Cader NetworksStep 1: Identify everything still using the old line
Start with the obvious one, desk phones, then check the ones people forget: alarm autodiallers, PDQ/card machine backup lines, some fax machines, lift emergency phones, and older door entry systems. Any of these still plugged into a traditional phone socket rather than working over the internet needs checking individually. Our PSTN switch-off explainer covers the background if you need it, this checklist assumes you already know why it's happening.
Step 2: Move your main phone system to VoIP first
This is usually the biggest single item and the one worth doing well ahead of any deadline, not at the last minute when installers are booked solid. Business VoIP replaces desk phones and call handling with a cloud system that works over your broadband, keeps your existing number via porting, and actually adds features, call queuing, voicemail-to-email, mobile apps, most analogue systems never had.
Step 3: Check alarm and card machine compatibility separately
Alarm autodiallers and some older card machines were built for analogue lines specifically and don't automatically work over VoIP, some need an adapter, some need replacing outright. This is the step most commonly missed because it's not "the phone system", check directly with whoever supplies or maintains the alarm or terminal, don't assume it'll just carry over.
Step 4: Make sure your broadband can actually support VoIP reliably
VoIP call quality depends on the broadband underneath it. If the current line is old FTTC with patchy reliability, moving phones onto it without checking is a step backwards. Worth reviewing business broadband with optional 4G failover at the same time, so a dropped line doesn't take the phones down with it.
Step 5: Plan the timing, don't leave it to the deadline
Porting numbers, especially several at once, and swapping alarm or card machine hardware both take lead time. Businesses that leave this until weeks before their exchange switches over end up rushed, sometimes without a working phone line for a period. Starting the process now, even if the switch-off in your exchange area is a while off yet, avoids that entirely.
The checklist, summarised
- List every device on the old line: phones, alarms, card machines, fax, lift/door entry.
- Move the main phone system to VoIP, port numbers across.
- Check alarm and card machine compatibility with whoever supplies them.
- Review your broadband reliability, add 4G failover if the phones now depend on it.
- Start early, don't wait for the exchange deadline to arrive.
We handle this migration for small businesses across Wales regularly, VoIP, porting and the broadband underneath it. Tell us what's currently on your line and we'll help you work through this checklist properly.