How can I make sure my Evoko Room Manager keeps working with Microsoft 365?

Note! The information below only applies if you are using Microsoft 365/Exchange Online! On-premises Exchange, Google Workspace and IBM Domino are not affected.

Table of contents

• Background
  • Microsoft is retiring basic authentication over EWS support for Exchange Online
  • How and why this affects Evoko products
  • What are the options going forward?
• The ERM Bridge
  • What is the ERM Bridge?
  • What are the requirements for ERM Bridge?
• ERM Bridge install instructions
  • Server setup - WebAPI application
  • Evoko Home settings
  • Evoko Room Manager setup

Background

Microsoft is retiring basic authentication over EWS support for Exchange Online

In March 2018, Microsoft announced that starting October 13, 2020, Exchange Online will no longer support basic authentication over EWS. This change would affect some Evoko products that use this authentication method.

Since then, the retirement date for basic authentication over EWS has been moved back several times. At the time this was written, the deadline had been pushed back to an undisclosed date but with at least 12 months notice. 

Please see Microsoft's statement and updates here: Basic Authentication and Exchange Online – February 2021 Update - Microsoft Tech Community

How and why this affects Evoko products

The Evoko Room Manager (ERM1001) uses basic authentication over EWS to connect to Exchange Online (Microsoft 365, previously Office 365). Unfortunately, the Room Manager as a standalone product will never be able to use modern authentication (oAuth). 

The Evoko Liso also uses EWS, but is compatible with modern authentication (oAuth) since Evoko Home version 2.2, and since version 2.3 it is compatible with the current oAuth enrollment process. This means that if you are using the Liso with Evoko Home v2.3 or newer and you are currently using basic authentication, all you have to do is to follow the instructions in the Change from basic to modern authentication in Evoko Home article. If you are on an older version of Evoko Home, you can find update instructions here or submit a support request and we will gladly assist with getting your system up-to-date.

The Evoko Naso, being a cloud based solution, is not at all affected by this change.

What are the options going forward?

For the Evoko Room Manager, there are currently two solutions available:

1. The ERM Bridge is a server solution that acts as a bridge between the Evoko Room Manager and Evoko Home. With this solution, authentication is handled by Evoko Home instead of the Room Manager. Currently the ERM Bridge is in open beta. Read more about the ERM Bridge below.
2. Talk to your Evoko sales person about replacing your Room Managers with the more modern Evoko Liso or Evoko Naso.

Please don't hesitate to contact us with any questions you might have about either of the above options.

The ERM Bridge

What is the ERM Bridge?

The ERM Bridge is a server-side software that connects the Evoko Room Manager to Evoko Home. 

What are the requirements for ERM Bridge?

• A Windows Server with IIS
• An Evoko Home server version 2.2 or above that the ERM Bridge can connect to. Evoko Home and the ERM Bridge does not have to reside on the same machine.
• The Room Manager application will need to be manually replaced on every Room Manager

ERM Bridge install instructions

Here are the instructions on how to integrate the Evoko Room Manager in Evoko Home using the ERM Bridge. After completing this procedure, your Room Managers will no longer be managed by Evoko Control Panel. 

Important! Please read through this document in its entirety before starting and contact Evoko support if you have any questions.  

About beta software: The ERM Bridge is beta software and as such it should not be considered bug free. We are doing our best to offer first class support for ERM Bridge, but you might run into issues that will take a long time to resolve and currently we do not recommend running the ERM Bridge in a production environment. If you have any questions, please contact Evoko support.  

Benefits
The main benefits of integrating the Evoko Room Manager into Evoko Home are:

• Centralized management even with mixed environments (Liso/Room Manager)
• Simpler booking system configuration since it only needs to be configured for Evoko Home.
• Better support for newer ciphers and technologies (including support for the Office 365 oAuth transition)

Drawbacks and limitations
There are also a few drawbacks:

• Integration requires additional software and setup.
• Not currently possible to end meetings early from the Room Manager screen.
• Some Evoko Home settings need to be changed for the integration to work.

Server Setup - WebAPI application

Prerequisites

• Evoko Home v2.2 or later needs to be installed and configured. For setup instructions, please see Evoko Liso / Getting started v2.x
• Download Evoko Room Manager Bridge: https://www.evoko.se/downloads/
  (Select Downloads for Evoko Room Manager --> Evoko Room Manager Bridge)

1. In Windows, open "Turn Windows features on or off" or "Server manager" depending on operating system version.
   
   
2. If going through Server Manager, open "Add roles and features wizard".
3. Enable Internet Information Services, then enable the following.:
   • All options under World Wide Web Services\Application Development Features
   • All options under World Wide Web Services\Common HTTP Features.
   • Security\Windows Authentication
     
     
     If using the "Add Roles and features" wizard you will find the above options under "Role Services" after selecting IIS.
     
     
4. Click OK to enable the features, then let Windows Update download the necessary files and finally reboot the server if prompted.
   
   
   
5. Run the setup.exe located in the Integration subfolder of the ERM Integration.
   
   
   
6. After install has finished successfully, reboot if needed, then open Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager.
   
   
   
7. Navigate to Sites -> Default Web Site -> EvokoWebAPI and click Edit Permissions.
   
   
   
8. Go to the Security tab, click Edit, select IIS_IUSRS and click Full Control. Then click OK on the two dialog boxes.
   
   
9. Restart IIS by clicking on the server name in the top left corner and selecting Restart under the Manage Server menu.
   
   
   
10. Open a web browser and open http://[IP]/EvokoWebAPI, where [IP] is the ip of the server.
    
    
11. Log in using EvokoAdmin and Password123.
    
    
12. Under EH end point, enter the Evoko Home server IP and port, for example 192.168.1.108:3002
    

    Important! Only enter IP:PORT! Do not enter protocol, slashes or path.

    
13. Open Evoko Home, go to global settings and copy the default API token, then paste it in the "Set MongoDB User details" tab in EvokoWebAPI.
    

This concludes the ERM WebAPI Endpoint configuration.

Evoko Home settings

In Evoko Home, the following settings need to be changed for the rooms that are going to be used with Room Managers.

1. Go to Rooms -> Settings and select the rooms that are going to have Room Managers assigned to them. Click Edit Settings.
2. Under booking settings, make sure everything is enabled except for Delete Future Meeting and Modify Future Meeting as the Room Manager does not currently support these features. Also disable all authentication settings as shown in the screenshot below.
   

Evoko Room Manager setup

This section will tell you how to configure the Room Manager for use with Evoko Home. Please note that after performing the steps below, your Room Manager will need a factory reset and reconfiguration if you would want to go back to using Evoko Control Panel.

Preparation: Copy the MeetingManagementSetup.CAB file to a FAT-formatted USB stick.

1. On the Room Manager, log on using an admin PIN and select Exit Application.
2. Open My Device on the desktop by double tapping it.
3. Open ResidentFlash, select the MeetingManagementSetup folder, tap the File menu and select Delete. Click yes when asked if you are sure you want to delete the folder and any files in it.
4. Insert the USB stick with the MeetingManagementSetup.CAB file, open My Device on the Room Manager and navigate to "Hard Disk".
5. Copy the installer to the desktop by selecting the MeetingManagementSetup.CAB file, then tap the Edit menu and select Copy. Navigate to the Windows\Desktop folder, tap the Edit menu and select paste. You can also paste it by closing the file explorer and long pressing on the desktop and selecting paste on the popup menu.
6. Run the installer from the desktop by double tapping the icon.
7. Change install location to \ResidentFlash and tap OK to install the software.
8. Start the new Room Manager software by double tapping the icon.
9. When prompted, select protocol and enter the IP address to the WebAPI using the touch screen, then tap the green check mark.
   
10. The Room Manager will connect to the WebAPI and download the configuration which will take a few minutes. The Room Manager will restart and you will be presented with the Select a Room screen.
11. Select the room this Room Manager should be assigned to.