Optimizing Converged

Cisco Networks (ONT)

Lesson 1.1: The Evolution of Telephony in the Enterprise

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Objectives

 Describe the history of the telephone services industry

and its affect on modern business practices.
 Identify the components of the traditional telephone
system.
 Describe traditional POTS service.
 Describe ISDN & T1 services.
 Explain the drivers of converged networks.

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Basic Telephone System

 A telephone system has four elements:

A telephone set to convert sound to electrical signals and back to
sound
One or more central switching facilities
Connections to the central switching facilities
Connections among multiple switching centers across telephone
networks
 Subscribers connect to the telephone network using:
Dedicated wire connections in overhead or underground cables
Radio waves (cellular, satellite, or radiotelephone)
VoIP

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

 Basic Components of a Modern Telephone
System
Long Distance and
International Connections
IP
Central Office
with Switches

Fiber

Local
Loop

POTS and
ADSL

Cellular Phone
Home Office with
System
Corporate VPN
including VoIP

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Traditional POTS Services

 PSTN or PTT (POTS) has remained practically

unchanged for over 100 years offering:
Bi-directional, or full duplex, voice path to carry sound both
ways at once
Dial tone and ringing signals
Subscriber dialing
Operator services, such as directory assistance, long distance,
and conference calling assistance
Power

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

ISDN and T1 Services

 ISDN: A set of standards that allow data and voice to

be carried on copper wire from the telephone exchange
to customer premises:
BRI: 2 B-channels and 1 D-channel for control
PRI: 23 B-channels (30 in Europe) and 1 D-channel for control

 T1 Carrier System: Specification for digital transmission

between telephone exchanges and sometimes directly
to customer premises. T1 uses copper wire or fiber.

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Digital Telephone Services
 Digital Telephone Services include:
Voice mail
Caller ID
Call waiting
Reminder calls
(Three-way) conference calling
Enhanced 911 (in North America)
Centrex
A number of other similar services

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

PBX and Centrex
 Centrex (a virtual PBX):
Call Transfer
Call Divert – on no reply and on busy calls
Call Waiting
Three-Party Conference
Call Pick Up (Group)
Ring Back
Reminder or Alarm Call Typical Centrex telephone. Note the
Recall button and the Message
Last Number Redial Waiting lamp.

Centrex Hotline (non-dialed connection)

Centrex Warm Line (delayed Hotline)
Centrex Hunt Groups, with optional bypass numbers

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Long-Distance Calling Challenges
May I have a line
to Chicago?

Is this a
business call?

PSTN
Yes it is.

Thank you. One

second please.
Chicago Office

PBX

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Long-Distance and WATS

 Long-distance trunk lines connect telephone

exchanges.
 Long-distance services include:
OUT-WATS: Flat-rate long-distance calling
IN-WATS: Toll-free calling using 1-8xx numbers

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

 Separate Voice, Video, and Data Networks

 London
 San Jose Office
Office
PBX
PBX

 Tokyo
Office

PBX

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Converged Voice, Video, and Data Network

PSTN

IP WAN

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Self Check

1. What are the 2 levels of ISDN service?

2. What is a Centrex?
3. What is a WATS-type plan?
4. What options are available in WATS plans?

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Summary
 Companies have used telephone services for over 100
years as a part of their business practices.
 Changing technology and changing enterprise needs
have influenced changes in telephony services.
 The increasing use of IP transport for data, voice and
video has lead to the need for converged networks.

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Q and A

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Resources

 Wikipedia Telephone Exchange article

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telephone_exchange

 Cisco IP Telephones on Converged Network Enable

Rapid Emergency Response
http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/partners/success_stories/2001/
pss_10-10.html

 Making the Business Case for Unified Communications

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/netsol/ns340/ns394/ns165/network
ing_solutions_audience_business_benefit0900aecd80472efb.ht
ml

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

© 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.