What Is a PBX Phone System?
Telecom expert Harry Newton says a PBX (Private Branch eXchange) "is a small version of the phone company's larger switching office." PBXs are private (owned by a company), were historically considered branches to phone company services and typically "exchange" (i.e., switch) connections only for its own extensions.
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Extensions
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Single-line telephone extensions were typical for early PBXs. "Extensions" are telephone lines which "extend" the PBX to telephones, Fax machines or other telephonic devices.
Switching
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Phono plug of the type used on early manual PBXs. The first PBXs were manual; an attendant or "operator" made physical connections between extensions (or to trunks) by using plug connectors. Toward the end of the 20th century, automatic (dial "9") systems became popular.
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Trunks
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A "trunk" is a link that connects a PBX to another system, usually a telephone company central office.
Dial PBXs
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The first dial PBXs could only dial out, but trunks and PBXs evolved to offer "DID" (direct inward dialing), allowing incoming calls to bypass an attendant and go directly to the extension user.
VoIP
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The invention of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) made even the most advanced 1990s digital automatic PBXs obsolete. VoIP allows telephone systems to send telephone calls, data or video over digital links by using the same technology that PCs use to communicate on the Internet.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of foundphotoslj Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Vox Efx Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Emergency Brake
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Comments
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Dianna Poat
Dec 16, 2009
I agree that traditional pbx systems are useful but not as useful and functional as today's modern virtual pbx phone system that is converged with internet and mobile phone technology. Great information!
