{"id":96,"date":"2026-08-28T06:38:02","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T05:38:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/?p=96"},"modified":"2026-08-28T06:38:03","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T05:38:03","slug":"what-is-hosted-soft-switch-pbx","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/what-is-hosted-soft-switch-pbx\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is a Hosted Soft-Switch PBX? A Guide for UK Businesses"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A Hosted Soft-Switch PBX<\/strong> is a cloud-based business telephone platform that manages calls, extensions, users, queues, telephone numbers and call routing without requiring the organisation to maintain a traditional PBX server at its premises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At I.T Communications<\/strong>, our Hosted Soft-Switch PBX<\/a> connects directly to the I.T Communications voice network, bringing the hosted platform, UK telephone numbers, call routing and support into one managed service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Does PBX Mean?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

PBX stands for Private Branch Exchange<\/strong>. It controls business telephone communications including extensions, incoming and outgoing calls, transfers, ring groups, queues, IVR menus, business hours, voicemail, routing and reporting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Traditional PBXs were commonly physical systems installed at the customer’s premises. A hosted PBX moves those functions into managed infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is a Soft-Switch?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A soft-switch is a software-based platform used to control and route telephone calls across IP networks. For businesses, this creates a flexible communications environment capable of supporting users, numbers and call flows across several locations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Does Hosted Soft-Switch PBX Work?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The PBX functions run on managed infrastructure rather than a traditional appliance at the customer’s office. I.T Communications Soft-Switch PBX connects directly to the I.T Communications VoIP gateways and voice network, so customers do not need to purchase a separate SIP trunk for the hosted service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New UK numbers can be supplied, while eligible existing telephone numbers can normally be transferred through number porting. Learn more about Telephone Numbers<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Can It Do?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Available functionality can include IVR and auto attendants, ring groups, queues, time and calendar-based routing, caller-ID conditions, extension-status logic, queue priorities, callback options, presence, call history, reporting, authorised call recordings, desktop and mobile access and central administration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can Employees Work Remotely or Across Several Offices?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes. Supported desk phones, desktop clients and compatible softphone applications allow office, remote and multi-site users to remain part of one centrally managed communications environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do We Need Separate SIP Trunks?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

No. The hosted service connects directly to the I.T Communications voice network. Businesses retaining their own compatible PBX can instead consider Business SIP Trunks<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What About Windows Users?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I.T Communications provides a dedicated Soft-Switch VoIP App for Windows<\/a> with business calling, call control, team presence and reporting. Where licensed and enabled, available recordings can also be transformed into transcripts, summaries, actions and decisions using AI call intelligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Is the Platform Made Resilient?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Soft-Switch platform uses a cluster-based architecture designed to reduce single points of failure. The wider I.T Communications communications platform operates across two London data centres. Learn more on our Network<\/a> page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Much Does It Cost?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Current packages start from \u00a359.96 per month<\/strong> and are capacity-based according to concurrent calls and recommended user ranges. Use the live Soft-Switch PBX Pricing<\/a> page for current detailed pricing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is Support Included?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Basic support Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, is included within the defined service scope. More complex integrations or project work may be quoted separately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soft-Switch PBX vs Hosted 3CX<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I.T Communications provides both platforms. The right choice depends on users, concurrent calls, call flows, applications, integrations, reporting, AI requirements and management preferences. Explore Hosted 3CX<\/a> to compare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Does it need a separate SIP trunk?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

No. It connects directly to the I.T Communications voice network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can employees work remotely?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can we keep existing numbers?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Eligible UK numbers can normally be transferred through number porting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How much does it cost?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Current packages start from \u00a359.96 per month. Check the live pricing page for current details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explore Hosted Soft-Switch PBX<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Explore Hosted Soft-Switch PBX<\/a> | View Pricing<\/a> | Explore the Windows App<\/a> | Contact I.T Communications<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Learn how a Hosted Soft-Switch PBX works, including call routing, queues, remote users, business numbers, resilience, pricing and managed UK support.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":90,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-96","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-voip"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=96"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":99,"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96\/revisions\/99"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/90"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=96"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=96"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.it-communicationsltd.co.uk\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=96"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}