XORCOM Astribank Asterisk Gateway

Comparison – VoIP Gateways, Astribanks, and other interfaces

Astribank brings significant advantages in density, management, high-availability and other important features. 

Feature	Astribank	PCI Card	Channel Bank	Comments
RJ11 and Telco Connections				Astribank supports both connection types (optional) simultaneously
Clear Front Panel Status Indication				Astribank provides real time port status information via front-panned LEDs
Redundant Power Supply				Astribank telephony interface for Asterisk PBX systems has optional redundant power supply to ensure full reliability
Rack Space for 1,000 analog ports	"32 U (4.72 feet)"	N/A	"84 U* (12.4 feet)"	*Typical figures for gateways and channel banks
Output Ports				Used to activate auxiliary devices such as electric locks and gates by dialing in the PBX
Input Ports				Used to connect auxiliary systems, such as alarm systems to the Asterisk PBX.
Automatic Configuration				Astribank is automatically detected and configured in the Asterisk PBX.
Non-Intrusive Installation				Astribank does not require PBX shutdown and opening of panels.
High Density E1/T1				Astribank supports up to 16 E1/T1 ports in one device. More than one Astribank may be used in the same system.
Supports Mixed Analog/Digital in a Single Device
Supports All Telephony Standards
High Availability				Astribank may connect directly to two Xorcom IP PBX systems and perform hands-free failover for all ports.
Hot Pluggable
Direct Connection to Asterisk Server				Not dependent on LAN, Channel bank may require an additional PCI card and available slot.
Reliable Fax Support
Centrally Managed via the Asterisk PBX
Specifically Designed for Asterisk

Benefits of the USB interface

• The USB 2.0 interface supplied with the Astribank server guarantees a reliable, extremely high bandwidth, a hot-pluggable solution that is not dependent on LAN or a PRI PCI card.
• A single USB 2.0 port can theoretically support over 3,000 concurrent calls.
• The reliable, USB connection and Xorcom’s unique XPP protocol ensures capabilities such as reliable fax support, transparent synchronization between Astribank units, an auxiliary system interface, and more.

Astribank USB Gateway Specifically designed for Asterisk Open Source PBX systems

Astribank was designed for Asterisk systems from the get-go.  For this reason, Astribank USB gateway is natively supported in Asterisk IP PBX systems. Xorcom’s Astribank drivers are an integral part of Asterisk since 2006. Unlike VoIP gateways, Astribank units are centrally managed via Asterisk allowing both the flexibility and scalability of a gateway while being a fully integrated part on the PBX like a telephony card. In Xorcom CompletePBX systems Astribank is managed via the system GUI in a native way (version 5.0 and up).

Scalable and Flexible

A single Astribank gateway supports various combinations of analog and/or digital telephony lines and trunks. See the Configurations tab in the table for suggested configurations. Furthermore, the Astribank design allows users to let the system grow along with their telephony needs. Astribank supports all the available Xorcom Telephony Interface Modules. The digital modules (PRI and BRI) support individual software activation of each port (up to four ports per PRI module, and up to eight ports per BRI module). Each Astribank unit may be populated with 1-4 Telephony Interface Modules, including a mix of different interface types in the same Astribank unit.

Software

Astribank’s driver has been included as an official part of Zaptel (now DAHDI) since release 1.2.4 (Feb. 2006), making Astribank Asterisk Gateway integral with Asterisk systems. Today Astribank is tested with Debian and CentOS. While not regularly tested, Astribank is compatible with any modern Linux-based distribution.

Hardware

Telephony

• Maximum number of built-in analog ports: 32
• Maximum number of E1 / T1 ports: 16
• Maximum number of BRI ISDN ports: 8
• Maximum number of telephony modules: 4
• Maximum number of telephony ports: 54 (E1 PRI/R2/CAS + 24 analog ports)

   

Analog Modules Chart

BRI ISDN Modules Chart

PRI / R2 / CAS Modules Chart