The PBX based on the voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) have gained great presence in companies thanks to their enormous versatility and ease of installation. The traditional physical telephone switchboards have lost much of their appeal and is that IP PBXs can be adapted to any type of need.Within this type it is necessary to emphasize the Asterisk switchboard.
What is it and who created Asterisk?
Asterisk is Mark Specer's project, who, in 1999, when he was a student of computer engineering at University of Alabama, founded a small company dedicated to give technical support to Linux users. He realized that he needed a telephone exchange capable of answering all calls, allowing users to leave voice messages, redirect calls or leave users waiting. At that time, the traditional telephone exchanges were prohibitive and the switchboards were few and inexpensive, compared to the current costs.
So Mark decided to program from scratch his own virtual switchboard with a PC with Linux operating system and C language. The power of the system he has developed as a student was such that in 2001 his Linux user support company was dedicated exclusively to the development of Asterisk, the main software and low cost switchboard in the market.
Asterisk features
Asterisk is not a physical platform, but a software that must be installed on a computer with BSD or GNU / Linux operating system. The last one offers better support, since Asterisk has been created especially for Linux. In addition, this program is free and each user can configure it to suit them.
There are different circumstances that you must take into account to decide if an Asterisk switchboard is suitable for your company or not.
The price
The first is the price. It is not a minor issue at all.The fact that they come backed by an official installer assures us that we will not have to take care of the installation, maintenance or hypothetical errors. Of course, the technical support of Asterisk is guaranteed thanks to the fact that it has a network of authorized companies, such as Avazada 7, that offer technical support in Asterisk backed by Digium.
Software package
The Asterisk PBX, on the other hand, is a very powerful and free software package. The investment to be made to install thiw switchboard in our company will be lower compared to the other sofware switchboards. But the management will depend, to a large extent, on someone internal to our company or the same technology department. In this case, a good training in handling Asterisk will be the key to success.
Scalability
One of the strongest points of Asterisk is scalability. It means that we can configure this switchboard to be used by a self-employed person who has a small office and only requires two lines, such as for a large company that requires 5.000 telephones with their corredponding value-added services. This is possible because the software, which we remember is free,
Integration
Another advantage to be taken into account by Asterisk over other software switchboards is that it allow us to integrate both the usuarl VoIP phones and traditional telephones.
Asterisk will have some problem?
Even so, Asterisk has some drawbacks that you should know about. One of the most important is that its installation can become complicated if its not mastered. The whole system must be adapted to our company, which means that we will need to program each improvement and each integration, even if we have downloaded it from the official website. Finally, it is always preferable to install it on Linux since that is the language for which it was created. That in itself is not an inconvenience - Linux is a free distribution operating system and can be installed on (almost) any computer - - If it is true that we must have someone who knows the system in the necessary depth.
So, is Asterisk a good solution for my company's communications? Undoubtedly, Asterisk is a solution to take into account if we are thinking of creating a software switchboard that will be very usefull for all the staff of your company. In Avanzada 7 we offer you training so you can professionally train your team, which will give you an excellent professionalism.
In addition, Asterisk stands out not only for compatibility with the most popular IP Phones in the market, but for its scalability and free distribution system, consolidate it as one of the best solutions.
So, is Asterisk a good solution for my company's communications?
Undoubtedly, Asteris is a solution to take into account if we are thinking of creating a software switchboard that will be very useful for all the staff of your company. In avanzada 7 we offer you training so you can professionally train your team, which will give you an excellent professionalism.
In addition, Asterisk stands out not only for compatibility with the most popular IP Phones in the market, but for its scalability and free distribution system, consolidate it as one of the best solutions.
