and missed calls.

When you use the Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Autodiscover Service along with the Mobility Service, mobile devices can automatically locate the URLs for Lync Server Web Services and the new Mobility Service regardless of network location.

The document is divided into three main sections as:

1. Planning for Mobility
2. Deploying Mobility
3. Monitoring Mobility for Performance

To support Lync mobile applications on mobile devices, the cumulative update for Lync Server 2010: November 2011 provides three new services.

1. Microsoft Lync Server Mobility Service. This new service supports Lync 2010 functionality, such as instant messaging (IM), presence, and contacts, on mobile devices.
2. Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Autodiscover Service. This new service identifies the location of the user and enables mobile devices to locate resources, such as the internal and external URLs for Lync Server Web Services and the URL for the new Mobility Service, regardless of network location.
3. Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Push Notification Service. This service is a cloud-based service that is located in the Lync Online datacenter. When the Lync mobile application on a supported Apple iOS device or Windows Phone is inactive, it cannot respond to new events, such as a new instant messaging (IM) invitation, a missed instant message, a missed call, or voice mail, because these devices do not support mobile applications running in the background. In such a case, a notification, called a push notification, for the new event is sent to the mobile device. The Mobility Service sends the notification to the cloud-based Push Notification Service, which then sends the notification either to the Apple Push Notification Service (APNS) (for supported Apple iOS devices) or to the Microsoft Push Notification Service (MPNS) (for Windows Phone), which sends it on to the mobile device. The user can then touch the notification on the mobile device to activate the application.

You can deploy the mobility feature in the following topologies:

• Lync Server 2010 Standard Edition
• Lync Server 2010 Enterprise Edition

The Edge Server can be a Lync Server 2010 Edge Server, or it can be an Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 R2 Edge Server if you are in the process of migrating to Lync Server 2010.

The following diagram illustrates the flow of mobile application web requests for Mobility Service and Autodiscover Service.

There are various requirements related to Website, DNS, Port & Firewall, Certificates, IIS etc. which are listed and documented in this document for references.

The next obvious question which comes to the mind is regarding the Capacity Planning.

Determining the amount of capacity that you need for mobility is an iterative process of estimating your mobility usage, measuring your current capacity, planning for additional capacity, and monitoring key indicators for performance. The following figure illustrates the phases involved in capacity planning and the factors involved in each phase.

Mobility Capacity Planning Workflow

Three factors influence your capacity planning for Front End Servers running the Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Mobility Service. The document gives good amount of information on planning for this with some examples.

• User model
• Mobile device characteristics
• Available RAM

The phase-wise sequence of steps to deploy Lync 2010 Mobility feature can put as below. Please refer the sections in the document for references

Phase	Steps	Permissions	Section References in the Documentation
Create Domain Name System (DNS) records	· Create an internal DNS CNAME or A (host) record to resolve the internal Autodiscover Service URL. · Create an external DNS CNAME or A (host) record to resolve the external Autodiscover Service URL.	· Domain Admins · DnsAdmins	Creating DNS Records for the Autodiscover Service
Install cumulative update for Lync Server 2010: November 2011	Install updates on all server roles in your deployment.	CsAdministrator	Installing Cumulative Update for Lync Server 2010: November 2011
Set ports for the Front End Server	· Set internal listening port for the Mobility Service. · Set external listening port for the Mobility Service.	RTCUniversalServerAdmins	Setting Internal Server Ports for Mobility
Install Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Mobility Service and Microsoft Lync Server 2010 Autodiscover Service	· Run McsStandalone.msi on each Front End Server to install the Mobility Service and the Autodiscover Service. · Run McsStandalone.msi on each Director to install the Autodiscover Service.	CsAdministrator	Installing the Mobility and Autodiscover Services
Modify certificates	Add subject alternative name entries to the following certificates to support secure connections for mobile users: · Director certificate · Front End pool certificate · Reverse proxy certificate	Local administrator	Modifying Certificates for Mobility
Configure the reverse proxy	· Assign certificates updated with subject alternative names to the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Listener. · Configure a new web publishing rule for the external Autodiscover Service URL. · Ensure that a web publishing rule exists for the external Lync Server Web Services URL on your Front End pool. Or · If you choose to use HTTP for the initial Autodiscover request and not update subject alternative name lists on the certificates, configure a new web publishing rule for port 80 HTTP.	Local administrator	Configuring the Reverse Proxy for Mobility
Test your mobility deployment	Run Test-CsMcsP2PIM to test sending an instant message from one person to another.	CsAdministrator	Verifying Your Mobility Deployment
Configure for push notifications	· For Lync Server 2010 Edge Servers, add a Lync Server online hosting provider and configure hosting provider federation. · For Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Edge Servers, add a federated partner. · If you want to support push notifications over a Wi-Fi network, configure a firewall rule for TCP port 5223. · Use the Set-CsPushNotificationConfiguration cmdlet to enable push notifications to the Apple Push Notification Service (APNS) and Microsoft Push Notification Service (MPNS). This feature is disabled by default. · Use the Test-CsFederatedPartner cmdlet to test the federation configuration and the Test-CsMCXPushNotification cmdlet to test push notifications.	RtcUniversalServerAdmins	Configuring for Push Notifications
Configure mobility policy	Use the Set-CsMobilityPolicy cmdlet to allow or disallow user access to mobility features and to enable or disable Call via Work. These features are enabled by default.	CsAdministrator	Configuring Mobility Policy

I would recommend the readers to have a detailed analysis of the document Lync Server 2010 Mobility Guide before implementing the solution in their premises. Also, based on your support level with Microsoft, it is good to proactively engage the resources instead of fire fighting at the end.

Lync Mobility is a great feature which can be provided to the employees and give them the control for their communication options.

Comments

• Anonymous
  December 26, 2011
  hi, What if we have only Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 during the lync migration phase, can we install lync 2010 mobility. Regards, Suri

• Anonymous
  July 11, 2013
  tengo el siguiente problema el lync desde una red externa funciona sin con dispositivos moviles, pero si me conecto por la wifi corporativa el lync no logra conectarse.