[Asterisk-Users] T1 and FX CPE

[Steven Critchfield]

On Fri, 2004-11-26 at 09:42 -0600, Matthew Boehm wrote:
> Hey guys,
>   Looking for some suggestions here on hardware to use.  We have several
> business customers wanting to start using our VoIP service. We will be
> replacing their 10 year old Panisonic system with Cisco 7940 phones and a
> T1. Problem is, they have to keep 1 POTS line for directory listing and 911
> emergency failover.
>   I would like suggestions on how to accomplish this. Our asterisk cluster
> is downtown so we can do the T1 between us and them easily. However, the
> FX911 is the big problem. Lets say that the T1 line goes down and someone
> tries to dial 911. Normally the call would go over the T1 down to asterisk
> cluster and go out over PRI or an FX card. But if the T1 is down, you can't
> do that. So, the POTS line needs to be plugged into something at the
> customer site.
>  There are a few Cisco routers that will accept both the T1 and the FX but
> we can't intercept a SIP call at the router. Right now, the only solution we
> can think of is putting an asterisk box at their location with an FX card.
> That way if the T1 goes down, they can still dial intra-office and dial 911
> out the FX card.
> 
> Other suggestions are wide-arms-openly welcome.

Maybe you should verify that a frac T1 of PSTN wouldn't be a cost
effective option. It would eliminate the 911 problem, the directory
listing problem, and could allow you to not worry about the analog
line. 

For instance in our market, a point to point T1 loop costs between $250
and $300 plus taxes. A full PRI is only $650 plus taxes. At some point
in between I'm sure you might find the sweet spot for your customer that
handles the number of calls they need and has a relatively decent
cost.  
-- 
Steven Critchfield <critch at basesys.com>