Glossary
VoIP
Voice over Internet Protocol is the technology behind almost every modern business phone system. The call is turned into data, sent over your internet connection, and turned back into sound at the other end.
VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol, is a way of making phone calls over an internet connection rather than a dedicated copper or fibre phone line. The phone or app converts your voice into data packets, sends them across the network, and the far end converts them back to sound. Business VoIP services add a hosted phone system on top, so the same connection carries extensions, menus, voicemail and call routing.
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What it means
A traditional phone line is a circuit reserved for one conversation. VoIP replaces that circuit with data. Your voice is sampled, compressed, split into packets and sent across the same connection that carries email and web traffic. At the other end the packets are reassembled and played back. The person you are calling does not need VoIP; the provider hands the call to the ordinary telephone network when required.
Because the call is data, the phone is no longer tied to a wall socket. Any device with a network connection and the right software can be a phone: a desk handset, a computer, a cell phone app. That is the property that makes cloud phone systems, remote work and multi-location setups practical.
How it is used in a business phone system
- Every extension, desk phone and app in a cloud phone system is a VoIP endpoint registered to the provider.
- Inbound calls from the public network arrive at the provider, are routed by the hosted system, and are delivered as VoIP to whichever device should ring.
- Outbound calls leave the device as VoIP and are handed to the telephone network by the provider, showing the business number as caller ID.
- Call quality depends on the internet connection. A stable connection with enough upload capacity matters more than raw speed.
How 3CTel uses it
3CTel's business phone service is VoIP end to end. Desk phones, the desktop app and the mobile app all register to the hosted system over the internet, and the system routes calls between them and the public network. During setup a specialist checks the connection at each location and configures the devices, then the setup is tested on a temporary number before your existing number is ported across.
Emergency calling on VoIP works differently from a fixed line, so the registered service address for 9-1-1 is confirmed with you at setup for each location.
Business VoIP
SIP calling that replaces landlines — or feeds the PBX you already own.
Learn more: Business VoIP9-1-1 on VoIP
Why the registered address matters, how it is confirmed at setup, and how to keep it current.
Learn more: 9-1-1 on VoIPVoIP phone system
Business calling over your internet connection, with Canadian numbers and porting.
Learn more: VoIP phone systemCommon questions about VoIP
Does VoIP need a special internet connection?
No. VoIP runs over an ordinary business internet connection. What matters is stability and enough upload capacity for the number of simultaneous calls, since each call uses a small, steady stream in both directions. A wired connection for desk phones and a router that can prioritize voice traffic both help. A specialist reviews this before switching.
What happens to VoIP calls when the internet goes down?
Devices at that location cannot register, so they cannot place or receive calls until the connection returns. Inbound calls are not lost if the hosted system has a fallback rule, such as forwarding to a cell phone, ringing another location, or sending callers to voicemail. 3CTel configures that fallback with you during planning.
Related pages.
Business VoIP
SIP calling that replaces landlines — or feeds the PBX you already own.
Learn more: Business VoIPBusiness Phone
Reliable calling with routing your team will actually use.
Learn more: Business PhoneDevices
Phones and headsets that arrive ready to plug in.
Learn more: DevicesVoIP vs landline
What changes when business calls move to the internet, and when they should not.
Learn more: VoIP vs landlineFrequently asked questions.
Not exactly. VoIP is the transport for the call. A cloud phone system is the hosted service that uses VoIP to deliver extensions, menus, queues and voicemail. Most business VoIP services include a cloud phone system.
Yes. Canadian numbers can be ported from a landline or another provider to a VoIP service. The old line keeps working until the port completes, and the switch date is confirmed with you in advance.
Not sure which of these you need?
Describe how your calls arrive today and a 3CTel specialist will map them to the right pieces, build them on a temporary number and quote the result before anything is billed.