I have a particularly tough scenario. We have a large utilities client that has several types of PBXs interfacing with channel banks to hand off large groups of OPX lines from analog DID trunks to ring specific analog handsets. The customer wants to move these platforms into their existing Cisco VOIP solution on a gradual basis, but, after trying several options, they are not finding a reliable solution. Here is a brief overview of what has been used so far:
1) they inserted a VG248 in the chain to terminate the OPX analog lines, which I explained that this device wasn't really intended for that type of use. When they tried this scenario, they found that the VG248 doesn't provide enough current for the ringdown from the PBX.
2) they tried ISR 2800 routers with the MFTs configured to act inline with the PBXs to mux or split out the channels / DS0s on the T1 into individual PLAR OPXs to ring down to the individual analog OPX lines. This worked somewhat, but the big issue with this is the fact that it didn't provide the caller options upon a CFWD busy or CFWD NA state. I told them the only feasible way I know to handle that type of call control would be to take the OPX pilot and make it a "broadcast" ringdown to both the OPX extension and an additionl handset operator or some translated ringout to an answering service. It would seem pretty ugly to me, though, to get it to work. If anyone has some better ideas to try, I can share a scrubbed Visio and some additional detail of their current setup and what they are trying to accomplish. Thanks in Advance!
