Overview
This Technical Guide describes the installation, configuration and API usage of the N-Squared Flow Editor (N2FE). N2FE is an extension pack for Oracle’s OCNCC Telecommunications Services Platform.
This N2FE add-on implements a number of additional features targeted at providing a complete, competitive, high-value Toll-Free, Premium, UAN and Tele-Voting call-control environment.
N2FE Components
N2FE offers an elegant, easy-to-use graphical interface designed expressly for Customer Self-Management of OCNCC Toll-Free services. N2FE achieves simplicity and usability for Toll-Free users by hiding internal telephony complexities. It renders control flows in a more natural representation which corresponds to the end-user’s business view.
Additionally, N2FE runs as pure HTML/CSS/JavaScript in any modern web browser, without the need for extension technologies such as the Java VM, Adobe Flash or Citrix Servers.
Key Features
Features include:
- The N2FE user interface is pure HTML/JavaScript/CSS and supports modern browsers and tablet access. HTTP(S) access allows deployments to use existing web infrastructure such as load balancers and reverse proxies for HA and security in front of the interface.
- Enterprise user authentication and authorization management provides a very strong security model. A focus on security in development ensures protection against modern attack vectors such as XSRF, XSS and SQL injection. 3rd Party authentication system integration allows for centralised identity management.
- Toll-Free “Logic Flows” may be designed with clear, simple, consistent logic paths. Powerful flow blocks hide underlying details.
- Customer, service number and scheduling management.
- May grant user access to Call Data Records (CDRs).
- A fully supported RESTful API allows operators to deploy their own systems to utilise the N2FE services backend.
- Support for branding the user interface is available. Deployments may present multiple brands to different end-user groups.
In most cases, a logic block in the N2 Toll-Free Flow Editor actually corresponds to several implementation nodes in the underlying OCNCC control plan. For example, the “Business Hours” logic block is constructed behind-the-scenes by combining Time-Of-Day, Day-Of-Week and Day-Of-Year nodes in the OCNCC CPE.
Note that in the N2 Toll-Free Flow Editor, all of the parameters and routing configuration associated with the Toll-Free Flow are visible immediately without needing to open any popup dialogs. This provides great assistance to the user as they navigate the flow.
This simplified layout and editing mechanism also greatly facilitates access on tablets and other portable devices. This User Guide describes the features of the N-Squared Flow Editor web-based interface.
Security and Design
The N2 Toll-Free Flow Editor does not reside on the OCNCC platform. It is installed on a separate server in the DMZ, and implements a strict security filter before passing data requests onto OCNCC via the back-end Database Interface. This is a popular secure web-services architecture which provides strong data protection through a clean and efficient implementation approach.
User Login
Login to the flow editor is through one of the following mechanism:
- OCNCC SMF User (username and password)
- OCNCC ACS Customer User (customer, username, and password)
- OCNCC ACS Service Number (freephone number, and PIN)
On login, N2FE will apply appropriate user restrictions based on the type of login.
- For SMS users, only those users with the appropriate SMF user templates configured in the N2FE SMF template list will be able to log in. This allows operators to limit N2FE access based on SMF user templates.
- For SMS users, if the user is listed in the SMS -> ACS user mapping list in OCNCC, N2FE will honor these restrictions.
- For ACS users, the ACS user will only have access to the ACS customer their user is associated with.
N2FE Operations Structure
This Technical Guide also contains the detailed Specification for the N2FE Flow Structure which is used to represent test flows during the editing process. These Flow Operations are the critical interface point between the server functions and the client functions, and their formal specification is important for external integration points.