Overview of the new IP PBX Yeastar S20
In June 2016, Yeastar, a well-known manufacturer of VoIP equipment for business, presented a new line of hybrid telephone exchanges. The new model range, called "S-series", consists of four devices - S20, S50, S100 and S300. This is not the first experience of the company in the production of PBX using the SIP protocol: since 2012, Yeastar MyPBX- and U-series telephone stations have been produced and are very popular in Russia and the world. It is them that are designed to replace new models with which we have to get to know better. Let's start our acquaintance with the youngest model of the new S-series - IP-PBX Yeastar S20 .
If we draw an analogy with the previous model range, then the obvious predecessor of the S20 is the IP PBX Yeastar MyPBX SOHO. This telephone station, designed for the smallest companies, was the most popular among all Yeastar telephone exchanges. The new model Yeastar S20 inherited all the useful features and capabilities from its predecessor, and also acquired a number of new ones. We will tell about them first of all, not forgetting to mention the key features characteristic of both PBXs.
The transition to the new model range directly or indirectly prompted a change in the supplier of the central processor - instead of the previously used Texas Instruments AM3352 ARM A8 600 MHz, Freescale ARM Cortex-A9 1GHz is now used. The amount of RAM has been increased from 256 to 512 MB, and now it is DDR3, not DDR2. Also increased the amount of flash-memory from 512 MB to 4 GB. Externally, the telephone exchange has not changed at all - the S20 and SOHO models are made in almost identical cases.
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The transition to the new hardware did not affect the station's declared performance - just like the MyPBX SOHO, the S20 model supports up to 20 internal SIP subscribers and up to 10 simultaneous conversations. This is quite expected, since these restrictions are artificial in nature and are designed to more clearly position each model in its own segment. In any case, the transition to a new, more productive iron is a plus.
The vast majority of all IP PBXs ever produced by Yeastar had a modular architecture. There was no exception MyPBX SOHO, nor was the exception and S20. Those buyers who plan to use PBXs only in VoIP mode do not need to buy anything - the station by default supports connecting IP phones and creating trunks to work with VoIP telecom operators. In addition to the SIP protocol, the S20 also supports IAX.
But for the implementation of the hybrid component will already require the appropriate modules, which are sold separately. Both SOHO and S20 allow you to install up to two additional modules. These can be modules with support for two FXO ports (for connecting city lines), modules with support for two FXS ports (for connecting analog phones and faxes), combined modules (1xFXO + 1xFXS), or modules for two BRI lines.
An important difference between the new S20 and the old SOHO is that one of the two expansion slots can also be occupied by a GSM module. On the one hand, this is a very positive improvement, since, in our experience, GSM-channel support is a very popular feature in a small business environment. On the other hand, only one GSM channel is supported, which may be insufficient for many companies. However, it is worth noting that Yeastar heard their customers and partners, and implemented such a demanded function.
Not only the hardware, but also the software component of the IP-PBX has changed. The main functional change is that the S20 is now running Asterisk version 13. However, we will talk about new features a little later. Now we’ll focus on the main visual change - a significantly reworked web interface. Now it is designed as a desktop, which has recently become very popular.
You can work with several sections of settings at once, since each of them opens in a separate folder. From the control panel, you can bring to your desktop shortcuts to the most frequently used sections. Everything has become not only convenient, but also beautiful - it is clear that they have done a good job above the icons, the windows and their location. This is especially noticeable in comparison with the MyPBX SOHO interface, which already looks a bit outdated.
If the support of GSM lines was the second most popular wish of users to the previous PBX Yeastar MyPBX SOHO, then the first place is surely taken by the function of recording conversations. No, SOHO has a recording of conversations, but only in the “on demand” mode. This means that in order to start recording a conversation, the internal subscriber had to dial on his phone a certain code, after which a specific conversation would begin to be recorded from the moment it was pressed. There was neither a record of all calls of certain subscribers, nor a record of all incoming and / or outgoing calls in SOHO. Not contributed to this and the amount of internal memory - 512 megabytes can not be written down a lot.
In the new Yeastar S20, as already mentioned, the amount of flash-memory was increased to 4 GB, there was a slot for microSD cards, and there was also the possibility to create external storage on network drives. All this allowed, finally, to realize a full recording of conversations, for which the Yeastar engineers should say a big thank you. You can turn on the recording of conversations with reference to both a specific subscriber (record all conversations of an employee), and with reference to a specific trunk (record all incoming and outgoing calls). At the same time, the on-demand recording function has not gone away.
Another excellent, but not as obvious as call recording, the function is the smart routing of incoming AutoCLIP calls. I think everyone has come across such a situation when you see a missed call from a landline number on your phone, but when you try to call back on it, you get to the automatic voice menu or secretary. So, AutoCLIP helps to avoid such unpleasant situations with the help of a simple algorithm. For any outgoing call, the system remembers a pair of internal number - external number for a certain period of time set by the administrator (from 8 hours to 4 weeks). If, during this time interval, a call is received from the stored external number to the PBX, it will send it directly to an internal subscriber, bypassing the standard call routing.
Perhaps this feature will still require fine tuning in future firmware - for example, reducing the minimum time interval from eight hours to one hour or tracking only unanswered calls. But in any case, this feature looks very convenient and useful.
Traditionally, it was possible to register only one subscriber device for one SIP account - be it an IP phone, a SIP adapter or a softphone application. Attempts to register the second device under the same account led to the fact that the two devices worked in turn - depending on who last updated its registration. With the advent of the SIP Forking feature, it has become possible to use multiple phones under one account. For example, any employee can install an SIP client application on a smartphone and register it with the same internal number as the work phone. An incoming call will be received simultaneously on both phones and the employee will be able to answer the call, even if he is not at work. This is much more convenient than setting up call forwarding rules or creating call groups.
For those who do not have smartphones, Yeastar offers an alternative version of the implementation of this function: for each user, in addition to the internal number, you can specify his mobile number. Now, if the corresponding option is enabled, all incoming calls will be simultaneously received on both the internal and mobile numbers.
Another innovation of the S-series in general and the S20 model in particular is that the station software now has a modular structure. That is, there is a basic firmware (the same for all S-series models), on which additional modules are installed from the App Center application center - similar to Google Play or the AppStore. Currently, three modules are available for the S20 model and all of them are installed by default - this is the PBXCenter telephony module directly, the synchronization module with the LDAP directory, and the auto-configuration module. In the future, the developers promise to add new modules that will significantly expand the functionality of telephone exchanges.
In addition to adding new modules, developers should not forget about the improvement of existing ones. For example, the subscriber points auto-configuration module currently supports work only with Yeastar VoIP-gateways and Yealink IP-phones. At the same time, the previous Yeastar PBXs of the MyPBX- and U- series supported a much larger number of devices from different manufacturers - Yealink, Snom, Polycom, Cisco, Aastra, Grandstream, Fanvil, Panasonic. Most likely, support for these and other devices will be gradually added to the auto-tuning module for the S-series.
Two graphic panels appeared in the IP PBX Yeastar S20 - resource monitoring and telephony management. The purpose of the first one is to display information about processor usage, RAM and internal memory, and network load. Taking into account the fact that Yeastar applies artificial restrictions on the number of subscribers and simultaneous calls, administrators will rarely use this panel, since everything must work well within the limits of these restrictions.
But some companies use the control panel of telephony quite actively. While this panel performs only basic functions, it displays the status of internal subscribers and trunks, as well as a graph of the number of simultaneous conversations in real time. In the future, I would like to get a little more functionality from this application. First of all, this is information about current calls with the possibility of forcing them to be completed, initiating calls directly from the control panel, managing conference rooms (displaying a list of participants, inviting and deleting participants from a conference, managing participants' microphones).
Securing an IP PBX is an extremely important issue, the cost of a mistake here can easily be measured in hundreds of thousands of rubles. At the same time, the main work in this direction should be carried out with the help of network tools, by preventing intruders from accessing the telephone exchange. However, the availability of additional protection at the PBX itself can make life difficult for attackers. And in some cases it is this, the last, line of defense that can be a decisive factor in avoiding hacking the system. What can the S20 offer us in this direction?
Firstly, these are stringent requirements for the complexity of passwords for accounts: you cannot create a SIP account with password 123456. Secondly, it is the ability to limit the subnet from which registration of subscribers is allowed. If only local users are connected to the PBX, it makes sense to limit the ability to register to the local subnet. Thirdly, this is some kind of built-in firewall that allows you to create rules based on both the IP address and the source MAC address. Finally, there is a brute force protection.
If we are not talking about protection against external threats, but about the division of rights of internal users, then it is worth noting that in the Yeastar S20 it is implemented quite flexibly. Each user has his own personal account, accessible via a web interface. By default, it is available to listen to voice mail messages, recorded on demand calls, control call forwarding, create black and white lists, etc. However, at the discretion of the administrator, each user can be assigned additional rights to manage other accounts and the PBX as a whole, from more than 30 categories.
The set of standard functions in the Yeastar S20 has not changed compared with the previous model Yeastar SOHO. This, of course, includes support for interactive voice menus, and call routing depending on the source, destination, and call time. These are call groups, queues, conference rooms, paging and intercom, black and white lists. Call forwarding, voice mail, call pickup and parking, speed dialing are also available to users. About the recording of conversations (constant and on demand) has already been said, and the function of listening to the conversation in real time is available for training employees. In general, the set of standard features in the Yeastar S20 differs little from most other IP PBX systems and is more than enough to solve most office tasks.
The new IP PBX Yeastar S20 is an evolution of the SOHO model: the developers added two very popular features (GSM support and call recording), significantly reworked both the hardware and software, added some interesting "chips". In addition, the new modular software architecture and more productive hardware allow you to further improve the telephone exchange, gradually adding new functionality to it. And the best part - all these improvements did not affect the final price of the device. Yeastar S20 costs exactly the same as SOHO - $ 276, which means that for the same money, users now get more functionality.
If we draw an analogy with the previous model range, then the obvious predecessor of the S20 is the IP PBX Yeastar MyPBX SOHO. This telephone station, designed for the smallest companies, was the most popular among all Yeastar telephone exchanges. The new model Yeastar S20 inherited all the useful features and capabilities from its predecessor, and also acquired a number of new ones. We will tell about them first of all, not forgetting to mention the key features characteristic of both PBXs.
New iron and performance
The transition to the new model range directly or indirectly prompted a change in the supplier of the central processor - instead of the previously used Texas Instruments AM3352 ARM A8 600 MHz, Freescale ARM Cortex-A9 1GHz is now used. The amount of RAM has been increased from 256 to 512 MB, and now it is DDR3, not DDR2. Also increased the amount of flash-memory from 512 MB to 4 GB. Externally, the telephone exchange has not changed at all - the S20 and SOHO models are made in almost identical cases.
')
The transition to the new hardware did not affect the station's declared performance - just like the MyPBX SOHO, the S20 model supports up to 20 internal SIP subscribers and up to 10 simultaneous conversations. This is quite expected, since these restrictions are artificial in nature and are designed to more clearly position each model in its own segment. In any case, the transition to a new, more productive iron is a plus.
GSM support
The vast majority of all IP PBXs ever produced by Yeastar had a modular architecture. There was no exception MyPBX SOHO, nor was the exception and S20. Those buyers who plan to use PBXs only in VoIP mode do not need to buy anything - the station by default supports connecting IP phones and creating trunks to work with VoIP telecom operators. In addition to the SIP protocol, the S20 also supports IAX.
But for the implementation of the hybrid component will already require the appropriate modules, which are sold separately. Both SOHO and S20 allow you to install up to two additional modules. These can be modules with support for two FXO ports (for connecting city lines), modules with support for two FXS ports (for connecting analog phones and faxes), combined modules (1xFXO + 1xFXS), or modules for two BRI lines.
An important difference between the new S20 and the old SOHO is that one of the two expansion slots can also be occupied by a GSM module. On the one hand, this is a very positive improvement, since, in our experience, GSM-channel support is a very popular feature in a small business environment. On the other hand, only one GSM channel is supported, which may be insufficient for many companies. However, it is worth noting that Yeastar heard their customers and partners, and implemented such a demanded function.
Interface
Not only the hardware, but also the software component of the IP-PBX has changed. The main functional change is that the S20 is now running Asterisk version 13. However, we will talk about new features a little later. Now we’ll focus on the main visual change - a significantly reworked web interface. Now it is designed as a desktop, which has recently become very popular.
You can work with several sections of settings at once, since each of them opens in a separate folder. From the control panel, you can bring to your desktop shortcuts to the most frequently used sections. Everything has become not only convenient, but also beautiful - it is clear that they have done a good job above the icons, the windows and their location. This is especially noticeable in comparison with the MyPBX SOHO interface, which already looks a bit outdated.
Call recording
If the support of GSM lines was the second most popular wish of users to the previous PBX Yeastar MyPBX SOHO, then the first place is surely taken by the function of recording conversations. No, SOHO has a recording of conversations, but only in the “on demand” mode. This means that in order to start recording a conversation, the internal subscriber had to dial on his phone a certain code, after which a specific conversation would begin to be recorded from the moment it was pressed. There was neither a record of all calls of certain subscribers, nor a record of all incoming and / or outgoing calls in SOHO. Not contributed to this and the amount of internal memory - 512 megabytes can not be written down a lot.
In the new Yeastar S20, as already mentioned, the amount of flash-memory was increased to 4 GB, there was a slot for microSD cards, and there was also the possibility to create external storage on network drives. All this allowed, finally, to realize a full recording of conversations, for which the Yeastar engineers should say a big thank you. You can turn on the recording of conversations with reference to both a specific subscriber (record all conversations of an employee), and with reference to a specific trunk (record all incoming and outgoing calls). At the same time, the on-demand recording function has not gone away.
Smart routing AutoCLIP
Another excellent, but not as obvious as call recording, the function is the smart routing of incoming AutoCLIP calls. I think everyone has come across such a situation when you see a missed call from a landline number on your phone, but when you try to call back on it, you get to the automatic voice menu or secretary. So, AutoCLIP helps to avoid such unpleasant situations with the help of a simple algorithm. For any outgoing call, the system remembers a pair of internal number - external number for a certain period of time set by the administrator (from 8 hours to 4 weeks). If, during this time interval, a call is received from the stored external number to the PBX, it will send it directly to an internal subscriber, bypassing the standard call routing.
Perhaps this feature will still require fine tuning in future firmware - for example, reducing the minimum time interval from eight hours to one hour or tracking only unanswered calls. But in any case, this feature looks very convenient and useful.
Call Forking (SIP Forking)
Traditionally, it was possible to register only one subscriber device for one SIP account - be it an IP phone, a SIP adapter or a softphone application. Attempts to register the second device under the same account led to the fact that the two devices worked in turn - depending on who last updated its registration. With the advent of the SIP Forking feature, it has become possible to use multiple phones under one account. For example, any employee can install an SIP client application on a smartphone and register it with the same internal number as the work phone. An incoming call will be received simultaneously on both phones and the employee will be able to answer the call, even if he is not at work. This is much more convenient than setting up call forwarding rules or creating call groups.
For those who do not have smartphones, Yeastar offers an alternative version of the implementation of this function: for each user, in addition to the internal number, you can specify his mobile number. Now, if the corresponding option is enabled, all incoming calls will be simultaneously received on both the internal and mobile numbers.
Modular software structure
Another innovation of the S-series in general and the S20 model in particular is that the station software now has a modular structure. That is, there is a basic firmware (the same for all S-series models), on which additional modules are installed from the App Center application center - similar to Google Play or the AppStore. Currently, three modules are available for the S20 model and all of them are installed by default - this is the PBXCenter telephony module directly, the synchronization module with the LDAP directory, and the auto-configuration module. In the future, the developers promise to add new modules that will significantly expand the functionality of telephone exchanges.
In addition to adding new modules, developers should not forget about the improvement of existing ones. For example, the subscriber points auto-configuration module currently supports work only with Yeastar VoIP-gateways and Yealink IP-phones. At the same time, the previous Yeastar PBXs of the MyPBX- and U- series supported a much larger number of devices from different manufacturers - Yealink, Snom, Polycom, Cisco, Aastra, Grandstream, Fanvil, Panasonic. Most likely, support for these and other devices will be gradually added to the auto-tuning module for the S-series.
Resource and Telephony Dashboards
Two graphic panels appeared in the IP PBX Yeastar S20 - resource monitoring and telephony management. The purpose of the first one is to display information about processor usage, RAM and internal memory, and network load. Taking into account the fact that Yeastar applies artificial restrictions on the number of subscribers and simultaneous calls, administrators will rarely use this panel, since everything must work well within the limits of these restrictions.
But some companies use the control panel of telephony quite actively. While this panel performs only basic functions, it displays the status of internal subscribers and trunks, as well as a graph of the number of simultaneous conversations in real time. In the future, I would like to get a little more functionality from this application. First of all, this is information about current calls with the possibility of forcing them to be completed, initiating calls directly from the control panel, managing conference rooms (displaying a list of participants, inviting and deleting participants from a conference, managing participants' microphones).
Security
Securing an IP PBX is an extremely important issue, the cost of a mistake here can easily be measured in hundreds of thousands of rubles. At the same time, the main work in this direction should be carried out with the help of network tools, by preventing intruders from accessing the telephone exchange. However, the availability of additional protection at the PBX itself can make life difficult for attackers. And in some cases it is this, the last, line of defense that can be a decisive factor in avoiding hacking the system. What can the S20 offer us in this direction?
Firstly, these are stringent requirements for the complexity of passwords for accounts: you cannot create a SIP account with password 123456. Secondly, it is the ability to limit the subnet from which registration of subscribers is allowed. If only local users are connected to the PBX, it makes sense to limit the ability to register to the local subnet. Thirdly, this is some kind of built-in firewall that allows you to create rules based on both the IP address and the source MAC address. Finally, there is a brute force protection.
If we are not talking about protection against external threats, but about the division of rights of internal users, then it is worth noting that in the Yeastar S20 it is implemented quite flexibly. Each user has his own personal account, accessible via a web interface. By default, it is available to listen to voice mail messages, recorded on demand calls, control call forwarding, create black and white lists, etc. However, at the discretion of the administrator, each user can be assigned additional rights to manage other accounts and the PBX as a whole, from more than 30 categories.
Standard PBX functions
The set of standard functions in the Yeastar S20 has not changed compared with the previous model Yeastar SOHO. This, of course, includes support for interactive voice menus, and call routing depending on the source, destination, and call time. These are call groups, queues, conference rooms, paging and intercom, black and white lists. Call forwarding, voice mail, call pickup and parking, speed dialing are also available to users. About the recording of conversations (constant and on demand) has already been said, and the function of listening to the conversation in real time is available for training employees. In general, the set of standard features in the Yeastar S20 differs little from most other IP PBX systems and is more than enough to solve most office tasks.
Brief conclusion
The new IP PBX Yeastar S20 is an evolution of the SOHO model: the developers added two very popular features (GSM support and call recording), significantly reworked both the hardware and software, added some interesting "chips". In addition, the new modular software architecture and more productive hardware allow you to further improve the telephone exchange, gradually adding new functionality to it. And the best part - all these improvements did not affect the final price of the device. Yeastar S20 costs exactly the same as SOHO - $ 276, which means that for the same money, users now get more functionality.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/395893/
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