VOIP.com - Internet Phone Service

Now that you know what voip is, how it works, and what the equipment is, it's time to put your voip internet phone system together. Really, you can do it.

First, make sure you have everything you need. You should already have a broadband connection and have received your voip internet phone adapter. They generally come with a power cord and an Ethernet cable. We're going to assume the broadband is going to your computer, whether it's a cable connection or DSL.

Turn your computer off and unplug the broadband modem. You should also unplug the Ethernet cable from your broadband modem. You want to make sure the modem stays powered down for at least 10 minutes. This will clear its memory, allowing the modem to recognize your new voip adapter when everything gets turned back on.

After the broadband modem has been turned off for 10 minutes, take the Ethernet cable that came with your voip adapter and plug one end into the Ethernet port on your broadband modem. The other end goes into the Internet port on your voip adapter.

Next, take the Ethernet cable that's still plugged into your computer and plug the other end of it into the first Ethernet port on your voip adapter (Ethernet #1). Now, you have broadband coming into your house to the broadband modem. From there it connects to the voip adapter, which then passes on connectivity to your computer. If you want to connect more than one computer, you would put a network router in between your voip adapter and the computers.

Now it's time to plug your modem in. Wait a few minutes, until the red power light stops blinking. Next, plug your voip adapter in and wait a few more minutes until its red power light stops blinking. If you have a network router, it would get turned on next. Finally, turn your computer on and wait for the Power, Ethernet #1 and Internet lights to show up on your voip adapter.

Check to see if your internet access is working. If it's not, don't worry, it shouldn't be difficult to fix. Most of the time, turning the equipment off for 10 minutes and then turning in back on in a specific order will solve the problem: broadband modem, network router, voip adapter, and computer should do the trick. If not, you can get more troubleshooting tips in the voip.com installation guide or their help section at Voip Installation Guide.

Once everything is connected and you've verified that you have internet access, it's time to connect your telephone. Plug one end of a regular telephone line into your phone, and the other end into the voip adapter, in the port labeled Phone 1. Look at the front of your voip adapter to make sure the Phone 1 light is lit up, and then pick up the phone to check for a dial tone. If you hear one, you're all done. Enjoy your new phone system!