Comdial Execumail Voice Processing System 6.5 Instructions Manual

							Installation Manual Voice Board Technical Reference 4 7 
You can distinguish between a Z-port voice board (D/21) and a 4-port board 
(D/41) by examining the layout of electronic components on the circuit board. 
The components on a drport board are laid out in groups of four. The 
components on a 2-port board, however, are laid out in pairs, and the circuit 
board. has fewer components than a 4-port board. 
How the Computer Communicates with the Voice Board 
Conventional Memory 
The voice boards are designed to be installed in a 100% IBM-compatible 
computer. A computer uses memory and interrupts to run the voice mail system 
software and control the voice boards. 
Memory Address 
A hardware device’s memory address is the 
location in the computer’s memory where 
instructions from the computer to the device 
are placed, and where data from the device 
can be retrieved by the computer. 
Conventional memory is the ordinary memory 
found on MS-DOS computers. Up to 640K of 
conventional memory may be on the system. 
The MS-DOS operating system and some device 
drivers use some of that memory, and the rest 
is available for use by programs. 
The system should also have 3S4K of 
upper 
memory 
immediately adjacent to the 
conventional memory. This area is normally 
reserved for running the system’s hardware, 
and is not available for use by programs 
running on the system. This area is sometimes 
referred to as the Adapter RAM/ROM memory 
area. Memory management software can load 
some device drivers in unused portions of this 
memory. 
The system should also have a 64K 
High 
Memory 
Area (HMA) above upper memory. 
This area may only be used by MS-DOS to load its command interpreter. 
The system should also have 
extended memory or expanded memory above 
the upper memory area. In order for most programs to use this memory, you 
must have a memory management software utility correctly installed on the 
system. 
hterrupt f eve/ 
A computer has many things going on at any given moment, yet the computer’s 
processor can perform only one task at a time. The computer handles this by 
allotting fractions of each second to each hardware device installed and to each 
program currently operating. These “time slices” are controlled by 
interrupts.  
						

							48 Voice Board Technical Reference 
ExecuMail6.5 
The interrupt level (also called interrupt vector or interrupt number) assigned to 
a hardware device tells the computer which time slice to use for communicating 
with that device. The interrupt level also tells the device when to expect to 
communicate with the computer. 
If different kinds of devices are assigned the same interrupt, the computer won’t 
be able to tell the devices apart and will not function properly. Similarly, if a 
device is assigned to a different interrupt than expected by the software, 
problems will occur. Interrupt conflicts prevent the system from functioning 
properly and may “lock up” the computer. 
Every hardware device (including keyboards, monitors, etc.) attached to the 
computer has an assigned interrupt level. Most of the expansion cards added 
inside a computer have an assigned memory address in the upper memory area. 
The voice mail computer controls and communicates with its hardware through 
the hardware’s memory address and interrupt level. 
F 
Hardware 
Addresses 
i- 
Each voice board in the system has its own unique memory address in the upper 
memory area, but all voice boards must use the same interrupt. The address is 
like a mailbox assigned to the voice board and the interrupt is the time when 
mail deliveries and pick-ups are scheduled to occur. 
The computer, the voice mail software, and all hardv&re boards have to be 
configured so that each knows when to expect instructions to be given, and 
where to find the instructions. You configure the uoice 
board to use a specific 
memory address and interrupt by setting the dip switch and jumpers. You 
configure the sofrwure to use the correct memory address and interrupt by setting 
command line parameters. 
Choosing the Correct Metnory Address and Interrupt 
If the default voice board settings do not work, choose a new memory address 
and interrupt for the voice boards. To avoid conflicts with other hardware, you 
need to know:  
						

							Installation Manual 
Voice Board Technical Reference 49 
n 
The memory address of other hardware devices installed in the computer 
n The interrupt levels of other hardware devices installed in the computer 
n Which type of voice boards are in the system: DSP, Analog “A”, 
or Analog “B” 
Some common memory addresses and interrupts used by other computer 
hardware are listed here. 
Common Memory Addresses 
The upper memory area is divided into six segments: A, B, C, D, E, and F. 
8 
If the voice board is a DSP-type board, its address can be set to either the A, 
C, or D segment. By default, DSP voice boards are set to the D segment 
when they are shipped. 
w 
If it is an Analog “A” board, its address can only be set to the D segment. 
n If it is an Analog “B” board, its address can be set to either the A or D 
segment. 
VGA Video 
Most systems use the A segment for a VGA monitor card and the first half of the 
C segment for the VGA ROM. If the computer is not equipped with a VGA 
monitor card (or VGA video on the motherboard), the A segment is probably 
available for the voice boards and the C segment may be available. 
Most systems use the second half of the C segment for disk input/output ROM. 
The second half of the C segment is seldom available for voice boards. 
Expanded Memory Page Frame 
Sometimes the maximum amount (64OK) of conventional memory is not enough 
for large application programs. Expanded memory provides usable memory 
beyond MS-DOS’s 640K conventional memory limit. 
Expanded memory is divided into 16K segments called “pages.” The computer 
accesses these pages through a 64K block of upper memory. This block is called 
the “page frame.” Just as the computer screen can be a window into a document 
or spreadsheet, the page frame is a window into expanded memory. 
The page frame must be set to an address that is not used by the computer, any 
add-on hardware, or any software devices. EMM386.EXE can set the starting 
address for the page frame to one of nine locations between C000 and EOOO. 
This is configured on the EMM386XXE line of the computer’s CONFIG.SYS file 
with the lMx option, where x is used to specify the starting address of the page 
frame. For more information on EMM386.EXE see the 
MSDOS User’s Guide and 
Reference. 
Most computers use the C800-CFFF memory segment for disk input/output, so 
the pqe frame cannot be set there. If the system is equipped with VGA video, 
the computer will be using the C000-C7FF memory segment for video ROM.  
						

							50 Voice Board Technical Reference ExecuMail6.5 
The voice mail installation program will set up the system to use the following 
addresses: 
A000AFFF Reserved for VGA 
D000DFFF Voice boards 
E000-EFFF EMS Page Frame 
If this configuration does not work on the computer, you will need to change the 
base memory address of the voice boards and/or the page frame. The voice 
board settings are described in this section. 
Modems and Printers 
Most internal modems, external modems, and all printers do not require a 
memory address, although they are assigned an interrupt, depending on the 
parallel port or COM port they use. 
Common Interrupt Levels 
Hardware interrupts are numbered sequentially from 0 to 15, but voice boards 
cannot be set for interrupt levels above 7. We recommend trying interrupt level 5 
first. If the system does not work with the boards set to interrupt level 5, try 
interrupt level 3 next. To determine which other interrupts may be available on 
the system note the following: 
Most systems assign 
interrupt level 1 to the keyboard. Interrupt level 1 is 
seldom available for the voice boards. 
Most systems assign 
interrupt level 2 to a VGA monitor board. If the 
computer is not equipped with a VGA monitor card (or VGA video on the 
motherboard), interrupt 2 may be available for the voice boards. 
Most systems assign the COM2 serial port to 
interrupt level 3. If the 
computer is not equipped with more than one serial input/output port, 
interrupt 3 may be available for the voice boards. 
Most systems assign the COMl serial port to 
interrupt level 4. Almost all 
computers have one serial input/output port, so interrupt 4 is seldom 
available for the voice boards. 
An internal modem will often take up the COM2, COM3, or COM4 port and 
use either 
interrupt level 3 or interrupt level 4. If the computer has an 
internal modem (for example, for remote maintenance) check the 
documentation and the modem’s settings to determine the interrupt it’s 
using. 
lntermpt level 5 is available for voice boards on most systems. 
Most systems assign the floppy disk drive to 
interrupt level 6. Interrupt level 
6 is seldom available for the voice boards. 
Some systems assign the LPTI or LPT2 parallel port to 
interrupt level 7. The 
computer must be equipped with at least one parallel input/output port (the 
system key plugs into a parallel port), so interrupt 7 may not be available for 
the voice boards. There have been problems reported when voice boards 
have been assigned interrupt level 7. We recommend that you try a lower 
interrupt level first.  
						

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Voice Board Technical Reference 51 
Notes on the Voice Board Dip Swikh and Jumpers 
Interrupt Level [JPI] 
The JPI jumper controls the voice board’s interrupt level, 
from level 2 through level 7. The default setting on the 4th 
pair of pins from the left sets the voice board to use 
interrupt level 5. (See figure.) Setting the jumper to connect 
the first pair of pins from the left sets the voice board to 
use interrupt level 2; setting the jumper to connect the 
second pair of pins sets the voice board to interrupt level 3, 
and so on. All the 
system’s voice boards must have the same JPl setting. 
Memory Address [JP5, JP6 & SWIJ 
Each voice board in the system has a memory address. The software uses this 
address to determine which port numbers are assigned to each voice board and 
where its memory buffer is stored. The memory address for each board is 
controlled by the JP5 and JP6 settings and the dip switch SW1 setting. 
The 
segment of memory (A, C, or D) which is assigned to the voice board is set 
by the each board’s JP5 and JP6 jumpers. 
n No jumper on JP5 or JP6 Memory address in D segment 
n No jumper on JP5 only Memory address in A segment 
n No jumper on JP5 Memory address in C segment 
Jumper on JP6 
NOTE: An analog “B” board does not have JP6 and can only be set to the A 
or D memory segment. An analog “A” board does not have JP5 or JP6 
jumpers and can only use the D memory segment. 
I I 
The individual memory address in this segment which is assigned to each voice 
board is defined by the voice board’s SW1 setting. The SW1 setting determines 
the memory address “offset”. 
For example, a SW1 setting of “Off-Off-ON-Off” indicates an address of 200. if the 
voice board’s JP5 and JP6 jumpers are also “Off”, the voice board’s memory 
address is D200. 
By default, the voice mail software is installed with command line parameters 
that configure it to look for voice boards at memory addresses beginning at 
DOOO. 
Each voice board in the system should have a diierent memory address, 
defined by the JP5, JP6, and SW1 settings.  
						

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Voice Board Technical Reference 
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‘First Board” Jumper [JP7] 
The JP7 jumper identifies which voice board in the system is the “first board” in 
the system. The first board has Port #l and has the first memory address that the 
system looks for. 
Only the first voice board in the system should have JP7 on. 
l These settings apply to the fmt voice board only. 
JP6 
Figure 17: Voice board showing dip switch (SWl) and jumpers (JPI, JP5, JP6, JP7) 
Changing the Dip Switch and Jumper Settings 
To set dip switch SVl: 
The dip switch block labeled SW1 contains four separate sliders numbered 1 
through 4. To turn a slider on, use the tip of a ballpoint pen to push the slider 
up, in the direction of the arrow. 
To set jumpers JPl, JP5, JP6 & JF? 
Each jumper has a pair of metal pins. To set a jumper to ON, slide the jumper 
over the pair of pins so it connects them. 
I 
I 
NOTE: JPl has six pairs of pins. The jumper connection must be placed over 
the correct pair of pins. 
The JPl jumper must be xt the same for all voice 
boards in the system.  
						

							Installation Manual 
Voice Board Technical Reference 53 
Figure 18: Voice board settings for the D memory segment 
Notes on Command Line Parameters 
If you change any of the default settings for the voice boards’ dip switch or 
jumpers, you may need to change the way the voice mail software is started and 
run. This is done by using special command line parameters (-S###, -A###, 
and -I##), whenever you start the voice mail system. These are entered in the 
appropriate line of the VM.BAT file used to start the voice mail software. 
r  
						

							54 Voice Board Technical Reference 
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Sfarting Memory Address for Voice Boards 
kS####] 
If you change the default settings for the JP5, JP6 jumpers or the SW1 dip switch, 
you may need to start the voice mail software with a new memory address 
parameter. If there are no command line parameters entered, the system software 
expects to find the first voice board’s memory address at DOOO. If the first voice 
board’s memory address is at another D address (for example, D200), or if any 
voice board in the system has a memory address in the A or C segment, you 
must tell the software where to look for additional voice boards. 
This is done by using the 
-S parameter with the voice driver software. Before 
you use this parameter, you must know: 
n The total number of voice boards in the system. Determine this by physically 
counting the voice boards in the computer. 
. The memory address used by each voice board. Determine this by checking 
the base memory segment set by JP5 and JP6, and the memory offset set by 
SWI. 
Modify the Driver line in the VM.BAT file to use the following command: 
DRIVER -S/
						

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Voice Board Technical Reference 55 
/ 
1. 
:: 
G _ In this example, you must set the jumpers and dip switches on three of the 
boards to be in the first three addresses in the C segment, and the jumpers and 
dip switches on two of the boards to the first two addresses of the D segment. 
YOU should contact Comdial Technical Support before attempting this sort of 
configuration. 
Software Interrupt for Voice Board pl##] for VGA 
The -I command line parameter actively changes the software interrupt for the 
voice boards. The software interrupt is 
not the same as the hardware interrupt 
level explained earlier in this appendix. Software interrupts are similar to 
hardware interrupts in that they determine when the processor handles tasks for 
the software assigned to that interrupt. They are different from hardware 
interrupts in that hardware interrupts always have priority over software interrupts 
and software interrupts are assigned numbers in hexadecimal notation. 
The -I command line parameter is most often used on computers that operate 
in EGA or VGA color mode. For EGA or VGA systems, you must start the voice 
mail software with this command: 
DRIVER -160 
VMAIL -160 
This command is used even when color VGA video is used with a monochrome 
or grayscale VGA monitor. 
Notes on DSP Firmware 
Each time the voice mail system starts, it must load firmware for any DSP boards 
in the system before loading the DRIVER. Firmware is software instructions which 
reside in the DSP board’s memory rather than in the computer’s memory. This 
use of firmware gives the DSP boards greater flexibility. 
To load the firmware, the command 
SBLOAD FIRMWARE. CFG must be in the 
VM.BAT file before the DRIVER line. The FlRMWARE.CFG file must also contain 
the correct commands for the board(s) on the system. Normally, the installation 
procedure creates the proper FlRMWARE.CFG file for the system. 
The FlRMWARE.CFG file is an ASCII text file which can be viewed and edited 
using MS-DOS EDIT or EDLIN. It contains one line of text for each DSP voice 
board in the system. 
For details about the FIRMWARE.CFG file, see the README.TXT file. 
Making a Quiet DSP Board 
The DSP voice board allows you to control the silence threshold parameters by 
changing software settings. You can set the board to 14 different decibel levels, 
either the DSP voice board’s default (-30dB), or in a range from 38dB to -5OdB. 
You should only change the voice board to a quiet board if you are experiencing 
false pause off during message recording. False pause off is occurring when the 
voice mail system stops recording while a person is still talking. False pause off 
usually occurs because the volume level on the telephone line is too low.  
						

							56 Voice Board Technical Reference ExecuMail6.5 ! 
If you are experiencing false pause off, we recommend that you try setting the 
silence threshold to 45dB as a first step. 
To set a DSP board to 45 decibels: 
1. 
From the back of the computer, check that the board is a DSP board. DSP 
boards have a gold sticker saying “DSP” near the modular jacks. 
2. 
At the Banner Screen, exit to DOS by pressing B then a. Type a System ! 
Manager ID (-Enter). 
3. At the DOS prompt, type 
QUIET 45 l-1. Wait until you see the ;, 
.- 
confirmation message on the screen. ?:,; 
. . 
4. 
Restart the computer by pressing the reset button or m=Hm).