ISDNe to be a thing of the past

[Sc00by]

So with ISDNe due to be retired by 2025 and the alternative to be a SIP trunk, how many of you out there are going to have to replace your entire system so it can support SIP?

 

10 years to go: what the end of ISDN means for your business | Information Age

SIP trunking PSTN replacement - BT One Voice SIP trunk UK - BT Large business & public sector

 

We've just finished an in house shift from a 25yr old Alcatel to an Asterisk based system (300 extension) and are still using ISDN for our outside calls with mixed IP handsets and Cisco analog gateways. To upgrade the Alcatel to support SIP and other features that Asterisk gave us (fax to email, voicemail to email etc) was going to be 6 figures! - A long and challenging project but at least we're a major step towards being able to move away from ISDNe, the only issue is how reliable it would be for our on site chip and pin machines which are dialup and fax machines, and of course, how to configure asterisk to use it!.

[john]

I suspect this will be something that catches many out and comes as a shock in 2020 or so. People that are getting new PBX's now should be ensuring they are SIP ready OOB but vendors are not always that keen as they themselves see this is as something alien in some cases so if your tendering for new kit it should be a top feature so people like @timbo343 this needs thinking about

[m25man]

We've dumped ISDN and PBX gone completely mobile using BT OnePhone.

On site all mobiles default to landline numbers and extensions but switch back to mobile numbers when out of range of a pico cell.

We have some desk phones but these all have SIM cards in them if the phone system fails they carry on with internal batteries and cellular.

Got to say it the system has been faultless.

[MatthewL]

I know Virgin provide ISDN via fibre in some instances and it terminates onsite at some kind of router they provide. Think most systems are ISDN based if you start to look at it.

 

Question re the BT OnePhone, can you transfer calls between users and also can you have fixed phones i.e. receptionist etc?

[twin--turbo]

I know Virgin provide ISDN via fibre in some instances and it terminates onsite at some kind of router they provide. Think most systems are ISDN based if you start to look at it.

 

Question re the BT OnePhone, can you transfer calls between users and also can you have fixed phones i.e. receptionist etc?

 

BT provide ISDN over fiber if the distance requires it, or on 2MB SDSL "2 wire leased line"

copper if it's closer to the exchange.

 

SIP is over 20 years old and should be supported by any system installd in the last few years. With 10 years to plan and the likly hood that there will be backpedaling by Providers as the dates loom I don't think it will be a big problem

 

TT

[m25man]

Question re the BT OnePhone, can you transfer calls between users and also can you have fixed phones i.e. receptionist etc?

 

Yes and Yes.

 

The fixed phones are desk based cellphones.

So are the switchboard phones.

There are the usual auto attendant, call groups, hunt groups, voicemail and a desktop app with Outlook integration.

 

Having done the whole analog, digital, sip thing this seems to be a natural evolution.

Some people have chosen to leave their mobiles in their desk draws overnight and weekends but others have embraced the system and have chosen to be connected 24/7

We have seen a marked reduction in laptop use and requests for desktops instead as more people manage their business using mobiles instead.

 

I would thoroughly recommend anyone thinking of cutting the wires look at this option.

It won't suit everyone for certain but we have all become so used to being always connected with unified Comms it seems crazy not to consider it.

 

The only complaints we have had come from the One phone app displaying the users 4 digit extension number when an internal call is made instead of the callers name or full number.

Still working on that one.

[MatthewL]

Interested re desk based cellphones. Do you have an analogue line in case of any failure, i.e. recent flooding in York took down some mobile networks due to data connections terminating here.

 

I have done something similar before using Avaya One-X, I know BT were using Avaya kit at one point so sounds like its all based around that.

[timbo343]

I suspect this will be something that catches many out and comes as a shock in 2020 or so. People that are getting new PBX's now should be ensuring they are SIP ready OOB but vendors are not always that keen as they themselves see this is as something alien in some cases so if your tendering for new kit it should be a top feature so people like @timbo343 this needs thinking about

@john yep we are looking into SIP lines with an OnPrem system - either a LG system or a Samsung system

[synaesthesia]

Yes and Yes.

 

The fixed phones are desk based cellphones.

So are the switchboard phones.

There are the usual auto attendant, call groups, hunt groups, voicemail and a desktop app with Outlook integration.

 

Having done the whole analog, digital, sip thing this seems to be a natural evolution.

Some people have chosen to leave their mobiles in their desk draws overnight and weekends but others have embraced the system and have chosen to be connected 24/7

We have seen a marked reduction in laptop use and requests for desktops instead as more people manage their business using mobiles instead.

 

I would thoroughly recommend anyone thinking of cutting the wires look at this option.

It won't suit everyone for certain but we have all become so used to being always connected with unified Comms it seems crazy not to consider it.

 

The only complaints we have had come from the One phone app displaying the users 4 digit extension number when an internal call is made instead of the callers name or full number.

Still working on that one.

 

Necrothread time! @m25man 3 years on, how are you finding the OnePhone? we've had them in place for a similar amount of time but the cost is ASTRO-BLOODY-NOMICAL, and we can't possibly quantify the cost, and certainly having to pay a tenner per change whenever you dare break wind near a phone. Can I be cheeky enough to ask roughly how much you're paying per annum with a little context (amount of devices, roaming & static with the picocells in school if you even use those)

For a rough idea, with 2 years of our contract left and BT's get out of contract fee of 50% payable, we'd have enough to pay for 100 proper phones, 2 dedicated DSL lines, call packages and virtualised PBX hardware with enough left to feed all staff, students and half the British Army. And that's just the first year's 50% fee....

Edited October 1, 2019 by synaesthesia

[TTG_Alice]

Have you thought of VoIP or 3CX? We offer a managed private hosted solution with an option to buy out end of term contracts. If you are interested in a quote. Send me a PM or email at [email protected]

 

Necrothread time! @m25man 3 years on, how are you finding the OnePhone? we've had them in place for a similar amount of time but the cost is ASTRO-BLOODY-NOMICAL, and we can't possibly quantify the cost, and certainly having to pay a tenner per change whenever you dare break wind near a phone. Can I be cheeky enough to ask roughly how much you're paying per annum with a little context (amount of devices, roaming & static with the picocells in school if you even use those)

For a rough idea, with 2 years of our contract left and BT's get out of contract fee of 50% payable, we'd have enough to pay for 100 proper phones, 2 dedicated DSL lines, call packages and virtualised PBX hardware with enough left to feed all staff, students and half the British Army. And that's just the first year's 50% fee....

[synaesthesia]

Cheers, I think we're already likely to be catered for via our MAT but early days yet. Besides, the buyout for the rest of the contract would probably bankrupt Branson!