Discovered something unexpected and annoying.

I recently installed an office VoIP system using 3CX and a mix of X-Lite and 3CX client apps. To cut a long story short, I sorted the bandwidth issue but two desktops continued to have issues. This was perplexing and rather annoying as one was the IT Director’s.

Convinced there was still a bandwidth problem, I continued to monitor data flow and any mal formed data packets. This appeared to be normal. Eventually it turned out that the network wall socket was the problem. Even though the PC continued to work fairly well, until we connected the network cable to another port it was not apparent what the problem was.

Immediately the PC was quicker and the user’s voip problems vanished.

I am always amazed how Windows will cope with a dodgy network connection without showing any indications that there is any form of connectivity problems. Everything worked – web, email and other network clients appeared to be working fine. However VoIP is a lot more temperamental. Calls were being dropped after a few minutes which is no good for a business. PC hardware also causes problems. USB audio equipment and onboard sound have to be operating perfectly. If you have a PC that occasionally exhibits unexpected behaviour then dont use it with VoIP or at least expect to lose calls unexpectidly.

Windows will cover up the problem – you need to prove that the hardware is stable (VERY STABLE). The slightest blip and VoIP fails.