In our previous blog post, we discussed what it means to be “True Cloud.” But how do you know when the platform you are using is True Cloud? How do you know which “cloud” to trust? We’ve broken it down for you here.
TRUE VOIP:
Here are the top 3 ways to know if your VoIP system is utilizing “True Cloud”:
1. PHYSICAL FACILITIES
The quality of the data centers your servers reside in matters. (Take a look at this article about Equinix, where 2600Hz hosts) How do you know which one your customers are in?
Tricks to tell the difference:
- Where’s the facility?
- This tells you if they’re cheap or not! And redundant!
- Whose data centers, really?
- What’s their network like?
- What’s the software?
- That’s what makes up the cloud!
2. THE NETWORK
The single most Important factor for call quality is your network. The Network Connectivity must be good in order to ensure your clients have quality voice. Be sure to know which internet providers the they use to assess the Network quality. Tier 1 Internet Backbone is key. Find out which VoIP carriers the customer uses/resells. Are they a CLEC? If not, they buy from someone else. Double-check their answers! Ask for sample numbers. Then check them out! LNP lookup! Ultimately, can you bring your own carrier solution? That’s real choice.
3. THE SOFTWARE- aka Softswitch
The underlying software is the most important aspect in making sure you have a fully redundant system. Most companies did not write the software that runs their infrastructure, and instead have purchased or licensed it. It is crucial to understand what software your client is using. In order to find out, you can ask a few questions.
- Who manufacturers the SoftSwitch you use? (CISCO is not an answer!)
- Ask if it’s active/active, active/passive
- Ask what version they run. They won’t want to answer. Tell them it’s important!
- Review their status page!
- Had any outages lately?
These are the most crucial questions to ask when selecting a True Cloud system, and will help you make the choice that best fits your needs.
