communications

Is VoIP Ready for Mission-Critical Primetime?

For most businesses, VoIP offers a compelling business argument. Merging the voice network with the data network means only implementing one hardware and wiring infrastructure. VoIP systems are easier to administer and maintain that traditional PSTN phones. The list goes on and on.

VoIP is not without its issues though, one of which would be having all of your proverbial eggs in a single basket- the network. Hopefully an enterprise network is relatively stable, but you still have to consider the possibility of a complete network outage and what that does for communications. Certain fields- emergency response, medical care facilities, banking and finance, etc. - can not afford to be without communications even for a minute. A recent ZDNet article addressed some of these concerns.

There is no way to truly guarantee that communications will be available 100% of the time. However, if the weaknesses of the network and the VoIP communications are properly considered and addressed I believe that a very high availability can be achieved. The technologies and level of redundancy required to achieve that availability are costly though and add to the TCO (total cost of ownership) of the VoIP solution and impact the ROI (return on investment), possibly negating many of the VoIP advantages and making the case for VoIP a harder sell.

Regardless of the industry that VoIP is being implemented in, sound network security practices should be followed. For VoIP networks, segmenting VoIP traffic on separate VLAN’s and encrypting voice communications provide additional security. However, enterprises should also consider the potential for a network-wide outage making VoIP unavailable and have a written policy for how to handle critical communications in the event that such a catastrophe occurs.

Wireless VoIP

If you have ever set up or worked with a wireless network, you are probably familiar with the fact that the signal quality isn’t always the best. Depending on your wireless networking hardware and how you have it configured, the layout and materials used in the structure your network is in, and possible interference from other electronics and communications equipment, the wireless network connection can be erratic. The same can be said for those who may have worked with or set up a VoIP communications system. The issues are different, but the problems still arise with bandwidth and signal quality. It can be difficult to maintain the quality of voice communications over a VoIP network. Imagine then what types of issues you might encounter if you try to implement a VoIP communications system over a wireless network. Yikes! On May 1, Cisco is presenting a webcast entitled Extending VoIP to Wireless LAN’s which will cover six technical challenges you must address, capacity planning, roaming, security issues, and more. For more details, or to register to attend the webcast, click here.

Nortel UC 1-2-3

Unless you have been living under a rock the past year or two, you are probably aware that Unified Communications is the hot trend. VoIP is still hot as well, and is a key component of unified communications, but the trend is evolving beyond just moving the phone system from the traditional PBX to an IP data network, and into the next generation striving to bring the web of communications tools and methods into a centralized, simplified, and manageable system. It may seem daunting or overwhelming, especially for smaller businesses. That is why Nortel developed UC 1-2-3. The Nortel UC 1-2-3 site steps you through some of the basics and explains some the benefits of unified communications to help you understand what the hype is about and what it can do for you. You can find out more by visiting the Nortel UC 1-2-3 site.