What is the PBX?
A PBX (standing for Private Branch Exchange) is a telephony system responsible for connecting calls among a group of telephones and also for providing connectivity between this group of telephones and the public switched telephone network (PSTN). In the case of the call center, the group of interconnected telephones includes agents and supervisors, as well as other company employees. The end points within the enterprise that are connected to the PBX are usually called extensions.
The PBX was initially introduced to reduce the amount of circuits required to connect everyone in a company to the public network. It also eliminates costs of internal calls, since these are handled without involving the telephony providers. Another benefit of using PBXs is that it provides extra functionalities in addition to those provided by the PSTN.
The PBX entity is usually a computer running software that manages internal calls and calls to the PSTN. A number of telephone lines that connect the company with the PSTN terminate at the PBX. Within the PBX there is a network of actual lines and also a console is usually provided for managing the PBX.
PBX functionalities.
The main functionalities of the PBX are call establishment between telephone sets of two users, maintenance of the connection while communication lasts, and disconnection when the users wish to terminate the call. In addition to these key functionalities, there is a large amount of additional enhancements that depend on the manufacturer. Some well-known examples of such additional capabilities are automatic call distribution (ACD) based on a set of predefined rules, call transfer to other extensions, call waiting, conference call (a call that involves 3 or more parties simultaneously), voice mail and so on.
Types of PBX: circuit and packet switched.
Traditional PBXs are circuit-switched. When a call is established in a circuit switched network, a dedicated communications channel is created for the duration of the call. Each circuit cannot be used for other calls until the previous call is terminated and the circuit is released. A new connection can be then set up.
A newer generation of PBXs came along with the Internet. These are the IP PBXs, which use packet-switching. In packet switched networks, voice is converted to data and then transmitted over data networks, using the IP protocol. The IP PBX is responsible for performing this conversion from voice to data and vice-versa, as well as connecting to the PSTN. The conversions are made using a group of standards known as VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol). The IP PBXs led to the development of CTI (Computer Telephony Integration) Technologies.
A PBX (standing for Private Branch Exchange) is a telephony system responsible for connecting calls among a group of telephones and also for providing connectivity between this group of telephones and the public switched telephone network (PSTN). In the case of the call center, the group of interconnected telephones includes agents and supervisors, as well as other company employees. The end points within the enterprise that are connected to the PBX are usually called extensions.
The PBX was initially introduced to reduce the amount of circuits required to connect everyone in a company to the public network. It also eliminates costs of internal calls, since these are handled without involving the telephony providers. Another benefit of using PBXs is that it provides extra functionalities in addition to those provided by the PSTN.
The PBX entity is usually a computer running software that manages internal calls and calls to the PSTN. A number of telephone lines that connect the company with the PSTN terminate at the PBX. Within the PBX there is a network of actual lines and also a console is usually provided for managing the PBX.
PBX functionalities.
The main functionalities of the PBX are call establishment between telephone sets of two users, maintenance of the connection while communication lasts, and disconnection when the users wish to terminate the call. In addition to these key functionalities, there is a large amount of additional enhancements that depend on the manufacturer. Some well-known examples of such additional capabilities are automatic call distribution (ACD) based on a set of predefined rules, call transfer to other extensions, call waiting, conference call (a call that involves 3 or more parties simultaneously), voice mail and so on.
Types of PBX: circuit and packet switched.
Traditional PBXs are circuit-switched. When a call is established in a circuit switched network, a dedicated communications channel is created for the duration of the call. Each circuit cannot be used for other calls until the previous call is terminated and the circuit is released. A new connection can be then set up.
A newer generation of PBXs came along with the Internet. These are the IP PBXs, which use packet-switching. In packet switched networks, voice is converted to data and then transmitted over data networks, using the IP protocol. The IP PBX is responsible for performing this conversion from voice to data and vice-versa, as well as connecting to the PSTN. The conversions are made using a group of standards known as VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol). The IP PBXs led to the development of CTI (Computer Telephony Integration) Technologies.
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