Therefore, an alternative protocol (UDP or User Datagram Protocol) is used for voice and other "streamed" traffic, as there is no significant loss of perceived quality if small numbers of packets go astray between source and destination. The problems, such as latency and jitter, arise when larger amounts go missing in action. Within company IP networks, dropped packets typically start occurring when traffic levels get too high. An analog voice network works by setting up a channel with more-than-adequate "bandwidth" between the two parties that is not used by anyone else.

Hence, should the introduction of Gigabit throughout the network be out of scope then there is no serious need for concern. A well designed and implemented 100 Mbps network has plenty of bandwidth for voice traffic, even if it is not as future-proof as it might be. Backups One area that can cause problems is if data backups are run across the network during working hours. You'd be surprised how many companies run their backup routines at times when high call volumes can be expected, even during the lunch hour.

However, it is perfectly possible to get adequate information that will allow you to gain a good understanding of the customer's network throughput without outsourcing the work. If the customer uses managed switches, then the job will be pretty easy, as virtually all will allow you to see real-time traffic information and download that data for later analysis. This is also true for the majority of routers, although that does rely on the customer having access to the router interface. If the router is managed externally then there will be a need to request the data from the service provider.