What does a business need in place to run an IP phone system?
Summary
Less than most people expect. An IP phone system carries calls as data over your office network and internet connection, so with a cloud-hosted system you need a working internet line, phones or apps, and power. Run your own IP-PBX and you add a server for it and a SIP trunk for outside calls. Bandwidth is rarely the constraint: Microsoft's guidance for a one-to-one Teams audio call is 10 kbps at minimum and 58 kbps recommended.
The short list for a cloud-hosted system
- An internet connection. Microsoft's Teams figures for a one-to-one audio call are 10 kbps minimum, 58 kbps recommended, and 76 kbps for best performance, each way. Even ten simultaneous calls at the recommended rate stay under 600 kbps.
- Devices. IP desk phones, softphone apps on computers, and mobile apps can all sit on the same system.
- Power and a fallback. The FCC warns that VoIP may not work during a power outage or when the internet connection fails or becomes overloaded, and suggests backup power, a traditional phone line, or a wireless phone as a backup.
What changes if you host the PBX yourself
You take on the server and the outside lines. AWS breaks a SIP trunk bill into a setup fee, a monthly charge for the broadband line, a per-channel price that may include a call allowance, and the call charges. The number of channels is normally set by the most calls you expect at the same time. The PBX software may be priced the same way: 3CX licenses by simultaneous calls instead of users, so 26 to 50 users fall in its 16-call tier.
911 location rules for multi-line systems
Federal rules give multi-line telephone systems deadlines for sending a dispatchable location, meaning the street address plus details like floor or room number, with 911 calls. Fixed phones on the premises had to provide it automatically by January 6, 2021. Phones that move around the premises, and devices used off-site, had until January 6, 2022; they must send it automatically when technically feasible, and otherwise can fall back on a location the user updates by hand or other permitted location data. The duty falls on the companies that install, manage, or operate the system as well as on those that make and sell it.
Sources
- learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoftteams/prepare-network
- fcc.gov/consumers/guides/voip-and-911-service
- aws.amazon.com/what-is/sip-trunking
- 3cx.com/ordering/pricing
- fcc.gov/mlts-911-requirements
- ecfr.gov/current/title-47/chapter-I/subchapter-A/part-9/subpart-F/section-9.16
Related on this site
- Is SIP just another word for VoIP?
- Is a cloud PBX any different from hosted VoIP or a cloud phone system?
- Should you own your phone system's PBX or let a cloud provider run it?
- How much internet speed do VoIP calls actually need?
- Will 911 know where you are if you call from a VoIP phone?
- How much do desk phones and headsets add to a business phone setup?
Written by Kaz (pen name). Figures are copied from providers' published pricing pages on the dates shown. We have not used these products. Corrections: contact form.