Top 5 Benefits of Migrating from Cisco TMS to VQ Conference Manager

In today’s fast-paced and evolving business environment, organizations must ensure their communication and collaboration tools are both effective and future-proof.

Steve Holmes

• 5 February 2026
• 6min read

Cisco TelePresence Management Suite (TMS) has been a reliable solution for managing video conferencing infrastructure; however,with the January 2027 end-of-support deadline looming, organizations still using TMS need to be planning their exit strategy.

VQ Conference Manager, which includes Device Management and Automation (DMA) is the only complete, on-premises replacement for TMS that Cisco recommends. The solution addresses many of the limitations found in Cisco TMS, providing a modern approach to managing conferencing and device ecosystems.

In this blog, we discuss some of the top reasons and benefits of migrating from Cisco TMS to VQ Conference Manager, and explain why this is an essential upgrade for organizations looking to enhance their operational efficiency and leverage the latest features in Cisco Meeting Server and connected devices.

1. TMS end-of-support is January 2027

TMS renewals ceased on 31 January 2026, and end of support will be 31 January 2027. This will be here before we know it, so if you’re still running TMS, it’s essential you have a migration plan ready.
Moving to a new product involves more than just a simple switch; it requires extensive preparation, tools and automation to extract data from the current deployment, prepare the new environment, and move meetings, phone books, and devices.

Additionally, a critical step before migration is validating the new product in your own environment. This involves thorough testing, ensuring it meets your needs, evaluating its return on investment, and confirming that the new product’s roadmap aligns with your long-term goals.

Starting this process early will provide enough time to navigate potential challenges and ensure a smooth transition that supports future business growth.

2. Fills the gaps in TMS’s old architecture

TMS was designed almost 20 years ago to meet the collaboration needs of that time. While it addressed the requirements back then, the world of collaboration has evolved significantly.

TMS was not built to handle today’s demands for scalability and distributed architecture, which have become essential for modern business operations. Fundamental architectural changes to TMS would have been necessary to keep pace with the rapidly advancing landscape of collaboration devices and conferencing platforms.

Technologies such as Kubernetes, containerization, Ansible automation, and robust APIs and SDKs are designed to enable scalability, flexibility, and efficient deployment.

VQ Conference Manager is built on these modern technologies, providing an adaptable platform that can evolve to support new needs as they arise. With a regular release cadence of updates and enhancements, VQ Conference Manager offers the agility and support that today’s collaboration environments require, positioning it as a forward-thinking solution capable of handling the ever-changing world of communication and collaboration.

3. Eliminates Windows server dependency

To keep TMS operational, organizations are having to invest resources and infrastructure that don’t contribute to core collaboration functionality.

Cisco TMS requires installation on a Windows server, which in turn demands separate management of an SQL server. This setup means administrators must handle both the TMS software and the underlying infrastructure, including Windows server maintenance, upgrades, security management, and SQL server administration. Each of these components adds a layer of complexity, including licensing requirements, increasing the overall administrative burden and cost for businesses.

VQ Conference Manager is built on a Linux-based platform, with an internal database that administrators don’t need to configure separately.Consequently, businesses can streamline their collaboration deployments with VQ Conference Manager.

4. Improves integration with Exchange

Cisco TMS requires installation of TMSXE to schedule calls via Microsoft Outlook, adding another component for administrators to manage.

Another drawback of TMS scheduling is that it sends two separate emails for meeting notifications, which can be confusing for users. Over time, admins and users may have grown accustomed to this dual-email approach, but it remains an outdated and inefficient process. TMS also lacks effective integration with Outlook, limiting its usability for seamless scheduling.

VQ Conference Manager significantly improves on Microsoft Outlook integration within a single platform, reducing the number of systems to oversee. VQ Conference Manager consolidates all relevant information into a single, comprehensive email for registration, which benefits both administrators and end-users.

Importantly, VQ Conference Manager offers both an Outlook add-in and plug-in. The plug-in is particularly valuable for those running self-hosted or air-gapped systems, since it can offer sophisticated booking operations without Exchange of Microsoft 365 integration.

5. TMS doesn’t provide support for the latest features in CMS and Cisco video devices

The growing complexity of collaboration environments has increased the demand for smarter provisioning, better device management, scalable automation, and advanced analytics that provide administrators with deeper insights into device performance.

Understandably for an end-of-life product, development of Cisco TMS significantly slowed down, with active engineering reportedly halted some years ago. During this period, the world of collaboration technology has evolved rapidly, with new releases of CMS, CUCM, Expressway, and various devices reshaping the landscape.
Unfortunately, TMS has not kept pace with these changes, lacking crucial updates and integration capabilities. Notably, TMS does not integrate with key infrastructure components like Expressway, preventing comprehensive oversight of calls traversing different parts of the collaboration environment.

In contrast, VQ Conference Manager is designed to meet the current demands of collaboration deployments. Supporting seamless integration with CMS, CUCM, Expressway, and various devices, DMA provides administrators with a unified platform that intelligently handles device provisioning and management and supports very large deployments through advanced automation. Additionally, VQ Conference Manager offers in-depth analytics, giving administrators comprehensive insights into their collaboration ecosystem, thus empowering them to make data-driven decisions and maintain optimal performance.

Why now is the time to migrate from TMS to VQ Conference Manager and DMA

As the business world continues to evolve, organizations must adapt their communication and collaboration strategies to stay ahead. With increased complexity in collaboration environments and a need for seamless integration, automation, and advanced analytics, businesses are now seeking more innovative and robust solutions.

While Cisco TMS has served as a reliable tool for managing video conferencing, its impending end-of-support and outdated architecture mean that it is no longer sufficient for modern demands.

VQ Conference Manager and DMA can be purchased via your Cisco Partner and is on the Cisco GPL.