Installation & Implementation

Business telephone systems today are for the majority of installations connected to either a Category 5e or Category 6 cabling system (with the exception of mobile based PBX systems and WiFi systems).

This type of cabling solution provides a modular approach to all communications services within a building (typically, telephones, computers, fax machines, alarms, PDQ machines, alarms etc.)

Occasionally standard CW1308 (TDM technology) wiring will be used (in the instances of long cable runs exceeding 100M) and non-voip type applications.

If a cabling infrastructure does not exist (either the building is too old or it is a greenfield site) then as a rule of thumb 3-4 RJ45 (or Cat 5e) outlets should be installed at each desk location with additional consideration to be made for meeting areas, kitchens, receptions and other communal spaces.

VoIP Implemenation

Implementing a VoIP network is often a relatively straightforward exercise, though it is important to know which areas need to be considered. We would suggest the following key areas are looked into-

Network Capacity

Network devices (routers, switches, etc) have the capacity and QoS features required for voice trafficLAN and WAN utilisationInteraction with, and affect on, data applicationsEffectiveness of network-optimisation tools to maximize utilization through compression and latency-reduction techniques

Disaster recovery

Duplication of major PBX nodes (dependin on your chosen VoIp solution)Fallback to POTS (Plain Old Telephone System) at all or strategic locationsProtection against loss of power and power spikesEmergency use mobile phones (which could be pay-as-you-go)Emergency facilities with pre-provisioned network connectionsRe-routing via the public internet

Security 

Attacks via a weakly protected VoIP element could flood the network disabling data applications, or conversely a DOS attack on a data application could inhibit voice traffic.Hackers making free use of the telephone system, for example by fooled billing (making the call appear to terminate internally when, in fact, it continues externally).Snooping on network traffic, soft phones and voicemail by various devices, or by call hijacking (routing a call to a different destination).

Standards 

H.323 (Packet-based multimedia communications systems) issued by the ITUSIP (Session Initiation Protocol) issued by the IETF

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