Introducing VoIP
VoIP is short for Voice over Internet Protocol and, at the most basic level, is an updated method for delivering real-time voice communications over the local network. VoIP has been widely available for more than 10 years, but its development and roots can be traced to the mid to late 90’s. Many large telecom companies already use VoIP technologies to route phone calls to one another without the end users even being aware.
Benefits of VoIP
These days VoIP is more than just a way to enable real-time voice communication over the local network or Internet, it is one of the core technologies of unified communications. Unified communication, or UC as it’s commonly referred to, is an umbrella term encompassing Voice, Video, Instant Messaging (IM), Presence, and many other related and ancillary technologies.
Why VoIP is a solution for UTSC
At its base VoIP will be the technology we use to deliver voice communication with the new system being deployed at UTSC, but it is also the foundation for the deployment of unified communications. Having the ability to facilitate communications and collaboration on a modern platform is why we are making this change, and why VoIP is right for UTSC now.
Project Scope
In Scope
- Instructional Centre
- Humanities Wing
- Arts & Administration
- Bladen Wing
- Management Wing
- Science Research Building
- Academic Resource Centre
- Science Wing
- Student Housing & Residence Life
- Student Centre
- Miller Lash House
Notes:
- In meeting rooms with conference phones, IITS will leave the conference phone but will install a Softphone on the in-room computer. If Softphone proves to be sufficient, the conference phone will be disconnected
- In meeting rooms that have a regular Centrex phone, the phone will be replaced with a VoIP phone
Out of Scope
- H-Wing Café Vendors
- Tim Horton’s
- Starbucks
- Student Centre Food Court Vendors
- La Prep
- UofT Bookstore and Campus Express
- Students in residences
- N'Sheemaehn Child Care Centre
- Fax lines across campus
- Emergency lines across campus (Elevators, code blue phones, freezers, modems, research equipment)
- Wall mounting of VoIP phones that require new cabling
- Portables
- TPASC
Below are some of the reasons for areas being considered out of scope:
- External organizations that are not paid for by the university
- Wireless directional antenna used for network conectivity
- Technology soon to be decomisioned
- Maintaining seperate infrastructure for emergency lines
- Third party management of the facility
- Student run facility that must make their own decision to proceed with VoIP
- Requires additional funding for cabling
- Current space is a temporary solution