Cisco router 877M capability to use Unified Communications technology?

[taiweifeng]

Hi all,

Can Cisco router 877M have the features or capability to use VOIP or Unified Communications  technology?

Cheers,

[Steven DiStefano · Accepted solution]

In the Cisco Small Business portfolio, we offer Smart Business Communication System (SBCS), which is a suite of products providing UC to the small biz.

This includes Remote Teleworkers, namely the 871W ISR and the SR520, if you need ADSL interface.  This includes GUI Management and configuration using CCA (Cisco COnfiguration Assistant).   This suite of products are Engineered and tested to work together, and supported that was as well.

You can introduce other products and attemt to interoperate them, but you will be drifting away from the value added by sticking to the designs and best practice deployments we recommend.

More on 8xx ISRs:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps6202/index.html

More on SR520:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps9305/index.html

[taiweifeng]

Hello Steve,

Thanks for the reply. Are you saying Cisco 877M MAYBE able to use this UC technology? My company is a small medium size organisation, I am looking at UC and VOIP technology to see if there is anyway to reduce our telephone cost or enhance our collaboration. I am looking for services available that I can download or used to achieve this without incurring expenses or minimal expense.

From your link i can see that cisco UC 500 series can do that. We are already using Cisco Router 877M for our network and VPN. What do i need in order to have UC or Voip to be used by my company utilising my existing router. Do i need to download or configure to activate UC services availability?

Or

Do i really need to purchase Cisco SBCS Suite of products? If it is so then my company would not go down this road.

Thanks.

[Steven DiStefano]

I can recommend SBCS for UC for under 64 subscribers very confidently and comfortably.

Of course this will also require consideration of other design requirements (there are multisite and teleworker limits with UC500 (5 and 10 respectively).

Please engage your local account team or Small Business Account Manger to get a quote and proceed forward.

[mdensmor · Accepted solution]

The 877 does not support Unified Communications manager express which is the IP PBX provides call control. The 877 does provide the appropriate level of Quality of Service to successfully pass voice traffic to a centralixzed IP PBX running on a server. You didn't give a size of your company so it is hard to recommend what to consider.

The SBCS would be a complete and robust system with telephone call processing, voicemail, automated attendant, and conferencing functions.

The pricing for these systems has just recently been reduced and there is a nice financing option available. You can have a look at the SBCS here http://www.cisco.com/cisco/web/solutions/small_business/products/voice_conferencing/smart_business_communications_system/index.html

On the get started tab on that page  you will find info on financing.

[taiweifeng]

Thanks for the info mdensmor, I have 70 users all together, there are 50 in HQ and 20 across Australia. Please give recommendation, I want to fully utilize my router to help my company save cost! Thank you. I will look at financing though the chance of getting approval from senior mgmt is nil.... times are tough.

[Steven DiStefano]

Thanks for clarifying.  So SBCS currently ha sa max phone support for 64 users.  You are above this.

I think you want to be running CME on ISR.  There are really UC Bundles for ISR that your local account management team can share with you.

[mdensmor]

Hi Tai,

You may want to take a look at the 2800 series routers. There are bundles to support the number of users you currently have.

If you were to install a 2800 series at your headquarters your remote sites could VPN to headquarters and receive their phone service from headquarters.

Doing this will eliminate any toll charges for calls between the offices.

There is the need to maintain connections to the PSTN in case you lose your WAN connection you will maintain telephony services utilizing the PSTN.

At your remote sites you may want to consider the 880 series routers which have a provision for Survivable remote site telephony (SRST).

This feature allows the router at the remote site to maintain call management if the remote site loses the WAN connection to headquarters.

These calls would then be automatically routed through the PSTN until the WAN connection is restored.

The savings from eliminating charges for calls between your sites may justify the purchase of the new technology.

I would suggest you do a cost study to see how much you spend monthly on calls between the offices.

Hope this helps.

Mark