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Videoconferencing at the University of Arkansas
IT Services supports Internet-based H.323 standard and high definition videoconferencing in numerous locations across campus utilizing Lifesize, Tandberg and Polycom endpoints.
In addition to permanent room setups, portable endpoints are available.
Faculty, staff, and students are able to initiate, conduct, or participate in IP-based H.323 videoconferences at no cost.
Bridging multiple locations, up to a total of 6 concurrent connections, is available as well as capturing/archiving videoconferences via IPVCR.
For more details contact John Drewry or Eric Gorder at the MultiMedia Resource Center (MMRC)
John Drewry, 575-5597, email jdrewry@uark.edu
Eric Gorder, 575-7401, email egorder@uark.edu
Videoconferencing Locations on Campus
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Arkansas Union
Tandberg 7000
ARKU 506 (Conference Room for Formal Meetings)
Contact:
Arkansas Union Reservations at 575-2146,
email arkues@uark.edu |
Career Development Center
Tandberg 1000
ARKU 618 (Virtual Interview Carrel)
Contact:
Lori Magar, 575-2805,
email smagar@uark.edu |
Division of Agriculture
Polycom VSX 7000
Poultry Science 0117
Contact:
Gary Shepard, 575-3471,
email gshepard@uark.edu
Mike Duncan, 575-5578,
email mduncan@uark.edu |
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**Engineering South - Tandberg
Tandberg 7000
AT&T Room
Contact:
Eric Den Boer at 575-8424,
email ericdb@uark.edu |
JB Hunt
Polycom 8000
Gene George Executive Boardroom
Contact:
Dan Puckett 575-6535,
email mailto:danp@uark.edu
John Chapman, 575-2901,
email jchapman@uark.edu |
JB Hunt
Polycom 8000
Portable Cart
Contact:
Dan Puckett 575-6535,
email mailto:danp@uark.edu
John Chapman, 575-2901,
email jchapman@uark.edu |
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**Law School
Lifesize Room
Contact:
Chris Abel, 575-5656,
email cabel@uark.edu
Randy Thompson, 575-5831,
email rjthomps@uark.edu |
Multimedia Resource Ctr (MMRC)
Lifesize Room
Contact:
John Drewry, 575-5597,
email jdrewry@uark.edu
Eric Gorder, 575-7401,
email egorder@uark.edu |
Mullins Library
Polycom 9002
Contact: Contact:
Dan Puckett, 575-6535,
email mailto:danp@uark.edu
John Chapman, 575-2901,
email jchapman@uark.edu |
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Willard J Walker
Tandberg 6000
542 WJW
Contact:
John Drewry, 575-5597,
email jdrewry@uark.edu
Eric Gorder, 575-7401,
email egorder@uark.edu |
**Walton College of Business
Lifesize Room
Contact: Jim Goodlander, 575-3243,
email jlgood@uark.edu
Jeff Waits, 575-7299,
email jwaits@uark.edu |
**World Trade Center, Rogers
Polycom VSX 7000
Contact:
John Drewry, 575-5597,
email jdrewry@uark.edu
Eric Gorder, 575-7401,
email egorder@uark.edu |
Disclaimer
*Although IT Services supports videoconferencing on the University of Arkansas campus, not all equipment is owned and operated by IT Services.
**Owned and operated by College, School or department.
Video Service-Level Agreement
Eligibility and Support
All faculty, staff, and students of the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville are eligible for videoconferencing services as defined, allocated, and priced in the University of Arkansas Service Plan.
IT Services provides several endpoints and codices for use and support of videoconferencing across the campus.
SPOC - Single Point of Contact
All U of A customers that commit to a video SLA must provide to IT Services' video staff a Single Point of Contact (SPOC) at the other participating site(s). The SPOC is a single phone number of the participating site(s)' facilitator/technical contact. IT Services prefers this to be a phone number to an alphanumeric pager carried by the technician or facilitator responsible for video services. The help desk/dispatching phone system option is available, however, for institutions that cannot provide a single pager number. Contact information for the UA customer must also be provided to IT Services.
Firewalls
For all participating sites, it is recommended to place the codec outside the firewall and protect it with a "strong" password of at least eight (8) characters.
While there are settings within the codec that allow videoconferencing through a firewall, each case is different. Problem response times in troubleshooting settings will increase greatly due to the complexities and exceptions involved. Coordinated change management, local testing practices, and communication between network and videoconferencing personnel will be prime factors in the success of the videoconference.
Service Period: July 1, 2006 through June 30, 2007
Definitions:
- Hours of Operation (excluding holidays): 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM, Monday through Thursday; 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM , Friday
- Contracted Services: Services for which a U of A customer or sponsoring agency contracts with IT Services
- Customer Contact: Contact information for the University of Arkansas customer arranging the videoconference with IT Services staff
- Single Point of Contact: The specific (single) contact information that IT Services will use to contact the technical staff/facilitator/other site(s) coordinator (pager, helpdesk, cell phone, etc.)
- Facilitator: Trained individual who has the responsibility for monitoring and troubleshooting conferences at the customer's remote participating site(s) and who is authorized to call IT Services per the Service Level Agreement. Likely the same as the SPOC.
IT Services and Customer Responsibilities for MultiMedia Resource Center Video Services
Information Technology Services and Customer Responsibilities
| Area |
ITS Responsibilities |
U of A Customer Responsibilities - On Campus |
Facilitator Responsibilities - Off Campus Site(s) |
| Facilities Services |
Provide multipoint conferencing according to contracted services. |
For each codec, provide a 10/100, full duplex, switched network port connected directly to building infrastructure switch with no intervening equipment (e.g., hub, office switch, etc.). |
Same |
| Provide consulting services on issues related to videoconferencing. Network technical assistance will be provided in troubleshooting connectivity issues, should they arise. |
N/A |
Provide network technical assistance to help troubleshoot connectivity issues. |
| Test supported codec software for security and interoperability problems. |
Use of video behind a firewall can impair your ability to participate in any event. Coordinated change management, local testing practices, and communication between network and videoconferencing personnel will be prime factors in success. If a departmental firewall is in use, place codec outside firewall and protect it with a strong password of at least eight (8) characters. |
Use of video behind a firewall can impair your ability to participate in any event. Coordinated change management, local testing practices, and communication between network and videoconferencing personnel will be prime factors in success. If possible, place codec outside firewall and protect it with a "strong" password of at least eight (8) characters. |
| Scheduling |
Schedule according to published video scheduling guidelines |
Submit any schedule request according to video scheduling guidelines. |
Same |
| Provide "Meeting Room" service according to published guidelines |
Use the "Meeting Room" service according to published guidelines. |
Same |
| Provide Ad Hoc event scheduling service |
Request Ad Hoc Events 48 hours in advance. |
Same |
| Monitoring and Reporting |
Monitor conferences during ITS business hours |
Be on site 30 minutes prior to meeting start time. |
Provide a facilitator for each event. The facilitator must be on site 30 minutes prior to meeting start time, have the ability to monitor the meeting, and participate in troubleshooting. |
| Generate performance measures to be worked towards from videoconference data |
N/A |
N/A |
| Problem Response |
Immediate problem response via phone calls during normal ITS hours |
N/A |
Follow applicable troubleshooting procedures to isolate/eliminate possible local hardware and infrastructure problems before contacting ITS. |
| Log all problems in a tracking system. |
Request ITS to perform specific troubleshooting functions within a conference including but not limited to: entering the conference, muting audio, muting video, or removing problem sites from conferences they are originating. |
Same |
| Troubleshoot problems based on data in ITS supported technologies. |
N/A |
If troubleshooting on the participating network uncovers a local problem, it is the facilitator's responsibility to resolve these specific problems before additional troubleshooting can take place. Until specified site problems are resolved, ITS cannot ensure that videoconferences will be within acceptable quality levels. |
| ITS will provide pre-test time for equipment prior to the actual start time of the event. |
Unless limited by time or endpoint availability all conferences are built with a 30-minute pre-test time. Test and troubleshoot your equipment with us during the pre-test window. |
Same |
| The standard pre-test window will be 30 minutes; times may vary depending on site availability. Mobile equipment needs more lead time for pre-testing. |
The customer must provide a single point-of-contact to ITS and be available during this time. |
The facilitator must be available through the registered SPOC contact information during the UA customer's hours of operation. Preferably at conference site. |
| Troubleshoot firewall-related problems affecting videoconferences according to established criteria. Problem response times will vary greatly if either your firewall or codec are configured incorrectly. |
N/A |
Facilitator must have access to all passwords and ID's necessary to troubleshoot, validate, and test the video codices at his/her site. |
| Supply troubleshooting aids on the ITS website. (to be developed) |
N/A |
Read and use the help available on the ITS website as well as provide local area networking information as needed. |
| Maintain a contingency plan for severe weather and network outages for videoconferences. |
Have a contingency plan for how to participate in case the site is unable to connect to its conference. |
Same |
| Monitor each conference participated in. |
Monitor each conference participated in. |
Same |
| Communication |
Respond to Single Point of Contact (SPOC) regarding any issues with ongoing conferences. |
The UA customer must have access to telephone or pager for communication with ITS and site SPOC. |
The facilitator must have access to telephone or pager for communication with ITS and UA customer. |
| Codec Validation |
Offer validation for new codices prior to scheduling in conferences. This includes validation and testing for configuration changes to previously validated codices. |
Contact ITS to validate/test new video codices prior to scheduling any conferences with those endpoints. This includes configuration changes made to codices validated previously (i.e.; IP address changes, alias name changes). |
Same |
| Training |
Provide familiarization training on supported videoconferencing codices. |
N/A |
Same |
| Train monitoring personnel in basic troubleshooting for the equipment in the room involved in the conference. |
N/A |
Same | We are a member of the Internet2 Commons and have two trained and certified videoconference site coordinators on staff to help facilitate the use of this technology. All faculty, staff, and students of the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville are eligible for videoconferencing services as defined, allocated, and priced in the University of Arkansas Service Plan.
For more information, contact Eric Gorder (egorder@uark.edu) or John Drewry (jdrewry@uark.edu), or phone the MMRC at 575-7401.
Troubleshooting
I am trying to particpate in a H.323 (Internet) videoconference from my home, and I am having difficulty connecting and have poor video quality.
Even with today's high speed residental broadband (cable or DSL) solutions, most residental broadband connections lack sufficient upload speed to successfully connect with most high-end videoconferencing equipment.
Links
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