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Mastering the 7693X Avaya Exam: A Comprehensive Guide 

The 7693X Avaya Exam, formally known as the Avaya Aura® Communication Manager and System Manager Administration Exam, represents a critical benchmark for professionals in the unified communications field. Passing this exam validates an individual's proficiency in performing essential administrative tasks on two of Avaya's core platforms. It demonstrates a foundational understanding of system configuration, user management, and routine maintenance. This certification is highly sought after by employers looking for qualified technicians and engineers to manage their sophisticated communication infrastructures. It signals to the industry that a candidate possesses the necessary skills to ensure the smooth operation of daily business communications.

This five-part guide is designed to provide a comprehensive roadmap for anyone preparing for the 7693X Exam. We will systematically deconstruct the exam objectives, starting with the fundamental concepts and gradually moving toward more complex topics. This first installment focuses on the core components of the Avaya Aura® ecosystem, including Communication Manager and System Manager. We will explore the exam blueprint, understand the roles of these key platforms, and lay the groundwork for the practical skills that will be covered in subsequent parts. The goal is to build a solid base of knowledge upon which more advanced administrative skills can be developed effectively.

Achieving success in the 7693X Avaya Exam requires more than just theoretical knowledge; it demands a practical grasp of administrative procedures. This series aims to bridge the gap between theory and application. By following along, you will gain insights into the specific tasks you will be tested on, from navigating the administrative interfaces to configuring users and managing dial plans. Each part will focus on a distinct set of skills, ensuring a structured and digestible learning experience. This initial article sets the stage for a deep dive into the world of Avaya Aura® administration, preparing you for the journey ahead.

Embarking on the path to certification can be a challenging yet rewarding endeavor. The 7693X Exam is a rigorous test of your administrative abilities. Throughout this series, we will provide detailed explanations, conceptual overviews, and context for the various functions you need to master. Whether you are a newcomer to the Avaya platform or an experienced administrator looking to formalize your skills with a certification, this guide will serve as an invaluable resource. Let us begin by dissecting the structure of the exam and understanding the fundamental building blocks of the Avaya Aura® platform.

Deconstructing the 7693X Exam Blueprint

The official exam blueprint is the most critical document for any candidate preparing for the 7693X Avaya Exam. It outlines the specific domains of knowledge and the percentage of questions allocated to each. A thorough analysis of this blueprint allows you to prioritize your study efforts, focusing on areas that carry the most weight. The exam typically covers key areas such as the architecture of Avaya Aura®, the functions of System Manager and Communication Manager, user administration, endpoint management, and basic system maintenance and troubleshooting. Understanding these domains is the first step toward creating an effective and efficient study plan.

The blueprint for the 7693X Exam often begins with the fundamentals, dedicating a significant portion to the roles and interplay between System Manager (SMGR) and Communication Manager (CM). Questions in this domain test your understanding of how SMGR serves as the centralized administrative point for the entire Aura® ecosystem. You will be expected to know its purpose in simplifying tasks that were once performed through multiple, disparate interfaces. This includes its role in managing user profiles, licenses, and system-wide configurations. A firm grasp of this foundational knowledge is essential, as it underpins almost every other administrative task on the platform.

Another major section of the exam focuses on the practical aspects of user and endpoint administration. This involves tasks such as creating new users, assigning communication profiles, and registering various types of endpoints, including digital, H.323, and SIP telephones. The 7693X Exam will test your ability to perform these tasks efficiently using the System Manager graphical user interface. You will need to understand the different fields within a user profile, such as station assignments, feature options, and class of service settings. This hands-on knowledge is a cornerstone of the daily responsibilities of an Avaya administrator.

Finally, the exam blueprint will include topics related to call routing, dial plan management, and system maintenance. While not as extensive as user administration, these areas are crucial for ensuring a functional communication system. You may encounter questions about configuring call routing patterns, understanding the automatic route selection (ARS) feature, and performing routine system backups through SMGR. The 7693X Avaya Exam aims to certify a well-rounded administrator who can not only manage users but also maintain the overall health and operational integrity of the system.

The Core Role of Avaya Aura® Communication Manager

Avaya Aura® Communication Manager, often abbreviated as CM, is the heart of the Avaya unified communications solution. It functions as a powerful and resilient telephony server, responsible for processing calls, managing features, and ensuring reliable communication across an organization. For the purpose of the 7693X Exam, it is vital to understand that CM is the engine that drives all voice-related activities. It controls how calls are initiated, routed, and terminated, and it provides the rich feature set that users rely on daily, such as call forwarding, conferencing, and voicemail integration.

Historically, Communication Manager was administered primarily through a command-line interface known as the System Administration Terminal (SAT) or through a text-based graphical interface. While these methods are still available and important for certain advanced tasks, the modern approach to administration, and the one heavily emphasized in the 7693X Avaya Exam, is through the centralized System Manager. Understanding this evolution is key. You must recognize that while CM is doing the heavy lifting of call processing, SMGR provides the user-friendly interface to configure and manage its behavior. This separation of roles is a fundamental concept in the Avaya Aura® architecture.

Communication Manager's architecture is built for high availability and scalability. It can be deployed on various servers and can support a vast number of users and endpoints, from a small office to a large enterprise with tens of thousands of employees. For the 7693X Exam, you are not expected to be an expert in system design or installation, but you do need a conceptual understanding of its components. This includes knowing the purpose of different elements like media gateways, which connect the IP-based CM to the traditional telephone network (PSTN), and media servers, which handle digital signal processing.

The configuration data within Communication Manager dictates the entire behavior of the phone system. This data includes the dial plan, which defines how numbers are interpreted and routed; the station and user profiles, which assign features and permissions; and the trunk group configurations, which manage connections to external networks. As an administrator preparing for the 7693X Exam, your primary focus will be on learning how to manipulate this data correctly using the tools provided by System Manager. Every change you make in SMGR ultimately updates the configuration files within the Communication Manager platform.

Exploring Avaya Aura® System Manager

Avaya Aura® System Manager (SMGR) is the centralized management platform for the entire Avaya Aura® ecosystem. Its introduction marked a significant shift in how Avaya systems are administered, moving from device-specific, often command-line based interfaces to a single, unified web-based console. For anyone taking the 7693X Avaya Exam, mastering SMGR is not optional; it is the primary focus. The exam is designed to test your ability to navigate its interface and use its tools to perform day-to-day administrative tasks efficiently and accurately.

The core philosophy behind System Manager is to simplify complexity. In a large enterprise, a complete Avaya Aura® solution can include numerous components like Communication Manager, Session Manager, Application Enablement Services, and various messaging platforms. SMGR provides a single pane of glass through which you can manage all these elements. It uses a common data model, which means that when you create a user in SMGR, you can provision them with services across multiple applications simultaneously. This centralized approach reduces administrative overhead, minimizes errors, and ensures consistency across the platform, a concept frequently tested in the 7693X Exam.

One of the most powerful features of System Manager is its user and profile management capabilities. Instead of configuring a user's phone, voicemail, and other features on separate systems, you can create a comprehensive Communication Profile within SMGR. This profile contains all the user's information, their assigned endpoints, their feature permissions (Class of Service), and their call routing preferences. When you onboard a new employee, you simply apply this pre-defined profile, and SMGR automatically pushes the relevant configurations to Communication Manager and other integrated applications. Understanding the structure and application of these profiles is a critical skill for the 7693X Avaya Exam.

Beyond user management, SMGR is also the central point for system-level administration. This includes managing licenses for all Avaya Aura® products, performing scheduled backups of system data, managing security settings and administrator accounts, and monitoring system health and alarms. The 7693X Exam will expect you to be familiar with these sections of the SMGR interface. You should know where to go to check license capacity, how to initiate a backup of a Communication Manager instance, and how to view active alarms that may indicate a problem within the system.

Core Administrative Tasks for the 7693X Exam

The 7693X Avaya Exam places a strong emphasis on practical, hands-on administrative skills. A significant portion of the exam questions will revolve around your ability to perform core tasks related to the daily operation of an Avaya Aura® system. This begins with the most fundamental action: logging into the System Manager web interface and navigating its various menus. You should be intimately familiar with the dashboard and the main navigation paths to access sections like Users, Elements, and Services. The ability to quickly locate the correct menu is a prerequisite for performing any other task.

Once logged in, a primary responsibility is managing users. This is not just about creating a new user account; it involves a series of related steps that are tested in the 7693X Exam. You must know how to build a user profile from scratch, which includes assigning a login name, setting a password, and providing contact details. More importantly, you need to understand how to associate this user with a Communication Manager endpoint. This involves creating a new station, assigning it an extension, and linking it to the user's Communication Profile. This process ensures the user has a functioning telephone with a unique number.

Another core administrative task is the management of profiles and templates. To maintain consistency and efficiency, experienced administrators rarely configure users one by one. Instead, they create templates for different roles within the organization, such as "Sales Agent," "Manager," or "Receptionist." Each template pre-defines the set of features, permissions, and button layouts appropriate for that role. The 7693X Avaya Exam will test your understanding of how to create and apply these templates. You should know how to configure a Communication Profile template and then use it to rapidly deploy new users with a standardized set of services.

Finally, basic endpoint management is a key skill. While user profiles are managed in one section of System Manager, the endpoints themselves (the physical or soft phones) may require separate attention. You might be asked questions related to viewing the status of registered stations, identifying the IP address of a phone, or performing basic troubleshooting steps like a "reset ip-station" command from within the CM administration tools accessible via SMGR. The 7693X Exam ensures that a certified administrator can handle not only the user but also the device they use for communication.

Navigating the System Management Interface (SMI)

While System Manager provides the primary graphical user interface for administration, a solid understanding of the command-line interface is also beneficial for the 7693X Avaya Exam. The traditional interface for Communication Manager is known as the System Management Interface (SMI) or System Administration Terminal (SAT). Accessing this interface allows for direct interaction with the CM server, offering a powerful and granular level of control. While SMGR simplifies many tasks, some advanced functions and troubleshooting routines are still performed most efficiently through the SMI.

The 7693X Exam will likely test your knowledge of common SMI commands. You should be familiar with the basic structure of these commands, which typically follow a verb-noun format, such as "add station," "change feature-access-code," or "list configuration." You need to know the purpose of key commands for managing stations, trunks, and routing tables. For example, understanding the difference between "display station" and "status station" is crucial. The former shows the configured parameters of a phone, while the latter shows its real-time operational state, including its registration status and any active calls.

Navigating the SMI involves more than just typing commands. You must understand how to move between different screens or pages of information and how to interpret the data presented. Many commands have multiple pages of settings, and you need to know how to access them. The function keys (F-keys) on the terminal emulator play a vital role in this navigation. For example, you would use specific F-keys to submit a change, move to the next page, or cancel an operation. Familiarity with this navigation is a practical skill that the 7693X Exam may assess through scenario-based questions.

Although modern administration for the 7693X Avaya Exam prioritizes System Manager, knowledge of the SMI is an invaluable tool for troubleshooting. When a user reports an issue, the SMI can provide immediate, detailed information that may not be as readily accessible through the graphical interface. Commands like "list trace station" allow you to see a real-time log of all activity related to a specific extension, which is incredibly useful for diagnosing call failures or feature-related problems. Recognizing when to use the SMI for a deeper analysis is the mark of a competent administrator.

Initial System Configuration Concepts

While the 7693X Avaya Exam focuses on administration rather than installation, it is important to have a conceptual understanding of the initial system configuration. This knowledge provides context for the administrative tasks you will perform. You should understand that before any users can be added, the Communication Manager and System Manager elements must be properly installed, networked, and licensed. This foundational setup dictates the capacity and capabilities of the entire communication platform. Questions on the exam may touch upon these concepts to test your holistic understanding of the system.

Network configuration is a critical piece of the initial setup. Communication Manager and System Manager are network-based applications that require static IP addresses, subnet masks, and default gateways to communicate with each other and with the rest of the corporate network. You should understand the purpose of different network interfaces on the servers, such as the corporate LAN interface and the services port used for maintenance access. The 7693X Exam may present scenarios where understanding this basic network topology is necessary to identify the root cause of an administrative connectivity issue.

Licensing is another fundamental aspect of system configuration. Avaya Aura® products are controlled by a license file that enables specific features and dictates the maximum number of users, trunks, and other resources that can be configured. This license file is typically installed and managed through System Manager, which then allocates licenses to the various applications it manages. For the 7693X Exam, you should know where in SMGR to view license status, check for capacity limits, and identify any license-related errors. Understanding licensing is crucial for planning system expansions and for troubleshooting issues where users are unable to access certain features.

Finally, the concept of synchronization between System Manager and Communication Manager is vital. After the initial setup, you must establish a trusted connection between the two platforms. This allows SMGR to send configuration updates to CM and to receive status information from it. This synchronization process is fundamental to the centralized administration model. The 7693X Avaya Exam will expect you to understand the importance of this relationship and to know how to check the synchronization status within the SMGR interface to ensure that both systems are communicating properly.

The Foundation of User Management

Effective user management is the cornerstone of a well-administered Avaya Aura® system and a primary focus of the 7693X Avaya Exam. Every action taken by an administrator in this domain directly impacts the end-user's ability to communicate. The process begins with a clear understanding of the relationship between a user, their profile, and their physical or virtual endpoint. In the Avaya ecosystem, these are distinct but interconnected entities. A user is a person, an endpoint is a device like a phone, and a profile is the set of rules and features that links them together.

The 7693X Exam will rigorously test your ability to manage this relationship using System Manager. The platform's user-centric model allows you to create a single identity for an individual and then associate various communication services with that identity. This is a significant departure from older phone systems where the administration was device-centric. Grasping this philosophical shift is crucial. You are not just programming a phone; you are provisioning a user with a suite of communication tools, and the exam questions will reflect this modern administrative approach.

Before creating any users, it is essential to establish a logical and scalable strategy. This involves planning your extension numbering scheme, defining user roles, and creating templates. A well-thought-out plan prevents administrative chaos as the organization grows. For the 7693X Avaya Exam, you may encounter scenario-based questions that require you to apply such a strategy. For instance, you might be asked the best way to onboard a new department of 50 people, where the correct answer would involve using a pre-configured template rather than creating 50 individual users from scratch.

Finally, understanding the data flow is important. When you create or modify a user in System Manager, that information is stored in the central SMGR database. System Manager then communicates with Communication Manager and other connected applications to push the relevant configuration changes. This synchronization ensures that the user's phone is programmed correctly, their voicemail box is created, and their presence status is enabled. The 7693X Exam requires you to trust this process but also to know how to verify that the synchronization has occurred successfully.

Creating and Managing User Profiles

The user profile within System Manager is the central repository for all information related to a specific individual. A significant portion of the 7693X Avaya Exam is dedicated to your ability to create, modify, and manage these profiles. When creating a new user, you will be presented with a form that includes fields for their first name, last name, and a unique login name. This login name is critical as it is often used for authentication across multiple Avaya applications, including soft clients and web portals. Ensuring this information is accurate is the first step in successful user provisioning.

Beyond basic identity information, the user profile is where you define the user's communication services. This is done through the Communication Profile section. Here, you will link the user to their specific services on various Aura® components. For the 7693X Exam, the most important of these is the CM Profile. This is where you assign the user an extension and link them to a specific station (endpoint). You will also define their feature permissions by assigning a Class of Service (COS) and a Class of Restriction (COR), which control what they can and cannot do with their phone.

The concept of templates is paramount for efficient administration and is a key topic for the 7693X Exam. System Manager allows you to create User Provisioning Rules and templates that can pre-populate most of the fields required for a new user. For example, you can create a "Sales Department" template that automatically assigns a specific Class of Service, a block of extensions, and a standard button layout for their phones. When a new sales employee is hired, you simply apply this template, drastically reducing the time and potential for error in the provisioning process.

Managing existing user profiles is just as important as creating new ones. The 7693X Avaya Exam will test your ability to perform common day-to-day tasks such as resetting user passwords, changing a user's name, or re-assigning an extension. You should be familiar with the process of searching for a user within System Manager, accessing their profile, and making the necessary modifications. You also need to understand how to properly offboard a user, which involves removing their communication services and deactivating their account to free up licenses and maintain system security.

Administering Different Endpoint Types

An Avaya Aura® environment can support a wide variety of endpoint types, and the 7693X Avaya Exam requires you to have a working knowledge of how to administer the most common ones. These endpoints fall into several categories, including traditional digital (DCP) and analog phones, IP-based H.323 phones, and more modern Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) endpoints. While the end-user may not notice a difference in making a call, the underlying configuration for each type is distinct. As an administrator, you must understand these differences to provision and troubleshoot them effectively.

Digital and analog phones connect to the Communication Manager via media gateways, which provide the physical ports for these legacy devices. When you add a digital station in the system, you must specify the physical location of that port, including the gateway number, the media module, and the port on that module. The 7693X Exam will expect you to understand this addressing format. Although these phones are older technology, they are still widely deployed, and their administration is a required skill.

H.323 and SIP endpoints are IP-based, meaning they connect to the system over the data network. Their configuration does not require a physical port address. Instead, they register with Communication Manager (for H.323) or Session Manager (for SIP) using their IP address. When administering an IP phone, you will configure parameters like the network region, which helps manage bandwidth and codec selection, and security profiles. The 7693X Avaya Exam will test your ability to add these station types and to understand the essential fields required for them to register successfully.

Soft clients, such as Avaya Workplace, are another common endpoint type. These are software applications that run on a user's computer or mobile device, providing them with full telephony functionality without a physical desk phone. Administering these soft clients involves configuring specific station types within Communication Manager that are designed for this purpose. You will need to understand how to enable features that are specific to soft clients, such as video calling and integration with other desktop applications. The 7693X Exam reflects the modern workplace, so knowledge of these software-based endpoints is increasingly important.

Understanding Class of Service (COS)

Class of Service, or COS, is one of the most fundamental and powerful features within Avaya Aura® Communication Manager for controlling user features. It is essentially a permissions template that defines which telephony features are available to a user or a group of users. A significant part of the 7693X Avaya Exam will test your understanding of how to configure and apply COS. Each station or user profile is assigned a COS number, from 0 to 127, and each number corresponds to a specific set of enabled or disabled features.

The COS form within the administration interface is a large table of yes/no options for dozens of different features. These can range from basic functions like call forwarding and call waiting to more advanced capabilities like priority calling or automatic callback. As an administrator, your job is to define different COS levels that correspond to the needs of various roles within your organization. For example, you might create a low-privilege COS for lobby phones that restricts most features, a standard COS for regular employees, and a high-privilege COS for executives that enables every available feature.

The 7693X Exam will expect you to know the purpose of several key COS settings. For example, the "Console Permissions" setting is critical for enabling features used by switchboard attendants. The "Data Privacy" setting prevents others from bridging onto a user's line, which is important for managers who need confidential conversations. You should be familiar with the layout of the COS form and know where to find these common settings. Scenario-based questions may ask you to identify the correct COS setting to change to fulfill a specific user request.

Properly managing COS is key to maintaining a secure and efficient communication system. By granting users only the features they need to perform their jobs, you can prevent accidental misuse of the system and reduce complexity for the end-user. It also allows for a standardized user experience, as all users with the same role will have the same set of features available on their phones. The ability to strategically plan and implement a COS structure is a hallmark of a proficient administrator and a core competency tested by the 7693X Avaya Exam.

Managing Class of Restriction (COR)

While Class of Service (COS) controls a user's access to features, Class of Restriction, or COR, controls their calling privileges and their access to other system resources. Understanding the distinction between COS and COR is absolutely essential for the 7693X Avaya Exam. COR is primarily used to prevent users from making unauthorized types of calls, such as long-distance or international calls. It is a critical tool for cost control and for enforcing security policies within the organization. Every station, trunk group, and feature access code in the system has a COR assigned to it.

The logic of COR is based on a "permission to call" model. For a call to be successful, the COR of the originating user must have permission to call the COR of the destination. This is managed through a matrix on the COR configuration screen. For example, you could configure the system so that the COR assigned to regular employees can call the COR assigned to internal extensions and local numbers, but not the COR assigned to the international dialing pattern. This provides a granular level of control over toll fraud and unauthorized usage.

The 7693X Avaya Exam will test your ability to interpret and configure COR settings. You will need to understand how to create a new COR and how to set its relationship with other CORs. You will also be tested on the various other parameters within the COR form. For example, a COR can be used to control access to specific trunk groups, to restrict the ability to use system features by dialing a Feature Access Code (FAC), or even to control which users can be listened to via the service observing feature.

A very powerful and commonly tested feature of COR is its interaction with Time of Day (TOD) routing. This allows you to change a user's calling permissions based on the time of day or day of the week. For example, you could create a COR that allows unlimited long-distance calling during business hours but restricts it to local calls only after 5 PM and on weekends. The ability to apply these time-based restrictions is a key administrative skill that the 7693X Avaya Exam will expect you to understand.

Configuring Station Features and Button Assignments

Beyond the permissions granted by COS and COR, the user's experience is largely defined by the features and buttons configured on their physical or virtual phone. The 7693X Avaya Exam requires you to be proficient in customizing station layouts to meet specific user needs. This is done on the station administration form within Communication Manager, which can be accessed via System Manager. This form allows you to program the function of each button on the user's telephone.

Common button assignments include line appearances for the user's primary extension, allowing them to handle multiple calls at once. You can also program buttons for speed dialing, which allows the user to call a frequently used number with a single press. Another popular feature is "bridged appearance," which allows a manager to see the status of their assistant's line and answer calls on their behalf. The 7693X Exam will test your knowledge of how to program these and other common button features, such as call park, directory, and send all calls.

The process of configuring buttons involves selecting the button number and then choosing the desired feature from a list. For some features, you may need to provide additional information. For example, when programming a speed dial button, you must also enter the phone number that it should dial. When programming a bridged appearance, you must enter the extension of the line you wish to bridge onto. The 7693X Avaya Exam will expect you to know the syntax and requirements for these common configurations.

Effective button assignment can significantly improve user productivity and satisfaction. By placing the most frequently used features on accessible buttons, you can simplify complex calling tasks and reduce the need for users to remember star codes or navigate menus. As an administrator, being able to consult with a user, understand their workflow, and translate that into an efficient phone layout is a valuable skill. The 7693X Exam recognizes this by including questions that test your ability to apply these practical configuration skills in realistic scenarios.

Bulk User and Endpoint Administration

While it is essential to know how to administer users and endpoints one by one, in a large enterprise, this approach is not scalable. The 7693X Avaya Exam will test your knowledge of the tools available in System Manager for performing bulk administration. These tools allow you to add, modify, or delete hundreds or even thousands of users and stations at once, saving an enormous amount of time and ensuring consistency. The primary method for this is using comma-separated value (CSV) files.

The process involves first exporting a template file from System Manager. This file will contain all the necessary headers for the type of object you want to manage, such as users or stations. You then populate this spreadsheet with the data for all the users you want to add or modify. For example, for new users, you would fill in columns for their name, login, extension, and the templates they should use. The 7693X Avaya Exam expects you to be familiar with the structure of these files and the key fields that are required for a successful import.

Once the CSV file is prepared, you use the import tool within System Manager to upload it. SMGR will then parse the file and stage the changes. It includes a validation step that checks the data for errors before committing it to the system. This is a critical safety feature that can prevent a mistake in your spreadsheet from causing major problems. For the 7693X Exam, you should understand this process, including how to initiate an import, check the status of the job, and review any errors that are reported.

Bulk administration is not limited to just creating new users. You can also use this method to perform mass updates. For example, if your company decides to enable a new feature for the entire sales department, you can export their user data, change the relevant parameter in the spreadsheet (such as their Class of Service), and then import the file back into the system to apply the change to everyone at once. Mastering this powerful tool is a key differentiator for an efficient administrator and a subject you should be well-prepared for on the 7693X Avaya Exam.

Fundamentals of the Avaya Dial Plan

The dial plan is the fundamental instruction set that tells the Avaya Aura® Communication Manager how to interpret and route digits dialed by a user. It is the core logic that differentiates an internal extension call from a local call, a long-distance call, or a call to an international number. A deep understanding of the dial plan is absolutely critical for success on the 7693X Avaya Exam, as it forms the basis of all call routing. Without a correctly configured dial plan, the entire communication system would fail to function as intended.

The dial plan in Communication Manager is configured through a series of tables, primarily the "dialplan analysis" table. This table contains a list of dialed strings, such as extension ranges, feature access codes, and trunk access codes. For each entry, you define the type of call it represents and the number of digits the system should expect. For example, you would configure an entry for your internal extensions, perhaps starting with the digit '2' and having a total length of four digits. This tells CM that any number matching this pattern is an internal station call.

One of the key concepts tested in the 7693X Exam is the order of precedence in the dial plan. Communication Manager analyzes the dialed digits and looks for the most specific match in the dial plan table. For instance, if you have an entry for four-digit extensions starting with '2' and another entry for a five-digit number starting with '2', CM will wait to see if a fifth digit is dialed before routing the call. Understanding this matching logic is essential for designing a dial plan that is flexible and free from ambiguity or overlapping entries.

Administering the dial plan requires careful planning and precision. A single incorrect entry can lead to misrouted calls, blocked calls, or unintended feature activations. The 7693X Avaya Exam will likely present you with scenarios where you need to analyze a portion of a dial plan to determine how a call would be routed or to identify a configuration error. You should be comfortable navigating the dialplan analysis form, understanding the meaning of each field, and predicting the outcome of dialing various digit strings based on its configuration.

Automatic Route Selection (ARS)

Automatic Route Selection, commonly known as ARS, is the primary feature within Communication Manager for routing outbound calls to the public telephone network (PSTN). It provides a sophisticated and flexible way to manage how calls are sent over various trunk groups, enabling strategies for cost optimization, redundancy, and provider selection. Mastery of ARS is a major component of the 7693X Avaya Exam, as it is central to controlling an organization's telephony costs and ensuring external connectivity. ARS is what happens after the dial plan determines that a dialed number is an external call.

The ARS logic begins with the "ars analysis" table. This table is similar to the dial plan, but it is specifically for analyzing numbers that need to be routed externally. Here, you define patterns for different types of calls, such as local, long-distance, and international. For each pattern, you assign a "Route Pattern" number. This route pattern acts as a pointer to the next step in the process, which is selecting the actual trunk group to use for the call. This two-step process provides immense flexibility.

The Route Pattern itself contains a list of available trunk groups, prioritized in the order they should be used. For example, for long-distance calls, you might list your primary carrier's SIP trunk group as the first choice. If that trunk group is busy or out of service, ARS will automatically try the second choice in the list, perhaps a backup trunk group from a different provider. This provides automatic failover and resilience. The 7693X Exam will test your ability to configure these route patterns and to understand how CM will select a route based on priority and availability.

Furthermore, ARS allows for digit manipulation. Before sending a call to the trunk group, you can instruct CM to insert or delete digits from the dialed number. This is commonly used to add a '1' for long-distance calls or to strip an access code like '9' that the user dialed to get an outside line. This manipulation is configured within the ars analysis table for each specific route pattern. Understanding how to use these digit conversion features correctly is a key skill for the 7693X Avaya Exam and for making the system seamless for end-users.

Configuring Trunks and Signaling Groups

Trunks are the communication pathways that connect your Avaya Aura® system to the outside world, whether that's the traditional public switched telephone network (PSTN) or another private phone system. A trunk group is a collection of these individual trunk channels that are managed as a single entity. The 7693X Avaya Exam requires you to have a solid understanding of how to configure and manage these essential components. Without properly configured trunk groups, no calls could enter or leave your organization.

There are various types of trunks, but for the exam, you should focus on the most common ones, such as ISDN-PRI and SIP trunks. ISDN-PRI trunks are a digital TDM (Time-Division Multiplexing) technology that connects to the PSTN via a physical circuit. When configuring an ISDN trunk group, you will need to define parameters related to the physical hardware, such as the media gateway and port, as well as the signaling protocol details provided by your carrier. This includes settings like the switch type and the number of channels.

SIP trunks are becoming increasingly prevalent and are a key topic for the 7693X Exam. These trunks operate over an IP network and connect to an Internet Telephony Service Provider (ITSP). Configuring a SIP trunk group involves defining the network details of the provider's session border controller (SBC), the codec sets to be used for the calls, and the IP network region. The signaling for these trunks is managed by a corresponding "signaling group" form, where you specify transport protocols like UDP or TLS and other SIP-specific parameters.

The signaling group is tightly coupled with the trunk group and defines how the call control information is exchanged between your Communication Manager and the far-end system. For both ISDN and SIP trunks, you will need to configure a signaling group that matches the requirements of your service provider. The 7693X Avaya Exam will expect you to be familiar with the key fields on both the trunk group and signaling group forms and to understand the relationship between them. A misconfiguration in either form can cause the entire trunk group to fail.

Time of Day (TOD) Routing

Time of Day (TOD) Routing is a powerful feature in Communication Manager that allows call routing decisions to be altered based on the time of day, day of the week, or even specific dates. This functionality is crucial for businesses that have different call handling procedures during and after business hours. The 7693X Avaya Exam will test your ability to implement this feature, as it is a common requirement in many enterprise environments. TOD routing provides automation and ensures that calls are always handled appropriately, without manual intervention.

The implementation of TOD routing typically involves a "Time of Day Routing Plan." This plan consists of up to 16 time slots, where you can define specific periods, such as 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM on Monday through Friday. You then associate a routing destination with each time slot. For example, during business hours, you might route calls to your main receptionist. For the "otherwise" or after-hours slot, you might route the same calls to an automated attendant or a voicemail box. This plan is assigned a number that can then be referenced elsewhere in the system.

TOD routing can be used in various parts of the system configuration. One of the most common applications is with incoming calls to a main business number. By pointing the incoming call handling treatment for that number to a TOD routing plan, you can automatically change where the call goes based on whether the business is open or closed. Another common use case is in conjunction with Class of Restriction (COR) to change a user's outbound calling permissions after hours, as discussed in the previous part.

For the 7693X Avaya Exam, you should be prepared for questions that require you to configure a TOD routing plan or analyze an existing one. You will need to know how to create the time slots, how to specify the days and times, and how to assign the different destinations. Understanding the "otherwise" condition is particularly important, as it acts as the default catch-all for any time not explicitly defined in the other slots. This ensures that there is always a valid routing destination for a call, regardless of when it comes in.

Uniform Dial Plan (UDP) and AAR

In multi-site enterprise environments, it is often desirable for users to be able to dial any internal extension, regardless of its physical location, using a consistent number of digits. This is achieved through the Uniform Dial Plan (UDP). UDP allows an organization to have a single, unified extension numbering scheme across multiple Communication Manager systems. The 7693X Avaya Exam may include topics on multi-site dialing, making an understanding of UDP and its related routing feature, Automatic Alternate Routing (AAR), essential.

UDP works by defining a range of extensions that are not local to the current system. When a user dials a number that falls within a UDP entry, Communication Manager knows that this call must be routed over the network to a different location. The UDP table itself simply identifies these non-local number ranges. The actual routing of the call is then handed off to AAR. This separation of identification (UDP) and action (AAR) provides a clean and manageable configuration.

Automatic Alternate Routing (AAR) functions very similarly to Automatic Route Selection (ARS), but it is used exclusively for routing calls to other private systems within the enterprise network, rather than to the public network. Once UDP identifies a call as an internal call to a remote site, the "aar analysis" table is consulted. This table determines which route pattern to use to reach the destination system. This route pattern will contain a prioritized list of trunk groups that connect the two locations, typically IP-based trunks.

Just like ARS, AAR also supports digit manipulation. This is useful if the different sites have overlapping extension ranges. For example, if two sites both use four-digit extensions starting with '3', AAR can be configured to insert a unique site code before sending the digits over the network to ensure the call reaches the correct destination. The 7693X Avaya Exam will expect you to understand the relationship between UDP and AAR and how they work together to provide seamless extension-to-extension dialing in a distributed enterprise environment.

Managing Feature Access Codes (FAC)

Feature Access Codes, or FACs, are numeric codes that allow users to activate, deactivate, or use system features directly from their telephones. For example, a user might dial a code like '*72' followed by an extension to forward their calls. The 7693X Avaya Exam requires administrators to know how to manage these codes, as they provide an alternative to programming features on physical phone buttons. FACs are essential for users who may not have enough programmable buttons or for users of simpler devices with no display.

The administration of FACs is done through the "feature-access-codes" table in Communication Manager. This table provides a comprehensive list of system features and allows you to assign a unique numeric code to each one. This gives administrators the flexibility to customize the codes to be more intuitive for their users or to avoid conflicts with other numbers in their dial plan. For example, you could change the default code for call forwarding to something easier to remember, like '#4'.

It is crucial to plan your FACs carefully to avoid conflicts with your extension numbering scheme or external dialing codes. If you assign a FAC that is also a valid extension, the system may not be able to determine the user's intent. The 7693X Avaya Exam may present you with a scenario where you need to identify such a conflict. As a best practice, many administrators reserve a specific starting digit, such as '*' or '#', for all feature codes to ensure they are distinct from regular phone numbers.

Some features also have two associated FACs: one for activation and one for deactivation. For example, the "Send All Calls" feature has a code to turn it on and a separate code to turn it off. You must be familiar with the common features that use this dual-code system. As a certified administrator, you will be expected to not only configure these codes but also to be able to communicate them effectively to your end-users, perhaps by creating a quick reference guide as part of your user training and support materials.

Call Coverage and Hunt Groups

Call coverage is a feature that provides for the automatic redirection of a call when the intended recipient is unavailable. It is a fundamental part of ensuring that important calls are always answered by someone. The 7693X Avaya Exam will thoroughly test your ability to configure call coverage paths. A coverage path is a list of destinations that a call should be sent to, in a specific order, if the original called party does not answer their phone. This is most commonly used to send unanswered calls to a user's voicemail or to an assistant.

A coverage path can contain multiple points. For example, the first point could be to ring an assistant's phone for three rings. If the assistant does not answer, the second point could be to send the call to a departmental hunt group. If no one in the hunt group is available, the final point would typically be the user's voicemail box. You can control the number of rings at each point before the call moves to the next one. This allows for the creation of sophisticated and customized call escalation procedures.

Hunt groups, also known as call queues or ACD splits, are another method for distributing calls among a group of people. Unlike a coverage path, which is typically for a single user's unanswered calls, a hunt group is a single number that, when called, will ring multiple phones. The 7693X Avaya Exam will expect you to know how to configure a hunt group and understand the different distribution methods, such as "circular," which rings each person in order, or "uniform," which distributes calls evenly and sends new calls to the person who has been idle the longest.

Both call coverage and hunt groups are essential tools for managing call flow within an organization. They improve customer service by reducing the number of missed calls and ensure that someone is always available to handle an inquiry. The 7693X Avaya Exam will require you to understand the practical application of both features. You should be able to create a call coverage path from scratch, build a hunt group with multiple members, and understand how to assign these features to users and stations.

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