PSTN & PBX

The public switched telephone network (PSTN) is the aggregate of the world's circuit-switched telephone networks that are operated by national, regional, or local telephony operators, providing infrastructure and services for public telecommunication. The PSTN consists of telephone lines, fiber optic cables, microwave transmission links, cellular networks, communications satellites, and undersea telephone cables, all interconnected by switching centers, thus allowing any telephone in the world to communicate with any other. Originally a network of fixed-line analog telephone systems, the PSTN is almost entirely digital in its core and includes mobile as well as fixed telephones.

The technical operation of the PSTN adheres to the standards created by the ITU-T. These standards allow different networks in different countries to interconnect seamlessly. The E.163 and E.164 standards provide a single global address space for telephone numbers. The combination of the interconnected networks and the single numbering plan make it possible for any phone in the world to dial any other phone.

PBX . IP-PBX

分组交换是以分组为单位进行传输和交换的，它是一种存储-转发交换方式，即将到达交换机的分组先送到存储器暂时存储和处理，等到相应的输出电路有空闲时再送出。

PBX 有三个主要的功能：

建立两个用户之间的电话连接，例如呼叫号码与其呼叫电话的定位，确定这个电话不会总是占线。
维护任何用户所需要的连接。（不同用户间的声音声音信号的多路传输。）
为公司的帐目提供信息（即电话记录）

除了上面三个基本功能以外，PBX 还提供许多其他的呼叫功能和作用，不同的厂家会提供不同的特色以此和别的 厂家区分。共同的一些功能包括：（不同厂家也许使用不同的名称）：

自动服务
自动拨号
自动转号
自动目录服务（拨号者通过按键或者直接说出所联系的人的名字而被自动转到想联系的人的电话上）
自动回拨
通话统计
呼叫转接功能（占线或