RP Roadmap Published
Response Point Roadmap - October 2008
Here is a screen shot of the roadmap that we saw during the Town Hall meeting with the Response Point team yesterday. Click on the image for a larger version.
Broadly speaking, “Sooner” means Response Point SP2, which we think will be in the Feb ‘09 timeframe. “Later” means Response Point V2 (although that name hasn’t formally been announced) which we believe will be around July of 2009.
Some very interesting things to note:
• VPN-based remote-phone capability will be coming in SP2. This means you’ll be able to provision an RP phone at the office and then you’ll be able to take that phone to a remote location where you have a point-to-point VPN connection (for instance your home-office, or a small branch-office) and plug it in, and it will work. Very cool. Eventually (V2 or later) the requirement for the VPN will be removed, and you’ll be able to plug a phone in anywhere on the internet, but for now, this is a great first step.
• Key-system-like capability will appear in V2. This will allow you to see the status of all the incoming lines, just like in a traditional small-biz PBX. We’ve heard lots of feedback from people wanting this feature, so it’s great to know that it’s coming. • BLF will also appear in V2. This will let you see who’s on the phone – again, this is a great feature that’s we’ve had numerous requests for.
• Full Outlook integration in V2. Finally, click-to-dial directly from Outlook.
• Dial-plan explosion. In the V2 timeframe, you’ll be able to build your own dial plan if you wish. This will give you the flexibility to route calls via different providers if you wish. For instance, you might want to send all of your international traffic down your SIP trunk, or you may have multiple local-area area codes that you’d prefer to push down your analog or T1 trunk.
• International functionality in V2. With telephony, there are a number of considerations that need to be taken into account before a phone system can work in a particular country. This release will address those concerns, allowing Response Point to be made available in other parts of the world.
As you can probably tell, we’re pretty excited about the future of Response Point. As we get closer to these releases we’ll share more information with you about upcoming features, but for now, hopefully this will give you a taste of what’s to come.
Trying to find out what is the least expensive way to hook up remote offices. Have dlink unit. Main office has sbs 2003 sp2 Isa 2004, also i branch offices one uses vpn into the main office and one office that uses a t1. Can we not just use hook up phone using a vpn? Trying to find information on which way to go for furture and cost. it would be neat if one base unit hooked up to sbs server would allow just to plug in at the remote offices and be live , just like at the main office. if i read this right this unit works like a computer on my network, if vpn the sbs server assigned a ip in the same range. Since the t1 and vpn run all in the same range would they not talk with the dlink
Thanks
Hi Nick.
Good to have you here.
As things stand today, Response Point won’t work at remote office locations. It’s currently a single-network solution. Everything has to be on the same subnet for the system to work properly.
What’s proposed for the Feb/09 timeframe release is that you’ll be able to provision a phone at the central location (as you do today) and then you’ll be able to take that phone to any location that has a site-to-site VPN tunnel to the central location, plug it in, and you’ll be able to use it as though it were in the central office. As I understand it, the remote phone will not be remotely manageable – if you need to make changes to it you’ll have to return it to the central location for re-provisioning.
What’s proposed for the mid-year/09 timeframe release is that the phone won’t need to be on a VPN. This isn’t well defined yet but my understanding is that the provisioning (add/edit a phone) wizard will allow you to put a public IP address into the phone so that it can connect to Response Point.
Microsoft are very much aware of the need for remote phone capability. I know they’re working hard on getting this feature out into the field.
Do you have any info on getting on the beta testing list for RP SP2?
I have a client who is needing remote phone functionality, and I have already setup a site-to-site vpn between their remote user and the main office.
Your help is greatly appreciated.
Sincerly,
Vi Wickam
On-Site Computer Solutions
http://www.424help.com
Hello Vi.
Send your contact info to us and I’ll forward it to Microsoft for you. I can’t promise that they’re still accepting beta test users, but I’m happy to try on your behalf.
Andrew.
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Where can we learn more about Austin (RP 2.0)? When will there be more information about its feature set and release date? Will it be possible to just software-update existing RP base units, or will we need to purchase a new RP 2.0 base unit?
Inquiring minds _need_ to know!
Hi j allen.
Nothing’s been announced yet, but we believe that V2 will be the release that is currently slated for the July 2009 timeframe, and is discussed above. At this time we believe that current hardware will be sufficient to support V2.
As we learn more we’ll be sure to post it here on RPTricks.com!
Hi folks
I’ve been looking all weekend for the multi branch (multi RP) answer. I was mislead and told that this was a feature of SP2. I’m crossing all my fingers and toes that it makes it into V2 and I can use it with V1 hardware. Thanks folks, putting in my order for office 2 in the morning.
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