Call merge
Creating a conference (aka merging calls) is done through the Call Focus applet in the user interface.
There are two main ways to perform a merge, described below.
Direct Merge
The direct merge, which is the default behavior, allows quickly creating conferences by automatically merging all the calls that are created/accepted/resumed or moved to the Call Focus applet.
This is archieved by using the toggle Merge button:
Once toggled, the direct merge feature is enabled.
At this point, any call being placed on the Call Focus applet is automatically merged with the existing call, creating a conference or adding another participant to the existing conference. This other call can be:
- A new placed out call
- An existing call moved to the Call Focus applet
- An incoming call that is accepted
- An existing on-hold call that is resumed
In fact, once the direct merge feature is toggled on, the Call Focus applet acts as if it was free from calls, accepting any call to be placed on it.
This can be repeated as many times as required.
Two-step merge
The two-step merge merges multiple connected calls together, provided that these calls can all be hosted on available audio sources.
First, the user has a call opened on one of his Call Focus applets:
The user initiates a call merge operation by pressing the MERGE button. The Call Focus applet changes to indicate that it is waiting for a second call:
At this point, the user can cancel the merge operation and resume the call by pressing the Cancel button.
The user brings a second call to the Call Focus applet, by creating a new one or moving one from another call source:
Now the merge operation is ready to be confirmed. The user validates it by pressing the MERGE button. This merges the two calls and the Call Focus applet changes to display the conference:
Tip
While the basic conference use-case merges two calls together, the user can actually add as many calls as required before confirming the merge operation.
This allows to easily create conferences with multiple participants.
Important
The Merge mode selection is done through the CAS Console via a template/profile setting:
- Media:IsDirectMerge = true ==> Direct Merge
- Media:IsDirectMerge = false ==> Two-Step Merge