The Cisco VG420 High-Density Analog Voice Gateway enables an IP telephony solution to continue using traditional analog devices while taking advantage of the productivity afforded by IP infrastructure.

The Cisco^®Unified Communications portfolio of voice and IP communications products and applications enables organizations to communicate more effectively, helping them to streamline business processes, reach the right resource the first time, and improve revenue sales and profitability. The Cisco Unified Communications portfolio is a critical part of the Cisco Business Communications Solution, an integrated solution for organizations of all sizes that also includes network infrastructure; security and network management products; wireless connectivity; and a lifecycle services approach, along with flexible deployment and outsourced management options, end-user and partner financing packages, and third-party communications applications.

The Cisco VG420 High-Density Analog Gateway (Figure 1) is a Cisco IOS-XE Software-based analog phone gateway. It connects analog phones, fax machines, modems, and speakerphones to an enterprise voice system based on Cisco Unified Communications Manager (UCM). The tight integration with the IP-based phone system is advantageous for increased manageability, scalability, and cost-effectiveness. Businesses can also use the Cisco VG420 with Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express to effectively augment an Integrated Services Router (ISR) environment. Either topology environment will support business needs for high concentration of analog voice ports for modem calls, fax calls, and analog supplementary services (Figures 2 and 3).

The Cisco VG420 offers Cisco IOS-XE Software manageability on analog phone lines to enable them to be used as extensions to the Cisco Unified Communications Manager or Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express system. The Cisco VG420 is offered in a 2-Rack Unit (2RU), 19-inch rack-mount chassis form.

Features and benefits

• Cisco IOS-XE Software-based hardware: The hardware includes uniform Cisco Command-Line Interface (CLI) and Simple Network Management Protocol Version 3 (SNMPv3) support for ease of gateway configuration and operation.
• Robust voice quality: Cisco experience in providing toll-quality packet-voice service helps ensure that the Cisco VG420 provides the clear, robust voice quality end users have come to expect from telephony services.
• Investment protection: Customers can continue to use existing analog phones, fax machines, and modems while taking advantage of IP telephony. Basic analog phone connectivity is needed when the infrastructure (wiring) or application does not support or require IP phones. The Cisco VG420 is the ideal platform to support centralized and highly concentrated analog phone line deployments, allowing organizations to deploy IP telephony without having to purchase IP phones for all users and to continue using existing devices. The Cisco VG420 can also be used in a Cisco Unified Communications Manager Express environment and migrated to Cisco Unified Communications Manager deployment with 100-percent investment protection.