Web Hosting Talk : Web Hosting Main Forums : Specialty Hosting and Markets : VOIP etc : Help with our phone setup

[DephNet[Paul]]

Hi Guys,

Over the last week, we have been moving offices and have decided that we want to change the way we have our phone set up.

Currently there are 5 members of staff, and we all use mobiles for our phones. Doing this our monthly phone cost is about £200 a month, before any overage charges.

We will be keeping our mobiles, as we are all out of the office for atleast 20 hours a week. Currently the business pays the full amount for each mobile, but from when our new phones are installed the staff member will pay 75% of the bill, and the company will pay 25%.

We are looking at getting a VoIP setup but I am confused at what we need to get in the office.

We want each staff member to have a desk phone, with their own extension and voicemail, we would also preferably like a DDI for each person. If possible we would like a "round robin" set up too. We would need to be able to add a new extension and DDI, or change the current ones, pretty easily as we add new staff members or our current ones leave.

Do we specifically need an asterix server in the office, if we do how does one connect it to the general phone line? Would it be advisable that we go with a fully managed provider where they provide everything we need, obviously for a larger monthly fee, or should we try and do this ourselves?

Finally are there any companies, UK based preferably, that you would recommend? Also what should we be looking for in a VoIP provider?

[axeos]

Originally Posted by DephNet[Paul]

Do we specifically need an asterix server in the office, if we do how does one connect it to the general phone line? Would it be advisable that we go with a fully managed provider where they provide everything we need, obviously for a larger monthly fee, or should we try and do this ourselves?

You have a number of options. You could install an Asterisk based PBX in your office (or purchase a plug&play PBX). Another option is to use a hosted PBX provider that provides SIP connectivity and a virtual PBX. In both cases it is good to manage the PBX yourself, as long as the management interface is easy to use. This way you can add/remove phones and numbers yourself, which saves time and money.

If you have a local server in the office you can add a ISDN/PSTN card and connect it to your regular phone line. Another option is to migrate your current (or get a new) phone number to a SIP provider, your phone calls will go through your internet connection and you no longer need your regular phone line.

The last option is a great money saver and offers flexibility in concurrent calls and amount of number. Its success however depends on the stability (and capacity) of your internet connection and SIP provider.

[rghf]

Try these folks http://gradwell.net/phoneservices