Sip Trunking For Dummies Software And Equipment

Long-distance calls become much cheaper since the call travels over the PSTN for a short distance.

Youve probably heard terms like hosted VoIP or SIP trunking and wondered what it all meant.

You might be curious about the new technology but lack the knowledge to make the decision to switch.

Before you rush to get rid of your current phone system, take a moment to find out all you can about the alternatives.

The most common way for an organization to connect to the Public Switched Telephone Network or PSTN was through a PBX or private branch exchange.

This allows a company to allocate phone lines and numbers among hundreds or thousands of employees.

SIP trunks route voice calls over the Internet, just like how images, sound and documents travel over the Internet.

It means you dont have to maintain two separate networks, one for data and another one for phone calls.

Although there are many other protocols that can be used for VoIP, SIP is the most common and widely used.

SIP controls how a session is initiated, set up and terminated.

When you make a VoIP call, SIP establishes the connection between the users.

With SIP, you can send voice, pictures, video, documents and other forms of media.

The term trunks doesnt actually apply to SIP-based communications since there are no physical wires or connections.

However, the term is used within the VoIP industry and widely accepted.

Once you switch to SIP trunks, most calls will never touch the PSTN at any point.

Most SIP trunk vendors will allow you to purchase exactly the number of lines you need and sometimes you can handle extra volume simply by increasing the available bandwidth.

In a centralized configuration, you can direct all phone calls to a single location (typically headquarters).

The company connects to the ITSP through SIP trunks from this place.

A problem at one location doesnt bring down your entire organization.

Sip Trunking For Dummies Software And Equipment

However, it also means you have to purchase software and equipment at all offices which can become expensive.

So just like how you dont have to pay for each individual email you send to a colleague, calls made between employees in your company are free.

It doesnt matter if theyre located in different offices or one of them is working from home.