Multitech VoIP User's Guide download pdf (Page 8)

Understanding the Converged Network

Voice over IP

Voice over IP uses the data network packet-switching method to provide a more ef cient way of sending

voice communication. Packet-switching optimizes the use of network resources (bandwidth) because

the channel is only occupied during the time the packet is being transmitted. Many users can share the

same channel because individual packets can be sent and received in any order and the network can

balance the load across various pieces of equipment. This allows several telephone calls to occupy the

amount of space occupied by only one in a circuit-switched network. By migrating telephone networks

to packet-switching technology they immediately gain the ability to communicate more ef ciently the

way computers do.

In the IP world, voice is another data application running over the IP network. In a converged

environment, the PBX becomes the equivalent of a super-server (like a mainframe) that sits on the

network and is accessed by remote clients (e.g. handsets or even PCs, using converged applications)

anywhere on the network over any type of transmission lines. Therefore, Voice over IP solves the

PBX’s networking limitations by providing a cost-effective, ef cient means of communicating over

the company’s existing data network, or the Internet. Voice over IP gateways, operating alongside the

company’s PBX, make it possible to maintain all existing systems and simply extend voice and the

PBX’s features and functionality out to remote locations and home users. It can seamlessly tie together

dissimilar proprietary PBX systems and provide networking capabilities to key telephone systems that

previously weren’t available.

Voice over IP Gateways

The device that bridges the voice network and the data network together is called a Voice over IP

(VOIP) gateway. A VOIP gateway connects directly to an existing voice network and plugs into an IP data

network. It uses the network’s router to access the Internet or a private intranet. A VOIP gateway is a

point-to-point, or point-to-multipoint, solution (one is required for each location). It merges voice/fax

from telephones onto the IP network and then utilizes another VOIP gateway, at the remote end, to

separate the voice/fax from the data network and send it back to the PBX, telephone, or fax machine.

Voice/Fax “Ride Free” on the Data Network

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Multitech VoIP User's Guide Page 8