When Teams is down, RingCentral keeps working because we built true platform independence

Consumer video companies don’t understand enterprise voice architecture, especially when it comes to actually delivering on 99.999% uptime, and recent market claims and misinformation spread prove it. 

There’s been misleading information circulating about RingCentral’s Microsoft Teams integration and our business continuity. Let’s examine why RingCentral’s purpose-built architecture stands apart from meeting solutions that weren’t designed for enterprise voice reliability.

RingCentral built 99.999% carrier-grade reliability before UCaaS existed

RingCentral’s foundation is built on delivering carrier-grade reliability. Before Teams existed, before UCaaS was a buzzword, we were building a global network designed for 99.999% reliability. This isn’t a new promise – it’s our heritage.

Designed to overcome Teams integration failure points

When we built our Microsoft Teams integration, we started with a fundamental principle: your business communications can’t have a single point of failure. Period.

Here’s how we delivered on that:

Independent infrastructure

• • Our own global voice network
  • Geographically distributed data centers
  • Built-in redundancy at every level
  • No dependency on any single platform

Multiple access paths

• • Native Teams integration
  • Browser-based access (no downloads needed)
  • Desktop applications
  • Mobile apps
  • Each path fully functional on its own

Browser access means instant business continuity

During normal operations:

• • Seamless Teams experience
  • Full PBX capabilities, SMS, fax
  • Advanced call handling
  • Complete feature set
    

If Teams becomes unavailable:

1. Open any web browser 
2. Go to app.ringcentral.com
3. Log in
4. Never skip a beat with the same full featured experience

No emergency deployments. No rushed training. No compromise on features.

Three technical pillars that guarantee reliability

Our reliability comes from fundamental architectural decisions:

1. Independent global infrastructure

• • Carrier-grade voice network
  • Multiple redundant paths
  • Automatic failover systems
  • Continuous monitoring

2. WebRTC implementation

• • Zero-footprint browser access
  • Enterprise-grade security and compliance maintained
  • HD voice quality
  • Network optimization
  • Full featured browser experience

3. Distributed architecture

• • No single point of failure
  • Geographic redundancy
  • Active-active data centers
  • Intelligent routing

5+ years of 99.999% uptime… and it’s just the beginning.

While 99.999% reliability is crucial, it’s about more than numbers:

• • Enterprise-grade PBX features
  • Advanced call handling
  • Unified communications
  • Global reach
  • Regulatory compliance
  • Proven scalability

Business continuity is built into our DNA, not bolted on later

Business continuity isn’t about patches and workarounds. It’s about fundamental architecture. As organizations become more distributed and more dependent on digital communications, the ability to maintain operations isn’t optional.

Promising 99.999% is one thing. Delivering is another.

Anyone can write “99.999%” into a service level agreement or in their marketing content. But delivering five nines in the real world? That’s different.

An SLA is a contract term. Actual uptime is what your business experiences. When your provider has an outage, getting credited for downtime doesn’t keep your business running.

Let’s be clear about what matters:

• • Not what’s promised in contracts
  • Not what’s written in marketing slides
  • Not what’s buried in SLA fine print

What matters is whether your business can communicate. Period.

When Teams goes down, you don’t need SLA credits. You need to keep working. That’s why we built true platform independence.

See our architecture in action, not just on paper

We’re happy to demonstrate exactly how our architecture works:

• • Live failover scenarios
  • Browser-based access
  • Feature preservation
  • Security maintenance

Because when it comes to business continuity, seeing is believing.

Want to understand what true business continuity looks like? Let’s talk about your specific needs and show you how our architecture delivers.

Originally published Dec 16, 2024