Megabit vs. Gigabit – As previously stated, most VoIP phones are 100 Mbps devices while computers are Gigabit. In some offices only one Ethernet drop is available to be shared. VoIP phones have the ability to daisy chain themselves between the wall plate and the computer. You would simply add a cable from the wall plate to the phones LAN port and then a cable from the phones PC port to the computer. But if you do so you will reduce the computers connection from 1000 Mbps to 100 Mbps which is a significant difference. To get over this, One Call Networks and National ComTel recommend you upgrade your phone to a Gigabit phone which will communicate at the same speed as the computer and not cause a bottleneck.
Insecure ISP Security – If you are unable to purchase a physical firewall to protect your network, most ISP Gateways come with a built-in firewall. However there are a few drawbacks to relying entirely on this firewall. Utilizing proper IT asset management will assist in your network running properly and securely.
- It is never updated by the ISP. The level of protection it comes with will not improve or adapt to emerging threats.
- ISP’s don’t like changes. The consumer interface is very limited and restrictive by design. Most ISP’s do not like you get down to the nuts and bolts of their configuration. You may not be able to get around their restrictions to make your network work for you.
- Most of these firewalls only protect the ISP from your Internet use and access.
Bridge Mode – Some ISP Gateways allow you to change their configuration from a Router to a simple Bridge. This is Geek for stating that you can completely disable the filtering (and all other functions) of an ISP’s Gateway by switching it to Bridge Mode. This turns the unit into a simple device that just connects your network to the world. In this configuration you would need a router of some type. A firewall is a router, but so is a Wireless Router. This is an advanced step, please contact your Managed IT service provider for assistance on this.
If you are unable to apply the recommendations above due to cabling restrictions or budget, here are some alternatives. Please understand that our advice is based on years of VoIP installations and implementations. We cannot say that these options will work in every environment and we anticipate there will be situations where it may just not work. With that being prefaced, here are some ways around some of the limitations of VoIP.
