Cisco Expert Network Consultants Cisco Voice over IP Consulting From CCIE and CCNP Certified Experts
VoIP means technology that transmits voice traffic across a network connection utilizing Internet Protocol (IP) standards. A key advantage of VoIP is its ability to help reduce expenses due to the fact that phone calls travel over the data connection rather than the phone company's services. IP telephony covers the entire range of VoIP related functions such as the interconnection of phones for communications; related functions including invoicing and dialing plans; and core features including conferencing, call transfer, forward, and call hold. These services were often previously handled by a PBX.
Voice over IP is the basis for more advanced unified communications applications. Cisco's Unified Communications portfolio of voice, video, mobile, and IP communications products provides the technology for creating a single converged system that can manage multiple types of traffic concurrently. Cisco provides this capability while sustaining a high level of network availability, QoS, and security. Important advantages of Cisco's telephony product line include:
A flexible, standards-based migration strategy that enables you to choose IP products that meet your current need, while providing a seamless path for accelerating IP integration
Quality of Service technologies that provide excellent voice fidelity by means of strict management of latency, loss, and jitter
Network management products that facilitate network administration, repair, configuring, fault tracking, and device control
The architecture of the Cisco IP Telephony solution consists of call endpoints, processing agents, and IP telephony applications.
Communications Endpoints A call endpoint is a user instrument, and can be a desktop phone set or a soft phone application that runs on a PC. In the IP environment, each phone is Ethernet connected. VoIP phones have all of the functions that a conventional phone handset provides. VoIP phones can also provide additional features such as the ability to connect to Websites or run useful software. Cisco VoIP phones include the Cisco 24-button Unified IP Phone 7931G, Cisco's Cordless IP Phone 7921G, and Cisco's IP Phone 7985G video phone.
Within a Cisco Internet Protocol Telephony environment, you can also use Cisco's IP Communicator product, a PC--based phone. When using the Cisco IP Communicator off-site, you carry your office extensions with you and also have available the familiar phone capabilities you have at your desk. IT administrators can configure the IP Communicator as they integrate any other Cisco VoIP device, greatly simplifying IP telephony management.
Unlike ordinary Private Branch Exchange systems, in a Cisco Internet Protocol communications environment you can perform almost instant moves, adds, and changes. You merely take the VoIP handset to its new location, attach it to the Ethernet connection, and the device registers itself with Cisco Communications Manager (formerly CallManager). All user rights and configurations are automatically re-established, eliminating the cost and delay of sending support personnel to wiring closets. Another efficient capability is extension capability, which allows you to sign into any Cisco IP device and receive your personal phone number and rights.
Centralized and Remote Call-processing Agents
The call-processing agent is the heart of Cisco's IP Phone solution. To address your organizational needs you can choose to install a central call-processing design, a decentralized design, or a mix of both. In a centralized deployment, Cisco Communications Manager expands enterprise phone capabilities to packet network devices such as IP handsets, media management products, Voice over IP gateways, and multimedia applications across the environment. Cisco Communications Manager enables extra multimedia services including unified messaging, video conferencing, and group-based customer communication networks.
When a central Cisco Communications Manager cluster also takes care of call management for users at distributed locations, administrators can help ensure non-stop phone operation using Cisco Survivable Remote Site Telephony, an IOS Software image for routers. If a Wide Area Network link fails, Cisco Survivable Remote Site Telephony in the Cisco provides core Communications Manager services until the link is repaired.
For small offices or remote small enterprise branch locations that do not need the full, high-end feature set offered by Cisco Communications Manager, Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express, formerly CallManager Express, offers a budget-friendly solution that meets the needs of sites with as many as 240 users. Since Unified Communications Manager Express is embedded in the Cisco IOS Software running on a Cisco multiservice access router, smaller offices are able to quickly and easily implement a converged voice and data solution.
IP Telephony Applications
Within Cisco's Unified Communications architecture, Internet Protocol phone applications are physically independent from the call-processing and voice-processing mechanism, and they may be anywhere within the network. A cohesive connectivity framework offers an open platform for powerful applications, and acts as a solid basis for downstream convergence-based applications.
Cisco cooperates with key IT industry vendors to offer a broad selection of third-party IP phone applications and products. Cisco also supports the ability to develop and manage customized applications.
Cisco Unity Services for Unified Messaging
Cisco's Unity system delivers advanced voicemail plus integrated messaging options that transparently integrate with Microsoft Exchange, Lotus Domino, and Novell GroupWise. Cisco Unity scales to handle the needs of major enterprises and provides powerful upgrade tools and a wide range of efficiency enhancing features.
Cisco's Unity system works with both Cisco Communications Manager and leading PBX products to allow your organization to move up to Internet Protocol telephony at your own speed and protect your current network investments. Cisco's product suite also offers a variety of networking modules that allow sophisticated message exchange with popular voice-mail systems. When you are upgrading to the Cisco Unity solution, these network modules promote a seamless transition by giving you the capability to trade messages with internal system subscribers who rely an older messaging system.
Unity Connection incorporates integrated messaging, voice recognition, and call transfer functions into an easy-to-manage solution for medium-sized companies with as many as 3K users. For companies with 500 or fewer users, Unity Connection is available as a one-server option with Unified Communications Manager Business Edition.
Cisco Unity Connection is a feature-rich product based on an architecture that is easy to install and support. With Unity Connection workers can retrieve voice messages via Cisco Unified Personal Communicator, utilize the display on their Cisco Unified IP handset to view, search, and sort messages. and can even use the voice recognition capability of Cisco Unity Connection to access and participate in Unified MeetingPlace Express conferences. Cisco Unity Connection also offers robust automated attendant functions such as smart call routing and effortlessly personalized call display and message alert selections.
Unity Express, offered in select Cisco IS routers, provides cost-effective voicemail, unified messaging, interactive voice response, and automated-attendant functions for small to medium businesses (SMBs) and corporate branch offices with as many as 250 users.
How Progent's Engineers Can Help You with Cisco's IP Telephony Technology
Progent can provide a Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert or certified CCNP to help you to install and manage Cisco VoIP solutions. Progent's programmers can create custom unified messaging software that will enable your company to incorporate the capabilities of Cisco Unified Communications Manager into your company operations for enhanced productivity. Progent can evaluate your existing network and Internet connectivity infrastructure to determine whether your environment is configured to support VoIP, help you to select and install Cisco hardware and software appropriate for your present situation and future expansion strategy, and integrate your Cisco VoIP solution with technology from other vendors.
For more details concerning Progent's professional support for Cisco products, choose a subject:
VoIP means technology that transmits voice traffic across a network connection utilizing Internet Protocol (IP) standards. A key advantage of VoIP is its ability to help reduce expenses due to the fact that phone calls travel over the data connection rather than the phone company's services. IP telephony covers the entire range of VoIP related functions such as the interconnection of phones for communications; related functions including invoicing and dialing plans; and core features including conferencing, call transfer, forward, and call hold. These services were often previously handled by a PBX.
A call endpoint is a user instrument, and can be a desktop phone set or a soft phone application that runs on a PC. In the IP environment, each phone is Ethernet connected. VoIP phones have all of the functions that a conventional phone handset provides. VoIP phones can also provide additional features such as the ability to connect to Websites or run useful software. Cisco VoIP phones include the Cisco 24-button Unified IP Phone 7931G, Cisco's Cordless IP Phone 7921G, and Cisco's IP Phone 7985G video phone.
