What you will need
There are just a few things that you will need in order to build a complete phone system using 3CX, which are:
- A Windows desktop or server computer
- Some DHCP server (a small router will do)
- Three hardware handsets or softphones
- Broadband Internet and a SIP trunk
- A SIP PSTN Gateway device (if we want to connect to PSTN lines)
Why three phones? It is because three phones will let us test all the different call transfer and call park scenarios ourselves. For example, phone #1 can call to phone #2. Then phone #2 can transfer the call to phone #3. With three phones you can basically test any combination that can occur in the real world. If you can't afford hardware phones, software phones will suffice.
Note
As it is possible to run 3CX in a virtualized operating system, it is possible to set up a complete phone system without buying any hardware—run the 3CX Phone System on a virtual server, install softphones on laptops you already own, and use a SIP trunk to connect to the outside world! Wow! My suggestion though is that for your first install, get a real server or desktop PC. This will be one less thing to worry about.
We'll talk about the requirements for our system in just a moment, but let's quickly talk about your phone handsets and PSTN gateway. Remember that, while 3CX is open and can integrate with any SIP compliant hardware, using 3CX-supported hardware will make your life a bit easier and that is what I recommend. The official list of 3CX-supported hardware can be found at :http://www.3cx.com/sip-phones/index.html
You will need to select your phone handset very carefully because a good or bad handset can make or break your phone system implementation. Often, because handsets are a large part of the investment of a phone system, handsets are selected on the basis of price only. However, don't do this, no matter how good 3CX is, if your users work with a phone handset that is quiet, doesn't work right, cuts out, has buttons that don't work correctly, or has a low speakerphone volume, you'll get bad reviews.
My suggestion is to get 3CX up and running successfully before trying to get unsupported hardware working. It really is a separate task.
For selecting a PSTN gateway, I recommend getting a 3CX-supported unit. The gateway device is probably the most complicated device to get working just right on your phone system, so don't skimp here. 3CX supports the most well known and often used gateways. Once again, here is the URL: http://wiki.3cx.com/gateway-configuration
Note
Some people ask "Which is your favorite phone handset and PSTN gateway?" Well, remember everyone has their own preferences. I lean heavily toward products that work without much fiddling and are very stable. Price comes somewhere later in my priority. What's my favorite? I go for Snom phones and Patton gateways.