[VoiceOps] Experiences with VoIP and 100+ seat sites

[Todd Wolf]

I agree with Alex. g729 has better packet loss concealment and works better over certain types of broadband connections where there may be high latency and jitter.

We were an interconnect for 30 years prior to moving to a Broadworks platform so we have a lot of experience in recreating the "key system" experience to mirror what our clients had for many years....

1. Do a thorough review of their LAN and WAN infrastructure and perform a "network readiness" assessment...(we use AppNeta PathView)and also put a simulated VOIP load on the network and run during production time to see how the network behaves with the additional overhead..(we use AppNet AppView Voice for this) 
2. Remediate any bottlenecks and network issues that you discover including re-terminating jacks and patch panels if needed or relocating CAT5 cables that may be run to close to fluorescent lights and other interference inducers.
3. either test or replace all patch cords to verify end to end performance.
4. set up VLANs to separate voice, video and data traffic so it is easier to isolate fault conditions and do proper traffic shaping on trunks
5. use a good ALG router at the edge such as Edgewater Network's Edgemarc or Adtran's netvanta series. (this allows for local tftp file storage for firmware as well as things like WAN link redundancy, traffic shaping and MOS monitoring and reporting) These also integrate into central monitoring systems that can alert on predefined criteria such as packet loss, jitter, and other undesirable conditions that can affect call quality and feature availability.
6. use SIP phones such as Aastra or Polycom that have the ability to set up multiple line appearances and LAN based paging groups. (you can also use a local appliance that has a secondary registration for paging groups and connectivity to local paging amplifiers. (we have our own patent pending product based on Asterisk for this that includes info mailboxes, conference bridges, cascade paging and sms notification and xml app hosting which we integrate with Broadworks)
7. get very detailed site information and current system setup including any "special" items, notifications, vm needs, operator functions, hunt groups workarounds and connectivity that may need to be replicated in the new system. Have your engineering department sign off on the final design before implementation so you can address any gotchas before they blow up during the install.
8. Pilot the new system along side the existing system so the users can pre train and experiment prior to the live cut date. This way they will report any nuances that may be present so you can address them prior to go live thus avoiding fire drills. We usually run the pilot for 1-2 weeks 
9. build monitoring for site to proactively keep things in good health
10. Document, Document, Document

-----Original Message-----
From: voiceops-bounces at voiceops.org [mailto:voiceops-bounces at voiceops.org] On Behalf Of Alex Balashov
Sent: Wednesday, February 01, 2012 12:39 PM
To: voiceops at voiceops.org
Subject: Re: [VoiceOps] Experiences with VoIP and 100+ seat sites

On 02/01/2012 12:33 PM, Carlos Alvarez wrote:

> I completely disagree.  Most of our customers are on g729 and nobody 
> was able to hear the difference when we tested that versus 711.

It comes across in hold music, and other things that fill up more of the acoustic range of the good ol' 3.1 KHz bearer spectrum.

But yeah, on WiMax, that would make sense.

--
Alex Balashov - Principal
Evariste Systems LLC
260 Peachtree Street NW
Suite 2200
Atlanta, GA 30303
Tel: +1-678-954-0670
Fax: +1-404-961-1892
Web: http://www.evaristesys.com/, http://www.alexbalashov.com/ _______________________________________________
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