# Search Zen Systems FAQ and Help > Help and FAQ for Zen Systems hosted 3CX: licences, pricing, porting, switching and support, plus the latest articles and case studies. Canonical: https://zen.systems/help JSON-LD: https://zen.systems/help.json This page covers general questions about our service, billing and 3CX, it isn't a technical support or troubleshooting resource, though a few technical basics are included. For hands-on help, contact support directly. Keywords: Zen Systems help, Zen Systems FAQ, 3CX help, 3CX FAQ, 3CX licences, 3CX pricing, 3CX number porting, hosted 3CX support, business phone system UK, Getting started & switching, Pricing & plans, Support & service, Features & apps ## Getting started & switching How the migration works, from first quote to going live. ### How do we get started with Zen Systems? Request a quote and we'll send you a custom quote to match your business needs, or book a free consultation. We then meet to customise your system so it has everything you need, and switch you over with our 4-step Easy Migration Plan. ### What are the four steps of the migration plan? Discovery — we understand your current phone system, needs and challenges through a detailed assessment. Design — we craft a solution with the right features, configurations and integrations. Prepare — we set up and configure the new system, including SIP trunks, private cloud hosting, number ports and team training. Switch — we manage the migration with no downtime, then support you day to day. ### Will we lose phone service while we switch? No. We manage the migration and switch you to the new system without downtime. We have migrated hundreds of businesses with this plan over the last 15 years. ### Can we keep our existing phone numbers? Yes. Number ports are handled in the Prepare step, alongside your SIP trunks, private cloud hosting and team training. ### Do you train our team on the new system? Yes. Team training is part of the Prepare step, so everyone knows the web client, apps and deskphones before you go live. ### Can you take over a 3CX system we already have? Yes. We regularly move 3CX customers across from other providers, and our advanced certified engineers handle the transfer of your system and licence. ## 3CX licences Buying, renewing and upgrading your 3CX licence key. ### Why do we have to buy 3CX through a reseller? 3CX does not sell its own licences directly — they must be bought through an authorised 3CX reseller. We are a Titanium 3CX Partner (Partner ID 202649) and have worked with 3CX for 16 years. ### How do I get my licence key? Your licence is emailed as soon as your order completes. You'll get an order confirmation within a few minutes with your licence key and tax invoice attached — no tickets, no waiting on a reseller. ### How do I renew an existing licence key? Select the same licence size and type as your existing key, then add your existing key in the notes at checkout. We check and renew it automatically and you get a confirmation email within a few minutes. ### Does our licence need renewing every year? Yes. 3CX licences are an annual subscription and require renewal every year. If your system is on our managed service, the licence is included and we handle the renewal — no surprise renewals. ### Can we upgrade a licence part-way through the year? Yes. You can upgrade at any point by paying the difference for the remaining period, pro-rata. So if you are unsure of size, buy on the 1-simultaneous-call-per-3-4-people ratio and upgrade later. ### Where do we download the 3CX software? The latest version is on the 3CX website — builds for Windows and Linux (Debian), plus the 3CX SBC, and the softphone apps for Windows, Android and iOS. ### Is there a user manual? 3CX publish an end-user manual covering the web client, the apps, your deskphone, voicemail and conferencing. There is also an administrator guide covering installation on premise or in the cloud, creating users, SIP trunks, IVRs and call centres, and system management. ## Pricing & plans How 3CX and our managed service are priced. ### How does 3CX pricing work? 3CX is an annual licence subscription priced on the number of simultaneous calls your business needs to make — not the number of users or extensions. Licences come in three tiers: Free, Professional and Enterprise, and are priced per system, not per user. ### What is a simultaneous call? Simultaneous calls are the calls being made concurrently at any given time, internal and external. ### How many simultaneous calls do we need? As a rule of thumb, 1 simultaneous call per 3-4 people works for most businesses — so 50 people need a 16 SC licence. We can work through the right size with you, and you can upgrade later if you need to. ### Is the free licence actually free? Yes. 3CX SMB Free is a free-forever phone system for small businesses, with communication features for up to 10 users, hosted by 3CX. ### What does an annual subscription include? PBX updates with the latest versions and service packs, security updates, the 3CX FQDN service, the 3CX SMTP service for alerts and notifications, and auto-renewal of your Let's Encrypt SSL certificate. You also get seamless use of the iOS and Android apps, 3CX WebMeeting for all users, IP phone firmware and template updates, and CRM and VoIP provider template updates. ### What will it cost us? Enterprise starts from £320 a year per system for a 4 SC licence — smaller call capacity than the 8 SC and 16 SC Professional examples below, which is why it looks cheaper. As a guide, an 8 SC Professional licence is £330 a year and a 16 SC Professional licence is £660 a year. The full pricelist for Professional and Enterprise sits on our 3CX Pricing page, or take the 3CX quiz if you aren't sure which size you need. ### What is included in your managed service? A fixed system price that lets you add users at no extra cost, unlimited support, private cloud hosting, your 3CX licence, inclusive UK landline and mobile minutes, low-cost international calls, cloud backups and 24/7 monitoring. ### Do we pay more every time we add a person? No. There are no per-seat monthly costs, no charge for each premium feature and no separate line and number rental. Add as many users to your 3CX system as you need at no additional cost. ### Are we locked into a long contract? No fixed-term lock-in on our managed service — you pay monthly and can leave with 30 days' notice if we're not delivering. The 3CX licence itself is a separate annual subscription (this is set by 3CX, not us), but that licence is yours and stays with you even if you move providers. ### Can we try 3CX before committing? Yes. 3CX offers a free trial and a free-forever tier for very small teams, so you can get hands-on before spending anything. We'd rather set you up on a free consultation first so you try the system sized correctly for your business, not a generic demo. ## Support & service How to reach us and what our guarantee covers. ### How do we reach support? Call support on 03333 440239, or reach us by email and live chat. Office hours are 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. Use the contact form outside those hours and we'll come back to you within one business day. ### What does the Total Peace of Mind guarantee cover? We guarantee a reliable service with a 99.99% uptime SLA, exceptional support by phone, email and live chat, a service that meets your needs, and that we will reduce your costs wherever possible. ### Where is our phone system hosted? On our Private Cloud in Equinix's London data centres — the same facilities trusted by financial institutions, government agencies and global media companies, with 99.99% uptime. You can also choose to host on premise if that suits you better. ### Is the system monitored and backed up? Yes. Your system is monitored 24/7 for performance and quick resolution of issues, and we take regular cloud backups so your communications are protected. ### Is support limited or charged per issue? No. Unlimited support from our team is part of the service, and our engineers are 3CX advanced certified. Customers regularly rate our support 10/10. ### Can we run 3CX ourselves and still get help? Yes. We offer general advice for getting started with 3CX as a self-managed service, right through to a fully managed 3CX service. Whichever you choose, you buy your licences from us and we are here when you need us. ### Which parts of the UK do you cover? All of it. We work with businesses UK-wide from three offices: Ipswich, Nottingham and Reading. We have been in business since 2007 and are 100% telecoms focused. ### How is our data protected, and is it GDPR compliant? Your calls and data stay on our UK private cloud in Equinix's London data centres, never sent overseas. We're GDPR compliant as standard, and can sign a Data Processing Agreement if your business needs one on file. ### Is 3CX reliable, and will it still be around in a few years? 3CX has built business phone systems since 2005 and is one of the most established names in the market. We've run it for our own customers for 16 years, and issues in the field are almost always down to hardware or internet connections rather than the software itself. ### Is there a community I can ask other 3CX users about? Yes, 3CX runs an active community forum alongside its own support desk, and it's a good place to see how other businesses use the system day to day. As your reseller, we're still your first call for anything account, licence or billing related. ## Features & apps What 3CX can do day to day, and what it connects to. ### Can the team work from home? Yes. 3CX mobile apps and the web-based softphone let your team make and take calls on their business number from anywhere, with hot desking when they are back in the office. ### What call handling features do we get? Call forwarding, voicemail-to-email, call recording, automated attendants, ring groups, call parking and pickup, multi-level IVR, holiday and business hours routing, and skill-based routing on Enterprise. ### Does it do video and messaging too? Yes. 3CX brings voice, video and messaging into one platform — video conferencing, team messaging, WhatsApp, SMS and MMS, and 3CX Talk links for your website. ### Will it work with our CRM and Microsoft 365? Yes. 3CX integrates with popular CRM and business applications and with Microsoft 365, and Microsoft Teams integration is available on Enterprise licences. ### How secure are our calls? 3CX includes end-to-end encryption and secure SIP trunking, and your system sits on our private cloud rather than shared infrastructure. ### Can we keep our existing SIP provider? Yes. 3CX lets you bring your own SIP trunk and supports a wide range of providers, so you can keep call costs low. Our service includes inclusive UK landline and mobile minutes if you would rather we handled it.