ASTA-9090 Sample Questions & Answers

The processor channel configuration requires enabling the interface and specifying the Destination Node (which maps to the CMS IP address in the node-names table). The Destination Port is typically set to 0 (default/auto) or a specific port matching the CMS configuration, and the Remote Node field must match the defined node name. This establishes the logical channel over the physical Ethernet link.

During installation, the Data Storage Allocation (DSA) must be configured to define how many ACDs, agents, and vectors the system will support. If the DSA is not run or is configured with values exceeding the installed license file (WebLM or local license), the CMS processes will fail to start or will run in a restricted mode.

The cmsadm command is the primary menu-based utility for system administration tasks such as backing up data, restoring data, setting up the system, adding/removing ACDs, and managing storage intervals. It is accessed via the root or cms user shell.

CMS on RHEL uses the System Security Services Daemon (SSSD) for LDAP integration. The configuration is primarily handled in /etc/sssd/sssd.conf and the PAM stack configuration. The CMS application relies on the underlying OS authentication mechanisms to validate users against the AD source.

Real-time data is stored in memory buffers. Historical data is created by an archiving process that moves data from these buffers to the Informix database tables at specific intervals (e.g., every 15/30 minutes). If real-time works but historical is empty, the link is up (data is arriving), but the commit to disk (archiving) is failing, possibly due to disk space issues, database locks, or a crashed archiving process.

CMS distinguishes between backups: 'Maintenance Backup' (often full system or incremental data) includes the heavy historical data tables and system config. 'Admin Backup' is lighter, capturing user definitions, dictionary items (synonyms), and custom report definitions, allowing for quick restoration of the administrative environment without restoring the massive historical dataset.

The Intraday Interval setting defines the smallest unit of time for which historical data is summarized. Common settings are 15 or 30 minutes. This setting is global for the ACD and determines how detailed the agent trace and interval reports can be. Changing this requires a data migration or restart of data collection.

The spi (System Provider Interface) command, often used as spi or through the maintenance menu, displays the real-time status of the link processes. It shows if the link is UP/DOWN and the number of messages being processed. 'Link Status' in the Maintenance menu is the GUI equivalent.

In a standard Avaya CMS HA deployment, both the Primary and Secondary (Survivable) CMS servers maintain active links to the Communication Manager. The CM sends multicast or dual-stream data to both. They do not replicate the Informix database between them; instead, they both build their own databases in parallel from the same live data stream.

The CutOver procedure involves ensuring the system is stable (verifying data collection), securing the current state (backup), optionally removing test data to start fresh, enabling real user access (which might have been disabled during staging), and performing a final validation with the customer.