[sf-lug] Anyone using Asterisk with VoIP on Linux?

[Sameer Verma]

John F. Strazzarino wrote:
>
> A friend is setting up a VoIP system for his office.  It is a small
> operation, he just wants to get 4 phones working.  He does have a
> Trandnet router with the IP phone plugged into it and he gets a
> dialtone, but that's it.  His Linux server has a myriad of error
> messages (of course, none of which I have captured!) which would
> probably explain why the setup is not working. 
>
>  
>
> Does anyone have any experience/knowledge of how to do this?
>
>  
>

A small network of 4 phones is simple enough where you can get a low-end
PII box and run Astlinux (http://www.astlinux.org/). I've used AstLinux
before and it works quite well. You can grab their bootable ISO and boot
the machine off of it and run it from there. No hard drive needed.
Astlinux uses a USB flash key to store settings, so that you can use a
read-only bootable CD to boot the machine and then store the settings on
the USB key.

I did a presentation to SFLUG way back on Astlinux. My slides are up at
http://opensource.sfsu.edu/node/228

For more hefty requirements check out Trixbox. http://www.trixbox.org/

> I'm reading 'Asterisk for Dummies' like mad, so that would explain my
> knowledge level.
>
>  
>
> Also, do all phones in a VoIP system need to match (same model and
> features) or can you just use 'any old' IP phone?
>
No. You can mix and match phones, both hardware-based and soft ones. You
can also mix and match protocols such as SIP ans IAX. For example, I
currently have a PBX in my office that allows me to dial out from a
Nokia N810 via Gizmo when I am traveling overseas. Gizmo uses SIP. I am
also able to call home where I have an analog phone connected to an ATA
called the IAXy (http://www.voip-info.org/wiki-IAXy) which uses IAX. The
server (trixbox) translates SIP-IAX on the fly.


>  
>
> Thanks
>
>  
>
> John
>
>  
>
> P.S. Feel free to contact me 'off list' if you feel that the
> discussion is not appropriate to this list.
>
>  
>
Discussion is very appropriate to this list :-)

Sameer

-- 
Dr. Sameer Verma, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Information Systems
San Francisco State University
San Francisco CA 94132 USA
http://verma.sfsu.edu/
http://opensource.sfsu.edu/