AstriCloud Media Gateway
AstriCloud can assist you with the conversion of Telecom Malaysia (TM) PRI lines to TM MLS. We have Media Gateways there is doing this job.
Migrating from TM PRI to TM MLS – Here’s what you need to know
Many companies of all sizes and functions use Telekom Malaysia’s (TM) PRI which carries voice over digital network using either copper or fiber cables into your office premises. PRI, or Primary Rate Interface carries 30 channels here in Malaysia using UK standards.
There are many hardware, like the one below that are used to connect your PRI to your PBX and once connected, at any one time, you can receive up to 30 incoming or outgoing calls. Companies sometimes have many PRIs since it only carries 30 channels to increase that capacity to 100s or even 1000s of channels depending on each organization’s need. This means, you may likely have multiple PRI cables coming into your office PBX if you need more than 30 channels.
Engineered for Performance and Control
Security & Protection
Built-in SBC firewall, TLS/SRTP encryption, topology hiding, and mitigation of DoS attacks and toll fraud.
Protocol Mediation
Seamless SIP-to-SIP normalization and seamless T.38 fax relay support for reliable FoIP.
Traffic Management
Call routing, load balancing, least-cost routing (LCR), and detailed call data records (CDRs).
High Availability
Redundant deployment options (active/standby) to ensure zero single point of failure and guarantee uptime.
Primary Rate Interface (PRI)
Primary Rate Interface (PRI) is a telecommunications standard that delivers multiple voice or data lines over a single physical digital circuit, typically a T1 line in North America or an E1 line in Europe. A single T1 PRI provides 23 B-channels (Bearer channels) for carrying the actual voice or data transmissions, and one D-channel (Delta channel) for handling all the signaling, call setup, and management data for those 23 lines. This separation of voice and signaling allows for more efficient and reliable call processing, enabling features like Caller ID, direct inward dialing (DID), and automatic number identification. Essentially, PRI acts as a digital “pipe” that connects a business’s on-premise phone system (PBX) directly to the public telephone network through their service provider.
Multi-Line SIP (MLS)
Multi-Line SIP (MLS) is a modern, flexible alternative to traditional PRI that delivers multiple digital phone lines over an internet connection using the SIP protocol. Instead of a physical circuit, it uses a virtual SIP trunk to connect a business’s IP phone system (IP-PBX) directly to a VoIP service provider. A single SIP trunk can be configured to carry a dynamic number of concurrent calls (channels), which can be easily scaled up or down based on demand. This eliminates the physical limitations of PRI, allowing businesses to leverage their existing internet bandwidth for voice communications, often at a lower cost and with greater ease of management.
Frequently Asked Question
The terms are often used interchangeably, but technically, a Media Gateway focuses on converting voice and fax traffic between different networks and protocols (e.g., IP to TDM). An SBC focuses on security, normalization, and connectivity for SIP-based networks. The AstriCloud Media Gateway combines both functions into a single platform, acting as a secure SBC with advanced media processing and gateway capabilities.
While possible, it is highly insecure. Opening SIP and RTP ports exposes your PBX directly to the public internet, making it a prime target for Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks, toll fraud, and hacking. The Media Gateway acts as a secure firewall, sitting in front of your PBX, hiding its topology, and terminating all insecure connections before they reach your core system.
Yes, it has robust T.38 support. Fax over IP (FoIP) is notoriously fragile due to packet loss and jitter. The gateway manages the entire T.38 protocol negotiation, provides error correction, and can handle fallback to G.711 pass-through if needed. This significantly increases the success rate of fax transmissions over IP networks.
Yes, this is a core function of a media gateway. If you have a legacy PBX with analog FXO, digital PRI (T1/E1), or BRI ports, you would use a physical gateway appliance. The AstriCloud Media Gateway (in appliance form) converts these traditional telephony signals into SIP packets, allowing you to connect old systems to modern, cost-effective SIP trunk services.
High availability is achieved by deploying two gateway units in an active-standby cluster. The units constantly synchronize configuration and communicate via a heartbeat link. If the active unit fails, the standby unit automatically takes over all operations within seconds, ensuring uninterrupted service with zero single point of failure. This is essential for mission-critical business communications.