Baron Telecommunications
360-734-5082
  • Home
  • About Baron
    • Our Story
    • Your Team
    • Our Service Area
  • Solutions
  • Online Support Center
  • What Clients Are Saying
  • Let's Connect
  • What Clients Are Saying

SIP Trunks:  The Future is Here!

9/19/2016

1 Comment

 
Why You Should Consider SIP Trunks
 
SIP trunking has become a buzzword in the telecom industry.  What is it, and why should you consider taking advantage of it?
 
SIP (Session Initiated Protocol) refers to the technology which relies on a data network for voice communication.  SIP trunking replaces the traditional telephone network by using your data network to connect to the Public Switched Telephone Network.  (SIP trunks become your “phone lines” to the outside world.)
 
You should consider switching to SIP trunks because you may be able to realize several benefits, such as:
  • Reduced communications costs (potentially significant savings on your monthly phone bill)
  • Better features (DIDs, control over outgoing number, etc.)
  • Simplified communications infrastructure
If your organization has or is considering an IP-enabled business phone system, you will want to take full advantage of its benefits.  Success depends not only on the phone system you choose, but also on how you connect that system to the public switched telephone network (PSTN).  SIP trunking allows you to connect your phone system to the PSTN over a broadband connection.

Top Benefits of SIP Trunking
*Reduce Communications Costs
Monthly line access costs tend to be significantly less with SIP trunks than they do with standard telephone lines.  Many companies discover that the cost savings of switching to SIP more than offsets the cost of upgrading their phone system or the cost of breaking a contract with their service provider.
SIP trunks use bandwidth flexibly and efficiently, so you can get more from available broadband bandwidth.
*Better Features
In addition to the standard business services you expect, SIP supports advanced IP services, such as the ability to have local numbers in various markets served by one central business phone system—so called parties only see the phone number you want them to see, and don’t try to call you on a secondary number.  In addition, Direct Inward Dialing (DIDs) numbers can be assigned to individual extensions.
*Simplify the Communications Infrastructure
Since SIP Trunking works over IP networks, it potentially eliminates the complexity of managing separate services such as PRI or multiple analog lines.
*Get More out of Available Trunk Bandwidth
Unlike ISDN trunks with their fixed voice or data channels, with SIP trunking, bandwidth can be dynamically allocated between voice and data at any time.  If there are many concurrent calls, more bandwidth can be used for voice, and if nobody is talking on the phone, all bandwidth is available for data.
*Support Business-grade Voice Quality
Shifting voice calls onto the data network doesn’t require compromise.  You can get the voice quality you expect by using a business-grade broadband connection and enterprise-class router/firewall, with the router being configured to prioritize voice traffic over data traffic.

Let Baron Help You Decide  
Although saving money may be the primary reason for going to SIP trunking, there are other factors to consider when choosing the best vendor.  There are major differences in how providers package, price and deliver their offerings.  We believe you should consider these questions when making this important decision:
 
Question #1: What are my call capacity needs?  
While most businesses do not want callers to get busy signals, you also do not want to have more lines and expense than you need.
Count your current lines, both incoming & outgoing, and note how many times during a week they are all in use.  Identify heavy call periods or seasonal call volumes and factor this into your decision.
 
Question #2: How much bandwidth will I need for SIP trunks?  
Each telephone conversation will require a certain amount of bandwidth.  This amount can vary, but along with that comes a variation in quality.
There are several compression algorithms that impact the quality and bandwidth requirements.  To be safe, we recommend you figure 80k per call, times the number of simultaneous calls, to arrive at the bandwidth needed.
 Voice does not consume a huge amount of bandwidth, but it is still necessary to properly calculate the requirements.
 
Question #3: Will I have to change my current internet service?  
That will depend on whether or not your bandwidth meets or exceeds your current needs, after factoring in the voice traffic.
Many businesses find that they are able to improve the internet performance at the same time as moving to SIP trunking.
It is important to review all the applications that are utilizing the internet connection including cloud-based applications.
 
Question #4: Will I have to change my Trunking Service Provider?
While some legacy service providers are beginning to offer SIP services, it is likely that you will want to move to an Internet Telephony Service Provider.
Not all providers are alike!  Some lack Quality Of Service standards (QOS) and Service Level Agreements (SLA’s) which are critical in order to provide a quality connection.
Voice conversations cannot wait when the data traffic is slowed.  Prioritization of voice traffic may be required if network congestion exists due to insufficient broadband.
Using a “business class” internet service connection or transport method is critical.
 
Question #5: What extra equipment will I need?  
You will need either a gateway, which converts SIP to analog, or an interface device that accepts the SIP trunking service directly into your telephone system.
Many systems today are being designed to natively accept SIP service and thereby eliminate the analog hardware of the past.
 
Question #6: What about my fax and alarm lines?  
Two devices that remain dependent on analog lines are your fax and alarm systems. Fax simply does not work reliably over VOIP.  As technology advances continue, we expect the “fax over SIP” functionality to improve.  In the meantime, you should keep an analog line for fax or move to an e-fax application and manage fax electronically at the desktop.
Alarm systems have traditionally used analog lines, however many alarm companies now support other connection methods. Contact your alarm company to learn more from them about your options.
Many businesses use the same analog line for fax and alarm needs.

Question #7: What other things should I consider when moving to SIP trunking?  
You may want to consider a backup internet circuit and run voice and data on separate circuits. This also provides a higher reliability in the event of internet service disruption.
You will want to review your current service to determine if you are under a contract with the current provider. Even if you are, you may be able to benefit from SIP by moving a portion of your service (outbound calling for example) to SIP until the contract term is expired. In some cases, the savings from SIP are so great that paying the early termination fee to get out of the contract still makes sense.
1 Comment

IPedge and Unified Communications

5/13/2016

2 Comments

 
Picture
Picture
Imagine being able to manage your business communications how, where and when you want — via desk phone, smartphone, PC or tablet — in or out of the office, across platforms from Toshiba and third parties, including Microsoft Skype® for Business.
 
Imagine you could:  
  • See the status of colleagues before dialing them, then click to call or message them. 
  • Dial, answer or transfer calls without picking up the phone, just by using the mouse. 
  • Access your voice and email messages all in one place — from work, from your home email system, or from anywhere over the network. 
  • Have phone calls follow you wherever you go.
These unified communications (UC) capabilities and more have always been available for your Toshiba IPedge on-site phone system.  Now it is simpler than ever to explore UC and see the value it could add to your organization in convenience, productivity and performance.
Toshiba’s UCedge® extends unified communications across Toshiba phone systems and third-party devices — including selected smartphones, tablets, desktops and laptops.  With client software downloaded from the Google Play™ store or the Apple® App Store™, you can access the unified communications capabilities of your Toshiba business phone system from anywhere, while communications and connections flow across devices.
 
How it Works
With UCedge, your mobile device becomes a true partner with the Toshiba phone system.
Incoming calls.  When the softphone capability is enabled on the mobile device, incoming calls are handled just like any other extension on the phone system.  If the softphone is not enabled, the Toshiba IPedge® and VIPedge systems use the Follow Me feature to simultaneously (or sequentially) ring both your desk phone and the mobile device.
Outgoing calls.  With the softphone capability, outgoing calls are handled just like any other phone system extension, using your company’s Wi-Fi® network to access the phone system. Without the softphone, you can still make outgoing calls through the phone system (directly or with a system callback), enabling cellular calls at landline rates from end to end.  This option is a good choice for cases where long-distance or roaming charges would otherwise apply. Whichever way the call is placed, the called party sees only your office number caller ID, and least-cost routing reduces long distance and international charges as much as possible.
Call control.  The UCedge client automatically synchronizes with the contact list and presence status from the Toshiba phone system.  Your contacts are always up to date, and you can see the status — busy, available or away — of colleagues before dialing them. Access Toshiba phone system features from your mobile device. View, play, reply to and forward voice messages in a visual interface as well as manage status and greetings. You can even pair a Toshiba IP5000 series desk phone with a UCedge client to make calls and control calls to your IP5000 phone remotely from your mobile device.  You can be logged in to three devices at the same time.

To learn how you can take advantage of these Unified Communications options, contact Baron Telecommunications (360-734-5082).  Let's Connect.

About Baron Telecommunications 
Baron Telecommunications has been offering communication services for over 30 years now. We provide system assessment, installation, and ongoing service. We provide advanced products from Toshiba and Shoretel. Call us today (360-734-5082) for all your communication needs.  www.barontele.com
2 Comments

Moving up with Toshiba

3/4/2016

2 Comments

 
Picture
MOVING UP WITH TOSHIBA: NO CUSTOMER LEFT BEHIND
By Toshiba Telecommunications











Toshiba provides a clear and affordable migration path to help you retain your investment in your telephones while upgrading to newer and more sophisticated Toshiba business telephone solutions.  Moving up doesn’t mean tossing out.  Here’s proof.  Maybe one of these scenarios below applies to you.

You want to trade up from a legacy Toshiba Strata® DK, Strata CTX or Strata CIX system to a current-generation or larger Strata CIX system.  No problem.  Your existing Toshiba DKT2000, DKT3000, DKT3200 and DP5000-series digital phones all work with the new phone system.

You want to add IP phones to your Strata CIX system.  No problem.  Strata CIX systems support both digital and IP, so you can continue to use your existing Toshiba digital phones and add IP phones for those who need the power of IP.

You have a Strata CIX system, and you want the latest IP capabilities such as voice mail with unified messaging, unified communications, meet-me conferencing and mobility features.  No problem.  Just add an IP card to the Strata CIX server and pair it with Toshiba’s IPedge® Virtual Server, which delivers the capabilities of Toshiba’s IPedge business communications system.  Reuse all your Toshiba IP5000-series phones in the process.

You want to go all-IP with an on-premise system?  No problem.  You’re in good company.  More than half (57 percent) of buyers surveyed by the software review firm Software Advice reported that they were looking to purchase VoIP services for the first time.  Get a Toshiba IPedge system sized to suit (models available from 24 users to 1,000) and reuse your existing Toshiba IP5000-series telephones and other components.

You want to migrate from an on-site PBX to a cloud-based phone solution.  No problem.  Toshiba’s VIPedge® cloud-based solution is based on IPedge technology, so you can move entirely to the cloud, and your staff won’t have to learn a new phone system.  You can reuse all the IP-5000 series phones you used with your Strata CIX or IPedge system.

You want to establish a contact center with advanced call routing, IVR, PC integration, reporting and more.  No problem.  That capability is already on your IPedge server; just turn it up by software license — or add an IPedge Virtual Server to your Strata CIX system.  And, you guessed it — you can reuse your existing IP endpoint devices.

You could soon outgrow your on-premise Toshiba phone system.  No problem.  Augment your IPedge or Strata CIX system with VIPedge cloud-based service, either to add users at headquarters or to bring distant users or locations into the company network.  Strata CIX users just add some processor/firmware upgrades and an IPedge App Server.  IPedge users are good to go.  And yes, you can reuse the same IP endpoints and other access equipment.

Your organization is growing and you need to add more locations.  No problem.  Since VIPedge service is licensed on a per-user basis, you can expand anytime just by adding endpoint device(s) and licenses for each new user — up to 500 users in multiple locations.  Hybrid cloud networking extends the value of your existing systems while expanding in an affordable manner.  Network all users together as though they are on a single solution, without having to buy a new phone system.  When your business grows to the point where it makes economic sense to have your own IP phone system, you can easily migrate to an on-premise IPedge system, such as the IPedge EM platform (supporting up to 1,000 users per server).  And yes, you’ll reuse the same IP endpoints.
Upgrading shouldn’t have an upscale price tag.
With new telephones representing about half the cost of a new business telephone system, you can save a lot of money by being able to keep and reuse working phones. This represents a huge reduction in the cost of moving to a new system.  When combined with potentially large drops in long distance costs by moving to IP — and reduced maintenance costs associated with newer hardware and cloud options — many customers find that it’s far more cost-effective to upgrade within a product family than to move to a new and different one.
Granted, in the technology business, some obsolescence is inevitable. But with a plan, thinking ahead for a smooth path into the future, Toshiba can help you move up and keep up, with the goal of no customer left behind.
 
About Baron Telecommunications 
Baron Telecommunications has been offering communication services for over 30 years now. We provide system assessment, installation, and ongoing service. We provide advanced products from Toshiba and Shoretel. Call us today on (360) 734-5082 for all your communication needs. www.barontele.com


2 Comments

How Hybrid Systems Are Different

11/30/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
For the IT team of an organization, migrating to VoIP often leads them to making a calculated choice on the delivery model, i.e. whether it is best to choose the on-premise based systems, cloud systems, or, hybrid systems. Every delivery model has its own advantages and disadvantages; majority of these are accepted by all but there a few that are highly debated.  If you too are facing a situation where you have to make a choice for your organization then it is very important to zero-in on the one that suits the communication needs of your company.

Some of the important factors that should guide your decision are:
  • Present and future communication needs of your organization
  • The total number of users, including mobile workers as well as temporary staffing
  • Calculation of peak time requirements
  • Business continuity, redundancy, security and disaster planning 
  • Existing telephony infrastructure, network capacity and telecom contracts
  • Desired time frames, resources and expertise of the in-house team
You will also need to analyze the capital expenditure and operational expenditures to determine capability, functionality, flexibility and scalability of the systems in consideration. Let us put things into perspective on all the three delivery models.

The on-premise VoIP
If you are opting for the on-premise VoIP delivery model then the IP phones and IP-PBX equipment are all installed, run and maintained in your office. The complete system is connected internally to the LAN, and through your ISP to the Internet. The system receives and sends communication using the PSTN lines or SIP trunks. These are then distributed to the IP or VoIP phones.

The primary advantages of on-premise VoIP are:
  • Better control over the system – You will be in complete control of system i.e. all the hardware and software needs to be installed, run and maintained by your organization. 
  • Improved Customization – The configuration, specifications and applications can be customized to suit the needs of your organization, which is often not possible with hosted solutions. 
  • TCO – The total cost of ownership of the on-premise VoIP system is one time capital investment. The only recurring costs thereafter include the upgrades and maintenances. 
  • Better quality of service
  • Network convergence – This is easily achieved by using the same network for data and voice communication.

The disadvantages of on-premise VoIP are:
  • Needs capital outlay
  • In-house team or system technician is required to maintain the system
  • Scalability as well as flexibility can be limited

Hosted VoIP or Cloud based VoIP:
In case you are inclined towards using the cloud based VoIP model then you need to know that the necessary software hardware and infrastructure is owned and managed by the hosted VoIP service providers. You will just need to have the Integrated Access device, switches and IP phones in your office.

Advantages:
  • Low Up-front costs and quick deployment – The best thing about cloud or hosted VoIP is that you will have to incur only a small up-front costs and the system can be deployed very quickly. 
  • Advanced functionalities and features can be easily accessed.
  • This is a highly scalable and flexible system 
  • The system is monitored round the clock for optimal performance 
  • Data redundancy and disaster recovery is easy and secured 
Disadvantages
  • Increase in recurring expenses, which leads to higher operational budgets
  • Providers decides on the type and timings of the upgrades
  • Customizations are heavily limited
  • Service interruption can be frequent as well as the Quality of service might be low 

Hybrid VoIP
This is probably the best choice if you want to switch to VoIP yet retain the TDM PBX; actually hosted VoIP is just a TDM PBX that is connected to a VoIP gateway. The gateway is used to connect to the existing devices like lines and handsets. This a delivery model in which the users are able to get the best of both worlds – cloud telephony as well as on-premise hosted systems. This is a great system if you want to switch to VoIP without incurring huge costs as well as interruption in your daily communication. 

About Baron Telecommunications 
Baron Telecommunications has been offering communication services for over 30 years now. We provide system assessment, installation, and ongoing service. We provide advanced products from Toshiba and Shoretel. Call us today on (360)285-3690 for all your communication needs.



0 Comments

Do You Need Fiber Optic Cabling In Your Network Installations?

10/30/2014

9 Comments

 

Fiber optic cable gives an edge over other cables for transmitting information

Fiber optic cable is one of the most popular cabling options that businesses use to build their networks. Fiber optics uses a completely different technology for transmitting information i.e. they use light instead of electrical signals. The biggest advantages of using light for transmission of information are high speed and no electrical interference. These two features are perfect for installing the fiber optic cabling for any type of network installation. As the light signals encounter negligible resistance, so the fiber optic cables can be run over longer distances, without any need for signal cleaning or boosting. There are fiber optic cables that run for more than 5000 miles without any boosting or cleaning. Thus, you can imagine the kind of networks you can use these cables in. 

High speed information transmission

Transmission speed gives fiber optics a definite edge over other cables as you will be able to transmit signals at an insane speed of 10 GB/sec. Even at such high speeds, the signals are not affected by any kind of interference and are really clear when compared to the traditional cables. 
Picture

Network Interface Cards or NICs are really expensive 

If you are contemplating of using fiber optic for your office network then cost is an important factor to consider. Fiber optic based networks are expensive and it is often not feasible for a small or medium sized business to build them. The NICs or Network Interface Cards can be really expensive and it is presently used to build large networks only. For instance, these cables are being used to make short runs and connect different networks and it is not put to use for complete wiring of the network. 

Single-mode and multi-mode cables

The primary components of fiber-optic cable are core, cladding, buffer strength members and jacket. There are some cables that even have copper conductor which provides the necessary power to concentrators, repeaters and several other components. Fiber optic cables are available in the form of single-mode cables and multi-mode cables. The single-mode cable is very narrow and light is able to travel on a single path only. It is a very expensive cable and people often find it difficult to use. In the multi-mode cable, the core diameter is wider and light can take several paths to travel. However, there are signal distortions due to the multi-mode path used by light. 

If you are to use the fiber optic cabling for your office network then not only the cost but the advantages and disadvantages of the cable should also be analyzed. 

Advantages of using fiber optic are listed below:

  • The EMF devices seldom cause any kind of interference in fiber optic cables and similarly, fiber optic cables also do not interfere with the other network devices.
  • It is not easy to tap the signals transmitted by fiber optic cables because the signals can’t be monitored. Hence, the entire network is safe and secured.
  • It is probably the fastest cabling system that has ever been developed.
  • The loss rate is quite limited, which implies that even if the cabling system runs over a long distance, it is going to experience very little signal loss.
  • Since there are no high voltage power system attached to the cabling, so it is easier to handle the fiber optic cables.
  • It is extremely easy to install the fiber optic cables. 

Some of the notable disadvantages that might deter your plans to use fiber optic cabling in your network installation are:

  • Huge costs are involved in procuring and installation of these cables.
  • Even the components like NICs are quite expensive.
  • Only trained individuals are able to install these cables
  • Parts often tend to break down

About Baron Telecommunications

Baron Telecommunications has been offering communication services for over 30 years now. We provide system assessment, installation, and ongoing service. We provide advanced products from Toshiba and Shoretel. Call us today on (360)285-3690 for all your communication needs.
9 Comments

Video Conferencing For Business

9/30/2014

0 Comments

 
Video Conferencing solutions are easy to use communication tools perfect for small businesses with multiple locations to easily communicate and collaborate, as well as larger enterprises needing to simply and affordably expand their existing video conference capabilities.
Video Conferencing For Business
Video Conferencing For Business
0 Comments

Why Technical Buyers Should Love Unified Communications

9/26/2014

0 Comments

 
It is not easy to get in to the shoes of a technical buyer, especially when technology is a fast changing sphere. Trying to decide between the right kind of applications and systems can be really challenging. Not only does the technical buyer need to justify the choice of applications or systems, they also have to prove that it is worth the investment and that integration with the existing platforms will be easy. Cost of ownership is another area of concern as even if you are able to find the ideal system, you will need to keep in mind that the installation, implementation, training, maintenance and future upgrades can increase the overall cost of ownership. If anything goes wrong, the technical buyer will be blamed unequivocally.

So how does the technical buyer go about it when he has to decide on a enterprise communication system for the company? 

Unified Communications, on-premise IP-PBX, VoIP Phone SystemsEnterprise Communications for Technical Buyers
Companies often find it really difficult to provide the right kind of telephone system to its employees, especially a phone system that can meet the modern demands of telephony. The majority of the organizations who already have an existing telephone system are not in a position to incur extra expenses on upgrading or a buying a new system. The legacy systems often suffer from a lot of issues like dropped calls, old calling features, spotty service and high operating costs. These are indicators that tell the business owners about the need to switch to a new phone system.

Unified Communication System

How great will it be to find a system that an administrator with no or minimum technical knowledge can maintain and manage? Well, unified communications can just do that, especially if you already have a VoIP telephone system. Unified communication system is the latest rollout from the telecommunication technology stable that provides a completely integrated system. This integrated system is centralized and can be managed without too much effort or time.

Interests of technical buyers in Unified Communication

Here is a list of the key takeaways that technical buyers can expect from Unified Communications (UC):
  • Unified communication is able to leverage the abilities of VoIP and integrate enterprise applications, multimedia communications, and personal information. Instant messaging, phone calls, video conferencing, presence, mobility, CRM/ERP, and tracking systems can be integrated on a single platform.   
  • Unified communications can be extended and used by on-premise IP-PBX systems easily.
  • The unified communications have a variety of tools that can be used to initiate regular tasks in a personalized manner without too much time wasted on training.
  • No major technical skills are required to install on-premise VoIP telephone systems; hence, deployment, maintenance and upgrades are really easy. It is the provider who would take care of all these and the users will never need to worry about the technical aspects.
  • Unified communication creates a distribution of all the features across various communication channels, so scaling up or down can be carried out without any hassles.
  • The distributed architecture of VoIP phone systems have pre-installed internal safeguards so power failures will never result in loss of data or a disruption in service.
  • Unified communication makes it really easy to administer the different communication channels as the administrator will get to manage all the communication channels from a common platform.  

Combine VoIP and Unified Communication

Unified communication provides a unique opportunity to all the users who want to leverage the power of VoIP in the right manner. VoIP itself is an amazing technology so the technical buyer has already got the job half done by opting for it. Unified communications will make them fall in love with amazing capabilities that it offers.

Experience Toshiba's UCedge

Toshiba has joined together all the features of unified communication in a new offering called UCedge. That makes the job of installing and implementing unified communication even easier.

About Baron Telecommunications

Baron Telecommunications has been offering communication services for over 30 years now. We provide system assessment, installation, and ongoing service. We provide advanced products from Toshiba and Shoretel. Call us today on (360)285-3690 for all your communication needs.
0 Comments

Benefits of IP Telephony

9/26/2014

0 Comments

 
IP-PBX, Office Phone SystemsIP Telephony
IP telephony is no longer the new entrant in the market and apart from just grabbing eyeballs it has actually become a part of our lives. Businesses, small as well as large, have come to understand the benefits of using the latest telecommunication system for their offices. They have also realized that nothing can beat this telephone system when it comes to cost saving, efficiency and scalability. The number of businesses making a switch to IP telephony is increasing with every passing day and this is proof enough of its suitability for businesses.

Suitability of IP Telephony

Can IP telephony really benefit businesses – small and large? Will the small businesses enjoy the same benefits as the large companies when they switch from their old PSTN telephone systems to the IP based phone systems?  

IP Telephony

Prior to learning about the key benefits of IP telephony, let us first try to understand what IP telephony actually is. Sitting on your server rack, and using the Internet, IP business phones use data circuits to connect to others. For those who want to connect to land lines and mobile numbers, connection is available through SIP trunking at a marginal additional cost.

There are several benefits of upgrading to IP telephony system and some of the obvious ones are as follows:

Huge Cost Savings
This is probably the most talked about and popular benefit of migrating to the VoIP telephony. Though the initial investment may be there, IP telephony running costs are mere pittance. Calls within the network are absolutely free, so you do not have to foot huge bills for the calls that are made by your employees within the company. The overseas call costs too are really low and companies can save hundreds of dollars from the inexpensive calls.
Quick and Hassle Free Implementation
Implementation of IP telephony is really easy and hassle free. All you will need is an Internet connection, an IP-PBX, and endpoint devices such as a PC, laptop or smartphones. The seamless implementation of IP telephony has made it really popular among all business owners who cannot afford to spend time and money on legacy telephone systems.
Highly Scalable
There is no other telephone system that can match the IP telephone system when it comes to scalability. IP-PBX are available in small sizes to start with. You can add features by networking the servers to 1000s of end users. Your IP telephone system is made to grow with your business as you can add extensions whenever required.
Minimum Downtime
You can be sure of enjoying a maximum uptime when you are using the IP telephone systems and there won’t be any disruption in the service. Small businesses cannot afford to lose out on customers because of a faulty or completely down telephone system. The recovery time on the IP business phones is minimal, and your communication system will be up and running without much delay.
Business Image
There are numerous advanced telephony features with the IP telephony systems, which will help you to project a very positive and professional business image among your business associates and customers.

All the above advantages can help the small businesses reap huge dividends in the long term because they will be able to not only save a lot of money but at the same time build a reputation of maintaining a great communication channel with everyone associated with the business. 

About Baron Telecommunications

Baron Telecommunications has been offering communication services for over 30 years now. We provide system assessment, installation, and ongoing service. We provide advanced products from Toshiba and Shoretel. Call us today on (360)285-3690 for all your communication needs.
0 Comments

IP-PBX Defined. 

8/22/2014

0 Comments

 
An IP-PBX is a PBX (Private Branch Exchange) is a switch that works on computer networks, and allows one end device to talk to another. IP-PBX handles voice as it's main function, but can also switch video, data packets, and instant messaging through TCP/IP for its Internal network. It is also capable of interconnecting the digital circuit with a PSTN. IP-PBX phone systems uses a common network for both voice and data communication. 

An IP-PBX system consists of one or more VoIP/ SIP phones, an IP-PBX server, and sometimes includes a VoIP Gateway. The IP-PBX server is same as a proxy server and clients can be either hardware based phones or soft phones registered with that particular IP-PBX server. Whenever the user wishes to make a call, the IP-PBX server establishes the connection. This technology uses advanced communication features and also provides robustness and scalability.

An IP-PBX connection can be established between different departments of the organization and can communicate to each other directly using the Internet service and also supports single number configuration over the connection. As a result, all the extensions in all units of the organization have a single number. The calling between the units does not cost any money.

IP PBX systems allow users to connect IP devices directly to a centralized computer network port. This system can be integrated and installed on the network using an existing LAN connection.  This results in eliminating the phone wiring, and, adding or moving of extensions is much easier. An on-premise PBX server is at a short distance, so signalling distance and time is also very short and is not dependent on time taken to travel over the Internet and other networks.

IP-PBX systems are easy to install and configure. The system runs as software on a computer and for those who have knowledge of computers and networking can easily install, configure, and maintain the system. The GUI of an IP-PBX is much more user friendly compared to traditional PBX systems.  This allows easier changes and addition of new features, end users and other functions.

IP-PBX systems enable a mobility option also. As they are based on Internet protocol, end devices can be moved from one location to another and can connect back to the PBX server. Also the branch offices of an organization can be added to the PBX system network and connected over the Internet. Users can also plug in a compatible IP-phone from any location to their Internet connection for extension dialling.

The IP-PBX system is secured against threats. Securing an IP-PBX doesn't require much expertise. A defense-in-depth strategy is enough to protect components of the PBX system from most of the possible threats. Isolating the components on virtual LANs is also a popular approach to secure the PBX system network.

Most of the VoIP phones have built-in switches, which set an 802.11p/Q trunk over the link to the local switch. This allows VLANs to share a physical network without leaking the information. 802.1p/Q trunk separates voice traffic from data traffic right from the phone to the IP PBX system.

Optimization is easy in an IP-PBX system. As IP extensions are software-based configurations, the number of extensions can be increased by adding IP extension licenses. A computer can handle a large number of lines and their extensions. Moreover, upgrading of the system is also possible, including the addition of features according to business needs.

The dialling and receiving of calls are intelligently controlled by the computer and hence can also be made automated. This automation needs to be configured as per requirements or conditions. A typical IP-PBX system includes internal and external lines and a computer server controls the switching and routing of calls.

About Baron Telecommunications 
Baron Telecommunications has been offering communication services for over 30 years now. We provide system assessment, installation, and ongoing service. We provide advanced products from Toshiba and Shoretel. Call us today on (360)285-3690 for all your communication needs.
0 Comments

Importance of Mobility for an Office

8/22/2014

0 Comments

 
Companies across the world are experiencing a paradigm shift in the way they communicate both within as well as outside the company. Advancement in telecommunication technology has been a key factor in bringing about the change. VoIP, Cloud Telephony, and SIP are some of the terms that we have gotten used to in the recent years, and mobility is the latest addition to enterprise communication.

Now, working does not need to be limited to the workplace. Employees should be equally productive even when they are not at their desk. They should have the same communication tools on their own personal device as in their office desks. They should be able to connect anytime to their work and workplace from anywhere. Every company should strive to achieve this as it gives a sense of responsibility as well as freedom to the employees. Irrespective of their location, the employees must be able to connect to their office and work.

Mobility at the workplace is essential, especially when an organization has its offices spread across multiple locations. The modern communication systems are focusing on building an integrated system with special focus on mobility. Productivity of employees will see great improvement when they are aware that they can work from anywhere and not necessarily by sitting on their office desks.

There are several companies that encourage work-from-home as they want their employees to perform without the pressure of coming regularly to the office. Communication systems at offices that facilitate mobility are witnessing huge improvements in the productivity of their employees. The increase in working hours will raise the productivity level; however, employees will experience a heightened sense of freedom even if they are working longer hours. 

IP Mobility is an essential technology that is powering the new mobile revolution at workplaces. IP mobility is standard communication protocol under which the mobile device users are free to move from network to network without changing the IP address. They can maintain their permanent IP address. This system is essential so that the employees can switch from one network to another as per their requirement without changing their IP address, and can work from their home or wherever they are.

If an enterprise is encouraging mobility in their office then they must also introduce a system of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) or CYOD (Choose Your Own Device) for better results. If along with mobility employees are free to either bring their own personal devices for work or choose whichever device they want to, they will gain more interest in working. Not everyone is tech-savvy, nor is everyone comfortable with every sort of device. Therefore if they are free to choose their personal device they shall work with more interest and hence benefit the enterprise.

Mobility increases responsiveness towards the customers. It helps the employees to communicate with customers faster and also in a more timely manner. Further, mobility not only increases the productivity of the entire enterprise as a whole but also increases the personal productivity of the employees.

Employees confined to the four walls at the office often experience a dip in their productivity levels. Spending day after day, for hours together at a particular place can decrease an individual’s productivity. At the office there can be many distractions like office politics, which might bog down an employee. Research has revealed that employees working from their preferred place, away from all distractions, are more productive and efficient. Therefore, mobility in work and workplace will benefit both, the company as well as the employee. 

About Baron Telecommunications 
Baron Telecommunications has been offering communication services for over 30 years now. We provide system assessment, installation, and ongoing service. We provide advanced products from Toshiba and Shoretel. Call us today on (360)285-3690 for all your communication needs. 

0 Comments
<<Previous
Picture
(360) 734-5082
1204 Railroad Ave, Ste. 101, Bellingham, WA 98225
 ©2017 Baron Telecommunications
All Rights Reserved