Webex Contact Center and Salesforce: Open CTI Connector or the New Service Cloud Voice Connector?

Cisco customers running Webex Contact Center inside Salesforce have a choice to make before 2028. Cisco maintains two separate Salesforce integrations, and only one of them is built on the framework Salesforce is retiring. The other, a connector for Service Cloud Voice, is now generally available.

Here is how to tell them apart and what moving from one to the other involves.

The connector built on Open CTI

Cisco’s Version 2 Salesforce integration guide has admins download a call center definition file named OpenCTI.callCenter-meta.xml, import it into Salesforce, and add the Open CTI Softphone utility item to the Lightning app. In the configuration table, the “Use CTI API” setting is described as representing that the call center is using Open CTI.

So if your agents use this connector, the Salesforce retirement notice applies to you. Open CTI reaches end of life on February 28, 2028, when legacy connectors stop working.

The connector is still being improved. Cisco’s release notes list monthly updates, including CRM record search in May 2026 and an option for agents to decline incoming WebRTC calls in April 2026. Cisco also notes that digital channels such as chat and email are not supported with its CRM connectors, and that the connector is available only for Development, Enterprise and Ultimate editions of Salesforce, not Group or Professional.

The Service Cloud Voice connector

Cisco’s Service Cloud Voice integration guide describes an out-of-the-box solution that brings Webex Contact Center into the Salesforce Omni-Channel agent console, and states that SCV Voice Connector Release 1 is generally available.

Licensing comes in layers. Cisco says customers need the new A-SF-VOICE add-on license per logged-in agent, on top of Flex 3 Standard or Premium licenses for Webex Contact Center. On the Salesforce side, you need Salesforce Voice for Partner Telephony. Cisco also notes that Developer Editions include five Partner Telephony licenses for testing.

Getting the package is not self-service. According to Cisco, the installation package is not directly available on AppExchange. The listing’s “Get it Now” button opens a contact form to request the installation link and Cisco activation, so leave time for that step.

Limits to check before you commit

Cisco lists several limitations: Voice is available only in Lightning Experience; it is not supported on Salesforce Mobile or iPad Safari; it works only on Chrome, Edge (Chromium) and Firefox; Standard Navigation is not supported; and multiparty conference is not supported with the connector. If your agents depend on three-way conferences today, raise that with Cisco early.

Cisco also warns teams that tested the Beta not to reuse their existing Partner Contact Center record. Instead, import the GA XML file and create a new record, because the Beta record may keep outdated settings.

The real work: your Webex flows

With Service Cloud Voice, the Webex Contact Center flow has to create the Salesforce Voice Call record as soon as a call arrives. Cisco provides an API wrapper inside the package for this, plus an optional Execute Omni-Flow step that lets Salesforce make the routing decision. Cisco’s flow examples also show how to clear routing and update the Voice Call record when a call is abandoned in queue.

Other settings to plan include Webex idle codes and the Salesforce presence statuses you assign to agents, an optional switch for Webex AI transcription, saving recording links to the Voice Call record, and a Wrap-Up Reason component for agents.

What this means for your contact center

• Check your call center file. An OpenCTI.callCenter-meta.xml import means you are on the retiring connector.
• Price three layers of licensing. Flex 3, the A-SF-VOICE add-on and Salesforce Voice for Partner Telephony.
• Request the package early. Activation goes through Cisco, not a one-click install.
• Involve your flow designers. Voice Call creation and Omni-Flow routing live in your Webex flows.
• Test conferencing and browsers. Those limits can affect day-to-day agent work.

If you are comparing vendors while you rebuild, Partner Contact Center Powered by Vonage runs on Salesforce Voice, and Vonage Contact Center for Salesforce brings voice, video, WhatsApp, SMS, chat and email into the same Salesforce workspace.

Sources

• Webex Help Center: Integrate Webex Contact Center with Salesforce (Version 2)
• Webex Help Center: Integrate Webex Contact Center with Salesforce Service Cloud Voice
• Salesforce Help: Open CTI Retirement