A sip trunk/line is a way of connecting your phone system to the internet, so you can make and receive calls using VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol). VoIP is a technology that allows you to use your internet connection as a phone line, instead of using traditional copper wires or cellular networks. This has many benefits, such as lower costs, better quality, more flexibility and scalability.
A sip trunk is like a virtual pipe that connects your phone system to a sip provider, which is a company that offers VoIP services. The sip provider acts as a bridge between your phone system and the public switched telephone network (PSTN), which is the global network of phone lines that connects all the phones in the world. The sip provider also handles the routing and billing of your calls, so you don't have to worry about that.
To use a sip trunk, you need a few things:
- A phone system that supports sip, also known as an IP-PBX (Internet Protocol Private Branch Exchange). This is the hardware or software that manages your internal phone extensions and features, such as voicemail, call forwarding, conferencing, etc.
- A sip-enabled phone or device, such as a desk phone, a softphone (a software application that runs on your computer or mobile device), or a headset.
- A high-speed internet connection with enough bandwidth to handle your voice traffic.
- A sip account with a sip provider that offers the services and features you need.