I’ve just heard about this solution from my friend. He tells me that I can build up one IP PBX (like soft switch) at home very easily. Asterisk is his answer and no more .
I wonder how Asterisk does work. I have 1 telephone line-in from PSTN and it current is plugged to my home’s PBX. This PBX has only 1 line in and 4 extensions. Now, I want to replace this PBX by my PC and upgrade all 4 analog phones to IP fone. My friend tells me that i have to use Asterisk to do that. How can Asterisk help me in this situation. How can my PC connect into PSTN?
Sure if you wish to master your Linux skills, scripting, knowledge of protocols, security, packet telephony etc. you may turn to Asterisk as your solution.
But, depending on your country, location and broadband availability, you may not require a PBX to run 4 extensions in your house (well, 1 analogue line to the local telephone exchange will not let you have more then one inbound/outbound call at a time, with or without a PBX).
With a broadband connection to the Internet, you may put as many phones in the house as required, register them with a provider whos PBX is present on the Internet and on your country’s public phone network to handle your calls This one is called ‘voice over broadband’ or ‘voice over Internet protocol’.
If you do not require more than 1 in/out call at a time, you may consider a cheaper solution: a wireless phone base, connected to your land-line, and 4 wireless handsets (DECT or other) registered to a single base. You can use these for intercom, making outgoing calls, receive incoming call, forward it to another handset in your house, or leave it to the answering service on the base.
However, I’m still wondering how can my PC exchange the voice traffic from IP Network to PSTN. I mean where will do plug the telephone line into my PC. I think it must be the new card.
Certainly, i don’t require that i could make 2 calls out / in at the same time. Just beginning from the most simple, 1 in / out over my existed telephone line.
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