How to Correctly Implement an Enterprise VoIP Phone System

VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) phone systems vary greatly regarding their features, capabilities, size, form factor, service connectivity, cabling, phone sets, etc…the list goes on! While technology has evolved greatly over the past decade, the fundamentals of IP PBX systems – how they operate and what they require to perform correctly and reliably – have not changed.

These are 10 steps that will surely help you and your organization rollout an enterprise VoIP Phone system.

1. Decide if your voice network and data network should be converged into one network or if it would be better to keep them separate.
2. If you are conjoining your voice and data onto one network, a detailed network analysis should be performed. This will be able to have adequate bandwidth, can it provide for your guaranteed quality of service, and is your firewall VoIP-friendly. Compatibility is always important when coordinating technologies.
3. Always make sure that your network is cabled properly for the phone sets. Perhaps testing your cable structure could help you ensure the compatibility requirements are present.
4. Be sure to never daisy chain switches (switch to switch). Piggybacking switches will cause major slowdowns of network traffic, affect quality of service and can cause unpredictable results.
5. Remove all network hubs
6. Use single Layer 3 Power over Ethernet (PoE) switches.
7. Use enterprise-level and anti-virus software on all servers and client PCs.
8. You want to ensure that you and your organization are running a business-class, server-based spam filter appliance or a hosted spam filtering solution. Hosted anti-spam systems have the advantage of filtering the spam before it enters your network.
9. Moniter which users are abusing your network bandwidth – are users running applications for downloading music or streaming video or audio all day?
10. Require dedicated bandwidth for your SIP trunks. Some providers allocate additional bandwidth dynamically when required, giving priority to voice traffic.

For more information or prices/quotes on VoIP for your organization, contact AeroCom today!