Review: VoIP Solution Plays Star Role

Channel Test Center engineers test-drove Starface as a hosted PBX solution to get a feel for the system's features. Engineers were given both administrator and user accounts on the hosted system, giving them the opportunity to try out all the features that are available as an appliance and as a software solution through the managed services account.

Accessible through a Web-based front end and supported by most major Web browsers, Starface is a software-based VoIP solution at heart, regardless of how it is deployed. Starface supports other telephony systems, including ISDN, analog and GSM cellular signals.

Users access Starface through the very easy-to-use Web application. Engineers found menu options and overall site navigation easy to learn and understand. They were able to start using the system without an orientation or reading the user manual. The menu-based navigation also includes the options to configure the system via the browser. As far as the customer is concerned, this is a very scalable system. The Web-based interface makes the system platform-independent.

At login, the Starface interface is fairly simple and very bare. There are basic functions available from the main page. The first is Call Manager, from which users can tap the integrated Plugin Phone softphone to make calls. An external phone is not necessary. This kind of a setup would make the most sense in a help-desk, customer service or other call-center situations in which the employee is already at a computer. The Call Manager display lists incoming calls with the name and number. Based on that information, users can decide to answer calls, forward them immediately to voicemail or to another agent, or to reject a call altogether. Users can also switch back and forth between phone calls.

Call lists are essential to the system. All telephone calls are logged with call status--incoming, outgoing, missed or answered. Along with the phone number and name of the caller, the log lists date and time of the call, duration of the call, and whether or not there is a message. The list may be sorted by any data type. The list is interactive, so users can select the number from a redial list to initiate callback or recall, listen to voicemail or delete entries with a single mouse click. Users can also initiate a call via an address book.

Starface also has a pickup function to get calls, and the site has a display for user status. Other users on the system can see presence information of other people on the system--such as free, busy, logged in and logged out. Call waiting, busy-on-busy and other basic features are also available. The system can also be configured for an executive/secretary setup, or to connect to CRM systems to access necessary data. The system offers advanced features, such as moderated conference calls with an unlimited number of participants.

Next: The Bottom Line Mobile users can stay on the Starface system with the Follow-me function regardless of whether they are in the office or not, and conference calls are easy, as the system can support ad-hoc conferences with three or more participants. Invitations to the conference can be automatically e-mailed. If the conference information changes, participants are notified automatically. The conference has a visualization component for presentations or demos, and the Web front end offers that along with voice functionality. For participants not on the system, there is a call-in functionality they can take advantage of, and PIN codes control access to the conference.

Voicemail is a critical component in any telephony system. Starface offers a folder structure to manage received voicemails. The system allows users to set up an unlimited number of voicemail boxes, each with an individualized greeting. The messages can be sent via e-mail, which can be picked up by any telephone, or by the Starface system. The voicemail can also initiate call-forwarding in the event the user is at a different number. Both internal and external calls can be forwarded to other numbers on the system, directly to voicemail, or even to external mobile or PSTN numbers.

With Starface Hosted PBX, customers get a VoIP system for a low and clearly defined price each month, and solution providers have a steady and reliable source of monthly income. It is installed in the solution provider's data center and offered to the customer as a managed service. Partners must be certified by Vertico before they run the system as a service. Customers pay a monthly fee based on number of users. There are no hidden fees, such as number of locations or types of features added.

The software component, Starface PBX, offers everything Starface Hosted PBX does, just as an in-house solution and not as a service. The system requirements are modest. To run the software, the server must have an Intel-compatible processor with at least 1-Ghz clock rate, 512-Mbyte memory and at least 20-Gbyte hard drive space. The system recommends a RAID-1 array to have some kind of data redundancy to back up data and to provide some semblance of protection against disk failure. For such a mission-critical application, some form of disaster-recovery plan is essential. The server also requires a bootable CD ROM drive, a network card, and an ISDN card, if applicable, to connect to ISDN lines.

The Starface appliance is a complete system with the software integrated into the orange and black box. Installation is much easier, since the software is already installed--once the PBX box is in place, the system is ready to go. The appliance has an SD card reader for disaster recovery and can support unlimited SIP providers.

While Starface is especially designed for midsize businesses, there are three levels for the appliance. The Starface Small Business Appliance comes in a mini-desktop housing with a 1.2-Ghz processor, 512 Mbytes of memory and a 40-Gbyte hard disk capacity. The fanless system is quiet and has up to 8 SIDN channels. The small business appliance is recommended for up to 25 users.

The Starface Professional Appliance is a 2RU desktop unit that can also fit in a 19-inch server rack. With a 1.8-Ghz processor and 1 Gbyte of memory, the professional appliance is recommended for up to 100 users. The appliance has up to 8 ISDN channels, an additional PCI slot, and 2 80-Gbyte hard disk drives in a RAID-1 array to offer 80 Gbytes storage capacity.

The Starface Enterprise Appliance is recommended for up to 500 users. A 3RU desktop that fits in a standard server rack, it can support up to 120 ISDN channels and three additional PCI slots. The appliance is powered by two 500-watt power supplies. The box has 3-Ghz processors, 2 Gbytes of memory, and two 160-Gbyte hard disk drives configured in a RAID-1 array for 160 Gbytes of storage capacity.

The Starface solution is versatile and can fit in almost any kind of business environment and budget. A system with a clean and bare interface, it delivers a fully functional telephone system with plenty of advanced features, giving solution providers many revenue opportunities around customization.