There is no better way to put it than to just state “Envoy® Server now supports .NET programming!” Technically, Envoy® Server has been enhanced to host the Microsoft Common Language Runtime (CLR) but that way is just not as much fun to shout out loud.
Envoy® Server is a very efficient and scalable framework, but now that it has teamed up with .NET programming flexibility and simplicity, this combination is truly a powerful tool for data integration, consolidation, analysis, and transformation. The way Envoy® Server is designed, an incoming message request is routed to an Envoy® Server Plugin for processing. An Envoy® Server Plugin then does the work necessary to fulfill the request. Now that the Envoy® Server hosts the CLR, the Plugins can be either a .NET (managed code) or a standard (unmanaged code) Plugin. So pick the technology that meets your requirements AND fits your environment.
An Envoy® Server Plugin can fulfill a request in any number of ways; it can be as simple as writing data to a backend system such as a database or as complex as running a sophisticated algorithm that determines an optimal call routing plan and then also issuing the proper telephony commands to execute that plan. A Plugin can use the optimized resource management and connection pooling capabilities of Envoy® Server to call one or many backend systems. The power of hosting the Plugins in the Envoy® Server also allows the Plugin to operate synchronously, asynchronously or even as an event source such that the Plugin monitors some device or network object and then can notify one or many interested “parties” – event driven programs or displays. Whatever the business requirements call for, Envoy® Server is designed from the ground up to be a high performance conduit that can meet your demanding integration specification.
In addition to providing many options for developing business logic, Envoy® Server has a growing number of “out of the box” Plugins that can meet your needs immediately. Below is a short list of Plugins that are widely deployed technologies that would take your team thousands of hours to design, build, and test in order to provide a reliable integration point – technology interfaces that the Envoy® Framework already has built in and ready to deploy:
- Cisco ICM Plugin – provides efficient, redundant communication with the Cisco ICM Peripheral Gateway. Cisco ICM is a network-based software platform for managing a call center with distributed resources. Resources can range from a customer service center to a remote IVR system located in another time zone. Cisco ICM continuously monitors these resources as well as call activity, to control the distribution of calls and data across the enterprise. By using the Cisco ICM Plugin, you can effectively allow any new or legacy Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems to easily add communication capabilities with Cisco ICM.
- Envox CT Connect Plugin – provides robust connectivity, event notification, and call control capabilities of the Envox CT Connect and CIM Servers to any application. Envox CT Connect is a proven call center technology that provides solid compatibility with a wide array of telephony equipment. Call routing, call control, and call data integration – but all that power resides on the telephony network in the CT Connect Server – now Envoy® Server can bring that functionality to your data network. Use the critical call data in any application deployed to your network or even bring call control itself to any call center desktop!
- IBM WebSphere MQ Plugin – provides granular control of one or more remote and / or local queue managers. Many legacy data systems and modern middle tier business layer logic employ the reliability and diversity of IBM’s WebSphere; now those back end systems and solid business logic can be accessed and leveraged by using Envoy® Server to distribute access across the enterprise. Use any programming language to communicate with Envoy® Server and let the complexity of the MQ Series interface and API be handled by the IBM WebSphere MQ Plugin.
Take advantage of these and many other available Plugins for Envoy® Server or have the VEXIS Professional Services team build your own specific Plugins. The choice is yours and the possibilities are many, but using the core capabilities of the Envoy® Server not only ensures you start off with a solid foundation but also that you have a fantastic head start on the challenging projects you face. Couple the highly scalable, data centric Envoy® Framework with .NET ease of use and abundance of .NET resources to provide first class solutions to your end users.
Stay tuned for additional “Envoy® Updates” in the next issue of the VEXIS Voice.
Richard Wolff, Director of Software R&D