• 12.1.1. Selecting a Fixed or Flexible Routing Configuration
• 12.1.2. Overview of DM3 Clusters

12. R4 on DM3 Resource Routing and Cluster Configuration

12.1. Fixed and Flexible Routing Configurations

R4 on DM3 supports two types of routing configuration (one is primarily for backward compatibility with previous releases of R4 on DM3, while the other provides routing capabilities compatible with the R4 API):

• Fixed Routing Configuration: This configuration is primarily for backward compatibility with R4 on DM3 in DNA 3.3 and System Release 5.0. The fixed routing configuration applies only to DM3 boards. With fixed routing, the resource devices (voice/fax) and network interface devices are permanently coupled together in a fixed configuration. Only the network interface timeslot device has access to the CT Bus. For example, on a DM/V960-4T1 board, each voice resource channel device is permanently routed to a corresponding network interface timeslot device on the same physical board. The routing of these resource and network interface devices is predefined and static. The resource device also does not have access to the CT Bus and so cannot be routed independently on the CT Bus. No off-board sharing or exporting of voice/fax resources is allowed.
• Flexible Routing Configuration: This configuration is compatible with R4 API routing on earlier-generation boards; that is, earlier-generation boards use flexible routing. Flexible routing is available for DM3 boards starting with R4 on DM3 in System Release 5.01. With flexible routing, the resource devices (voice/fax) and network interface devices are independent, which allows exporting and sharing of the resources. All resources have access to the CT Bus. For example, on a DM/V960-4T1 board, each voice resource channel device and each network interface timeslot device can be independently routed on the CT Bus.

These routing configurations are also referred to as cluster configurations, because the routing capability is based upon the contents of the DM3 cluster.

The fixed routing configuration is one that uses permanently coupled resources, while the flexible routing configuration uses independent resources. From a DM3 perspective, the fixed routing cluster is restricted by its coupled resources and the flexible routing cluster allows more freedom by nature of its independent resources, as shown in Figure 3. Cluster Configurations for Fixed and Flexible Routing.

Figure 3. Cluster Configurations for Fixed and Flexible Routing

12.1.1. Selecting a Fixed or Flexible Routing Configuration

You select the routing configuration when you use the Dialogic Configuration Manager (DCM) to assign a firmware file (pcd file) to each board in your Dialogic product configuration. In other words, by choosing, in the DCM "Assign Firmware File" dialog a DM3 product configuration description (pcd) file to be used with a board, you select the routing configuration for that board. Only fixed routing product descriptions identify the type of routing configuration. If the DCM displays a "Firmware Description" that is not identified as supporting fixed routing, the product supports flexible routing. The routing configuration takes effect at board initialization.

The availability of flexible routing for a specific Dialogic product depends upon the Dialogic software release in which the product is supported. Some products support fixed routing only and other products support flexible routing only. In other cases, Dialogic provides a choice of fixed or flexible routing, such as products using ISDN. In this case, you should select the product that provides the desired routing configuration (either fixed or flexible)

NOTE

Fixed and flexible routing are supported on Dialogic products as indicated in the Dialogic software Release Guide and Release Updates, so refer to those documents for information on specific product support.

You can only select the routing configuration at the product level. You cannot select the routing configuration at a resource level or configure a board to use fixed routing for some of its resources and flexible routing for other resources.

12.1.2. Overview of DM3 Clusters

Because DM3 clusters impact the operation of SCbus routing with R4 for DM3 (notably the fixed or flexible routing capability), it may be helpful to understand some basic information about clusters. The following information is provided as a short summary of background material and is not essential for using DM3 boards in a fixed or flexible routing configuration. However, understanding the underlying model of DM3 clusters may be helpful to some people. For in-depth background information, see the DM3 Mediastream Architecture Overview document.

• The DM3 mediastream architecture uses the concept of clusters to provide a logical grouping of DM3 resources. DM3 clustering has an effect on the R4 switching and resource/device management model. The clustering method affects the routing capabilities, as well as how an application obtains, uses, and closes device handles. Each cluster provides access to an SCbus transmit timeslot and acts as the communication manager for the cluster's components. All switching is accomplished using a cluster.
• In the DM3 model, a standard R4 API voice resource consists of a combination of several different DM3 resources grouped together in a cluster: The voice resource includes a Player, Recorder, Tone Generator, and Signal Detector. The network interface timeslot is referred to as a Telephony Service Channel (TSC). The SCbus resource provides access to the CT Bus.
• In DM3 terms, fixed routing indicates that the network interface device is combined with the resource device in a single cluster. On the other hand, flexible routing indicates that the network interface device and the resource device exist in separate clusters. See Figure 3. Cluster Configurations for Fixed and Flexible Routing.

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