I posted this on asterisk guru, but didnt get a single reply :-/
Im renovating my new home to be & want to go VOIP instead of a standard line through my cable provider (NTL). I am Hardwiring RJ45 throughout the house as standard for Data.
I have installed trixbox on a spare PC had a little play around. As I have no Hardware phones to setup & test with it, I have gone as far as I can. So Im now looking for some advice & possibly buying pointers.
I am looking to have several phones around the house & im not sure what the best option is (& cheapest) - lets say 6 phones.
Im not sure what exactly my options are. I also have a few questions.
Option 1 - Dedicated IP Phone. Biggest Question is do the cheaper ones (Budgetones?) Work as stand-a-lone ? Or do they need to connect to a PC?
The ones I have seen have a LAN & WAN socket. Now, 1x Port would connect to my Internet Connection (via a Router) & from what I read, the other connects to a PC. Is a PC needed? or does the Phone also act as a 1 port router & cutting down on cabling?
Option 2 - Adapter to use a normal phone.
I have anadapters (Currently in Storage). Its a Linksys PAP2 phone adapter. Can this be used? http://www.amazon.com/Linksys-PAP2-Adapter-Internet-Service/dp/B0002V8KX6
Can I setup a Hybrid system of mixing the linksys pap2 & other phones. Or do I need other Hardware?
Do IP phones work independently of a PC?
The Plan is to connect all the phones through a dedicated switch that will then connect to my Broadband Router. Is this possible? (The cable modem will be dedicated to VOIP Only & not internet & as Ive found mixing them both really screws up a telephone conversation.. especially when im busy getting stuff)
Is it possible to have all phones to ring for an incoming call at the same time? Or can it only be one at a time? I assume I can only receive 1 call at a time or make 1 call at a time, which is fine. What I would also like if possible though is to transfer calls from 1 phone to another (Lets say, someone phones my house. All the phones ring. I pick up the phone & its not for me. Can I then just transfer them to say the phone in the kitchen? or the bedroom, etc.?
Erm, anything else I need to know or additional Hardware? I cant justify paying Ã,£200+ for a dedicated card just yet.
Basic problem with using normal IP phones is that they each require a separate connection to the router IIRC.
Really it gets complicated and a single adaptor so you can use the present phones is probably your best option. Not all of them work on all systems though so I have no idea if the Linksys one you have will work.
Another option would be a phone adaptor and radio phones.
Ive considered that in the past but as we have talktalk ATM there is no point.
Welcome to the forums btw ;)
One other little issue, if you had an emergency, say an injury, could you still use a phone to contact the services during an electrical outage? A BT line phone works even if the entire area is down, mobile phone batteries run out and an outage would most likely take down your IP phone /router too so you would ideally need backup power for it.
Hi & thanks for the welcome.. My stay will be like when someone farts in a lift. Lingers around for a short while & then gone before you know it!
A dedicated line isnt an option. Whats the point in paying for both? especially with unlimted call packages cable operators do. If theres an emergency, Id grab my mobile as its usually withing arms reach providing my trousers got pockets :-D
As it is, the House is being gutted. Hacking plaster of walls, running cables, etc. - Every room will have 2 CAT 5 Sockets & 2 CATV Ports (one to duplicate whatever is on the main cable box & the other incase I decide to move the main cable box or modem to another room :-D) - Why run 1 cable when you can run for twice the cost? As I have mentioned, there will be seperate Router & Modem link with its own connection & seperate IP Address from what will be normal Internet Modem. (2x broadband connections in affect - 1 for internet, the other for VOIP). I dont want to use RJ11 Connections at all really, unless it works out cheaper than buying dedicated IP phones.
Anybody installed such a system at home or a soho?