easy deployment of ip telephony with cisco...

The days when only large enterprises used voice over IP (VoIP) are over. Thanks to small business unified communications platforms and new cloud hosting models, any business can theoretically enjoy the cost savings and productivity-enhancing features of IP telephony.

But for many small and medium businesses (SMBs), VoIP services are still out of reach. Too often, deploying voice technologies on the network is a complicated, time-consuming task, requiring advanced networking expertise that most SMBs don’t have in-house. Even IT partners that focus on SMB customers often hesitate to recommend VoIP because of the complexity involved.

Now, however, you can get all the benefits of IP telephony without the complexity. With new patent-pending technology integrated into Cisco® Small Business switches, SMB companies and their IT partners can add voice services to the network in minutes, with virtually no configuration required.

Cisco SMB Switches

For Small Business

Gain All the Benefits of IP Telephony with None of the Hassle

Cisco Small Business SwitchesBuilt for Small Business to Provide Maximum Cost Savings and Productivity

The Myth of Auto-Voice VLAN

Many small business switches in the marketplace claim to simplify voice deployments with a feature called auto-voice virtual LAN (VLAN). In theory, users can just plug an IP phone into the switch and be up and running. In prac-tice, however, SMBs and the technology partners who serve them know that this is not the full story. Auto-voice VLAN solves only one small part of the prob-lem—setting up voice services between the phone and the switch it’s connected to. For the rest of the network, you’re still on your own (Figure 1).

Cisco SMB Switches

Is your network set up to use a separate network segment (VLAN) for voice traffic, and are the switch ports connecting your phones configured to use it? If not, you’ll have to configure all that. Is the network using the right quality-of-service (QoS) settings to prioritize voice traffic over other, less delay-sensitive applications? If not, you’ll be manually configuring those settings in your network as well. What happens if you need to make a change in your telephony system, such as changing VLANs or QoS settings, or simply plugging a phone into a different port on the switch? You’re on your own. What happens if there are multiple switches in your network and they all need to deliver voice services to connected phones? You have to set up the switches and their interconnected links to correctly handle the voice traffic. What if there is a discrepancy in the settings between two different devices on the network? Expect a long afternoon trying to isolate the problem and then making manual changes on each device in the network to fix it.

Cisco Small Business Switches: True “Zero-Touch” VoiceFortunately, you don’t have to rely on a partial solution (along with a lot of manual effort) to roll out IP telephony. You can use a fully automated voice solution that dynamically configures your entire network. That solution is already integrated into the Cisco Small Business 200 Series, 300 Series, and 500 Series switches.

These switches also provide auto-voice VLAN capabilities, but they go much further, automating voice deployments across your entire environment. Using patent-pending Cisco Voice Service Discovery Protocol (VSDP) technology,

Cisco Small Business switches really do go from out-of-the-box to fully functional IP voice in minutes, with no manual configuration.

Additional Manual Con�g:• When Voice VLAN changes• When QoS rules in

network changes• If Voice VLAN on switch 2

not set same as switch 1• If QoS on switch 2 not set

same as switch 1

Switch 1

Auto

ManualConfig

AutomaticSetup

Legend

Auto Voice VLAN—Using LLDP-MED

Create Voice VLAN

Setup QoS parameters

Config LLDP-MED Network Policy

Add Voice VLAN to port

Create Voice VLAN




Instructphone whichVoice VLAN

and QoSto use—

LLDP-MED

Recognize phone—

LLDP-MED

Auto


to use—LLDP-MED

Recognizephone—

LLDP-MED

Switch 2

Call Control UC or HSB

Additional Manual Con�g:• When Voice VLAN changes• When QoS rules in

network changes• If Voice VLAN on switch 2

not set same as switch 1• If QoS on switch 2 not set

same as switch 1

Switch 1

Auto

ManualConfig

AutomaticSetup

Legend

Auto Voice VLAN—Using LLDP-MED

Create Voice VLAN




Create Voice VLAN





and QoSto use—

LLDP-MED

Recognize phone—

LLDP-MED

Auto


to use—LLDP-MED

Recognizephone—

LLDP-MED

Switch 2


Figure 1. A Partial Solution

Cisco SMB Switches

Here’s how it works (Figure 2):

• Step 1. Plug an IP phone into your Cisco Small Business switch. (You can use a Cisco phone, a third-party phone, a Cisco or third-party call processing platform, a hosted voice service in the cloud—it doesn’t matter.)

• Step 2. Your Cisco Small Business switch detects the device, recognizes it as a phone, and automatically creates a voice VLAN on the switch. The switch also automatically configures the port that the phone is connecting to with the right QoS for voice services.

• Step 3. Using patent-pending Cisco VSDP technology, the Cisco Small Business switch then propagates these settings throughout the rest of the network—updating every switch and telephony port in your network with the new voice VLAN and the right QoS settings.

• Step 4. Continue connecting phones to any Cisco switch in the network. They will all be configured correctly and identically, from the moment you plug them in.

This same patent-pending Cisco VSDP technology also makes it easy to make changes in your voice network. Need to adjust VLAN or QoS settings? Configure a change once, and the network automatically updates every device in the environment. Adding a new switch with different default settings? The network takes care of it—automatically standardizing the configuration of all connected

devices to help keep your voice network up and running smoothly.

All these automated voice capabilities—capabilities no other small business switch on the market

can provide—are part of the factory-default feature set of the Cisco Small Business 200 Series, 300 Series, and 500 Series switches, and operate right out of the box.

Switch 1Gi4

Fa1

Fa1

Gi5

Gi1


ManualConfig

AutomaticSetup

Legend

Auto Voice deployment across networkSupported only with Cisco 500, 300, and 200 series switches

Switch Con�gures port Fa1 with optimal parameters for IP Phone

CDP Advertises Voice VLAN 100

VLAN 100 created on switch—assigned to port Gi4 and Gi5

Advertises Voice VLAN 100 and QoS parameters via VSDP to switch 2

VLAN 100 created on switch—assigned to port Gi1 and Fa1

Instruct phonewhich Voice VLANand QoS to use—

LLDP-MED or CDP

Switch Con�guresport Fa1 with optimal

parameters forIP Phone

Recognize phone— CDP/LLDP-MED

Instruct phonewhich Voice VLANand QoS to use—

LLDP-MED or CDP

Recognize phone— CDP/LLDP-MED

Switch 2

No Manual Con�g:Network adapts automatically to: • Voice VLAN changes• QoS rule changes in network• If Voice VLAN on switch 2 not set same as

switch 1• If QoS on switch 2 not set same as switch 1Even when di�erent call control devices advertising di�erent Voice VLANs connected to the network

Figure 2. True Zero-Touch Deployment

© 2012 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Cisco, the Cisco logo, and Cisco Systems are registered trademarks or trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and certain other countries. All other trademarks mentioned in this document or website are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company. (1110R) C02-701025-00 03/12

Cisco SMB Switches

Why Cisco?

SMBs can benefit from VoIP services just as much as large enterprises do—if not more. But the complexity of deploying and managing voice services has often been more than SMB companies and their IT partners wanted to take on. Now Cisco makes it easy for SMBs and their IT partners to take advantage of IP telephony.

By bringing unmatched automation and simplicity to IP voice deployments, Cisco can help you:

• Bring the full cost and productivity advantages of IP telephony to your business

• Deploy voice services on your network quickly and easily, with zero-touch configuration

• Simplify the ongoing management of your network

• Reduce the risk of network downtime due to a misconfigured device

• Easily expand your network and unified communications environment

For more information on Cisco Small Business switches, visit: www.cisco.com/go/smallbizswitches

http://www.cisco.com/go/smallbizswitches

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