What happens when VOIP main phone line comes in?

[Graham G3ZVT]

Aub, re post #34
In all likelihood, your brothers Telecare device is a "Tunstall Lifeline Vi"



(I bought one outright for my mother, and programmed it to dial into my Asterisk system which fans out the call to several mobile phones simultaneously).

As Tim said in post #39 these devices are compatible with any "new" telephone socket located on the back of a router.

The Tunstall unit is a reliable well tried and tested device, and contains its own backup battery.

You mention that your brother has no need for broadband, so it raises an interesting question, when the copper wires are removed his supplier will HAVE to provide a basic broadband connection in order for the VoIP telephony to work.

Does anyone know what speed connection will be provided in these circumstances, and will other uses such as Web browsing be blocked?

[Cathovisor]

Now funnily enough, I had a visit from a lad from BT today telling me that I was about to be moved over to VoIP in the next few weeks. There's a DP in my front garden with Lightspeed-provided fibres on it.

So, here are my problems with this.

1. My broadband speed will NOT increase from my current 50Mb/sec.
2. My LD phones will not work outgoing with the new system.
3. I do NOT want a BT router - I do NOT want them remotely managing my Internet connection and using it as a hot-spot. My line, my Internet.
4. I have extensions with a phone on each socket.
5. No battery backup (but I do have a UPS to hand) in case of power failure - it does happen here.
6. I rely on a landline for business as mobile reception round here (EE) is crap. Nothing puts a client off more than asking to ring them back.
7. My previous experience with VoIP with one of BT's competitors was dire - will this offer any worthwhile improvement?

How will these be resolved to my satisfaction?

[Sinewave]

This will be interesting when this is rolled out where I am. My Virgin Media hub thingy is set to modem mode - it then connects via an ethernet socket in the wall to my 'server area', where my own network equipment is (router, switch, wi-fi equipment and file servers). I wonder if I can pick up the VOIP myself in the server room via the link from the modem to the WAN, then I can decide what to do with it from there.

[Buzby123]

Originally Posted by Sinewave

... I wonder if I can pick up the VOIP myself in the server room via the link from the modem to the WAN ...

To get VOIP in your house you need a connection to the ISP ( fibre, copper, wet string ), and a device somewhere in your house that supports VOIP.

In a copper broadband the VOIP might be setup in the modem or router. In this case there will be phone sockets on the modem or router.

In a FTTP broadband the VOIP might be setup in the ONT or router. In this case there will be phone sockets on the ONT or router.

If there are no phone sockets on your existing hardware, you will need a 3rd party box ( an ATA ) somewhere on the Ethernet. ( Note, the 'ONT to Router' is Ethernet, but on mine it is not connected to the house Ethernet. Its a totally seperate circuit. )

If the ONT/Modem/Router is supplied by the ISP, and they offer VOIP, then it's most likely the hardware will have sockets, and the ISP will remotely configure them for you.

If you have, or want, to use an ATA, then the ISP should provide you with the credentials to set it up. The same if you use a 3rd party VOIP service, they will give you the codes you need to put into the ATA.

The benefit of an ATA with a 3rd party VOIP service is that you are not tied to the ISP, so if you change ISP there is no changes at all to the ATA.

My situation is that ISP does not provide VOIP, but the ONT has VOIP capabilities and sockets. However the ISP won't let me in to set them ( and I've tried ! )

This may change in the next few months, as the ISP now does provide VOIP, and my free trial of FTTP comes to an end, so it's negotiation time !.

[M0AFJ, Tim]

Originally Posted by paulsherwin

The problem is that Openreach have to shut down the PSTN system if BT are to flog off their hundreds of exchange sites for redevelopment. Many of these are in prime city locations and are absolutely huge having been built in the era of Strowger switching and big manual switchboards, so there's a big financial incentive to just get on with it and sort out the wrinkles on an ad-hoc basis as they arise.

I'd certainly like a look inside the Oxford exchange to see what became of the staff canteen and bar and the public museum. It's been lights out for 20 years.

Likewise Faraday and the Citadel, going to be one hell of a job knocking the Citadel down.

[raditechman]

Post 36 mentions a "lifeline" pendant.
I have one of these and was changed over to VOIP last year.
The "lifeline" box worked on the VOIP to make calls out but could not be remotely reset by the operator at the call centre.
To fix that problem they changed me over to a new box which works on mobile telephone network, it will also work during power cut as has internal back up batteries

John

[Craig Sawyers]

Virgin have just done our landline conversion to fibre (well it is fibre to the cabinet, not house).

The guy (a Rumanian) did a good and professional job and the system works great - IOW no change as compared with the BT landline.

We got a battery backed emergency phone too from the Virgin guy. 4G antenna with good signal strength. So in the case of an emergency, when the digital connection has failed or there is a power cut (and inevitably the mobile battery is low or dead) we can still contact emergency services.

Craig

[GrimJosef]

Our Virgin line was converted last week too. It sounds like the same young guy, Craig (unsurprising perhaps, given that we only live a few miles apart). While the team back at base were disabling our old connection and enabling the new one I showed him what proper electronics look like (Quad II, a few valves ). I don't think he'd ever seen one in the flesh, so to speak.

Cheers,

GJ