Configure Freepbx Step By Step
Michael
However, I do know that if I lose power or the router is retarted, it may dish out a different IP to Asterisk/FreePBX. I know for sure because I restarted the router, and had to change all the phones (extensions) once (restarted Asterisk afterwards also).
You need to modify the file /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-ethN and restart the network service. To do so, perform following steps at the local console (you will loose connection to the server if you do it remotely via SSH):
sorry to bring up an old thread. But I am researching how to assign static IP because I now have a backup standby machine. I was hoping to easily unplug ethernet cord on 1st machine (if it fails), plug in backup machine, reboot router and machine and have everyone talking to each other.
Hi Drrehak, there is nothing wrong with using DHCP. Just keep in mind that your DHCP server (your router) may assign a different IP to the backup machine. In this case you would have to adjust all your SIP peers (phones etc) with the new IP of your new SIP server.
for example, will so do so. It is the rudimentary method of how all real HA (high availability) systems work (and I think that is what you are looking for), but there are many other recipes out there, from the banal to the exquisite, many free but Schmooze will sell you one for a few bucks.
Business and residences alike have turned to VoIP for a multitude of reasons, such as cost effective communication capabilities and the rich feature sets included with most systems. Though many will select hosted services in the cloud, it is very possible to create your own modern day phone system without a strong knowledge of communication technology and a little patience.
In this FreePBX tutorial, we will walk you through the steps necessary to install, setup and configure a powerful IP PBX phone system. The system's design is such that it runs on top of a dedicated Linux machine but does not require a well-versed technician to setup the system. This type of solution can save your business a significant sum of money on your phone bills.
Linux can appear very intimidating as not all distributions offer a stock GUI component, thus requiring the user to interact with the system via the command line. Though FreePBX itself is not graphical in nature, an intuitive web management console is packaged in the software making it accessible for a broad range of users.
Since the distribution includes all the necessary server applications and an underlying operating system, installation is a breeze. After installation, another computer on the LAN is used to access it via a web browser to create all the necessary configurations for a functional calling solution, in a graphical environment.
FreePBX is a very powerful system, including far more features and settings than we can cover in a single article. By following the instructions in this guide, you will find how simple it is to create a basic solution that allows users to easily call other extensions on the network at no cost and inexpensively call external phone numbers, mobile devices and landlines via a wholesale VoIP provider (VoIP Innovations).
A dedicated machine is required to run the software - virtualization applications like VMware Workstation (and vSphere, for that matter) also work. If you do not have a specific machine to run the system, free applications like VirtualBox can be a good option. This article ONLY focuses on configuration of a dedicated machine.
Fortunately, only moderately powered hardware is needed so the computing component does not have to be expensive. I used an older system with a quad core AMD processor and 2GB of RAM that was originally built for XP Professional and created a 300GB partition from unused storage. My processor meets hardware pre-requisites but I technically only had half of the RAM required (2GB instead of 4GB). The preferred storage reserve for the system is 250GB, but this assumes use of call recordings and voicemails so it can vary quite substantially.
Ideally, this system should be the only OS that is utilized on the machine and it must always be running for your phone system to function. When installing the platform distribution, you will have the option to completely wipe the drive (which is recommended) or install it alongside another OS.
In this guide, we will be using a FreePBX distro package that includes both a supported operating system (CentOS) and the main application. This package is free and available directly from Schmooze Com.
By navigating to the FreePBX download, you will find the current distro's - keep in mind, these will changeover time as new versions are released. Select Full ISO from the stable 64 bit option for the best performance. The USB IMG option will work as well but depending on your system, it may be more difficult to install.
You can burn the image natively with most operating systems but for Microsoft OS's prior to 7, you will need a 3rd party app like ImgBurnor UltraISO (beware of packaged Adware with some hosts!) These are all good options, regardless of native burning apps since disc recording speeds may belowered for more accurate media.
Boot into the disc on the machine where you want to install the software. The first screen you see will ask you to select between an older or newer version of Asterisk and the method of installation as seen in figure 2.
Assuming you chose the stable version of the distro as earlier indicated, you should choose the newest version of Asterisk and the Full Install - Advanced option. Walk through the following steps to install the full system to your machine.
It is recommended you use the whole hard drive as this is more secure and the machine must be up for the system to work. If you want to keep the existingsystem(s) on your machine, use the Shrink Current System. If a suitable chunk of unused space is already available, choose Use Free Space and select the desired space.
The system will proceed to install the software, reboot once then load up the welcome screen. Essentially everything you need to do from here will be done via a web browser so logging into the machine and poking around is not necessary, as this will likely do more harm than good, especially if unfamiliar with the command line for Linux.
After the installation, you will be able to access the web management console from a browser on another machine within the LAN. Type the IP address of the machine into your browser to get started. The first page you see should look like the one shown below in figure 4.
Enter the required information by creating an administrator name and password. For email to function properly, you will need to configure an SMTP connector. In a Windows server environment, an admin can easily create an account for such purposes in Microsoft Exchange. Using a 3rd party email such as Google is also possible but doing it ideally requires use of Google Apps for Work.
When navigating to the system via a web browser, you will land on a splash page with four main options. You will select FreePBX Administration for configuration. After logging in for the first time (and each subsequent time) you will land on the system status page as shown in figure 5.
Take a look at the notification area in the top left corner. One of the first messages you should see recommends changing the password for the Asterisk server as the default password is common knowledge. You can change this by going to the Advanced Settings option under the Settings tab as can be seen in figure 6 below.
Updating FreePBX modules (i.e. system features) is an important practice as this ensures certain tools remain operable and further reduces the chance of a system exploitation. To upgrade modules, visit the Admin tab and select Module Admin. Click the Check Online button to receive the most current information then check the box for Show only upgradeable. Click the Upgrade all hyperlink then the Process button on the following page.
A couple of things to note at this point: you can add additional modules from this point but it is not necessary as the required features for voice and video are already installed. The following steps do not necessarily require completion in the same order but if you are attempting to mimic my setup, it is best to complete in the same order.
Next we will configure the network settings inside the console as a measure to prime the system for connecting to our wholesale provider, VoIP Innovations. The first area we will configure is related to settings for the LAN. This will provide functionality for your phones and softphones on the local network so if you are not planning on connecting a SIP account at this time, you can skip to the Configuring Extensions section.
Navigate to the System Admin module found under the Admin tab at the top. On the right side of the page, you will see a box for additional sub settings. First, select the DNS and make the following changes as seen in figure 7.
Order is not too important as long as a few entries are added to the box that normally do not populate automatically. The two beginning in 75 related to my Internet Service Provider (ISP). You can find this and other network info by running cat /etc/resolv.conf on the local machine (or other UNIX like system on the network, including a Mac) or ipconfig /all from a Windows machine. These addresses and the public DNS entries (the two that begin with 8) are mostly for good measure - as long as your loopback address (127.0.0.1 - this reserved address is always the same) and default gateway (in my case, 10.0.0.1) are included you should be ok.
When you finish adding DNS entries, go to the Network Settings section and add missing information. Make sure the IP protocol is set to None and configure the Static IP setting to the local address of the machine that is running FreePBX. Make sure the rest of the information matches your local network, as viewed in figure 8.
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