RE: [Asterisk-Users] Future installation questions - what do I need?

[Michael Little]

Title: Message

I just want to clarify a few things.  I have about 100 Toshiba digital phones, 4 ports on the voicemail, and 24 phone lines.  Not all of the lines are POTS lines.  I think 8 of the lines are Direct Inbound Dial (DID).  Due to a decrease in call volume, I am most likely going to cancel 6 – 8 POTS lines in the near future.  Also, due to the cost involved with implementing a completely new phone system the Toshiba phone system will have to stay.  This will be phase out a little at a time.  If the rumor is correct, what would you do if you need more than four Digium cards?  Would you run multiple Asterisk boxes?  Currently, I have Asterisk installed on a Slackware 10 system for testing purposes.  I am going to test it on the side.  Once I feel confident with Linux (sorry, I don’t have a lot of experience with it) and Asterisk, I will put it in place of the Toshiba voicemail for “live” (after hours) testing.  Luckily, our developer at work prefers running Linux, so I have someone to run to for assistance.   Thanks for the info.  I will review the hardware needs and make a purchase SOON.   -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Jay Milk Sent: Wednesday, July 21, 2004 4:29 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: RE: [Asterisk-Users] Future installation questions - what do I need?   The "O" in FXO means Office, so that connects to your POTS lines.  The "S" in FXS means Station, which connects to an extension.   In your case, I'd dump the Toshiba System entirely, because Asterisk can do all the Toshiba can, and the Asterisk VM doesn't have any port restrictions.   In order to connect to the four POTS lines, Digium offers a quad-FXO card TDM04B, $337.  As an alternative, you could get four X100Ps for $396, but there's a rumor that the PCI bus only supports four digium cards at a time.  There are some reports of trouble with the TDM04B, so you may want to do your homework before buying anything.  If you're going to a PRI, the T100P will be the best solution.   As for extensions (let's assume you need 24),  you have various choices.  - T100P + channel-bank + 24 analog phones - TDM40B offers four FXS (extension) ports for each card -- again, 4-card limitation will restrict you to 4 FXO/12 FXS - Purchase 24 IP Phones (from $100-$500 each) - Purchase 24 IAXies from Digium at $100/port and connect them to 24 analog phones - Purchase a few SIP-adapters (like the Sipura SPA-2000) at $50/port and connect analog phones - any combination of the above   Before rolling this into production, you may want to install asterisk on an "extra" system and see how you get along with it.  It's easier to learn for some than for others.   -----Original Message----- From: Michael Little [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Wednesday, July 21, 2004 1:58 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [Asterisk-Users] Future installation questions - what do I need? I currently have a Toshiba Strata DK424 with a Stratagy voicemail system (4 ports).  I am looking to go from having a receptionist answering the phone to an automated attendant.  It appears that Asterisk can be the solution, but I have some questions.  Do I just replace the Stratagy with the Asterisk or do I need to reconfigure the routing of the phone lines?  Currently, the POTS lines come in to the Strata phone system.  Would I need to have the POTS lines come in to the Asterisk then connect the Strata to the Asterisk?  The Strata is equipped with an automated attendant, but only having 4 ports causes dropped calls.  At the current time, we just want to use the automated attendant and voicemail features, but we intend to start using VoIP and SIP.  Finally, which cards do I need to purchase?  I am not familiar with all the terminology, so I am a little confused with FXS and FXO.  Once I figure out where things need to go, I think it would make things a little easier.  All our phone lines come in on POTS lines, but we may change to PRI at some point.  I understand that this will change which cards I need.  I have mainly been looking at the Digium cards do to pricing.  The Intel (Dialogic) cards seem to be a lot more expensive.  Are the Intel’s any better than the Digium?  Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.   Thanks in advance.   Michael