All posts tagged: voip networking

Causes of High Network Latency and How to Fix it Quickly

Causes of High Network Latency and How to Fix it Quickly

Published by Webster

Network latency refers to the delay that occurs when data travels across a network from one point to another. It’s the time it takes for a data packet to go from its source to its destination and back. There is always going to be some latency on a network — but when it gets too high, it can result in slower performance, poor call quality, laggy websites, and other annoying experiences. High latency is a common frustration for businesses, especially when it impacts mission-critical applications like VoIP phone systems, online payment gateways, or real-time collaboration tools. In this guide, I’ll explore the main causes of network latency, from outdated hardware and inefficient network routing. I’ll also cover tools for diagnosing network latency and a short list of practical fixes to ensure smoother, faster connections across your network. 1 CloudTalk Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features 24/7 Customer Support, Call Management/Monitoring, Contact Center, and more Causes of network latency To truly …

Network Traffic Types (With Examples)

Network Traffic Types (With Examples)

Published by Webster

Identifying network traffic types is vital because it allows you to consider various facets of network quality. Though people use multiple classifications and terms to define network traffic, it’s broadly classified by direction, such as north-south or east-west traffic. Typically, network traffic represents the data or packets of data that travel through one or more computer networks at a given time. However, there are many other ways of looking at network traffic, primarily driven by their use cases and applications. For instance, some network traffic types are categorized based on whether or not they are suitable for real-time applications — and you’ll recognize that most common web applications fall under this umbrella. Real-time network traffic enables live streaming, online gaming, web hosting, and more. Alternatively, people primarily use non-real-time traffic for things like file downloads from browsers (HTTP downloads), torrents (Bittorrent), and NNTP news servers. 1 CloudTalk Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features 24/7 Customer Support, Call Management/Monitoring, Contact Center, …

Understanding How the Internet Works (Easy)

Understanding How the Internet Works (Easy)

Published by Webster

Network packets are small units of data that are sent from one network device to another. When you send information online — like an email, a file, or a video stream — it’s broken down into packets, which travel separately to the destination. Once all the packets reach their destination, they are put back together to form the original message or file. This guide explores network packets in detail: why they are essential, their structure, and how they influence network performance and traffic. 1 CloudTalk Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features 24/7 Customer Support, Call Management/Monitoring, Contact Center, and more Why network packets? A computer network transfers digital data in the form of network packets, a method far more efficient and flexible than traditional circuit-based transmission, like a copper wire phone network. Unlike antiquated circuit switching, which requires the establishment of dedicated point-to-point connections before full-signal communications can happen, packet switching breaks data into small, standardized chunks. These chunks (or …

How Many Tunnels Do You Need?

How Many Tunnels Do You Need?

Published by Webster

A virtual private network (VPN) is a marvelous tool for protecting people and their data while browsing the internet, especially when working from unsecured or weakly protected networks like those at public libraries and coffee shops. From a business perspective, VPNs keep business data secure when employees work with sensitive material like trade secrets and proprietary information. VPN tunnels are also instrumental, as they provide users with an encrypted connection between their device and the internet. However, given the enriched data flow and volumetric information brought on by VPNs, you and/or your IT team should still monitor them regularly. The technical feedback you can gather by doing so will help you finetune and configure your VPN connections for optimal performance. As an alternative to VPNs, SD-WAN (Software-Defined Wide Area Network) offers businesses many more use cases. For instance, organizations that lean heavily on Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone services can use it to simplify enterprise-scale network management. 1 CloudTalk Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any …

Network Definition Made Simple: Here’s the Basics

Network Definition Made Simple: Here’s the Basics

Published by Webster

The simple network definition: a system that links other subsystems together and allows them to share information and resources. Computer networks are the technology interconnecting software, allowing you to do things like print a document from your laptop or send your business partner a signed contract over email. Imagine networks as a fabric of interconnected paths where data travels from one device to another. These paths also have rules to exchange data, known as communication protocols. In reality, the answer isn’t as straightforward as that. Depending on the purpose, various types of networks, topologies, and components exist. We’ll provide a basic guide to help you grasp the foundations of networks — what each network is, its basic functionality, and why we use networks. 1 CloudTalk Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features 24/7 Customer Support, Call Management/Monitoring, Contact Center, and more Why we use networks every day Networks are designed to connect systems so they can exchange information. Here are some of …

How To Run a VoIP Quality Test and Improve Your MOS

How To Run a VoIP Quality Test and Improve Your MOS

Published by Webster

A VoIP quality test measures the performance of your network connection. The test simulates a set number of calls on your network and uses key metrics to determine how calls would sound in different situations. It can help you understand whether your connection is strong enough before implementing a VoIP system and alert you to potential post deployment issues as well. Mean opinion score (MOS) is an industry standard metric for VoIP call quality — it’s a simple 1-5 rating system with 1 being the worst and 5 being the best. Anything above a 4 is sufficient and scores below 3.5 should be considered unacceptable. Below that range, users are more likely to experience mic echo, dropped calls, choppy or robotic sounds, and cutting out. This guide covers everything you need to know to perform VoIP tests and tweak settings to optimize for MOS. 1 CloudTalk Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features 24/7 Customer Support, Call Management/Monitoring, Contact Center, and …

How to Run a VoIP Speed Test for Free (3 Ways)

How to Run a VoIP Speed Test for Free (3 Ways)

Published by Webster

A VoIP speed test measures the performance of an internet connection to see if it can handle internet-based communications. These tests simulate data transmissions of a VoIP call from your network, typically measuring latency, jitter, upload speed, and download speed. When tested together, these results can give you a strong sense of what calls will be like for your team. Whether you’re interested in installing a VoIP system, making network changes, or troubleshooting an issue, a speed test takes less than 30 seconds. 1 CloudTalk Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features 24/7 Customer Support, Call Management/Monitoring, Contact Center, and more Three free VoIP speed test options There are dozens of free speed tests out there. These three are some of the best because they come from reputable business phone services. I encourage you to try all three — you can explore other free options as well. 1. RingCentral’s free VoIP speed test RingCentral is one of the best business communication …

EXACT Steps to Find Your Network Security Key On ALL Devices

EXACT Steps to Find Your Network Security Key On ALL Devices

Published by Webster

Confused about network security keys? You’re not alone. This guide includes step-by-step instructions on how to find your network key for the four most popular digital devices. Here’s a quick summary: iOS: Open the Settings app, tap on Wi-Fi, select your connected network, and find the Password field. Android: Open the Settings app, tap on Network & Internet, go to Internet, tap on your connected network, choose Share, and view the passwords that show up. Mac: Use the Keychain Access app, find your current network, double-click on it, check the Show password box, and authenticate. Windows PC: Go to Settings, then to Network & Internet, then to Wi-Fi. Access the properties of your wireless network connection by clicking on the second row starting from the top, and find the network security key by scrolling down on the network’s window. Keep reading if you’d like more detailed instructions on where to go, along with tips for keeping your network secure. 1 CloudTalk Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) …

How to Fix Network Jitter (for Good) in Under 10 Minutes

How to Fix Network Jitter (for Good) in Under 10 Minutes

Published by Webster

If you’re experiencing choppy phone or video calls, pixelated conferencing, or disjointed VoIP audio connections, your network jitter may very well be above acceptable levels. Jitter refers to the variation in the arrival times of data packets across a network. There is always going to be a little variation, but if the jitter rate is too high, you will experience disruptions like choppy audio, lagging video, or dropped calls. Network jitter is measured in milliseconds (ms). Here’s a fairly standard breakdown of jitter rate: Good jitter: Less than 30 ms – Typically causes no noticeable disruptions in real-time communication. Moderate jitter: Between 30-50 ms – May result in slight delays or distortion but is generally manageable. High jitter: Above 50 ms – Can cause severe issues like robotic voices, video freezes, and frequent disconnections. High jitter is going to negatively impact any real-time communication over the network. Voice calls will be terrible quality and video conferencing will be even worse. The good news is that with the right troubleshooting approach, many network jitter issues can …

6 Types of Network Address Translation: Which One to Use?

6 Types of Network Address Translation: Which One to Use?

Published by Webster

Network Address Translation (NAT) is one of the key technological concepts behind the performance of communication networks and the internet at large. NAT is a mechanism for converting private (local) IP addresses into public (global) IP addresses and vice versa. There are six main NAT types: static, dynamic, port address translation, overlapping, and masquerade. Understanding the functionality of each NAT type — as well as its purpose — is vital in helping you choose the right one to reap the most benefits. 1 CloudTalk Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features 24/7 Customer Support, Call Management/Monitoring, Contact Center, and more Network Address Translation, IPv4, and IPv6 It’s helpful to understand a little bit about how IP addressing works in order to understand the different types of NAT and the problems they solve. NAT enables efficient use of limited IPv4 addresses — there are only 4,294,967,296 possible 32-bit IPv4 addresses, which is not enough for every device worldwide — NAT allows organizations …