Standard installation

This installation guide gives a step-by-step description of a simple standard installation with the most important functions of estos LiveChat 2/2019.x/2020.x.
estos LiveChat also offers scope for adaptation and extended configuration for the existing individual IT infrastructure and product requirements.
Detailed documentation on the complete scope of services and possible configuration scenarios can be found at https://livechat-doc.estos.de/index.html.

Installation of the UCServer on-premises

Firstly, it is necessary to install the estos UCServer from the ProCall Enterprise package.

System requirements

In order to install the estos UCServer as a basic building block for estos LiveChat, a Microsoft Windows host must be provided that meets the following hardware and system requirements. (For example, the specifications apply to an average installation with 50 users.)

• Server operating system: Microsoft Windows Server 2012 or later
• CPU: 4 Core, 3GHz
• RAM: 8 GB
• Hard disk: 10 GB

Installing the UCServer setup

At https://www.estos.de/service/download you can download, unzip and install the current setup package of ProCall Enterprise.
For estos LiveChat, it is sufficient to install the server component.
his can be done either via the "Setup.exe" or the "UCServer_VersionNumberLanguageArchitecture.msi" file.
To do this, please follow the instructions in the installation wizard with the following prompts:

• Licence product: If you want to use the UCServer exclusively as a module for the LiveChat product, you only need to enter a LiveChat license here.
• Store location configuration. You can skip this step for the exclusive use of the LiveChat if necessary.

General support for the UCServer can be found in our documentation or in the documents accompanying the installation package.

Configuration of the UCServer for LiveChat

Creating agent groups and services

In the administration interface of estos UCServer, you will find the item "User database".
Either a user administration integrated in the estos UCServer or the Microsoft directory service Active Directory® Server can be used to manage computers, users and groups.
See also: https://help.estos.com/help/de-DE/procall/6.4/ucserver/dokumentation/tapisrv/IDH_TSUSERMANAGEMENT.htm)
In order to enable certain services and functions in estos LiveChat for certain agents, it is recommended in a standard installation to work with two groups:

• contactportal
• webagents

Depending on the type of user management used, this can be done either in AD or the UCServer management interface under User Management > Groups.
Within the subitems Properties – Services you can configure the respective services for the users:

• "Portal Group"
• "Live Chat Consultant Group"

(See also: https://help.estos.com/help/de-DE/procall/6.4/ucserver/dokumentation/tapisrv/IDH_SETGROUPS.htm)

Publish the UCServer

There are basically two different ways to set up a LiveChat environment and make it accessible via the internet.

• Use of integrated websites
• Provision of web pages via a separate web server

Since in most productive environments a web server infrastructure is already in place and this path is preferred by many IT managers, this document describes the path using a separate web server.
(Information on how to use the integrated web pages can be found at https://livechat-doc.estos.de/install/install-integrated-websites.html)

This enables the LiveChat client to connect the:

• Contact portal
• Multimedia business card (Multimedia Business Card MBC)
• Widget
• Agent client

to your UCServer from a separate web server. There are two options.

• Recommended: You use the services of the estos cloud platform UCConnect. Additionally, estos UCConnect offers you a STUN/TURN service, which is required for real-time communication via WebRTC, e.g. for audio/video chats. To use the estos UCConnect cloud service for LiveChat, it must be operated with a ProCall Web Communication Services license. 
• You set up a direct connection to your webserver/UCServer. (This requires detailed knowledge and authorizations.) If you want to implement a direct connection to your web server, this can be achieved via port forwarding or by using a proxy mechanism. Further support is provided by the "Best Practice: Publish UCServer configuration for external access"

The use of UCConnect is recommended for standard installations.

LiveChat Configuration

The central configuration file (config.json) for the estos LiveChat is a JavaScript Object Notation Configuration File. A default template for this file can be found after installation of the UCServer under:
C:\Program Files\estos\UCServer\config\default{color:#ff0000}livechatconfig.json
To use this template for an update-safe configuration, copy it one level up:
C:\Program Files\estos\UCServer\config
The name of this configuration file is theoretically freely selectable, in practice the name "config.js" or "config.json" has proven to be very useful.

Specify the availability of the UCServer

When using UCConnect 
Example Specifying UCServer ID 
 |{ 
 "lib": { 
 "ucsid": "<your ucsid>" 
 },|

Store master data

• Company name and links to imprint and privacy policy
  Example configuration

  { "app": { "companyName": "YourCompany Inc.", "linkImpressum": "https://www.yourcompany.com/impressum.html", "linkPrivacy": "https://www.yourcompany.com/privacy.html", } }

  The description of a further configuration of master data like favicon or Avatar can be found here.

Corporate Identity anpassen

• The colors of the LiveChat clients can be customized according to your preferences
• Example configuration
  
  

{ 
    "colors": { 
        "headerBackground": "#00BCD4", 
        "headerFontActive": "#ffffff", 
        "headerFontInactive": "#eaeaea", 
        "highlight": "#006064" 
    } 
}

LiveChat Client Frontend Modules

estos LiveChat basically consists of four components for website communication.

Contact portal

Display of LiveChat agents to select the communication type.

Multimedia Business Card (MBC)

Widget

"Access point" for customers to start a simple and direct communication with a suitable agent. The widget is usefully integrated into existing web presences.

Agent client

Web client for LiveChat agent login. This can be used to manage all communication: internal communication, for example with colleagues, and external communication, for example with customers..

Configure LiveChat clients

There are basically three different types of configuration. The main configuration is done via the mentioned LiveChat configuration. Some configurations can also be set via HTML tags or GET parameters. If a configuration is specified multiple times, it is read out in the following order:

1. config.json
2. HTML Tag
3. GET-Parameter

A GET parameter thus overwrites all other configurations, and an HTML tag overwrites an existing configuration in config.json.

Distribution function

A good example of this is the distribution function, which assigns website visitors to the best possible contact person. The following criteria are therefore used to select an agent:

• Presence/availability (formed via e.g. manual, telephony and calendar)
• Agent status (e.g. post-processing)
• Group membership on UCServer (also AD)
• Agent workload (e.g. number of website visitors assigned to an agent)
• Preference of the website visitor for a specific agent (e.g. through previous chats)
• Current chat partner (as long as a text chat is active, always the same agent is shown)

Group membership

The distribution feature uses the group membership of users, which you can configure in UCServer Administration or in AD. Make sure that you activate the service "LiveChat consultant group" in the UCServer administration for the group.

A prioritized list of groups

Using the HTML tag or a GET parameter, a prioritized list of groups can be defined, which is used to find the best agent.

• Any number of groups can be defined.
• If no available agent from the "Bucket available" is found in the group, the next group is searched.
• If no available agent is found in any of the groups, the system searches for agents that are in "Bucket notAvailable" starting with the first group.

The HTML tag must be set within the website in which the estos component is included. This step is usually done by a website administrator..

Configuration via HTML tags

Example

• Step 1: Reference to the group name: estos-widget group="g_1"
• Step 2: Enter the relative path to config.json: configurl="./config.json"
• The full version would look like this:

<estos-widget group="g_1" configurl="./config.json"></estos-widget>
<estos-directchat group="g_1" configurl="./config.json"></estos-directchat>

Example of a prioritized list

A prioritized list of groups can also be worked with, which are processed one after the other (from left to right):
<estos-widget groups='["g_1", "g_2", "g_3"]' configurl="./config.json"></estos-widget>
<estos-directchat groups='["g_1", "g_2", "g_3"]' configurl="./config.json"></estos-directchat>

Configuration via Get Parameter

Example

https://your-company.com/call.html?group=g_1 https://your-company.com/call.html?group=g_1&group=g_2
More information about the distribution function and its logic can be found at: https://livechat-doc.estos.de/features-config/features-config-ranking.html#

Content Delivery Network

The actual content (Java Script) for the LiveChat clients is provided in our Content Delivery Network CDN, which is maintained and updated by estos, so we can quickly respond to any problems in current builds, software improvements etc. This also has the advantage, especially for system administrators, that no manual intervention on the client-side is necessary to publish current software updates in the company. The reference to the CDN must be included in every web component that uses LiveChat content (portal, MBC, widget, agent client).

This is shown in the "Head" area of the HTML document:
<html>
<head>
...
<script src="https://static.estos.com/p/v2/estos-components.js"></script>
...
See also: https://livechat-doc.estos.de/install/install-separate-website.html#integration-in-eigene-webseiten

 STUN/TURN configuration as a requirement for audio/video chat

To use the real-time communication options available in estos LiveChat Audio/Video Chat, it is usually necessary to configure a STUN/TURN service, especially if at least one client is located outside the local network. There are basically three ways to map this service:

• use own STUN/TURN
• use external providers
• use estos UCConnect (recommended for standard installations)