For those who have their trixbox Pro server open to the Internet, or who just love locking things down…this article is for you. Enjoy!

http://sureteq.com/asterisk/trixbox_Pro_firewall.htm

-Chris

Anyone want to set up record all on trixbox Pro? Try this out…

http://sureteq.com/asterisk/trixbox_Pro_record_all.htm

Oh…and did I mention that it’s free? Enjoy…

-Sherwood

Hey everyone…I just released my trixbox CE v2.6.2 Complete Setup Guide for Small Business. This is a step-by-step guide to getting trixbox CE v2.6.2 installed and configured for a small business environment. I have expanded upon my previous setup guides by adding some new sections on Conferencing, Web Meetme, bulk extensions, additional IP phones setup and config, and a TON of new screenshots.

Enjoy!

http://sureteq.com/asterisk/trixboxv2.6.2.htm

-Schwood

Support for G.729 is a part of trixbox Pro by default, however it is not activated (does not show up in the Admin CP) until a G.729 license has been activated.

G.729 is a codec designed by Digium that can get calls down to around 8kbps (up and down) per call. It is a great alternative to G.711 ULAW which can be up around 80kbps (up and down) per call. G.729 costs $10.00 per license (per active channel), and is available from Digium. (more…)

I was recently asked to figure out how to create a VoIP cross connect between trixbox Pro and trixbox CE. I accomplished this using the IAX2 protocol, and did a write-up for everyone to use!

Enjoy…

http://sureteq.com/asterisk/trixboxPro_to_CE_IAX2_trunk.htm

-Chris

There are numerous external paging systems, or overhead pagers that can be configured to work with trixbox Pro. First though, there are two separate types of overhead paging systems…those that work over VoIP, and those that work via FXS ports. (more…)

By default, trixbox Pro’s DNS server (BIND v9) comes enabled, but is only configured to answer requests on the localhost address (127.0.0.1). This guide will show you how to enable DNS for all ethernet interfaces, and also how to set up a forwarder to another DNS server to handle unresolved requests. (more…)

I was recently tasked with a new project: Figure out the best way to load balance SIP across multiple trixbox Pro servers for a large call center. In my research, I came across the SIP Express Router (SER). It has been around for a LONG time, and the project…even though functional…was pretty much stalled. I suppose the original programmers lost interest, or moved on to other ventures…who knows…it happens all the time in the open-source world. (more…)

I have been going through the process of beefing up the trixbox Reseller wiki lately, and I have just added a new article entitled ‘DHCP 101′ which details the configuration of DHCP services on the trixbox Pro.

If you are a trixbox Pro Reseller, but don’t have a logon to the new wiki, please let me know! Based on your permissions, the reseller section will appear or not. http://help.trixbox.com.

I received an interesting call from Andy Roe from Orange Coast Information Technology this morning. Andy’s company is in Orange County, CA, and the California Public Utilities Commission is currently in the process of overlapping a new area code (657) on the existing 714 area code area. This means that everyone in 714 will have to start dialing 1+714+nxxxxxx for all local numbers…basically mandatory 10 digit dialing starting on Saturday 8/23/2008. I know of other counties in the country that do this as well, so this problem doesn’t apply to OC only.

Andy proposed modifying the trixbox Pro dial plan so that if a user dials 7 digits, they are re-routed to a recording that explains that they have to dial 10 digits rather than simply disabling 7 digit dialing altogether, which is a great idea as well as a great value-added service he will be providing for all of his trixbox Pro customers in the OC area. I set this up in my home lab, and it works great! Here’s how it is done:

Almost like standard IVR programming, you want to design forward and program backwards. First, we need to create the recording that tells users that they can no longer dial 7 digits from within the 714 area code.

Go to ‘AutoAnswer –> voice prompts’ and enter in the name of your recording. I am using ‘SevenDigitNotice’ as the name. Then enter in a more detailed description and your extension. When you click ‘Call Me,’ your extension will be called, and you will be walked through recording the new voice prompt.

My new voice prompt sounds something like this:

“You have dialed only 7 digits. You must now dial 1 plus all 10 digits for local calls in the 714 area code. Please hang up and try again. Thank you.”

Once your voice prompt has been recorded, we now need to create a sub-menu that points to this recording. Click on ‘AutoAnswer –> sub-menus’ and create a new sub-menu. I called mine ‘SevenDigitNotice’ much like the recording I just created.

Edit your new sub-menu and delete the first step (no need to change the caller ID). Add two steps:

1. Play recording (SevenDigitNotice) don’t listen for keypress
2. Hang-up

Very simple. We now need to create an extension for our new sub-menu. Click on ‘Extension –> add extension.’ Give it an extension number (I used 7007), a description, first name, last name, and a web username and password. These are mandatory fields even though most of them will not be used. From the ‘Phones / Devices’ field, select ‘voicemail only (free).’ We can use a voicemail only extension so that we don’t have to allocate a license for this solution.

Now select the ‘SevenDigitNotice’ sub-menu from the ‘Call Forwarding’ drop-down box and disable voicemail (optional). Click ‘Add extension’ to finish up. Now, if you dial x7007, it will play my recording and hang up.

The last step is to configure my 7 digit dial plan to go to this recording whenever someone dials 9+7 digits. Click on ‘Options –> dial plan’ and select the 9+nxxxxxx dial plan. Change it to reflect these settings:

Dial string: 9+nxxxxxx
Description: (can be whatever you want)
Type: local call
Route: local system (very important setting!)
Strip digits: 8 (the number 9 plus all 7 digits of the number they dialed)
Prepend: 7007 (the extension I created that plays my recording)

Now when a user dials 9+7 digits, they are redirected to x7007 which forwards to a sub-menu that plays a recording telling them about having to dial 10 digits…thats it! Much better than a fast busy.