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When Sun approached TMC Labs claiming to have the
first thin-client terminal to support video
conferencing, collaboration, and VoIP functionality,
our interest was piqued, even though we grimaced at
the usage of the marketing term "first." Nevertheless,
we were intrigued and we invited Sun to visit our lab
to demonstrate their product. We were shipped a beta
version of the Sun Ray's new VoIP support, which
includes two H.323 clients (SunForum 3.2 and SunPhone)
comparable to NetMeeting, as well as a rudimentary
gatekeeper.
The product is called Sun Ray and it consists of
three models: The Sun Ray 1 (stand-alone unit with no
integrated monitor), Sun Ray 100 (integrated 17"
standard monitor), and the Sun Ray 150 (integrated 15"
flat-screen display). The Sun Rays each have a 10/100
BaseT network port, embedded audio speakers, an
embedded smart card reader, and USB ports to support a
keyboard, mouse, and other peripherals. Applications
actually run on a Sun Solaris server.
Except for the video-out display, the Sun Ray is
simply an input device, taking keyboard and mouse
actions and transmitting them across the network to
the Solaris server. The Solaris server then takes care
of transmitting back the screen pixels to each Sun
Ray, including mouse movements, characters typed, and
any transmitting audio back to the Sun Ray. Similar to
PCAnywhere and other remote desktop software, the
Solaris server is optimized to only transmit the "screen
delta" or just the "changes" in the screen pixels to
the Sun Ray, thus saving on bandwidth utilization.
The product is well-suited to companies looking to
deploy UNIX applications, without the complexity of
deploying UNIX-based desktop PCs. When combined with a
separate Microsoft Terminal Server with Citrix
MetaFrame, along with Sun Ray's support of the Citrix
ICA software client, the Sun Ray can actually run
Windows applications.
The Sun Ray has been out for quite some time now.
What intrigued us most was its support for VoIP on a
thin-client terminal. The SunForum 3.2 application
(also known as Watney) supports several standards
including H.323, T.120 (conference manager), T.126
(whiteboard), T.128 (shared applications), and more.
Watney/SunForum 3.2 supports audio, video, and data
conferencing with the following features:
- Place and receive phone calls through a Sun Ray
appliance.
- Interact with analog PBX or IP-PBX.
- Video conference in a heterogeneous environment.
- Data conference in a heterogeneous environment.
- "Hot desk" session mobility (have your current
desktop session follow you wherever you go).
INSTALLATION
Thin-client computing was meant to ease IT
administration headaches, including making
installation much easier and maintenance much less of
a chore. We certainly found this to be the case when
installing the Sun Ray. In fact, all we had to do was
plug a keyboard and mouse to the Sun Ray 150, then
attach a network wire, and we were done! Of course the
server had already been pre-installed with the
appropriate software on the Sun Microsystems Ultra 60.
Nevertheless, excluding the initial server setup, the
actual client setup was so simple that even a typical
user can take one of these units and plug it in "plug-and-play"
style.
We did do some initial server setup, such as
programming some of the smart cards, although a few of
the smart cards came preprogrammed. We also did some
typical installation setup, such as setting the
network settings to match our lab environment's
network settings. All in all we were up and running
with two Sun Ray 150s in approximately 15 minutes.
DOCUMENTATION
All of the documentation was online. While the HTML
help was fairly easy to navigate, we would have
preferred a printed manual or an Acrobat file we could
print. There is something about a printed manual that
makes it quicker and easier to learn a particular
product. The documentation was fairly well organized,
but again, it would be nice if we could actually print
the manuals in one fell swoop, rather than printing
out individual HTML help pages. Also, the H.323 VoIP
features were beta, so the documentation wasn't as
complete as we would have liked, but we certainly
understand this is not the final shipping product.
FEATURES
One of the key features is that the centralized
management eliminates administration at the desktop.
All application upgrades are handled centrally at the
server. In addition, since the actual operating system
is only needed on the server, any upgrades to the OS
can be performed just once, which would automatically
upgrade dozens, if not hundreds of Sun Ray users in
one fell swoop.
Sun Ray has support for parallel and serial
devices. Devices driven by Solaris operating
environment or Java technology-based applications will
work with Sun Ray appliances through USB-to-parallel
and select USB-to-serial adapters. Thus, users can
attach local PostScript printers to their Sun Ray
appliances via USB ports or through adapters. The Sun
Ray Server Software 1.2 is compatible with both 32 and
64-bit versions of Solaris 8 Operating Environment.
The Sun Ray monitor features 24-bit, 2D accelerated
graphics at up to 1280 x 1024 resolution at 85 Hz (640
x 480 at 60 Hz is its lowest resolution). A composite
video input is also available to connect a video
camera, VCR, camcorder, or any NTSC M or PAL
B/G/I-compatible device. For audio, the Sun Ray server
software plays/records at 48 kHz and provides all
common sample rate conversions from 8 kHz to 48 kHz.
Sun Ray also supports "Multihead," a software
solution that allows users to control separate
applications on multiple screens with a single input
device. With XINERAMA, a standard X11R6.4 feature,
users can span a single application (e.g.,
spreadsheet) across multiple screens and can also drag
and drop icons across different screens in a multihead
Sun Ray appliance group (Solaris 7 and 8 only).
Other features include:
- Optional smart card enables "Hot-Desking,"
instant access to a running user session from any
appliance in the workgroup.
- Provides access to Web-based, mainframe,
Windows, AS/400, Linux, and UNIX applications via
technology.
- Built-in gatekeeper and H.323 client support.
OPERATIONAL TESTING
The Sun Ray appliance has a small firmware module that
can be updated from the server. This module checks the
hardware with a power-on self-test (POST) and boots
the unit. The Sun Ray appliance also contacts the
server to authenticate the end user, and handles
low-level input (such as keyboard, mouse, and display
information) and output.
When we first plugged a Sun Ray 150 into a network
port, inserted a smart card, and turned it on, we were
quickly greeted with the log on screen. We were pretty
impressed with the ease of setup and how quickly we
were up and running. After logging in, we were
presented with the Sun desktop. One of our first tests
was to try the "hot-desking" functionality. We
launched an MPEG video file, which played for about 10
seconds before we pulled the smart card out of the Sun
Ray. Immediately the Sun Ray screen went black. We
then walked over to the second Sun Ray in the lab,
inserted the same smart card, and immediately we were
back to our personal desktop with all of our
applications still running. In fact, the video
continued exactly where we left off on the first Sun
Ray. Very impressive stuff.
H.323 Compatibility
For our next test, we tried to determine Watney/SunForum's
H.323 compatibility. First, we attempted to get one of
the Sun Rays to connect a call from the SunForum
software client through the IP network to a Multi-Tech
H.323 gateway in our lab. After some initial
configuration, we were able to successfully call from
SunForum to the Multi-Tech gateway and finally to a
regular POTS set, confirming the SunForum's H.323
compatibility.
Then we configured NetMeeting running on a Windows
2000 PC to point to the gatekeeper software running on
the Solaris server. We registered the NetMeeting
client with phone number "306." The Sun Rays were
already pointing to the Solaris gatekeeper, so we didn't
need to reconfigure them. Next, we launched SunForum
on one of the Sun Rays, as well as SunPhone, which is
a mini-version of SunForum. The difference between the
two is that SunForum contains collaboration features
such as chat and application sharing, as well as
voice, whereas SunPhone is strictly voice with no
collaboration features.
We clicked the "Call" button in SunForum and
entered "306" as the phone number. The typical
NetMeeting Accept or Ignore buttons popped up and we
took the call. The audio quality was very good, but
latency seemed a bit higher than expected. Of course,
we should state they we were testing a beta version of
Watney; better latency optimization could occur in the
final release. Nevertheless, we were now having a
cross-platform (Solaris vs. Windows) H.323 VoIP call.
Yes, the beauty of standards cannot be understated. We
tested the whiteboarding and chat features and both
worked fine. We also tried making a call from one Sun
Ray to another, and it too worked just fine. Finally,
we dialed "306" using the SunPhone application instead
of SunForum and it performed flawlessly.
Smart Card VoIP Call Transfer
We were curious what would happen if we tried to
perform the hot-desking feature when a VoIP call was
in effect. We initiated a call from the Sun Ray to a
NetMeeting client, talked for a few seconds,
disconnected the smart card, and then walked over to
the second Sun Ray and plugged in the smart card. The
call continued without a hitch. In fact, even though
we had the smart card disconnected for more than 20
seconds, the call was not disconnected. (Even with the
smart card disconnected, the processes continue to run
on the server). While we would not recommend this as a
normal means of transferring a call, certainly it is a
nifty feature.
With standards on our brain, we decided to test the
T.120, T.126, and T.128 standards, which cover
conference management, whiteboarding, and application
sharing. We launched a whiteboard and both the Sun Ray
and Windows 2000 PC were able to collaborate by
drawing on the whiteboard. Next, we tested application
sharing. From the Sun Ray, we shared a File Manager
window, which then displayed on the Windows 2000
machine. After clicking the Collaborate button on the
Sun Ray, the Windows 2000 NetMeeting client was able
to "request control" and then navigate within the Sun
Ray's File Manager application.
We attempted to maximize the window and it began to
maximize, but with a very slow screen redraw. Then all
of a sudden we received an application error in "conf.exe"
(NetMeeting program) and the Windows NetMeeting client
crashed. We were even able to duplicate this crash a
few times. Hmm... a Sun Microsystems application
crashing a Windows application? Meanwhile, the
SunForum application didn't crash. Go figure. Scott
McNealy would be so pleased! Actually, it is more
likely that the SunForum application is at fault,
since it is still in beta. We're not sure what sort of
data could be sent from SunForum to the NetMeeting
client that the NetMeeting client couldn't just ignore
rather than crashing.
GateKeeper Interoperability
We decided to see how the SunForum and SunPhone
applications would interoperate if they used a
different gatekeeper from the one built into the
Solaris server. First, we tested with a gatekeeper
from Unidata. We were able to successfully
authenticate with the Unidata gatekeeper and then
connect calls with full audio, video, and
collaboration capabilities.
Next, we tried VCON's MXM (Media Exchange Manager)
gatekeeper. This product was designed to take an H.323
endpoint and manage the connections to each other.
Unfortunately, we had some technical issues getting
the Sun Ray to work with the MXM. Sometimes the call
would connect and disconnect right away (usually right
after the microphone picked up some sounds and
transmitted to the remote end). This indicated that it
might be an audio codec issue. We tried changing the
priority for various audio codecs to no avail. We just
couldn't get the audio to work. Interestingly enough,
we were able to transmit video from the Sun Ray to the
MXM, yet we couldn't receive video from the MXM.
Again, probably a codec issue, but after
troubleshooting for some time and contacting VCON and
Sun, we couldn't get the two products to interoperate.
We're not sure whether it's the fact that the SunForum
is still in beta or if the VCON MXM software is to
blame. The SunForum product seemed to work just fine
with NetMeeting, Multi-Tech, and Unidata.
VoIP and the Call Center
With the H.323 soft phone (SunPhone), TMC Labs thought
that the Sun Ray would be a great fit for call centers
looking to VoIP-enable their operations. Simply by
sticking an H.323 gateway or IP-PBX somewhere on the
LAN and placing Sun Rays on each agent's desk, all the
agent would need is a headset plugged into the Sun Ray
and the SunPhone client.
We discussed third-party telephony integration with
Sun and they told us there are plans underway to
expand the CTI integration with call center-type
applications such as Siebel, Peoplesoft, etc. In fact,
Sun demonstrated CTI integration and VoIP with Genesys
at the G-Force show in New Orleans. In addition, Sun's
back-end integration with the Genesys call routing
software allows you to "hot desk" a call using their
gatekeeper/gateway and put the caller on music-on-hold
while the call center agent can "hot desk" to another
server in the immediate failover group. Thus, if a
call was disconnected for whatever reason (fire,
disaster, etc.), then the call can be routed to
another agent at another location that has a Sun Ray
appliance.
Also, with the "hot-desking" capability, 24-hour
call centers or any call center with multiple shifts
can share their Sun Rays, simply by removing their
personal smart card at the end of the day. Each of the
agents' personal settings and running applications
will return exactly as they were when they return to
work for their next shift as soon as they plug their
smart card back in.
TMC Labs decided to see if anyone was actually
using thin client technology. Sun recommended we
contact Time
Warner in New York, where they've implemented 400
thin clients. We spoke with Cesar Beltran, VP of
Information Technology, of Time Warner Cable, New
York.
We inquired whether they considered competing
products. Cesar said, "We considered other thin
client products. In the end we concluded with the Sun
thin client because it is more robust, especially the
Solaris operating system. The Sun operating system is
not only more scalable but it is also far more
stable."
We inquired on IT staff's and users' feedback, and
Cesar replied, "The users are very happy with it.
That was the main goal really. To get these users
newer technology and get them up to speed on all these
new applications. It's a win-win for everyone. IT
staff is very happy and users are very excited about
it."
Cesar continued, "We've gotten some great
feedback from our users, which I will read to you:
"On behalf of the customer service reps, thank
you for allowing us to operate at such an exceptional
level." Another user writes, "This is where
we should be in the new millennium."
ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT
We didn't find much to complain about with this
product. However, we should point out that Sun Ray
platform requires its own private network. The Sun
Solaris server has two network cards: one connected to
the regular LAN, and the other attached to one or more
100BaseT hubs, to which the Sun Rays connect. The Sun
Solaris server not only assigns IP addresses to each
Sun Ray, but it also performs Network Address
Translation (NAT) to route packets between the two LAN
segments. It's not a major drawback, but network
administrators should be aware of this, since it may
require some rewiring in the network closet.
A couple of times we noticed a minor display issue
with the local video. On occasion, when we displayed
our local video, then switched between applications,
all of a sudden the title bar for the local video
window disappeared. Thus, we couldn't minimize the
window, move the window, or even close it. Essentially
our local video was "floating" in mid-air on the
desktop.
Finally, we felt that the GUI for the SunForum
application could be improved. The phone interface is
overlaid on a black box which leaves a black border
surrounding the phone. We felt this was a waste of
screen real estate. We would like to see this black
border surrounding the phone removed, leaving just the
phone interface. Also, we would like to see a seamless
window, which would remove the menu options and title
bar at the top. These menu options could be moved to
buttons on the phone itself. An example of a good
seamless window soft phone is from 01
Communique.
CONCLUSION
For various reasons, thin client computing hasn't
exactly lit a fire in the IT world. One of those
reasons is that PCs offer flexibility and
customization for each individual user. Another reason
is that IT staff will use what they know or what they
are accustomed to, namely PCs.
Unfortunately, giving users the flexibility and
power to customize their PCs has also become a
management nightmare for many IT personnel. That is
the promise of thin client computing -- alleviating
administration and maintenance (Total Cost of
Ownership or TCO), as well as providing a secure
environment, easy software upgrades, and still
allowing the users to personalize their desktops.
TMC Labs was very pleased with the power
flexibility of the Sun Ray platform. We are most
impressed with its hot-desking capability that allowed
us to unplug our smart card, walk to another desk,
plug it in, and continue with all of our applications
right where we left off. This is perfect for
organizations with multiple shifts or anywhere where
PCs are shared, such as in call centers, schools,
libraries, and more. With the Sun Ray's data
collaboration, video conferencing, whiteboarding,
application sharing, and VoIP capabilities, and adding
in Sun's renowned reliability and security, this is
not only a great desktop PC, but a great telephony
communications device as well.
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