atcomsystems.ca/forum Forums TDM Business Telephone Systems Inter-Tel Telephones & Systems Mitel/Inter-tel upgrade question (general)

My company has tasked me with upgrading an Axxess to a 5000. A vendor has been selected. They inform me that the new switch will be installed the day of the cut-over. Is this a normal procedure? I expected the new switch to be in and up and running, ready to accept the T-1 cross-connect days before the scheduled cut-over. I'm told by my vendor that they will deliver the new 5000, install it and cut over on the same day.

I wouldn't have any problem with it if they promis not to shot off your existing telephone system untill the actual cutover.

Thanks vad60. Do you think 1 day is sufficient to do an IP phone system for 120 users and 2 locations at opposite ends of the state? Still seems very agressive to me.

Wow, I think that is mighty aggressive. Even if they come in with an army of installers, that's an awful lot of work to coordinate in one day. There are so many variables in live cutovers, not to mention end-user issues with operation.

I sure wouldn't make a commitment like that. I'd get the new switches installed side-by-side at both sites and thoroughly tested at least a few days in advance just in case. Maybe I'm just a little bit too cautious.

In my experience with Inter-Tel, we almost always program the new system beforehand so the cutover goes a lot faster. Most of the time it is an upgrade from an Axxent or Axxess to a 5000 so it's just a matter of copying the database and files. The phones stay the same, and you just have to do some wiring at the KSU end. It all depends on the vendor and what is in place now.

Careless if you ask me. 10-1 odds the cutover is a mess. Next time when you select a vendor get details in advance as to how exactly they plan to do the installation, point by point, with dates and times. Right down to whether or not voice mail greetings and personal mailbox messages are pre-recorded.

Curious as to why anyone would want to 'upgrade' from an Axxess to a 5000. Form factor that important? Want to use Mitel phones?

Believe it or not I have seen it a few times...not very much though.

Thank you all for your replies and cautions, which I share. As to why we're going from Axxess to 5000 - it has to do with the age of the Axxess - still running 5.1 and the fact that the server running the Voice mail is NT4 (can't be upgraded,and not allowed on our network as the OS is too old.) When asked to estimate cost to bring the Axxess up to current levels, install UM and IP cards, the price drove it out of the running.

I will inform my management that the experts tend to belive a 1-day cutover is too agressive.

Thanks,
Dan

I forgot to mention that the database has not been maintained in about 7 years so much of the configuration is either obsolete, unknown or non-functioning. We are still trying to sort out the hunt groups and routing rules... The announcements will all have to be re-recorded as well as all personal v-mail greetings. Vendor still says 1 day - a Tuesday - will suffice. I have not even started looking at the paging zones or the single lines that have to go away.

The NT Voice mail could easily go to Win2000. I understand the upgrade all the way to CPC pricing/difficulty though. Mitel stopped the CPU - CPC upgrade program or it would have been simple all around.

We upgraded many 5.1/5.3s all the way to v9/10 CPCs. Easy then. Not so easy now.