Big Business Comms, Small Business Prices

edgeBOX
Critical Links develops and markets edgeBOX, the first Unified Communications Appliance or “Office-in-a-Box” that provides all the phone and internet communication services usually only available to larger businesses, out of a single remotely managed device, and at a price which makes it a viable solution for small and medium sized businesses.

The edgeBOX provides a full business phone system (IP-PBX), plus email, web, fax, security, calendar, contact directory, and much more out of a single appliance that can be managed remotely through an easy-to-use interface.

What can the edgeBOX do for your customers?

Small or medium sized businesses increasingly need reliable and advanced communications (telephony and internet) services to thrive in a highly competitive market. They need to stay connected to customers and employees and are expected to provide no less than excellent customer service. They need a communication solution that provides a competitive edge.

edgeBOX provides a communication solution for small businesses that was previously only available to big businesses at big business prices. The cost of an edgeBOX is a fraction of the cost of the 4 to 6 standalone devices that it replaces. Plus, the cost of ownership is an estimated 60% less due to the simplified installation and management that can be taken care of by non-IT staff. The entry-level edgeBOX (Office) supports up to 10 users and scales with the edgeBOX Enterprise to support up to 300 users.

Today, in order to address their business communication needs, many firms end up buying stacks of equipment from different vendors and providers. The stack typically includes a business phone system, an internet router for connecting to the internet and a server for file sharing. Wireless (WiFi) access is also needed, and for security reasons, a firewall and a Virtual Private Network for telecommuters and branch offices. Email and web access need to be protected by antispam, antivirus and content filtering. Many firms also need shared contacts, calendars and tasks that can be synced with mobile devices as well as desktops.

Adding all the equipment needed to provide these services soon turns into a nightmare to manage, requiring expensive support, leaving you exposed to security vulnerabilities, and requiring you to spend all your time dealing with multiple suppliers. With edgeBOX, all communication services are integrated in a single, reliable device that is easy to use, easy to manage and scalable. Equipment costs decrease to one-third and costs of maintenance to less than a half that of multi-device solutions and edgeBOX is future proof since it updates itself transparently through the internet as more features become available.

edgeBOX Features

Access Router

Manages the traffic between your company LAN, the internet via ADSL, 3G or Ethernet, and a DMZ (demilitarized zone). Provides all basic network access services such as DHCP, NAT, DNS, and VLANs.

File Storage and Print

Provides scalable storage capacity and redundant disks (RAID) for your critical business data and for connecting your office printer. Allows seamless sharing of MS Windows files, setting disk quotas and configuring automatic backup to a remote server or an external USB disk drive.

Full-Featured IP-PBX

Provides all the telephony features a small business needs, including sophisticated call conferences, parking and forwarding, IVR, LCR, ACD, fallback to PSTN, etc. The full featured IP-PBX supports both VoIP and PSTN calls and is a solid unified messaging foundation for your company.

Network Access Control (NAC)

Network Access Control allows you to control how employees and visitors access your network. Access can be granted/denied per user, service, IP, time-of-day, source (VPN, LAN, Wireless). NAC supports authentication through a captive portal, 802.1X, and remotely through RADIUS, LDAP or AD.

Wi-Fi

Provides instant hassle-free Wireless LAN access to your offices. Can operate with an embedded Access Point (AP) or as an AP Controller with several external APs spread through the network and authenticating users through edgeBOX. Combined with the IP-PBX provides easy-to-setup Wi-Fi VoIP phone access.

Collaboration

Provides a full collaboration suite that may include email (POP, IMAP, Webmail), groupware (calendar, tasks, contacts) as well as specific productivity applications (edgePACKs) such as CMS (content management system) and LMS (learning management system).

Security

Secures your company network against attacks or misuse. Comprises a Stateful Inspection Firewall, VPN for remote user access (L2TP, PPTP), or site-to-site (IPSec), supports anti-spam, antivirus (based on ClamAV, McAfee and Sophos), and content filtering. Authentication at the firewall allows tight control over user activity in the network (who, when, what).

Quality of Service (QoS)

Guarantees that your priority services have the bandwidth available when needed, e.g. for ensuring business quality calls using VoIP and lowers the priority of other traffic such as web downloads. Supports both Inbound and Outbound Quality of Service (QoS), and support for custom QoS pipes guaranteed with DiffServ.

Management

Provides a unique and easy to use Unified Management Interface which is web based and allows the configuration of all aspects of the system by non IT experts. Processes such as adding a new users/hires that typically involve configuring a multitude of devices and services (email, phone extension, Wi-Fi credentials, VPN settings, file server area with quotas and backup setting, etc…) take just a few minutes through the edgeBOX Management interface.

Advantages of VoIP Phone Systems

The advantages of a VoIP Phone System (Voice over Internet Protocol) range from cost saving to increased productivity and improved integration with IT systems. Call costs can be slashed by up to 60% by routing standard phone calls through ITSPs (Internet Telephony Service Providers) and by making free calls over the internet between your offices and with remote workers.
VoIP Phone systems also bring you new and advanced features that were not possible in old systems. This includes integration with mobile phones, support for telecommuters and branch offices, integration with other applications such as vmail-to-email and fax-to-email, unified messaging and a lot more.

Another advantage is that a VoIP Phone system shares the same existing ethernet network used by computers in the office, therefore reducing the costs of cabling and making adds/moves/changes much easier.

One common concern about VoIP is quality and reliability. The edgeBOX addresses that concern by providing fallback connection to the PSTN (Public switched telephony network) so if the internet connection goes down, calls are routed transparently through the landline. The EdgeBOX can also be configured to use VoIP selectively for certain calls, such as intra-office (for free), branch office (for free), and international calls (at reduced rates).

Interested in Becoming an edgeBOX Reseller?

If you would like to know more about any of our products please call one of our official distribution team on +44 (0) 844 873 2144 or fill in the information request form at the bottom of this page and they will be able to answer any questions you may have. If you would like to sign up to our Official Partner Program to be a reseller of Critical Links products in partnership with Gen-x IT, please fill out our reseller application form to the right of this page.

Downloads:

edgeBOX Technical Datasheet	edgeBOX SMB Flyer
edgeBOX Startup Flyer	edgeDESKTOP Flyer
edgeMANAGER Flyer	edgeOPERATOR Flyer
edgeHOTEL Flyer

edgeBOX