Connectivity is the ability to connect to different systems, applications, platforms, and networks to exchange data between them. It's an important part of modern computing, because it allows communication between systems or devices that don't necessarily "speak" the same language.
You experience the benefits of connectivity when you connect your cell phone to the wireless network at a friend's house or when you set up your new printer to connect to your home network using Bluetooth. In both cases, the devices must use a connection method that allows them to communicate:
- Your phone must switch from using a cellular data connection to a Wi-Fi connection.
- The printer must use Bluetooth instead of a wired printer cable.
These changes in connection work because the devices are able to "speak" Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. They can do this because the manufacturers added the necessary connectors to the devices. If the devices weren't already set up to connect in this way, you would need to install and configure connectors, such as antennae or adapters, before you could connect them.
The same type of configurations need to happen in all kinds of computing, including with CXone. CXone has the ability to communicate with a wide range of systems, platforms, and applications, but it cannot communicate unless everything is configured correctly.
Next Steps with Connectivity
For CXone to function properly, connectivity configuration happens in three places:
- In your call center's network to allow communications back and forth with CXone.
- In any third-party systems, platforms, or applications you want to use with CXone, such as a CRM
Third-party systems that manage such things as contacts, sales information, support details, and case histories. or virtual agent A software application that handles customer interactions in place of a live human agent. application. - In CXone, to set up communication with the specific CXone applications you are using, and to set up integrations with third-party systems, if any.
Next Steps: If You're Familiar with Connectivity
If you're familiar with connectivity and making the configuration changes required to get CXone running in your call center, you can find information in the online help to assist with setup in the following places:
- The Implementation page provides an overview of how to discover the ports, FQDNs, IP addresses, and other important information required for your CXone implementation.
- The Port, Domain, Voice, and IP Address Requirements page in the Implementation section of the online help. This page allows you to discover the IP addresses and FQDNs that you need to add to your organization's allowlist.
- The online help for the specific applications or systems you're setting up or integrating with. These pages may have information to help you in the setup. For example, to set up the agent application your agents will be using, go to the Agent Application Administration section and find the pages for the application you're using.
Next Steps: If You're New to Connectivity
If you're new to connectivity, read the other pages in this section of the online help. They provide an overview of connectivity concepts and how they relate to CXone:
- Connectivity in CXone: This page goes deeper into connectivity concepts and describes how they relate to CXone.
- Telephony in CXone: This page describes connectivity concepts that are specific to phone systems. It relates the concepts to CXone.
- FQDNs: The FQDNs page provides an overview of what FQDNs are and why they're important in CXone.
- IP Addresses: This page provides an overview of what IP addresses are and why they're important in CXone.
- Ports and Protocols: This page provides an overview of what ports and protocols are and why they're important in CXone.
The Implementation section of the online help is another valuable resource. It provides lists of the ports, IP addresses, FQDNs, and other requirements that CXone has. Start with the Implementation page, which provides an overview of how to discover all the information you need, with links to where you can find each piece of information in the online help.
Connectivity Issues After Implementation
Connectivity is important beyond the implementation process. It can have an ongoing impact on your call center's operations. If there's an issue anywhere on the telephone network between your call center and the people your agents talk to, it can be a connectivity issue.
Knowing the symptoms of the problem and any other details can be helpful when talking to technical support, whether you talk to a Account Representative, your phone carrier, or your internet service provider. Symptoms can include things such as latency, jitter, dropped calls, dead air, lack of audio on either side of the call, static on the line, trouble connecting the agent leg, and so on.
In addition to knowing the symptoms of the problem, it's helpful to have the following information ready prior to contacting technical support:
- Call recordings that demonstrate the symptoms.
- The date and time when the problem began.
- Approximately how many agents or calls are affected by the problem.
- Which side of the call is affected: agent, contact The person interacting with an agent, IVR, or bot in your contact center., or both.
- The kind of hardware and related software your organization uses, if known. For example, the kind of phones agents use and whether you have a Public Branch Exchange (PBX).
The Call Quality Explorer report allows you to monitor issues on your voice channels, such as latency, jitter, or dropped calls. For CXone partners, the Voice Quality Metrics application gives additional insight into connectivity issues.