Is your network ready for VoIP? Here's a six-step checklist

I'll only recommend a vendor-authored white paper if it has something of value. If the paper is basically struttin' peacock marcom in the guise of expertise, I won't waste your time.

So with that caveat, I urge you to check out Six Steps To Getting Your Network Ready for Voice Over IP, a new report from enterprise VoIP solutions provider Telchemy.

I won't hold you in suspense any longer. The six steps (all of which are explained in detail in the paper) are:

1. Define High-Level VoIP requirements;

2. Map Existing Wide Area Network/VPN Capabilities;

3. Verify LAN Readiness;

4. Verify Inter-site Readiness;

5. (Address) Service Provider Relationships;

6. Define Performance Management Architecture and Tools.

I realize these requirements sound quite general, but when you read this excellent white paper, you'll get all the explanation and initial direction you'd expect from a paid consultant.