7 VoIP Troubleshooting Tips for Common Problems

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol, which is a computer networking protocol like IP and supports transferring of voice packets to facilitate internet calling.

Businesses deploy VoIP services to ensure efficient communication systems for internal and external purposes. Implementing a VoIP phone system requires planning, active management, and monitoring.

Sometimes, you can experience various problems on a regular basis such as, choppy voices, echoes, low-quality audio, etc., due to multiple issues. However, getting the best performance out of your VoIP communication system is not difficult.

In this article, we will see common problems you might face in your VoIP communication system and how you can try to troubleshoot them on your own.

7 VoIP Troubleshooting Tips For Common Problems

1. Bad audio quality

If you don’t have a stable and good quality internet connection, then you can experience poor sound quality. You might hear choppy audio due to low bandwidth.

The amount of maximum data sent over a connection is called bandwidth. So, if you are having issues in your download bandwidth, then you will not be able to hear the voice of the person on the other side.

On the other hand, if the second person cannot hear your voice, that means the upload bandwidth of your internet connection is low.

Another source of this issue is if your VoIP provider has used the wrong compression code, also known as a codec.

With proper codec, your VoIP provider can offer satisfying call quality even on an internet connection with low bandwidth.

Solutions:

Here are some solutions that you can follow to troubleshoot this VoIP problem:

1. Test your bandwidth speed. There are many free websites online that you can use to check the speed of your internet.

2. Take a good quality internet connection from a reputable ISP.

3. Reduce network congestion by closing applications that are consuming more data.

4. Prioritize QoS for VoIP – Check router settings to prioritize QoS for VoIP. After that, your router will give more priority to your VoIP phone system as compared to other data.

2. Automatic call drop after X minutes

It is a common issue that might happen in a network with a high number of outbound calls. In this issue, VoIP calls disconnect automatically after X minutes.

Solutions:

Here are some common probable fixes that you can try:

1. Check the firmware of your phone, whether it is up to date or not.

2. Check the UDP (User Datagram Protocol) timeout (amount of time a UDP connection stays active for a firewall or router). UDP traffic is faster than TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) as it doesn’t involve packet error checks. Hence, it becomes susceptible to firewalls to close the connection unexpectedly.

3. No sound is heard every time you call

If you do not hear any voice every time you call, then we have a solution for you. This issue might occur when the firewall is blocking the RTP (Real Time Transport Protocol) packets. To solve this issue, you check your firewall and look for ports blocking the flow of RTP packets. After identifying the ports, open them to ensure the flow of RTP packets. Connect with your VoIP service provider to get support.

4. Inbound calls going to your voicemail

Are your incoming calls going to voicemail without even ringing your phone once? If yes, then you should try these probable VoIP fixes:

Solutions:

1. Check if your phone is configured with your VoIP provider.

2. Also, see if your phone is on DND mode or not.

3. Reverify your call forwarding settings.

5. One VoIP phone is working, and other is not

If one of your VoIP phones is working and the other is not, then the chances are that the devices’ MAC address is not registered on your network, or there are some firmware issues with your device. In some cases, there might be issues with your VoIP phone as well.

Solutions:

1. Test your VoIP phones with a common network location and port. If one VoIP phone works and other does not, then there are issues with your VoIP phone, and you need to replace it.

2. If both VoIP phones work successfully, then there might be an issue of Ethernet drop. For that, you can connect with your VoIP service provider and see if there are any firmware updates.

3. If there are no firmware updates and the issue persists, then there are issues with your VoIP phone.

6. Echo

If you hear echoes during the VoIP calls, then there are three probable causes – acoustic, electromagnetic interference, and faulty equipment.

When the volume of your earpiece volume is too loud, and it overpowers the mouthpiece, it causes an acoustic echo.

Electromagnetic interference occurs when you keep your VoIP equipment very close to each other. Furthermore, bad VoIP hardware creates a bounce back from impedance variations.

Solutions:

1. Try a corded VoIP phone, instead of cordless VoIP phone.

2. Check your wiring cables – they should be dry and short.

3. Keep your router away from the desktop.

4. Replace old VoIP equipment with new quality hardware.

5. Turn down the volume of your speakers and see if it helps in reducing the echo.

7. Conversation Gaps

In VoIP, the jitter buffer is a shared data area where voice packets are stored before transferring to the voice processor. Jitter buffer transfers voice packets to the voice processor at regular intervals of time.

Variations in arrival time of voice packets is called jitter, and because of this, you hear conversation gaps.

The purpose of the jitter buffer is to delay the incoming of voice packets intentionally so that users hear a clear voice with a stable connection.

Jitter can occur due to network congestion or if your jitter buffer is not configured correctly.

There are two types of Jitter buffer.

1. Static jitter buffer – It is a hardware-based jitter that is configured by the manufacturer only.

2. Dynamic jitter buffer– It is a software-based jitter that can be reconfigured by your network administrator to adapt to the networks’ delay.

Final Thoughts

This article will help you in troubleshooting some of the most common VoIP issues from a poor audio quality, choppy voice, and conversation gaps.

Being able to troubleshoot VoIP phone system problems means you can resolve VoIP problems quickly. However, some issues require more technical expertise, and it is better to ask for support from your VoIP provider.

Hence, you need to choose a VoIP provider that offers 24×7 support so that your business experiences minimum downtime.