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Unlike macOS and Linux environments, on Windows you need to create a group policy to allow the use of DSCP markings and prioritize voice traffic using QoS. 

To do this, please follow the steps below, which are based on Windows 10.

Notes:

• The steps described below may differ depending on the version of your Windows operating system.

• With Talkdesk Agent Workspace generally available, we announced — on February 21, 2022 —  the End of Life to our legacy Agent products — Main Dialer, Talkdesk Callbar, and associated Agent tabs in Main — which impacts the feature(s) described below in this article. You may continue to use the legacy agent products until the EoL date. However, upon the End of Support date, Talkdesk will no longer provide fixes or enhancements to the products, so you should upgrade to Talkdesk Agent Workspace. 

  Access the full Announcement here.

  Access Talkdesk Agent Workspace documentation here.

How to set DSCP markings with a QoS audio policy

To create a QoS policy, you will need to create a Group Policy by using the Group Policy Management: Start > Administrative Tools > Group Policy Management

Next, complete the following steps:

1. Locate the container where the new policy should be created. 
2. Right-click the relevant container, and then click "Create a GPO in this domain, and Link it here".
3. In "New GPO", type a name for the new Group Policy object and click "OK".
4. Right-click the newly created policy, and then click "Edit".

Prioritizing Talkdesk traffic from Callbar Electron

In the Group Policy Management Editor, expand "Computer Configuration", followed by "Windows Settings", right-click "Policy-based QoS", and then click "Create new policy":

1. In "Policy-based QoS", type a name for the new policy. Select "Specify DSCP Value" and set the value to 46. Leave "Specify Outbound Throttle Rate" unselected, and then click "Next".
2. Select "Only applications with this executable name". Enter Callbar.exe, and click "Next". This setting sets the policy to only prioritize matching traffic from Callbar.
3. On the third page, make sure that both "Any source IP address" and "Any destination IP address" are selected, and then click "Next".
4. On page four, choose "TCP and UDP" in "Select the protocol this QoS policy applies to".
5. In "Specify the source port number", make sure that both "Any source port" and "Any destination port" are selected, and then click "Finish".

Prioritizing Talkdesk traffic from Google Chrome

If you are using Callbar Web, follow these steps to prioritize the traffic.

In the Group Policy Management Editor, expand "Computer Configuration", then "Windows Settings", right-click "Policy-based QoS", and then click "Create new policy":

1. In "Policy-based QoS", type a name for the new policy. Select "Specify DSCP Value" and set the value to 46. Leave "Specify Outbound Throttle Rate" unselected, and then click "Next".
2. Select "Only applications with this executable name". Enter Chrome.exe, and click "Next". This setting sets the policy to only prioritize matching traffic from Chrome.
3. On the third page, make sure that both "Any source IP address" and "Any destination IP address" are selected, and then click "Next".
4. On page four, choose "UDP" in "Select the protocol this QoS policy applies to".
5. In "Specify the source port number", make sure that both "Any source port" and "Any destination port" are selected, and then click "Finish".

To implement the new policy, the Group Policy needs to be refreshed on the client computers. It's refreshed once in a while, or after a restart, but you can force the refresh by running this in the command console: 

 ## as administrator
C:\Windows\system32> gpupdate.exe /force

For more information, please check this document from Microsoft: Quality of Service (QoS) Policy.

How to verify the DSCP marking

To verify the DSCP marking, you need to confirm the Group Policy object by running the following command prompt:

 ## as administrator
C:\Windows\system32> gpresult /H "%USERPROFILE%\Desktop\gp.html"
C:\Windows\system32> regedit /e "%USERPROFILE%\Desktop\gp.txt" HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\QoS

The .txt file will show this information:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\QoS\callbar]
"Version"="1.0"
"Application Name"="Callbar.exe"
"Protocol"="*"
"Local Port"="*"
"Local IP"="*"
"Local IP Prefix Length"="*"
"Remote Port"="*"
"Remote IP"="*"
"Remote IP Prefix Length"="*"
"DSCP Value"="46"
"Throttle Rate"="-1"

And you will see the following in the HTML file:

You can also take a trace by running Wireshark. Please make a capture while on a call.

Next, go to 'Analyze > Enabled Protocols' and make sure that 'rtp_udp' is enabled. The following will be displayed:

qWave Prioritization

qWave is a networking platform for Audio/Video streaming applications on IP networks streaming performance and reliability by ensuring QoS applications. It provides mechanisms for admission control, run time monitoring and enforcement, application feedback, and traffic prioritization.

Talkdesk customers must have the service, "Quality Windows Audio Visual Experience" set to startup type "Automatic" and not the default value "Manual". You can do that by running this in the command console:

 ## as administrator
C:\Windows\system32> net start QWAVE
The Quality Windows Audio Video Experience service is starting.
The Quality Windows Audio Video Experience service was started successfully.

C:\Windows\system32> REG add "HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\QWAVE" /v Start /t REG_DWORD /d 2 /f
The operation completed successfully.

And that's it.

If you have any questions, please contact Talkdesk Support.