Replacing Mission-Critical POTS Systems

HIGHLIGHTS

✔ Security Etc. is a full-service security company focused on the design, installation, service, and maintenance of burglary and fire detection, CCTV, access control, and door entry solutions.

✔ With POTS being phased globally, Security Etc. developed a drop-in POTS replacement system that utilizes ATA and our RUT241 router to connect it to a cloud VOIP server.

✔ Adding RMS Connect to the solution, it established remote access to any device connected to the router – enhancing the solution with faster and more efficient maintenance capabilities and, ultimately, greater value to their end clients.

THE CHALLENGE – PLAIN OLD PROGRESS

IIoT is a hungry beast that’s always marching forward, and constant progress necessitates leaving older technologies behind. A real-time example of this is POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service). Once a standard of telecommunication, this technology is currently being phased out globally.

If you don’t own a landline, the implications of the “death” of POTS may not seem obvious, but rest assured that they’re quite substantial. POTS is the foundation upon which the vast majority of essential building services, such as door access control systems or fire alarm monitoring systems, are based on. In other words, their legacy infrastructure needs to be replaced on a global scale.

One possible solution to this problem is utilizing an ATA (Analog Telephone Adapter) – a device connecting analog communication technologies, such as landlines and fax machines, to more digital ones like VOIP. Doing so is best for mission-critical telephone line systems that cannot have their entire infrastructure rebuilt from scratch. And as you can imagine, that means most systems out there.

What’s the catch, then? POTS systems didn’t need a networking device, but for this adaptation – they do. Thanks to this, a new world of remote management is now possible. When developing their drop-in POTS replacement system, Security Etc. saw this potential and chose to capitalize on it for the benefit of their clients.

TOPOLOGY

THE SOLUTION – ADAPTING TO THE FUTURE

Security Etc. chose our RUT241 industrial router for connecting the newly-installed ATA box to the cloud VOIP service. This connection is wireless, but with the optionality of a hardwired Ethernet connection for when the load balancing necessitates it. The choice of router is simple: RUT241 provides both the seamless 4G connectivity and wired/wireless modality this solution needs – without the costs of extra features that won’t be used. Pragmatism at its finest.

The device itself is only one aspect of this solution. The main attraction is our Remote Management System (RMS), which provides three critical features. The first is the ability to monitor the “health” of the new system by receiving instant notifications of any service interruptions. This allows for system maintenance proactivity, which is exactly what the end client wants. The second is simple and elegant monitoring of the system’s performance; using RMS’s dashboard, any anomalies in the system can be easily spotted and promptly addressed.

But the true magic of this solution lies in the third feature: RMS Connect. This feature provides remote access to any device connected to the router without needing to set up any relay or proxy servers. This makes maintenance capabilities faster and more efficient, saves costs, and gives the solution an edge over its competition.

All in all, this use case showcases that it’s not only good hardware that ultimately provides the best service to the end client. A key element in adapting legacy infrastructure to the standards of the future – or even establishing new infrastructure, for that matter – is efficient service provision. When your solution is enhanced with remote capabilities, its value to the end client is far greater.