atcomsystems.ca/forum Forums VOIP Phones & IP PBX Cisco Telephones and Systems So we are buying a Cisco UC560 - where to start

After going through a 4 month bid process we have decided on a Cisco UC560 with a PRI.

What I would like to know is what to start reading? I have the CCA manual and will shortly have the Cisco QOS and UC books.

Is that enough? Anything else I should look for?

I am not a phone guy by any stretch but I do have some knowledge. Mainly with the 4 different Toshiba systems we are currently running.

Any gotya's to watch out for? Things that should be first on the list?

Thanks

Brian

I should add. I will not be doing the heavy configurations of the system, but I hate putting things on my network without knowing how they work.

I'd suggest you SERIOUSLY consider a separate network for the Cisco system.

Brian, may God be with you. Be prepared for many long nights and lots of antacids. I wish that I could sugar-coat it, but you are stepping into a completely different industry.

You are not giving me a warm fuzzy!

A separate internal network is a possibility, separate internet connect is not.

Main hub is sitting on a 10mb fiber connection.

Smallest of the remote sites is a full T1.

Biggest remote site will have 10 extensions, sitting on 10mb fiber.

Most remote sites will have 5 or less extensions.

Nothing to elaborate. DID for each remote site, only AA for night ring.

I will just be happy to only have 1 system to administer and not 5!

Make sure the vendor has multiple people on staff who can work on it?... I replaced a one year old uc 560 because the vendor lost the only guy who knew it. Cisco and the vendor were no help and were not willing to do anything.

They told my customer they needed to remove his system and send it out to be programmed for a PRI and would have it back in a week!

The BEST advice.....if you haven't written the check..... DON'T .

As an IT type, you are used to one system....CRISCO, being a computer company, is used to marketing to you. Telephony does it in layers, not, one down and it is all gone.

Remember, REAL telephone equipment is tested and proven to work 5-9s (99.999% up time...good luck on finding any computer systems {read CRISCO} with that standard).

Good Luck.

Are they really that bad? I can understand some issues coming up but really are they truly that terrible a product?

Next closet quote was 25% more then the Cisco system. Not something I could overcome. The contract has already been signed, gear is on the way.

It was 25% more for a reason.

As long as the vendor installing it is qualified and you have a good network in place then you should be fine. The real problems come in when the network is not voice ready and the remote sites have slow or variable internet connections. At the worst you may have to put dedicated connections, like MPLS between HQ and the remote sites.

Make sure your network is clean and mitigate expectations of potential down time and you should be fine.

There are plenty of horror stories of Cisco installs, but most were/are predicated by a company that is not capable of installation or come from a company replacing a bad install. The same is really true for almost any full VoIP system installation though. There are terrible Avaya, Nortel, and ShoreTel installs too. And we all remember the bad digital installs. As long as the installing company understands voice AND data it should be OK. A big problem for Cisco is having people that really only understand data doing voice installs.

One of the biggest issues with Cisco is not the install, it is the continued maintenance - but if you are Cisco certified and you have a Cisco network then it should not be too bad for you. Cisco also has high recurring annual costs compared to other VoIP, but if it is the system you are moving forward with then that really does not matter now.

Steve