cisco onprem uc · published

Unified CM CTI and JTAPI integrations

Verified 2026-09-25 · 60 sources · tier 2

Also known as CTIManager, Cisco Unified JTAPI, Cisco Unified TSP.

Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) on Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Unified CM) starts with the Cisco CTIManager service: activating it in Cisco Unified Serviceability is the first task in the Unified CM 15 CTI application task flow 1. Applications integrate with Unified CM by consuming Java Telephony API (JTAPI) or Telephony Application Programming Interface (TAPI) client software, which is downloaded from Unified CM 3453.

How it works

Activating the Cisco CTIManager service in Cisco Unified Serviceability is the first task in the Unified CM 15 CTI application task flow 1. In Cisco Unified JTAPI, the Provider object acts as the primary contact point between an application and the JTAPI implementation, obtained via JtapiPeer.getProvider() using credentials and the Unified CM hostname or IP address 35. Nonsecure CTI connections between CTIManager and an application operate over port 2748 32. Application Heartbeat Minimum Interval and Application Heartbeat Maximum Interval are CTIManager service parameters configured during the CTI task flow 22.

Unified CM defines virtual device types for call handling that do not use SCCP or SIP protocols: CTI Port, CTI Route Point, and CTI Remote Device 60. A CTI route point is a virtual device capable of receiving multiple simultaneous calls for application-controlled redirection 40. In the Cisco Unified Telephony Service Provider (TSP), route point lines carry the LINEADDRCAPFLAGS_ROUTEPOINT capability flag, allowing applications to redirect incoming calls with an infinite queue depth 55. Administrators configure the number of simultaneous active calls on a CTI route point, though the Unified CM 15 CTI documentation states neither a default nor a maximum value for this parameter 41. CTI ports provide first-party call control in Cisco Unified TSP, where each port is limited to 1 active audio stream at a time 50. For a JTAPI application to control a new CTI port, administrators must add the port to the application user's list of controlled devices 9.

For deskphone control using Cisco Jabber, users cannot control a desk phone if the "Allow Control of Device from CTI" option is not selected on that phone 17.

Access control groups

Unified CM regulates application and user privileges using specific access control groups: 472423663354618

Standard CTI Enabled: Allows applications to connect to Unified CM and utilize CTI functionality; the CTI task flow adds application users and end users here 47.
Standard CTI Allow Control of All Devices: Permits an application to monitor or control any CTI-controllable device across the system 2.
Standard CTI Secure Connection: Enforces secure TLS connections between the application and Unified CM 42.
Standard CTI Allow Call Recording: Grants an application permission to record calls 36.
Standard CTI Allow Call Monitoring: Grants an application permission to monitor calls 5.
Standard CTI Allow Calling Number Modification: Permits an application to alter calling party numbers 6.
Standard CTI Allow Call Park Monitoring: Delivers notifications to applications when calls are parked or unparked 33.
Standard CTI Allow Reception of SRTP Key Material: Delivers the SRTP key material needed to decrypt encrypted media streams 46.
Standard CTI Allow Control of Phones supporting Connected Xfer and conf: Required for Jabber deskphone control users on 8800, 8900, 9900, or DX series phones 18.
Standard CTI Allow Control of Phones supporting Rollover Mode: Required for Jabber deskphone control users on 6900 series phones 18.

Security and certificates

Securing CTI connections requires validating that the cluster security mode is set to mixed mode 28. Secure CTI exchanges Quick Buffer Encoding (QBE) messages between CTIManager and applications over TLS port 2749 48. To configure secure JTAPI or TAPI connections, administrators adjust the CTIManager Connection Security Flag and CAPF Profile Instance ID for Secure Connection to CTIManager service parameters 44.

Issuing Certificate Authority Proxy Function (CAPF) certificates to applications requires activating the Cisco Certificate Authority Proxy Function service on the publisher (first) node 7. Secure CTI relies on two CAPF profile types—the Application User CAPF Profile and the End User CAPF Profile—which issue locally significant certificates (LSCs) used by users to authenticate to CTIManager 8. If a secure-configured JTAPI or TAPI client cannot download the CTL file, such as when no CTL file exists, the client will not connect on any port 30.

For deployments implementing both TLS signaling and SRTP media encryption, users must belong to three access control groups: Standard CTI Enabled, Standard CTI Secure Connection, and Standard CTI Allow Reception of SRTP Key Material 43. A CTI port that registers to CTIManager across a TLS connection registers securely, and its media is encrypted using SRTP 16.

Capacity and system timers

Unified CM enforces device capacity limits and timers through service parameters: 272629

Service Parameter	Default Value	Functional Scope
Maximum Devices Per Provider	2000	Maximum devices a single CTI application can open 27
Maximum Devices Per Node	800	Maximum aggregate devices all CTI applications can open on one CTIManager node 26
CTI New Call Accept Timer	4	Configures allowable call answer duration; documentation does not print the unit 29

Redundancy and failover

System behavior during failures depends on whether the fault occurs at the node, service, or application layer: 38373

Unified CM node failure: CTIManager recovers affected CTI ports and route points by reopening them on an alternate Unified CM node 38.
CTIManager service failure: Connected applications reopen affected devices by selecting from configured primary and backup CTIManagers within the application 37. Following a CTIManager failover, applications do not rehome to the primary CTIManager when it returns to service 31.
CTI application failure: CTIManager closes the failed application and redirects unterminated calls at its CTI ports and route points to the configured call forward on failure (CFOF) destination number 3.

Client software and versioning

Both the JTAPI client and Cisco TSP software are downloaded from Unified CM Administration under Application > Plugins 3453. Applications requiring IPv6 support must use a JTAPI or TAPI client version that explicitly supports IPv6 addresses 23.

Cisco Unified JTAPI

The JTAPI client is distributed as CiscoJTAPIWindows.zip or CiscoJTAPILinux.zip in 32-bit and 64-bit packages 34. The installed client version on Windows or Linux can be verified by executing java CiscoJtapiVersion 59. From release 14SU2, the JTAPI classpath includes the Bouncy Castle FIPS archives (bc-fips.jar, bcpkix-fips.jar, and bctls-fips.jar) along with jtapi.jar 21.

Cisco's policy provides interface backward compatibility for Cisco Unified JTAPI covering at least 1 previous major Unified CM release, although Cisco recommends retesting applications with each major release 4. Conversely, upgraded Cisco Unified JTAPI clients do not operate with earlier Unified CM releases 58. Because event ordering can alter across releases, applications must not rely on specific event sequences and should ignore unrecognized interface elements 20.

JTAPI does not support Cisco Unified IP 7960 and 7940 phones running SIP 45. Additionally, while Cisco Unified IP 7931G phones support conference or transfer across differing addresses in RollOver mode, JTAPI cannot monitor or control them in that mode 39.

Cisco Unified TSP

The Cisco Unified TSP implements TAPI 2.1; it does not support TAPI 3.0 applications 56. 64-bit Windows environments require the native 64-bit Cisco TSP client, and the TSP can only be installed on systems where Windows resides on the C: drive 52. Up to 10 Cisco TSP instances may be installed 51. From Unified CM 15SU2 onward, TSP configuration supports a tertiary CTI Manager used when both primary and secondary nodes are unreachable, whereas versions through 15SU1 allowed only primary and backup assignments 57. In Unified CM 15SU4, the x64 TSP plugin size increased to 53.7 MB from 26.5 MB in earlier builds 49. Cisco recommends rebooting the host computer whenever Cisco TSP configuration settings are modified 54.

Troubleshooting and tracing

JTAPI diagnostic tracing is configured using Cisco JTAPI Preferences (JTPREFS), supporting WARNING, INFORMATIONAL, and DEBUG levels 25. Selecting DEBUG adds tracing categories such as CTI_DEBUGGING and PROTOCOL_DEBUGGING 25.

The error code CTIERR_DIRECTORY_LOGIN_TIMEOUT occurs when CTI sends no authentication response to a ProviderOpenRequest 19. Documented causes include LDAP connectivity issues, CTIManager unavailability, or database delays; the application must retry upon receiving this error 19.

Applicability

Applies to: Cisco Unified Communications Manager, Cisco Unified JTAPI, Cisco Unified TSP, and Cisco Jabber with Unified Communications Manager. Deployments: on-premises. Sources checked 2026-09-25. Unified CM release 15 and service updates cover the core CTI and JTAPI features 1. Bouncy Castle FIPS jar inclusions apply to release 14SU2 and later 21. Cisco TSP tertiary CTI Manager support applies to release 15SU2 and later 57. The 53.7 MB x64 Cisco TSP plugin size applies to release 15SU4 and later 49. Deskphone control configuration settings apply to Cisco Jabber 1718.

What remains uncertain

Release 15 Collaboration Sizing Guide CTI limits are not covered by the sources below. CTI and JTAPI integrations with Webex Calling Dedicated Instance are not covered by the sources below. Supported JVM versions for Cisco Unified JTAPI 15 are not covered by the sources below. The context of the route point limit in the JTAPI AutoAccept section is not covered by the sources below. The maximum number of CTIManager nodes per cluster is not covered by the sources below. Super Provider (Disable Device Validation) semantics are not covered by the sources below. CTI Remote Device for JTAPI and Extend and Connect is not covered by the sources below.