When You're Talking about VoIP Reliability

You'll Probably End Up talking about

the Data Network

Is It The Phone Or The Network...?

A good example of VoIP reliability is Panasonic's a 2008 Market Share Analysis showed that Panasonic was the Global #1 Corded PBX/IP PBX manufacturer. They sold a lot of phones; and their own failure rate chart showed that their digital phones had a higher failure rate than their VoIP phones.

Not to say that all phones are equal, but if the data network isn't reliable your VoIP system will probably have problems. It's like getting a little water in your gas tank, you could have a great car but with bad fuel it won't run like it should.

To see a graph on Panasonic's failure rates on telephone equipment click the following link and go to page eight (8).("WHY" Panasonic Brochure)

Possible Affects the Data Network May Have on VoIP Reliability...

On a data network units of data are transferred from an originating point to a destination. The term for these units is packet. Voice over IP is your voice broken down into these packets. If for any reason these packets are delayed or lost, voice quality will deteriorate severely.

In the Office...

You won't want to use repeater hubs. A hub can increase the network load causing delays in packet transfers. To ensure high speech quality, use layer 2 or higher switches. These switches employ Quality of Service. Q.o.S. allows you to give priority to your voice packets, decreasing the number of delayed or lost packets.

See how customers are taking advantage of improved VOIP Reliability by using SIP Trunking to cut their telecom expenses.

Connecting Multiple Sites & Telecommuters...

To ensure VoIP reliability you'll need bandwidth; just like with a water pipe, the larger the pipe the more water can flow; the larger the bandwidth the more data can flow. Remember Voice over IP is basically turning your voice into data packets.

Not enough bandwidth and you'll start losing or delaying your data packets, compromising your voice quality. Not having enough bandwidth on your data network can also adversely affect the performance of (e-mail or web applications, etc.).

To Guarantee VoIP Reliability The Network Should Be...?

Most manufactures recommend that the network the VoIP solution will reside on is a managed network such as a Frame Relay, Leased Line, or IP-VPN (Virtual Private Network.). If a managed solution is not available or not chosen an unmanaged network such as the Internet (including an Internet VPN) can produce high voice quality, but it isn't guaranteed.

You'll be Happier...

Like anything else if done right a Voice over IP solution will have a positive affect on your organization. The original set up will take time and expertise, but the outcome will be well worth it.