How To – Fix the Perl repo for ViciBox 10(Leap 15.3)

Repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.2-PHP-Applications' is invalid.

How To – Fix the Perl repo for ViciBox 10(Leap 15.3)

If you’ve tried to update your ViciBox 10 system you’ll see that the Perl repo gives an error and you can’t update from that repo any longer. The reason for this is because Leap 15.3 has gone end of life(EOL) and will no longer be getting updates. The other repos will begin to die as well and your system will remain vulnerable to hackers as dialer system are high priority targets right now for ransomware groups, denialof service attackers and crypto miners. So how do you fix this issue? You upgrade to leap 15.4 following this article: How to – Upgrade OpenSuSE Leap 15.3 to 15.4.

Repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.2-PHP-Applications' is invalid.
Repository ‘openSUSE-Leap-15.3-PERL’ is invalid.

Hopefully this helps those of you running into this problem and you’ll now be able to keep your systems secure.

Chris aka carpenox

How to – Upgrade OpenSuSE Leap 15.3 to 15.4

How to – Upgrade OpenSuSE Leap 15.3 to 15.4

This article will go over how to upgrade Leap 15.3 to 15.4 since 15.3 is end of life

Step 1. Preparations – Backup everything

Keep verified backups: Do not skip this step. Before typing the following commands, you must back up all data and config files. Also, ensure your system backup is up-to-date and restorable in an emergency. The author or nixCraft is not liable for damages due to failed upgrades.

Step 2. Update OpenSUSE 15.3 packages

The openSUSE Leap version 15.3 is only available as the 64-bit release. Next, type the following zypper command to update all existing packages. To refresh a repo, enter:
$ sudo zypper ref
Outputs:

Repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.3' is up to date.                                                     
Repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update' is up to date.                                              
Repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update-Non-Oss' is up to date.                                      
Repository 'Update repository of openSUSE Backports' is up to date.                                
Retrieving repository 'Update repository with updates from SUSE Linux Enterprise 15' metadata[done]
Building repository 'Update repository with updates from SUSE Linux Enterprise 15' cache ....[done]
All repositories have been refreshed.

Update ALL installed packages with newer versions and patches

Before the upgrade procedure can begin, apply all pending upgrades or security patches. For example:
$ sudo zypper up
Outputs:

Loading repository data...
Warning: Repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update' appears to be outdated. Consider using a different mirror or server.
Reading installed packages...

The following 10 packages are going to be upgraded:
  cups cups-client cups-config libcups2 libcupscgi1 libcupsimage2 libcupsmime1 libcupsppdc1
  libfreetype6 libqpdf26

10 packages to upgrade.
Overall download size: 8.4 MiB. Already cached: 0 B. After the operation, additional 79.8 KiB will
be used.
Continue? [y/n/v/...? shows all options] (y): y
Retrieving package cups-config-2.2.7-150000.3.35.1.x86_64    (1/10), 239.1 KiB (  3.1 MiB unpacked)
Retrieving: cups-config-2.2.7-150000.3.35.1.x86_64.rpm ......................................[done]
Retrieving package libfreetype6-2.10.4-150000.4.12.1.x86_64  (2/10), 447.3 KiB (  1.1 MiB unpacked)
Retrieving: libfreetype6-2.10.4-150000.4.12.1.x86_64.rpm ....................................[done]
....
..
Checking for file conflicts: ................................................................[done]
( 1/10) Installing: cups-config-2.2.7-150000.3.35.1.x86_64 ..................................[done]
( 2/10) Installing: libfreetype6-2.10.4-150000.4.12.1.x86_64 ................................[done]
( 3/10) Installing: libqpdf26-9.0.2-150200.3.3.1.x86_64 .....................................[done]
....
( 9/10) Installing: cups-client-2.2.7-150000.3.35.1.x86_64 ..................................[done]
Failed to try-restart cups-lpd@.service: Unit name cups-lpd@.service is missing the instance name.
See system logs and 'systemctl status cups-lpd@.service' for details.
(10/10) Installing: cups-2.2.7-150000.3.35.1.x86_64 .........................................[done]
Executing %posttrans scripts ................................................................[done]

Step 3. Reboot the server

How To Upgrade OpenSUSE Leap To 15.4

Now note down the current Linux kernel version, type:
$ uptime
$ uname -mrs

You must reboot the Linux cloud box, using the shutdown command or reboot command:
$ sudo systemctl reboot
## OR ##
$ sudo shutdown -r now

Log in using the ssh command once system comes back online:
$ ssh ec2-user@your-aws-ec2-dns-ip-here
## OR ##
$ ssh root@your-Linode-dnsname-OR-ip-here

Then verify Linux kernel version:
$ uname -mrs
Also note down the OpenSUSE Linux version using the cat command:
$ cat /etc/os-release

Step 4. Upgrading OpenSUSE 15.3 to 15.4

Now my cloud server is fully patched. It is time to update the server to OpenSUSE version 15.4.

List the repositories

The update repository must exist and is enabled and update before upgrading to 15.3. Verify it using the zypper command as follows:
$ sudo zypper repos --uri
## OR type ##
$ sudo zypper lr -u

Output indicating that there are no 3rd party repos and Update repos are enabled on my OpenSUSE 15.3 server:

Repository priorities are without effect. All enabled repositories share the same priority.
 
# | Alias                             | Name                                                                                        | Enabled | GPG Check | Refresh | URI
--+-----------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------+-----------+---------+---------------------------------------------------------------
1 | openSUSE-Leap-15.3                | openSUSE-Leap-15.3                                                                          | Yes     | (r ) Yes  | Yes     | http://download.opensuse.org/distribution/leap/15.3/repo/oss/
2 | openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update         | openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update                                                                   | Yes     | (r ) Yes  | Yes     | http://download.opensuse.org/update/leap/15.3/oss/
3 | openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update-Non-Oss | openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update-Non-Oss                                                           | Yes     | (r ) Yes  | Yes     | http://download.opensuse.org/update/leap/15.3/non-oss/
4 | repo-backports-debug-update       | Update repository with updates for openSUSE Leap debuginfo packages from openSUSE Backports | No      | ----      | ----    | http://download.opensuse.org/update/leap/15.3/backports_debug/
5 | repo-backports-update             | Update repository of openSUSE Backports                                                     | Yes     | (r ) Yes  | Yes     | http://download.opensuse.org/update/leap/15.3/backports/
6 | repo-sle-debug-update             | Update repository with debuginfo for updates from SUSE Linux Enterprise 15                  | No      | ----      | ----    | http://download.opensuse.org/debug/update/leap/15.3/sle/
7 | repo-sle-update                   | Update repository with updates from SUSE Linux Enterprise 15                                | Yes     | (r ) Yes  | Yes     | http://download.opensuse.org/update/leap/15.3/sle/

Verify that we can get latest OpenSUSE 15.4 version, run:
$ sudo zypper --releasever=15.4 lr -u
Here is what I see

Warning: Enforced setting: $releasever=15.4
Repository priorities are without effect. All enabled repositories share the same priority.
 
# | Alias                             | Name                                                                                        | Enabled | GPG Check | Refresh | URI
--+-----------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------+-----------+---------+---------------------------------------------------------------
1 | openSUSE-Leap-15.3                | openSUSE-Leap-15.3                                                                          | Yes     | (r ) Yes  | Yes     | http://download.opensuse.org/distribution/leap/15.4/repo/oss/
2 | openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update         | openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update                                                                   | Yes     | (r ) Yes  | Yes     | http://download.opensuse.org/update/leap/15.4/oss/
3 | openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update-Non-Oss | openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update-Non-Oss                                                           | Yes     | (r ) Yes  | Yes     | http://download.opensuse.org/update/leap/15.4/non-oss/
4 | repo-backports-debug-update       | Update repository with updates for openSUSE Leap debuginfo packages from openSUSE Backports | No      | ----      | ----    | http://download.opensuse.org/update/leap/15.4/backports_debug/
5 | repo-backports-update             | Update repository of openSUSE Backports                                                     | Yes     | (r ) Yes  | Yes     | http://download.opensuse.org/update/leap/15.4/backports/
6 | repo-sle-debug-update             | Update repository with debuginfo for updates from SUSE Linux Enterprise 15                  | No      | ----      | ----    | http://download.opensuse.org/debug/update/leap/15.4/sle/
7 | repo-sle-update                   | Update repository with updates from SUSE Linux Enterprise 15                                | Yes     | (r ) Yes  | Yes     | http://download.opensuse.org/update/leap/15.4/sle/

In the above output results, check the last URI column). All repository links should contain 15.4 or openSUSE_Leap_15.4 as a version number. If not check if your Leap repos defined in /etc/zypp/repos.d/ are using the $releasever variable already in the URIs. For example, try the grep command:
$ sudo grep baseurl /etc/zypp/repos.d/*.repo
If you see hard-coded version 15.3 Leap version number, then you need to modify them first. This can be done using the sed command to find and replace with sed:
$ sudo sed -i 's/15.3/${releasever}/g' /etc/zypp/repos.d/*.repo
Now verify again:
$ sudo zypper --releasever=15.4 lr -u

Running the upgrade for 15.4

It is time to switch and refresh all repositories to 15.4 using the following syntax and grab the repository metadata:
$ sudo zypper --releasever=15.4 ref
For slower

Warning: Enforced setting: $releasever=15.4
Retrieving repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.3' metadata ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................[done]
Building repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.3' cache .....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................[done]
Retrieving repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update' metadata .........................................................................................................................................................................................................................[done]
Building repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update' cache ..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................[done]
Retrieving repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update-Non-Oss' metadata .................................................................................................................................................................................................................[done]
Building repository 'openSUSE-Leap-15.3-Update-Non-Oss' cache ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................[done]
Retrieving repository 'Update repository of openSUSE Backports' metadata ...........................................................................................................................................................................................................[done]
Building repository 'Update repository of openSUSE Backports' cache ................................................................................................................................................................................................................[done]
Retrieving repository 'Update repository with updates from SUSE Linux Enterprise 15' metadata ......................................................................................................................................................................................[done]
Building repository 'Update repository with updates from SUSE Linux Enterprise 15' cache ...........................................................................................................................................................................................[done]
All repositories have been refreshed.

Next, execute the following command for full distribution upgrade to 15.4 from 15.3. Please note that command must be typed from non-GUI (KDE/GNOME) mode. Hence, it is recommended you run the command from either runlevel 3 (text + network), or a virtual console (see how to switch boot target to text or GUI in systemd Linux for more info.). You can press Ctrl-Alt-F2 (all at the same time) to switch to virtual terminal 2. One can also issue the following command:
$ sudo systemctl set-default multi-user.target
Let us start the distribution upgrade that will get your system to the new version:
$ sudo zypper --releasever=15.4 dup
OR first download everything on slower internet connection to avoid any problem with upgrades:
$ sudo zypper --releasever=15.4 dup --download-in-advance
Once the dup is finished, openSUSE sets the releasever variable to the new version 15.4:

Final confirmation

At the following prompt type y and hit the [Enter] key to start upgrade procedure:

The following 11 packages are going to be REMOVED:
  kernel-default-5.3.18-150300.59.87.1 kernel-default-5.3.18-150300.59.90.1 kernel-default-extra-5.3.18-150300.59.87.1
  kernel-default-extra-5.3.18-150300.59.90.1 kernel-default-optional-5.3.18-150300.59.87.1
  kernel-default-optional-5.3.18-150300.59.90.1 librsvg-lang libusbguard0 libwebkit2gtk3-lang libyui-ncurses-pkg15
  systemd-icon-branding-openSUSE
 
The following package requires a system reboot:
  kernel-default-5.14.21-150400.24.18.1
 
486 packages to upgrade, 4 to downgrade, 55 new, 11 to remove.
Overall download size: 688.7 MiB. Already cached: 0 B. After the operation, additional 51.0 MiB will be used.
 
    Note: System reboot required.
Continue? [y/n/v/...? shows all options] (y): y

The zypper command will download, install, or upgrade a total of 486 packages on my cloud server. The procedure to download and install packages takes its own sweet time. So, naturally, your Internet and cloud server speed plays a significant role. In the end, you should see an output as follows showing you must reboot the OpenSUSE server or desktop:

....
..
dracut: *** Stripping files done ***
dracut: *** Creating image file '/boot/initrd-5.14.21-150400.24.18-default' ***
dracut: *** Creating initramfs image file '/boot/initrd-5.14.21-150400.24.18-default' done ***
(403/552) Installing: kernel-default-5.14.21-150400.24.18.1.x86_64 ......................................................[done]
(404/552) Removing kernel-default-5.3.18-150300.59.87.1.x86_64 ..........................................................[done]
(405/552) Removing kernel-default-5.3.18-150300.59.90.1.x86_64 ..........................................................[done]
(406/552) Installing: util-linux-lang-2.37.2-150400.8.3.1.noarch ........................................................[done]
(407/552) Installing: systemd-network-249.12-150400.8.10.1.x86_64 .......................................................[done]
(408/552) Installing: kernel-default-extra-5.14.21-150400.24.18.1.x86_64 ................................................[done]
(409/552) Installing: grub2-systemd-sleep-plugin-2.06-150400.11.5.2.noarch ..............................................[done]
.....
..
Executing %posttrans scripts ............................................................................................[done]
There are running programs which still use files and libraries deleted or updated by recent upgrades. They should be restarted to benefit from the latest updates. Run 'zypper ps -s' to list these programs.
 
Since the last system boot core libraries or services have been updated.
Reboot is suggested to ensure that your system benefits from these updates.

Therefore, reboot the Linode or AWS cloud server using the shutdown command or reboot command as follows:
$ sudo reboot

Step 5: Verification

How to Upgrade OpenSUSE 15.3 to OpenSUSE 15.4 and verify it

Make sure everything is working. First, find OpenSuse Linux Version and other info:
$ uname -mrs
$ cat /etc/os-release
$ hostnamectl


Then check your Linux server log file. For instance, use the journalctl command/tail command/dmesg command command and others:
$ sudo tail -f /var/log/nginx/www.nixcraft_com_access.log
$ dmesg | more
$ journalctl -xe

Step 6: Apply any newly released updates

Finally, again use the zypper command to apply security patches, software updates and Linux kernel:
$ sudo zypper refresh
$ sudo zypper patch
$ sudo zypper update
# if a new Linux kernel installed, reboot the box
$ sudo reboot

Hopefully this will help a lot of you keep up to date and secure

Chris aka carpenox

How to – Integrate Queuemetrics with Vicidial

How to – Integrate Queuemetrics with Vicidial

This article will go over how to integrate Queuemetrics with ViciDial


ViciDial integration

ViciDial is an enterprise class, open source call center suite in use by many large call centers around the world.

VICIdial has a full featured predictive dialer. It can also function as an ACD for inbound calls, or closer calls coming from VICIdial outbound frontiers. It is capable of inbound, outbound, and blended call handling.

It can also be easily integrated with QueueMetrics.

For more information, see http://www.vicidial.com

ViciDial is a registered trademark.

Prerequisites

  • A working ViciDial instance, version 2.0.4 or later

It is very important that all servers involved (be they for QueueMetrics or ViciDial or general Asterisk usage) are on the same time zone and time, aligned with sub-second precision by an NTP daemon. If this is not so, the setting may lead to data corruption and inaccurate reports.

In order to translate ViciDial data to QueueMetrics, the following conventions are used:

  • The campaign_id in ViciDial is seen as the queue in QueueMetrics
  • The user ID in ViciDial is prepended by “agent/” and translated to the agent code in QueueMetrics (e.g. user 123 appears as agent/123)
  • The UniqueID for the call appears as Asterisk’s unique id prepended with server_id field (e.g. 1-1170345123.1234)

In this example, we imagine that:

  • The QueueMetrics server has IP 1.2.3.4
  • The QueueMetrics database server has IP 1.2.3.5 and the QM database is called “queuemetrics”
  • The ViciDial server has IP 1.2.3.6

Changes to QueueMetrics database

ViciDial and QueueMetrics work together by sharing the database.

You must log on to the QueueMetrics database and create a user for ViciDial to connect to it. We use a different username from the one QM uses so it is easy to monitor who is doing what.

GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON queuemetrics.* TO vicidial@'1.2.3.6' IDENTIFIED BY 'qm';

ViciDial will also need special indexing on the ‘queue_log’ table to work efficiently:

CREATE INDEX vici_time_id on queue_log(time_id);
CREATE INDEX vici_call_id on queue_log(call_id);

Changes to ViciDial

The system configuration can easily be set from the ViciDial Admin / System Settings page:

vicidial system settings
  • Enable QueueMetrics logging: set to 1
  • QueueMetrics server IP: this is the IP for the MySQL DB server, in our example “1.2.3.5”
  • QueueMetrics DB name: the database name, in our example “queuemetrics”
  • QueueMetrics DB login: the database login, in our example “vicidial”
  • QueueMetrics DB password: the database password, in our example “qm”
  • QueueMetrics URL: the login URL for QM, e.g. “http://1.2.3.4:8080/queuemetrics”
  • QueueMetrics LogID: leave it to VIC (this in an ID for the server)
  • QueueMetrics EnterQueue Prepend: This field is used to allow for prepending of one of the vicidial_list data fields in front of the phone number of the customer for customized QueueMetrics reports. Default is NONE to avoid populating anything.

A set of cron jobs is expected to run to keep the logs updated; check that they are present by issuing a ‘crontab -e’:

### fix the vicidial_agent_log once every hour and the full day run at night
33 * * * * /usr/share/astguiclient/AST_cleanup_agent_log.pl
50 0 * * * /usr/share/astguiclient/AST_cleanup_agent_log.pl --last-24hours
*/5 * * * * /usr/share/astguiclient/AST_cleanup_agent_log.pl --only-qm-live-call-check
1 1 * * * /usr/share/astguiclient/Vtiger_optimize_all_tables.pl --quiet

Also, you will need to install the PHP XML-RPC library in order to have audio data accessible from the QueueMetrics server:

pear install XML_RPC-1.5.1

Changes to QueueMetrics

Edit the ‘configuration.properties’ file in order to set the following properties:

# This is the default queue log file.
default.queue_log_file=sql:P01

By default, ViciDial logs all data to partition “P01”.

audio.server=it.loway.app.queuemetrics.callListen.listeners.ClassicXmlRpcRecordings

audio.liveserver=it.loway.app.queuemetrics.callListen.RTlisteners.ClassicXmlRpcListenerRT

default.audioRpcServer=http://1.2.3.6/vicidial/xml_rpc_audio_server_vicidial.php

Change ‘1.2.3.6’ to your ViciDial server address.

After this, you need to define each ViciDial campaign as a QueueMetrics queue, and set it properly as an inbound or outbound one. After that, you can freely create composite queues to report on all or some activity at once.

The live monitoring asks for an extension to send the call to, this is an extension dialed on the active voicemail server as defined in the system settings. If there is no active voicemail defined then the live monitor will place the call to the extension on the server that the agent is on.

As far as I know, no one uses this anymore, but I wanted to give those of you that are interested the ability to give it a try if you wanted, so here it is

Chris aka carpenox

How to – enable and use password encryption in ViciDial

Password Encryption

How to – enable and use password encryption in ViciDial

    This article is going to go over how to enable and use password encryption in ViciDial. By default passwords are displayed in plain text in the ViciDial Admin GUI, this will show you how to encrypt those.

  Step 1: Installing the Bcrypt perl module

   Using the CPAN console install the Bcrypt, run the below command

cpan
install Crypt::Eksblowfish::Bcrypt

install Bcrypt with cpan

  Step 2: Enabling the Password Encryption

    By default the Password encryption is disabled in Vicidial and we need to enable it by using a perl script via the Linux command line as show below:

/usr/share/astguiclient/ADMIN_bcrypt_convert.pl –debugX –test

If no errors received run the same script without –test flag as shown below

/usr/share/astguiclient/ADMIN_bcrypt_convert.pl –debugX 

Now navigate to ADMIN > SYSTEM SETTINGS > PASSWORD ENCRYPTION
and you’ll see the Password Encryption is now enabled. Now all new users added to the system will automatically be encrypted.

  Step 3: Encrypting Plain Text Password

    All the users passwords which are created before enabling the Password encryption, will remain as clear plain text ,to encrypt the existing plain text passwords either manually edit them and update or run the below command to convert all the plain text to encrypted text.

/usr/share/astguiclient/ADMIN_bcrypt_convert.pl –clear-plaintext-pass
or
/usr/share/astguiclient/ADMIN_bcrypt_convert.pl –debugX –update-override –clear-plaintext-pass


  How to Reset the Forgotten Password

    If you have forget the admin password , you need to update the password under mysql/mariadb with the hashed password, for non-admin users either you can update the password from admin login or follow the below procedure.

  Step 1: Generate the Hash Password

    Run the below command from SSH console with the password which you want to set of a user
for example for admin user 6666 i need to set a password as admin123

/srv/www/htdocs/agc/bp.pl –pass=admin123

The above command will output the HASHED value of admin123 ,copy that proceed to step 2

  Step 2: Updating the Mysql user table

    once hash password generated run the below mysql command with the password generated in step 1

mysql -p
use asterisk;
UPDATE vicidial_users set pass_hash=’kfYvywV959fn09rSZML70wHjjxsaYjm’ where user=’6666′;

Now you can login to the vicidial admin or agent portal with the new password.

I hope this helps some of you who need to have tighter security for your systems.

-Chris aka carpenox

How to – Remove the water drop/bloop sound from ViciDial

Confbridge Update

How to – Remove the water drop/bloop sound from ViciDial

Ok, so as most of you probably know already, Asterisk is not going to be using meetMe anymore and they have set it to “End of life” so it will no longer get any updates. So what does this mean for Vicidial which uses MeetMe channels for all its sounds and communications? Well, there is another module called confbridge which can also handle these jobs and actually can do so better and has room for some more advanced features over time I’m sure. Ok so let’s start with the main issue a lot of people are going to have, really because they are scared more than anything, is confbridge needs at least Asterisk 16 to work so our first step is going to be to update Asterisk from 13 to 16. The good news is once you do this, you can remove the water drop sound from the customer side of the calls you make so they no longer know you are calling from a call center and hangup before you even get a chance to say hi. Before getting to step 1, make sure you are at the latest SVN which at the time of this article is 3636 by following this article.

Step 1 – Upgrade to Asterisk 16

ok so lets go ahead and install Asterisk 16 by following the steps from the article below:

How to – Patch Asterisk 16 or 18 for ViciDial

We had to fix the Asterisk 16 install over Asterisk 13 by running “make uninstall” and then reinstalling as shown here:

Fixing Asterisk 16 install
Fixing Asterisk 16 install

Now we need to stop the current Asterisk 13 from running and start back up the new Asterisk 16.

asterisk -r
core restart now
/usr/share/astguiclient/start_asterisk_boot.pl
asterisk -r (make sure the version you see is 16)

Step 2 – Add new confbridge extensions

We need to edit extensions.conf and add some new conferences for confbridge to use so lets start by going into the asterisk directory:

cd /etc/asterisk
nano extensions.conf
paste the following under the [default] section:

; --------------------------
; ConfBridge Extensions
; --------------------------

; use to send a agent channel into the conference
exten => _9600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _9600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _9600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN},vici_agent_bridge,vici_customer_user)
exten => _9600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to send an customer channel into the conference
exten => _29600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _29600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _29600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_agent_user)
exten => _29600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used by an admin to enter the confernece
exten => _39600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _39600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _39600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_admin_user)
exten => _39600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to monitor a conference
exten => _49600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _49600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _49600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_monitor_user)
exten => _49600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to record into a conference
exten => _59600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _59600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _59600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_recording_user)
exten => _59600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to barge a conference
exten => _69600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _69600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _69600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_barge_user)
exten => _69600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to trigger DTMF tones in a conference
exten => _79600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _79600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _79600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_dtmf_user)
exten => _79600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to play an audio file to a conference
exten => _89600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _89600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _89600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_audio_user)
exten => _89600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to kick all channels from a conference
exten => _99600XXX,1,ConfKick(${EXTEN:1},all)
exten => _99600XXX,2,Hangup()
exten => _55559600XXX,1,ConfKick(${EXTEN:4},all)
exten => _55559600XXX,2,Hangup()

Save and exit

Step 3 – Add additional code for confbridge to work correctly

We have to edit a couple files so first lets do:

nano /etc/asterisk/confbridge.conf and paste this at the bottom:
#include confbridge-vicidial.conf

Now create a new file called confbridge-vicidial.conf and add the following lines:

; Bridge Profile for agent conferences
[vici_agent_bridge]
type=bridge
max_members=10
record_conference=no
internal_sample_rate=8000
mixing_interval=40
video_mode=none
sound_join=enter
sound_leave=leave
sound_has_joined=sip-silence
sound_has_left=sip-silence
sound_kicked=sip-silence
sound_muted=sip-silence
sound_unmuted=sip-silence
sound_only_person=confbridge-only-participant
sound_only_one=sip-silence
sound_there_are=sip-silence
sound_other_in_party=sip-silence
sound_begin=sip-silence
sound_wait_for_leader=sip-silence
sound_leader_has_left=sip-silence
sound_get_pin=sip-silence
sound_invalid_pin=sip-silence
sound_locked=sip-silence
sound_locked_now=sip-silence
sound_unlocked_now=sip-silence
sound_error_menu=sip-silence
sound_participants_muted=sip-silence


; User Profile for agent channels
[vici_agent_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=no
startmuted=no
marked=yes
dtmf_passthrough=yes
hear_own_join_sound=yes
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for admin channels
[vici_admin_user]
type=user
admin=yes
quiet=no
startmuted=no
marked=yes
dtmf_passthrough=yes
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for monitoring
[vici_monitor_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=no
startmuted=yes
marked=no
dtmf_passthrough=no
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for barging
[vici_barge_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=no
startmuted=no
marked=no
dtmf_passthrough=yes
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for customers channels
[vici_customer_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=no
startmuted=no
marked=yes
dtmf_passthrough=yes
hear_own_join_sound=no
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for call recording channels
[vici_recording_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=yes
startmuted=yes
marked=no
dtmf_passthrough=no
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for audio playback channels
[vici_audio_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=yes
startmuted=yes
marked=no
dtmf_passthrough=no
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for triggering DTMF
[vici_dtmf_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=yes
startmuted=yes
marked=no
dtmf_passthrough=yes
dsp_drop_silence=yes

Step 4 – Add ConfBridge Conferences to Database

Go into mysql and add the conferences to the vicidial_confbridges table by pasting the following commands:

mysql -A asterisk
INSERT INTO `vicidial_confbridges` VALUES 
(9600000,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600001,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600002,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600003,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600004,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600005,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600006,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600007,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600008,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600009,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600010,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600011,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600012,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600013,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600014,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600015,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600016,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600017,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600018,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600019,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600020,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600021,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600022,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600023,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600024,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600025,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600026,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600027,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600028,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600029,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600030,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600031,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600032,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600033,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600034,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600035,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600036,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600037,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600038,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600039,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600040,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600041,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600042,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600043,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600044,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600045,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600046,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600047,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600048,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600049,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600050,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600051,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600052,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600053,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600054,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600055,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600056,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600057,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600058,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600059,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600060,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600061,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600062,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600063,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600064,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600065,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600066,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600067,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600068,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600069,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600070,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600071,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600072,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600073,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600074,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600075,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600076,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600077,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600078,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600079,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600080,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600081,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600082,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600083,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600084,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600085,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600086,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600087,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600088,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600089,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600090,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600091,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600092,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600093,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600094,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600095,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600096,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600097,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600098,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600099,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600100,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600101,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600102,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600103,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600104,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600105,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600106,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600107,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600108,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600109,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600110,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600111,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600112,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600113,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600114,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600115,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600116,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600117,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600118,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600119,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600120,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600121,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600122,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600123,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600124,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600125,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600126,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600127,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600128,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600129,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600130,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600131,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600132,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600133,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600134,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600135,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600136,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600137,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600138,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600139,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600140,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600141,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600142,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600143,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600144,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600145,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600146,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600147,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600148,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600149,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600150,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600151,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600152,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600153,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600154,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600155,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600156,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600157,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600158,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600159,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600160,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600161,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600162,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600163,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600164,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600165,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600166,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600167,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600168,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600169,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600170,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600171,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600172,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600173,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600174,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600175,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600176,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600177,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600178,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600179,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600180,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600181,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600182,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600183,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600184,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600185,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600186,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600187,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600188,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600189,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600190,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600191,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600192,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600193,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600194,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600195,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600196,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600197,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600198,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600199,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600200,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600201,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600202,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600203,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600204,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600205,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600206,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600207,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600208,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600209,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600210,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600211,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600212,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600213,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600214,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600215,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600216,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600217,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600218,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600219,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600220,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600221,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600222,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600223,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600224,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600225,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600226,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600227,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600228,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600229,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600230,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600231,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600232,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600233,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600234,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600235,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600236,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600237,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600238,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600239,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600240,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600241,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600242,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600243,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600244,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600245,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600246,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600247,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600248,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600249,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600250,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600251,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600252,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600253,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600254,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600255,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600256,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600257,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600258,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600259,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600260,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600261,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600262,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600263,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600264,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600265,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600266,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600267,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600268,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600269,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600270,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600271,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600272,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600273,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600274,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600275,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600276,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600277,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600278,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600279,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600280,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600281,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600282,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600283,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600284,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600285,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600286,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600287,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600288,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600289,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600290,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600291,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600292,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600293,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600294,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600295,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600296,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600297,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600298,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600299,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL);
exit

Update the IP to your server IP by running the following command:

/usr/share/astguiclient/ADMIN_update_server_ip.pl --old-server_ip=10.10.10.17

(Click Enter for Y)
Next enter your server IP and press enter twice to chaneg it in the DB as show below:

updating server IP
Update Server IP

Step 5 – Code changes to ViciDial files

There are some files now that have to be patched in order to include the changes needed for confbrides to work. They are in the “extras/ConfBridge/” directory of the svn/trunk codebase. Lets copy the files over to where they are needed, this will depend on if you are using a single server or a cluster to where the files go. Here is a list of where they go:

Dialers:
/usr/share/astguiclient/ - 
- ADMIN_keepalive_ALL.pl.diff
- ADMIN_update_server_ip.pl.diff
- AST_DB_optimize.pl.diff
- AST_reset_mysql_vars.pl.diff
- AST_VDremote_agents.pl.diff
- AST_conf_update_screen.pl

Webservers:
/srv/www/htdocs/agc/ - 
- vicidial.php.diff
- vdc_db_query.php.diff
- manager_send.php.diff
/srv/www/htdocs/vicidial/ - 
- non_agent_api.php.diff

You can copy and paste the entire code below to get it all done
cd /usr/src/astguiclient/trunk/extras/ConfBridge/
cp * /usr/share/astguiclient/
cd /usr/share/astguiclient/
mv manager_send.php.diff vdc_db_query.php.diff vicidial.php.diff /var/www/html/agc/
patch -p0 < ADMIN_keepalive_ALL.pl.diff
patch -p0 < ADMIN_update_server_ip.pl.diff
patch -p0 < AST_DB_optimize.pl.diff
chmod +x AST_conf_update_screen.pl
patch -p0 < AST_reset_mysql_vars.pl.diff
cd /var/www/html/agc/
patch -p0 < manager_send.php.diff
patch -p0 < vdc_db_query.php.diff
patch -p0 < vicidial.php.diff

Step 6 – Add the confbridge keepalive and turn off the conf_update keepalive in crontab

A new screen session has been added called 'AST_conf_update_screen.pl'. This screen session replaces both the AST_conf_update.pl and AST_conf_update_3way.pl scripts. It checks both MeetMe and ConfBridge conferences for unnecessary channels and removes them. For instance if an agent does a Leave 3way and a few minutes later one of the remaining channels hangs up. This script will remove the remaining channel and free the conference for use by Vicidial. This screen session is optional for use with MeetMe but is required to be used with ConfBridge.
Add C to VARactive_keepalives
Add C to VARactive_keepalives
To enable this screen session you need to add a 'C' to the 'VARactive_keepalives' variable in the '/etc/astguiclient.conf' on your dialers, and comment out the following line from your crontab:

                ### updater for conference validator
                #* * * * * /usr/share/astguiclient/AST_conf_update.pl

You can configure the refresh interval for how often the screen session checks for unnecessary channels by changing "Conf Update Interval" in Admin -> Servers.

Step 7- Make the needed changes in ViciDial GUI

Login to the ViciDial Admin GUI and go to Admin > Servers and click on the server(s) that are dialers and change the conferencing engine to “CONFBRIDGE” as shown below:

Change conferencing Engine to CONFBRIDGE
Change conferencing Engine to CONFBRIDGE

Step 8 – Add confbridge to manager.conf

nano /etc/asterisk/manager.conf
Go to the bottom and paste:

[confcron]
secret = 1234
read = command,reporting
write = command,reporting

eventfilter=Event: Meetme
eventfilter=Event: Confbridge

Thats a lot to get through but now that its done your customers will no longer hear the “Water drop” or “bloop” sound that they do now and you’re ready for the future of Asterisk now that meetme has been deprecated. Thats it for now, you’re all done. Hopefully this helps those of you who are a little intimidated to try the change and like always, if you have any problems, feel free to visit our Skype live support with almost 200 Vicidial experts from around the world.

-Chris aka carpenox

How to – Switch ViciDial from meetme to confbridge

Confbridge Update

How to – Switch ViciDial from meetme to confbridge

Ok, so as most of you probably know already, Asterisk is not going to be using meetMe anymore and they have set it to “End of life” so it will no longer get any updates. So what does this mean for Vicidial which uses MeetMe channels for all its sounds and communications? Well, there is another module called confbridge which can also handle these jobs and actually can do so better and has room for some more advanced features over time I’m sure. Ok so let’s start with the main issue a lot of people are going to have, really because they are scared more than anything, is confbridge needs at least Asterisk 16 to work so our first step is going to be to update Asterisk from 13 to 16. Make sure you are at the latest SVN which at the time of this article is 3636 by following this article.

Step 1 – Upgrade to Asterisk 16

ok so lets go ahead and install Asterisk 16 by following the steps below:

First you will need to follow this article on how to download, patch and compile Asterisk 16 or you can use the compile commands below:

./configure --libdir=/usr/lib64 --with-pjproject-bundled --with-jansson-bundled
rm -rf menuselect.makeopts
make menuselect*
**** Go down one to applications and hit enter, go down until you find the "meetme" app and press space bar, then hit "X" ****
make && make install
make uninstall
make install

We had to fix the Asterisk 16 install over Asterisk 13 by running “make uninstall” and then reinstalling as shown here:

Fixing Asterisk 16 install
Fixing Asterisk 16 install

Now we need to stop the current Asterisk 13 from running and start back up the new Asterisk 16.

asterisk -r
core restart now
/usr/share/astguiclient/start_asterisk_boot.pl
asterisk -r (make sure the version you see is 16)

Step 2 – Add new confbridge extensions

We need to edit extensions.conf and add some new conferences for confbridge to use so lets start by going into the asterisk directory:

cd /etc/asterisk
nano extensions.conf
paste the following at the bottom:

; --------------------------
; ConfBridge Extensions
; --------------------------

; use to send a agent channel into the conference
exten => _9600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _9600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _9600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN},vici_agent_bridge,vici_customer_user)
exten => _9600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to send an customer channel into the conference
exten => _29600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _29600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _29600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_agent_user)
exten => _29600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used by an admin to enter the confernece
exten => _39600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _39600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _39600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_admin_user)
exten => _39600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to monitor a conference
exten => _49600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _49600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _49600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_monitor_user)
exten => _49600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to record into a conference
exten => _59600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _59600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _59600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_recording_user)
exten => _59600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to barge a conference
exten => _69600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _69600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _69600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_barge_user)
exten => _69600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to trigger DTMF tones in a conference
exten => _79600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _79600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _79600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_dtmf_user)
exten => _79600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to play an audio file to a conference
exten => _89600XXX,1,Answer()
exten => _89600XXX,n,Playback(sip-silence)
exten => _89600XXX,n,ConfBridge(${EXTEN:1},vici_agent_bridge,vici_audio_user)
exten => _89600XXX,n,Hangup()

;; used to kick all channels from a conference
exten => _99600XXX,1,ConfKick(${EXTEN:1},all)
exten => _99600XXX,2,Hangup()
exten => _55559600XXX,1,ConfKick(${EXTEN:4},all)
exten => _55559600XXX,2,Hangup()

Save and exit

Step 3 – Add additional code for confbridge to work correctly

We have to edit a couple files so first lets do:

nano /etc/asterisk/confbridge.conf and paste this at the bottom:
#include confbridge-vicidial.conf

Now create a new file called confbridge-vicidial.conf and add the following lines:

; Bridge Profile for agent conferences
[vici_agent_bridge]
type=bridge
max_members=10
record_conference=no
internal_sample_rate=8000
mixing_interval=40
video_mode=none
sound_join=enter
sound_leave=leave
sound_has_joined=sip-silence
sound_has_left=sip-silence
sound_kicked=sip-silence
sound_muted=sip-silence
sound_unmuted=sip-silence
sound_only_person=confbridge-only-participant
sound_only_one=sip-silence
sound_there_are=sip-silence
sound_other_in_party=sip-silence
sound_begin=sip-silence
sound_wait_for_leader=sip-silence
sound_leader_has_left=sip-silence
sound_get_pin=sip-silence
sound_invalid_pin=sip-silence
sound_locked=sip-silence
sound_locked_now=sip-silence
sound_unlocked_now=sip-silence
sound_error_menu=sip-silence
sound_participants_muted=sip-silence


; User Profile for agent channels
[vici_agent_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=no
startmuted=no
marked=yes
dtmf_passthrough=yes
hear_own_join_sound=yes
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for admin channels
[vici_admin_user]
type=user
admin=yes
quiet=no
startmuted=no
marked=yes
dtmf_passthrough=yes
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for monitoring
[vici_monitor_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=no
startmuted=yes
marked=no
dtmf_passthrough=no
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for barging
[vici_barge_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=no
startmuted=no
marked=no
dtmf_passthrough=yes
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for customers channels
[vici_customer_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=no
startmuted=no
marked=yes
dtmf_passthrough=yes
hear_own_join_sound=no
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for call recording channels
[vici_recording_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=yes
startmuted=yes
marked=no
dtmf_passthrough=no
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for audio playback channels
[vici_audio_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=yes
startmuted=yes
marked=no
dtmf_passthrough=no
dsp_drop_silence=yes

; User Profile for triggering DTMF
[vici_dtmf_user]
type=user
admin=no
quiet=yes
startmuted=yes
marked=no
dtmf_passthrough=yes
dsp_drop_silence=yes

Step 4 – Add ConfBridge Conferences to Database

Go into mysql and add the conferences to the vicidial_confbridges table by pasting the following commands:

mysql -A asterisk
INSERT INTO `vicidial_confbridges` VALUES 
(9600000,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600001,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600002,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600003,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600004,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600005,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600006,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600007,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600008,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600009,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600010,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600011,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600012,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600013,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600014,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600015,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600016,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600017,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600018,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600019,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600020,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600021,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600022,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600023,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600024,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600025,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600026,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600027,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600028,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600029,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600030,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600031,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600032,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600033,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600034,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600035,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600036,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600037,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600038,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600039,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600040,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600041,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600042,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600043,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600044,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600045,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600046,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600047,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600048,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600049,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600050,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600051,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600052,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600053,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600054,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600055,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600056,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600057,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600058,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600059,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600060,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600061,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600062,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600063,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600064,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600065,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600066,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600067,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600068,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600069,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600070,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600071,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600072,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600073,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600074,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600075,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600076,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600077,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600078,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600079,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600080,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600081,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600082,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600083,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600084,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600085,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600086,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600087,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600088,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600089,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600090,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600091,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600092,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600093,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600094,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600095,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600096,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600097,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600098,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600099,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600100,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600101,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600102,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600103,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600104,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600105,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600106,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600107,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600108,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600109,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600110,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600111,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600112,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600113,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600114,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600115,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600116,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600117,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600118,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600119,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600120,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600121,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600122,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600123,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600124,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600125,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600126,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600127,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600128,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600129,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600130,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600131,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600132,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600133,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600134,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600135,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600136,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600137,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600138,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600139,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600140,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600141,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600142,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600143,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600144,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600145,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600146,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600147,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600148,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600149,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600150,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600151,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600152,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600153,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600154,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600155,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600156,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600157,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600158,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600159,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600160,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600161,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600162,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600163,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600164,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600165,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600166,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600167,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600168,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600169,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600170,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600171,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600172,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600173,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600174,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600175,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600176,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600177,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600178,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600179,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600180,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600181,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600182,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600183,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600184,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600185,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600186,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600187,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600188,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600189,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600190,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600191,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600192,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600193,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600194,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600195,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600196,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600197,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600198,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600199,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600200,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600201,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600202,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600203,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600204,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600205,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600206,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600207,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600208,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600209,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600210,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600211,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600212,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600213,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600214,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600215,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600216,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600217,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600218,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600219,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600220,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600221,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600222,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600223,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600224,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600225,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600226,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600227,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600228,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600229,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600230,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600231,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600232,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600233,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600234,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600235,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600236,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600237,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600238,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600239,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600240,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600241,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600242,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600243,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600244,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600245,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600246,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600247,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600248,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600249,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600250,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600251,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600252,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600253,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600254,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600255,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600256,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600257,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600258,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600259,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600260,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600261,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600262,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600263,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600264,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600265,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600266,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600267,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600268,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600269,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600270,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600271,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600272,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600273,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600274,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600275,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600276,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600277,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600278,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600279,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600280,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600281,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600282,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600283,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600284,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600285,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600286,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600287,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600288,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600289,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600290,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600291,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600292,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600293,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600294,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600295,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600296,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600297,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600298,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL),
(9600299,'10.10.10.17','','0',NULL);
exit

Update the IP to your server IP by running the following command:

/usr/share/astguiclient/ADMIN_update_server_ip.pl –old-server_ip=10.10.10.17 (Click Enter for Y)
Next enter your server IP and press enter twice to chaneg it in the DB as show below:

updating server IP
Update Server IP

Step 5 – Code changes to ViciDial files

There are some files now that have to be patched in order to include the changes needed for confbrides to work. They are in the “extras/ConfBridge/” directory of the svn/trunk codebase. Lets copy the files over to where they are needed, this will depend on if you are using a single server or a cluster to where the files go. Here is a list of where they go:

Dialers:
/usr/share/astguiclient/ - 
- ADMIN_keepalive_ALL.pl.diff
- ADMIN_update_server_ip.pl.diff
- AST_DB_optimize.pl.diff
- AST_reset_mysql_vars.pl.diff
- AST_VDremote_agents.pl.diff
- AST_conf_update_screen.pl

Webservers:
/srv/www/htdocs/agc/ - 
- vicidial.php.diff
- vdc_db_query.php.diff
- manager_send.php.diff
/srv/www/htdocs/vicidial/ - 
- non_agent_api.php.diff

You can copy and paste the entire code below to get it all done
cd /usr/src/astguiclient/trunk/extras/ConfBridge/
cp * /usr/share/astguiclient/
cd /usr/share/astguiclient/
mv manager_send.php.diff vdc_db_query.php.diff vicidial.php.diff /var/www/html/agc/
patch -p0 < ADMIN_keepalive_ALL.pl.diff
patch -p0 < ADMIN_update_server_ip.pl.diff
patch -p0 < AST_DB_optimize.pl.diff
chmod +x AST_conf_update_screen.pl
patch -p0 < AST_reset_mysql_vars.pl.diff
cd /var/www/html/agc/
patch -p0 < manager_send.php.diff
patch -p0 < vdc_db_query.php.diff
patch -p0 < vicidial.php.diff

Step 6 – Add the confbridge keepalive and turn off the conf_update keepalive in crontab

A new screen session has been added called 'AST_conf_update_screen.pl'. This screen session replaces both the AST_conf_update.pl and AST_conf_update_3way.pl scripts. It checks both MeetMe and ConfBridge conferences for unnecessary channels and removes them. For instance if an agent does a Leave 3way and a few minutes later one of the remaining channels hangs up. This script will remove the remaining channel and free the conference for use by Vicidial. This screen session is optional for use with MeetMe but is required to be used with ConfBridge.
Add C to VARactive_keepalives
Add C to VARactive_keepalives
To enable this screen session you need to add a 'C' to the 'VARactive_keepalives' variable in the '/etc/astguiclient.conf' on your dialers, and comment out the following line from your crontab:

                ### updater for conference validator
                #* * * * * /usr/share/astguiclient/AST_conf_update.pl

You can configure the refresh interval for how often the screen session checks for unnecessary channels by changing "Conf Update Interval" in Admin -> Servers.

Step 7- Make the needed changes in ViciDial GUI

Login to the ViciDial Admin GUI and go to Admin > Servers and click on the server(s) that are dialers and change the conferencing engine to “CONFBRIDGE” as shown below:

Change conferencing Engine to CONFBRIDGE
Change conferencing Engine to CONFBRIDGE

Thats a lot to get through but now that its done your customers will no longer hear the “Water drop” or “bloop” sound that they do now and you’re ready for the future of Asterisk now that meetme has been deprecated. Thats it for now, you’re all done. Hopefully this helps those of you who are a little intimidated to try the change and like always, if you have any problems, feel free to visit our Skype live support with almost 200 Vicidial experts from around the world.

-Chris aka carpenox

How to – Use Firewalld via command line

Robots trying to hack in

How to – use Firewalld via command line

This short post is just going to briefly go over the more common commands you need in order to manage firewalld and make sure you keep your servers safe. This firewall works in conjunction with the dynamic portal for ViciDial as well as the built in whitelist initially named ViciWhite in the IP list area in Admin.

Dynamic portal
Dynamic portal

Systemctl and Firewalld

Enable firewalld

This makes sure that firewalld will be started automatically with the server.

systemctl enable firewalld

Start firewalld

After the firewalld service is enabled, you’ll need to start it manually the first time. This is how you would manually start firewalld if it were not already running.

systemctl start firewalld

Stop firewalld

When troubleshooting rules and connection issues, you may need to stop the fireawlld service momentarily. You can stop the service with the following command.

systemctl stop firewalld

Restart firewalld

If for some reason, you need to restart the service, you can do that with the systemctl restart command.

systemctl restart firewalld

Firewalld status

Checking the status of the service gives us the most meaningful and informative output. Here you can see whether the service is enabled, running, failed, or anything else.

systemctl status firewalld

In this example output, you can see that the service is enabled, active, and running on the server. If it were not running or in a failed state, this would be displayed.

[root@alma ~]# systemctl status firewalld
● firewalld.service - firewalld - dynamic firewall daemon
Loaded: loaded (/usr/lib/systemd/system/firewalld.service; enabled; vendor preset: enabled)
Active: active (running) since Tue 2019-01-22 22:50:32 EST; 1h 0min ago
Main PID: 808 (firewalld)
CGroup: /system.slice/firewalld.service
└─808 /usr/bin/python -Es /usr/sbin/firewalld --nofork --nopid

Managing Firewalld and Configuring Rules

Now that we have firewalld running, we can get down to set the configuration. We can open ports, allow services, whitelist IPs for access, and more. In all of these examples, we include the –permanent flag. This is important to make sure a rule is saved even after you restart firewalld, or reboot the server. Once you’re done adding new rules, you need to reload the firewall to make the new rules active.

Add a Port for TCP or UDP

You do have to specify TCP or UDP and to open a port for both. You will need to add rules for each protocol.

firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=22/TCP
firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=53/UDP

Remove a Port for TCP or UDP

Using a slight variation on the above structure, you can remove a currently open port, effectively closing off that port.

firewall-cmd --permanent --remove-port=444/tcp

Add a Service

These services assume the default ports configured within the /etc/services configuration file; if you wish to use a service on a non-standard port, you will have to open the specific port, as in the example above.

firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=ssh
firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=http

Remove a Service

As above, you specify the remove-service option, and you can close off the port that is defined for that service.

firewall-cmd --permanent --remove-service=mysql

Whitelist an IP Address

To whitelist or allow access from an IP or range of IPs, you can tell the firewall to add a trusted source.

firewall-cmd --permanent --add-source=192.168.1.100

You can also allow a range of IPs using what is called CIDR notation. CIDR is outside the scope of this article but is a shorthand that can be used for noting ranges of IP addresses.

firewall-cmd --permanent --add-source=192.168.1.0/24

Remove a Whitelisted IP Address

To remove a whitelisted IP or IP range, you can use the –remove-source option.

firewall-cmd --permanent --remove-source=192.168.1.100

Block an IP Address

As the firewall-cmd tool is mostly used for opening or allowing access, rich rules are needed to block an IP. Rich rules are similar in form to the way iptables rules are written.

firewall-cmd --permanent --add-rich-rule="rule family='ipv4' source address='192.168.1.100' reject"

You can again use CIDR notation also block a range of IP addresses.

firewall-cmd --permanent --add-rich-rule="rule family='ipv4' source address='192.168.1.0/24' reject"

Whitelist an IP Address for a Specific Port (More Rich Rules)

We have to reach back to iptables and create another rich rule; however, we are using the accept statement at the end to allow the IP access, rather than reject its access.

firewall-cmd --permanent --add-rich-rule='rule family="ipv4" source address="192.168.1.100" port protocol="tcp" port="3306" accept'

Removing a Rich Rule

To remove a rich rule, use the option —remove-rich-rule, but you have to fully specify which rule is being removed, so it is best to copy and paste the full rule, rather than try to type it all out from memory.

firewall-cmd --permanent --remove-rich-rule='rule family="ipv4" source address="192.168.1.100" port protocol="tcp" port="3306" accept'

Saving Firewall Rules

After you have completed all the additions and subtraction of rules, you need to reload the firewall rules to make them active. To do this, you again use the firewall-cmd tool but using the option –reload.

firewall-cmd --reload

Viewing Firewall Rules

After reloading the rules, you can confirm if the new rules are in place correctly with the following.

firewall-cmd --list-all

Here is an example output from the –list-all option, you can see that this server has a number of ports, and services open in the firewall along with a rich rule (that forwards one port to another).

[root@alma ~]# firewall-cmd --list-all
public (default, active)
interfaces: enp1s0
sources: 192.168.1.0/24
services: dhcpv6-client dns http https mysql nfs samba smtp ssh
ports: 443/tcp 80/tcp 5900-5902/tcp 83/tcp 444/tcp 3260/tcp
masquerade: no
forward-ports:
icmp-blocks:
rich rules:
rule family="ipv4" source address="192.168.1.0/24" forward-port port="5423" protocol="tcp" to-port="80"


Hopefully this will help a lot of you that end up just not using a firewall at all because it intimidates you not knowing how to use it correctly. Well, I’ve just eliminated that excuse, so now I want to see more of you securing your servers and dialer systems. Here is a few articles to get you started in the right direction.

This will show you how secure OpenSUSE LEAP
https://dialer.one/how-to-scratch-install-the-dynportal-on-centos/?amp
Securing CentOS, Alma or Rocky Linux

Here are some more articles in relation to VICIdial security for your servers

How to – Use the built in Dynamic Portal for Vicibox
How to – Turn on IP whitelist in Vicidial
How to – Use one dynamic portal for whitelisting and have it sync across an entire cluster
How to – Fix the firewall on Vicibox10


That’s it for this article, hopefully you guys take this serious because hackers, especially ransomware thieves are targeting dialer servers in particular for their schemes, such as using the VoIP to call their victims to either trick them into downloading files or threatening them over the phone with blackmail or other means. BazarCall is one of the more well known tools thats being used by the ransomware group called Ryuk.

How to – Create an IVR for inbound calls

IVR

How to – Create an IVR for inbound calls

In this article I am going to over how to create an inbound call menu or IVR (Interactive Voice Response) for ViciDial which will help reduce your drop percent to help you legally within the 3% drop rate for the USA or 5% drop rate for Canada, by way of the FCC guidelines.

Step 1 – Create the call menu

Login to the admin GUI for ViciDial and click “inbound” then “add a new call menu” as shown below., then name your call menu. (For this example, I named it IVR)

add a new call menu
Add a new call menu

Step 2 – Setup your basic IVR options

Now we are going to setup the top portion on the call menu/IVR. Assuming you have already created your audio recording for your IVR and added it to the audio store, select that file at the “Menu Prompt” option. You can also fill out your timeout prompt, invalid prompt and other options as shown below:

IVR Options
IVR Options

Step 3 – Create your IVR options

Now we will select a few common IVR options to add to your call menu. For this example I have given options to 1) leave a voicemail message, 2) be transferred to a live agent, 3) Be added to the Do Not call list or #) to play the options again. See below:

IVR selections
IVR Selections

Step 4 – Route unanswered Inbound calls to IVR

The final step is to add this IVR/Call menu to your inbound calls when your agents aren’t available. For this you need to go to your inbound ingroup and change your “call time” and no agent queueing/after hours options to reflect the picture below:

image 3
Set the call menu for the inbound calls

This articles assumes you know how to already setup the other parts needed for this such as creating audio recordings, uploading them to the audio store and setting up inbound groups. If you have any questions feel free to visit our skype live chat. Hopefully this helps some of you that have been asking me about this.

-Chris aka carpenox

How to – Setup Email for ViciDial reports and voicemail

email vicidial

How to – Setup Email for ViciDial reports and voicemail

This article will go over how to setup your email configuration on your server in order to get reports from ViciDial or to receive voicemail to email notifications and recordings. Gmail recently changed the way their security is handled so some changes need to be made in order for your emails to go through. You can alter the config below for any email service you may use.

Step 1 – Edit your postfix config file

Ok so first you need to edit your postfix configuration by editing main.cf and adding a few lines to the bottom of it.

nano /etc/postfix/main.cf
### Now paste the following lines to the bottom: ###
relayhost = [smtp.gmail.com]:587
smtp_sasl_auth_enable = yes
smtp_sasl_password_maps = lmdb:/etc/postfix/sasl_passwd
smtp_sasl_security_options = noanonymous
smtp_sasl_mechanism_filter = plain
smtp_use_tls = yes

Step 2 – Create a Gmail APP Password

  1. Go to Gmail and log in to your account.
  2. Now, in the upper-right corner, click the Home Account icon. In the open wizard, click “Manage my Accounts.
image 17
  1. You will be redirected to Gmail Settings. In the left tab, click Security, and then click ‘2-step verification’ in the ‘Signing into Google’ section.Click on verification
  2. The 2-step verification window will appear on the screen, click ‘Get started.’2-step verification window
  3. In the next step, Google will ask you to use your phone as your second sign-in step. Click ‘Try it Now’ to move ahead. You will be asked to log in to Gmail again, and a notification will appear on your phone screen to confirm the sign-in, click Yes.Notification will appear on your phone screen to confirm the sign-in
  4. After giving access from your phone, Google will ask you to add a backup option, enter your phone number, and click Send.Add a backup option
  5. A code will be sent to your phone to confirm the login, enter the code in the opened window and click ‘Next.’A code will be sent to your phone

2-step verification has been enabled. Now, you can easily create an App Password to login to third-party apps.

Creating App Passwords

  1. To create the App Password after enabling 2-step verification, go to ‘Manage your Account’ from the home tab.
  2. Now, in managing accounts, click the Security tab in the left pane, and then scroll down to ‘Signing to Google.’
  3. Here, you’ll see the App Passwords option, click over it. You will be asked to sign in again to your Gmail account.Sign in to your Gmail account
  4. After signing in, select the type of app and device for which you want to generate an app password and click Generate.Select the type of app and device
  5. The App Password will be created; you can copy it to the clipboard, and click ‘Done.’App Password will be created

That’s how you can create App Password for your Gmail account. Now, you can use this Password to login to Gmail with your ViciDial server.

Step 3 – Edit your sasl_password file

Now you need to edit your sasl_password file as shown below:

nano /etc/postfix/sasl_passwd
### Alter the line below with your username and password ###
[smtp.gmail.com]:587 youremail@gmail.com:password

That’s all there is to it, now set your email account on your voicemail boxes or automated reports in ViciDial and you should be good to go.

I hope this helps.

-Chris aka carpenox

How to – Use CID groups

CID Groups

How to – Use CID groups

This article is going to go over the method to best setup CID groups and the different ways to configure each option available for them including statefill, statelookup and creating auto rotators. This will assume you know how to add DID’s to the system which is fairly easy. So the first thing you need to do is create the CID group as defined below:

Step 1 – Create CID group

Within the ViciDial admin gui go to the Admin section then to CID groups

CID groups
CID Groups

Once you are here, just click “Add a CID Group”:

image 6
Add a CID group

The first one we will create is for state lookup method, define “AREACODE” as the group type like shown below:

CID group - state lookup
CID group – State lookup

hit submit and you’ll see it looking like the below picture

image 8
CID Group added

Step 2 – Add the DID’s to the CID Group

Next, we will be using the admin utilities to add your DIDs to the CID Group. Go to the “Reports” page and scroll down to the bottom to click on “Admin utilities” then click on “Admin bulk Tools”

image 9
Click Admin Utilities

image 10
click Admin Bulk Tools

Now scroll down to “CID Groups and AC-CID Bulk Add” and add your DID’s, selecting “state lookup” will assign each number with its area code to the proper state its from, selecting “statefill” will automatically add every area code for each state you have a DID for with separate entries for each area code which is a really nice option to ensure local presence in some fashion even if you don’t own DID’s from every area code.

image 11
Add DID to the CID group

When you choose statefill youll see the same number submitted many times, this is normal

statefill
StateFill Option

After doing this you’ll notice it filled it every area code for this example I did it for Florida, and even though I only entered 5 area codes, it filled in these 5 numbers for every area code in Florida:

image 13
Area Code Statefill

Step 3 – Assign CID group to your campaign

Now you just have to assign the newly created CID group to the detail view of your campaign as shown below, make sure you set “Custom CallerID:” to Y

assign cid group to campaign
Assinging CID Group to campaign

Now I will show you how to create an auto rotating CID group which will rotate all the DID’s added to this group based on intervals you can choose. Complete step one again but choose “None” for the “CID Group Type” as shown below”

Auto Rotator - vicidial
Create CID Group for Auto Rotator

Once your hit submit, choose how often you want the DID’s to change, a good starting point is every 5 minutes or 35 calls as shown below:

auto rotator
Set intervals for auto rotator

Go back and complete step 2 again using the “state lookup” method and assign the CID Group to the campaign, now your DID’s will auto rotate, I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial and like always, if you have any questions, feel free to join our Live Support on Skype.

I hope this helps

-Chris aka carpenox