In the realm of modern business communication, Microsoft Teams has emerged as a central hub for collaboration and productivity. For organizations seeking to integrate their telephony infrastructure with Teams, Direct Routing offers a powerful and flexible solution. However, ensuring a reliable and supported connection hinges on choosing the right partners – O365 Direct Routing Authorized Partners, also known as certified Session Border Controller (SBC) vendors.
Microsoft collaborates closely with select Session Border Controller (SBC) vendors to ensure their solutions are fully compatible and certified for Direct Routing. This rigorous certification process guarantees that these SBCs work seamlessly with Microsoft Teams Phone System, providing a robust and dependable voice experience.
Why Choose O365 Direct Routing Authorized Partners?
Opting for a certified SBC vendor is not just a recommendation; it’s a cornerstone of a successful and supported Direct Routing deployment. Microsoft’s certification program is designed to provide peace of mind and ensure a high-quality voice experience by:
-
Rigorous Interoperability Testing: Microsoft and certified vendors work together to meticulously test SIP interconnection protocols. These SBCs undergo intense scrutiny in third-party labs, and only those that pass stringent tests achieve certification. This process minimizes compatibility issues and ensures smooth communication.
-
Continuous Validation: The commitment to quality doesn’t end with initial certification. Microsoft conducts daily tests with all certified devices in both production and pre-production environments. This proactive approach ensures that new updates and versions of Direct Routing in the cloud remain compatible with certified SBCs, reducing the risk of service disruptions.
-
Joint Support Framework: Microsoft and authorized SBC partners establish a collaborative support process. This means when you encounter an issue, you have a clear path to resolution. While initial support contact is through your SBC vendor, they have direct escalation channels to Microsoft for complex issues, streamlining troubleshooting and minimizing downtime.
It’s crucial to understand that Microsoft officially supports Phone System with Direct Routing only when used with certified devices. Utilizing non-certified SBCs can lead to unsupported configurations, and Microsoft reserves the right to refuse support in such cases. If an issue is traced back to a non-certified SBC, resolution becomes solely the responsibility of the customer and the uncertified vendor.
Understanding SBC Firmware and Support
Certification is granted to specific firmware versions of SBCs. This means that only the firmware versions explicitly documented by Microsoft are officially certified and supported. However, firmware versions that are newer than the documented versions are generally supported as long as the major and minor version numbers remain consistent.
For example, if a vendor’s SBC is listed as “Supported 6.10.258”, Microsoft supports firmware versions 6.10.(258 or higher). Similarly, “Recommended 6.20.100” implies a recommendation for firmware versions 6.20.(100 or higher). For any specific questions about firmware version supportability, it’s always best to consult directly with your SBC vendor.
List of Certified SBC Vendors for Direct Routing
The following table provides a comprehensive list of vendors and their Session Border Controllers that are certified for Microsoft Teams Direct Routing. This list is regularly updated, but for the most current information, always refer back to official Microsoft documentation.
| Vendor | Product | Non-media bypass | Media bypass | Software version | 911 Service Provider Capable* | ELIN capable |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft | Azure Communications Gateway | ✔ | ✔ | 2023-01-31 | ✔ | ✔ |
| AudioCodes | Mediant 500 SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ |
| Mediant 500 Li SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.2x.xxx (Recommended 7.40A.400) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Mediant 800 SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Mediant 2600 SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Mediant 4000 SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Mediant 1000B SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Mediant 9000 SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Virtual Edition SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Mediant Cloud Edition SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Mediant 3100 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.250 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Ribbon Communications | SBC 5400 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported on available versions of 11.1 and later, 10.1, 9.2, and 7.2 (Recommend latest version) | ✔ | |
| SBC 7000 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported on available versions of 11.1 and later, 10.1, 9.2, and 7.2 (Recommend latest version) | ✔ | ||
| All SBC SWe variants, including hosted offers | ✔ | ✔ | Supported on available versions of 11.1 and later, 10.1, 9.2, and 7.2 (Recommend latest version) | ✔ | ||
| SBC 1000 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported on available versions of 12.x and later, 11.x, or 9.x (Recommend latest version) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| SBC 2000 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported on available versions of 12.x and later, 11.x, or 9.x (Recommend latest version) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| SBC SWe Edge (formerly SWe Lite) | ✔ | ✔ | Supported on available versions of 12.x and later, 11.x, or 9.x (Recommend latest version) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Edge 8000 (w/SBC SWe Edge) | ✔ | ✔ | 23.06 or higher | ✔ | ✔ | |
| EdgeMarc Series | ✔ | ✔ | 16.3.2 | |||
| Thinktel | Think 365 SBC | ✔ | 1.4 | |||
| Oracle | AP 1100 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 8.3.0.0.1 & Recommended 8.4.x & 9.x | ✔ | ✔ |
| AP 3900 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 8.3.0.0.1 & Recommended 8.4.x & 9.x | ✔ | ✔ | |
| AP 4600 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 8.3.0.0.1 & Recommended 8.4.x & 9.x | ✔ | ✔ | |
| AP 6300 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 8.3.0.0.1 & Recommended 8.4.x & 9.x | ✔ | ✔ | |
| AP 6350 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 8.3.0.0.1 & Recommended 8.4.x & 9.x | ✔ | ✔ | |
| VME | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 8.3.0.0.1 & Recommended 8.4.x & 9.x | ✔ | ✔ | |
| AP 3950 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 9.x | ✔ | ✔ | |
| AP 4900 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 9.x | ✔ | ✔ | |
| TE-SYSTEMS | anynode | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 3.20 (Recommended 4.0) | ✔ | ✔ |
| Metaswitch | Perimeta SBC | ✔ | ✔ | 4.7 (4.9 for Media Bypass) | ✔ | ✔ |
| Cisco | Cisco Unified Border Element (CUBE) for 1000 Series Integrated Services Routers | ✔ | ✔ | Supported IOS XE Amsterdam 17.2.1r (Recommended 17.6.1a) | ✔ | |
| Cisco Unified Border Element (CUBE) for 4000 Series Integrated Services Routers | ✔ | ✔ | Supported IOS XE Amsterdam 17.2.1r (Recommended 17.6.1a) | ✔ | ||
| Cisco Unified Border Element (CUBE) for 1000V Series Cloud Services Router | ✔ | ✔ | Supported IOS XE Amsterdam 17.2.1r (Recommended 17.3.3) | ✔ | ||
| Cisco Unified Border Element (CUBE) for 1000 Series Aggregation Services Routers | ✔ | ✔ | Supported IOS XE Amsterdam 17.2.1r (Recommended 17.6.1a) | ✔ | ||
| Cisco Unified Border Element (CUBE) for Catalyst 8000 Edge Platforms | ✔ | ✔ | Supported IOS XE Amsterdam 17.3.2 (Recommended 17.6.1a) | ✔ | ||
| Avaya | Avaya Session Border Controller for Enterprise (ASBCE) | ✔ | ✔ | Release 8.1.1 or higher (8.1.2 or higher for Media Bypass) | ||
| Nokia | Nokia Session Border Controller | ✔ | ✔ | 24.7 | ✔ | |
| Italtel | NetMatch-S CI | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 5.8 (Recommended the latest version) | ✔ | ✔ |
| Ericsson | vSBC 2.16 | ✔ | ||||
| Cataleya | Orchid Link | ✔ | 3.1 | |||
| ULTATEL | Teams SBC | ✔ | ✔ | 1.6 | ||
| Mitel | Unify OpenScape Session Border Controller | ✔ | ✔ | V10R2.2.0 or higher | ||
| Sansay Inc. | vmVSXi | ✔ | ✔ | 10.5.1.354-vm-S-x64 | ✔ | |
| Enghouse Networks | Dialogic BorderNet SBC | ✔ | ✔ | 3.9.x | ||
| Patton Electronics Co. | Patton SmartNode eSBC | ✔ | 3.19.x | |||
| M5 Technologies (previously known as Media5 Corporation) | Mediatrix Sentinel Series | ✔ | DGW 48.0.2340 (Recommended DGW 48.1.2503) | |||
| Ekinops | Ekinops Session Border Controller (ONeSBC) | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 6.9.x (Recommended 6.10.x) | ||
| Ekinops Virtual Session Border Controller (ONEvSBC) | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 6.9.x (Recommended 6.10.x) | |||
| 46 Labs LLC | Peeredge Orchestrator | ✔ | ✔ | 1.0.6 | ||
| Frafos | ABC SBC | ✔ | 4.6 | |||
| Nuera | GX-500 SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ |
| GX-500 Li SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.2x.xxx (Recommended 7.40A.400) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| GX-800 SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| GX-2600 SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| GX-4000 SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| GX-1000B SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| GX-9000 SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| GX-VE SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| GX-CE SBC | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| GX-3100 | ✔ | ✔ | Supported 7.20A.250 (Recommended 7.40A.500) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Telnyx LLC | Telnyx MS Teams SBC | ✔ | ✔ | v2024.0315.18.37.f2c7869 | ✔ | |
| Vodia Networks Inc. | Vodia PBX | ✔ | v69.4 |
* 911 service providers
Microsoft certifies and supports the following emergency services providers. If a non-certified provider is used, Microsoft may reject support cases.
Local Media Optimization: Enhancing Media Performance
For organizations prioritizing media quality and bandwidth efficiency, Local Media Optimization is a key Direct Routing feature. This functionality allows media traffic to flow directly between users on the local network, bypassing centralized infrastructure and reducing latency.
The following O365 Direct Routing authorized partners offer SBCs that support Local Media Optimization, further enhancing the user experience for voice and video communications within Microsoft Teams:
| Vendor | Product | Software version |
|---|---|---|
| Audiocodes | Mediant 500 SBC | 7.20A.256 |
| Mediant 800 SBC | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.100) | |
| Mediant 2600 SBC | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.100) | |
| Mediant 4000 SBC | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.100) | |
| Mediant 1000B SBC | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.100) | |
| Mediant 9000 SBC | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.100) | |
| Mediant Virtual Edition SBC | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.100) | |
| Mediant Cloud Edition SBC | Supported 7.20A.258 (Recommended 7.40A.100) | |
| Ribbon SBC Core | SBC 5110 | 8.2 or higher SW version |
| SBC 5210 | 8.2 or higher SW version | |
| SBC 5400 | 8.2 or higher SW version | |
| SBC 7000 | 8.2 or higher SW version | |
| SBC SWe | 8.2 or higher SW version | |
| Ribbon SBC Edge | SBC SWe Edge (formerly SWe Lite) | 8.1.5 or higher SW version |
| SBC 1000 | 8.1.5 or higher SW version | |
| SBC 2000 | 8.1.5 or higher SW version | |
| SBC 8000 (w/SBC SWe Edge) | 23.06 or higher SW version | |
| TE-SYSTEMS | anynode | 4.0.1+ |
| Oracle | AP 1100 | 8.4.0.0.0 |
| AP 3900 | 8.4.0.0.1 & 9.x | |
| AP 4600 | 8.4.0.0.1 & 9.x | |
| AP 6300 | 8.4.0.0.1 & 9.x | |
| AP 6350 | 8.4.0.0.1 & 9.x | |
| VME | 8.4.0.0.1 & 9.x | |
| AP 3950 | 9.x | |
| AP 4900 | 9.x | |
| Avaya | Avaya Session Border Controller for Enterprise (ASBCE) | 10.1.2 or higher |
| Italtel | NetMatch-S CI | 5.7 or higher SW version |
| Enghouse Networks | Enghouse BorderNet | 3.9.2-XY or higher SW version |
Integrating Analog Devices with Direct Routing
Many organizations still rely on analog devices like traditional phones and fax machines. Direct Routing can seamlessly integrate these devices into your Microsoft Teams environment through certified Analog Telephone Adapters (ATAs) and gateways working in conjunction with certified SBCs.
The following table lists devices verified for interoperability between Direct Routing and Analog Devices, ensuring you can bridge the gap between legacy and modern communication systems:
| Vendor | Product | Verified |
|---|---|---|
| AudioCodes | ATA-1 | ✔ |
| AudioCodes | ATA-2 | ✔ |
| Cisco | ATA 191 Multiplatform Analog Telephone Adapter | ✔ |
| Oracle | AP 1100 Software Version Supported 8.3.0.1.2 & Recommended 8.4.x or 9.x | ✔ |
| Oracle | AP 3900 Software Version Supported 8.3.0.1.2 & Recommended 8.4.x or 9.x | ✔ |
| Oracle | AP 4600 Software Version Supported 8.3.0.1.2 & Recommended 8.4.x or 9.x | ✔ |
| Oracle | AP 6300 Software Version Supported 8.3.0.1.2 & Recommended 8.4.x or 9.x | ✔ |
| Oracle | AP 6350 Software Version Supported 8.3.0.1.2 & Recommended 8.4.x or 9.x | ✔ |
| Oracle | VME Software Version Supported 8.3.0.1.2 & Recommended 8.4.x or 9.x | ✔ |
| Oracle | AP 3950 Software Version Supported 9.x | ✔ |
| Oracle | AP 4900 Software Version Supported 9.x | ✔ |
| Ribbon | SBC 1000. Software version: 8.1.1 (build 527) or higher SW version | ✔ |
| Ribbon | SBC 2000. Software version: 8.1.1 (build 527) or higher SW version | ✔ |
| Ribbon | EdgeMarc 302. Software version: 16.1.1 or higher SW version | ✔ |
| Ribbon | EdgeMarc 304. Software version: 16.1.1 or higher SW version | ✔ |
| Ribbon | EdgeMarc 2900A. Software version: 16.1.1 or higher SW version | ✔ |
| Ribbon | EdgeMarc 4806. Software version: 16.1.1 or higher SW version | ✔ |
| Ribbon | EdgeMarc 4808. Software version: 16.1.1 or higher SW version | ✔ |
| Ribbon | EdgeMarc 6000. Software version: 16.1.1 or higher SW version | ✔ |
| TE-SYSTEMS | anynode with Grandstream GXW42xx (V1.0.7.10) | ✔ |
Conclusion: Partnering for Direct Routing Success
Choosing an O365 Direct Routing Authorized Partner is a critical decision for any organization looking to integrate their voice services with Microsoft Teams. By selecting a certified SBC vendor, you ensure compatibility, reliability, and ongoing support for your Direct Routing solution. This list of certified vendors provides a starting point for your evaluation, allowing you to choose a partner that best meets your specific needs and technical environment. Remember to always verify the latest certification status and supported firmware versions directly with Microsoft or your chosen vendor to guarantee a seamless and supported Microsoft Teams voice experience.
Note: Microsoft is currently not accepting new nominations for certification. Please refer to the official Microsoft Teams documentation for the most up-to-date information and any changes to the certification program.
