11/12/2007 -- Cisco Systems Inc. last week announced a bevy of new additions and updates for its Smart Business Communications System, or SBCS.

Analysts say Cisco's SBCS improvements, which include increased scalability (more than double the previous SBCS footprint), will help Cisco better position its fledgling SBCS stack against mature competitive offerings. With Cisco's small business refresh just seven months in the past, industry watchers say, last week's SBCS enhancements couldn't have come at a better time.

"[I]t was only about seven months ago that the company completely revamped its approach to the small business market, releasing a new line of easy-to-implement platforms that integrate a wide range of networking capabilities and communication applications," said Brian Riggs, research director for enterprise communications with consultancy Current Analysis. "Quickly introducing much-needed product enhancements demonstrates Cisco's commitment to a product line still very new and needing visible support on the company's part."

Chief among a laundry list of enhancements is improved scalability, with Cisco's Unified Communciations (UC) 500 platform now scaling to support up to 48 lines per system. More to the point, analysts say, customers can add either one or two 24-port expansion units to their UC 500 base systems. According to Riggs, Cisco's UC 500 "expansion units" are basically modified Catalyst 520 switches that can be connected to the eight-port UC 500 base unit.

"Previously, the UC 500 supported only one eight-port expansion unit, allowing it to scale to a maximum of 16 lines. Increased scalability will let Cisco target a broader range of SMB customers and better position the UC 500 platform against competitive offerings that previously outmatched it in terms of scalability," Riggs said.

The upshot, he said, is that the UC 500 now amounts to "a very strong communications platform for small businesses." Its feature list -- which includes an integrated eight-port power-over-Ethernet (PoE) switch, voice and data security mechanisms, auto attendant features and basic call center software -- provides a one-stop shop for SMB telephony needs.

"Phones, gateways, expansion units and other elements of Cisco's Smart Business Communications System portfolio are extremely easy to set up and configure," Riggs said. "All this will be of keen interest to resellers targeting small businesses with their communications services."

Even so, he stressed, Cisco's work is far from done: Its SBCS offering still comes up short in several key respects. It lacks a DSL interface, for one thing, which is a sine qua non for small businesses that rely on DSL services for Internet connectivity. Elsewhere, its scalability infusion is effectively limited to 48 lines: SMBs that outgrow the system will need to replace it or add a comparatively expensive second system, Riggs pointed out. --Stephen Swoyer