petertmooney wrote: ↑Wed 30th Aug 2017, 23:50
Hi Paul,
Thank you for getting back to me. We have just one line, carrying broadband also. So, it wouldn't be possible to move it. :/
Also, on the pstn line, I have free unlimited calls to landlines and several hundred free mins to mobiles and international.
What I need is, rooms to be able to call front of house to order food etc, if needed, granted an outside line etc.
Or if a call comes in for a guest through pstn line, I need to be able to transfer it to their room.
We also need it so that when the pstn line rings, we can have it ring certain extensions after hours etc.
We currently also record external calls for business purposes.
Essentially, like a small hotel tbh.
I dont mind using the standard dect phones that are already in the rooms at present if possible, but I'd love to be able to use phones like the two on ebay below at front of house etc...
Any suggestions? Theres bound to be a way, no?
I'm an absolute noob to all this tbh. Any advice greatly appreciated.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Cisco-7945-CP ... 0005.m1851
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Grandstream-G ... 0005.m1851
Thanks
@CJT-80, sorry for the delay in replying to your previous post (quoted above)
@petertmooney, I have had a busy few days...
If you can't or won't port your number away, it complicates things slightly and requires additional hardware/software. Also, be aware that traditional PSTN lines can only handle one call (in or out) at any one time. So, if someone was to call in on your PSTN line, hold a conversation with you, or the call is transferred to any of the rooms, you won’t be able to make or receive any other calls via your PSTN line until the first call has finished. By porting your PSTN number over to a VoIP platform, it removes the above restriction. There is a work around regarding the one outgoing call restriction that your PSTN will impose on your phone system, look for a VoIP provider who offers unlimited landline, mobile and international calls and have them clone your caller ID. That way, there is no need to use your PSTN line for outgoing calls, only incoming.
FYI, internal calls (e.g. room to room or room to front of house) are unaffected by the above because internal calls won’t need or use the PSTN line.
Phones:
Do not purchase the first phone you linked to! The Cisco 79xx series are not native SIP based VoIP phones. If you want to go with the Cisco brand, purchase one of the Cisco SPA models, such as the Cisco SPA502G. The Grandstream phone you linked to is a native SIP based VoIP phone and will work just fine.
Software:
Again, If you insist on using your current PSTN landline, your going to need a local PBX. I recommend using FREEPBX (it's free).
Additional Hardware:
You're going to need a PC, VPS or raspberry PI to run FREEPBX, and a FXO Adapter such as the OBi110. Unfortunately the OBi110 is no longer available on Amazon (
End Of Life) but you might pick one up on eBay. Failing that, Obihai have just launched the OBi212 (It's the replacement for the OBi110) although not yet available here in the UK.
Finally, one other thing to consider if you only have the one internet connection, uploading or downloading large files when on a call can cause issues, so make sure that you have a decent router, and that QOS is configured. Even better, get a dedicated internet connection for your PBX.