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Using OBi and GV Outside the USA

Started by 4myphones, March 07, 2011, 01:14:35 PM

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QBZappy

CodaMan,

Configure it in the USA. Confirm that it works the way you want it. Unplug it, and when you get to Australia plug the OBi into a router. I don't know if you are staying in a hotel where they might have a firewall blocking ports on the network. Assuming no other network obstacles are in the way, the OBi should work the same way as you used it in the USA.
Owner of the 1st OBi110/100 units in service in Canada & South America. 1st OBi202 on my street. 1st OBi1032 in Montreal.

Obitalk

Like QBZappy indicated, the easiest method is to configure it state side and send it overseas.

The second method that worked for me is if you have the GV credentials, you can use the Obi Portal and use the configuration wizard to configure Google Voice on the remote device.

(I used both methods since I had broadvoice primary number configured on SP2 when I sent the device overseaa and I didnt want the device blocked due to multiple registration attempts. Hence I had to reset the device to factory configuration and then setup Google Voice on SP1 and Broadvoice Multipresence on SP2)

yhfung

GV is installed in OBi110 and used in Hong Kong.

We got the GV crendentials in Hong Kong via VPN and US mobile phones. We installed GV accounts in our OBi110 units. We are able to call each other using GV accounts without any problem encountered.

YH
Hong Kong and China OBi Users Group
www.telecom-cafe.com

QBZappy

There is at least one OBi unit working in Bolivia via the OBitalk service. I will test CID and other features as well.
Owner of the 1st OBi110/100 units in service in Canada & South America. 1st OBi202 on my street. 1st OBi1032 in Montreal.

occamsrazor

In Egypt, the Obi110 DOES register with GV, says "Connected" on the ObiTalk dashboard, but I get no incoming calls.
When I use Gmail via a web browser, I get no "Call Phones" function in the chat panel.
If I do the same thing using a US IP address via a VPN service, I DO get the "Call Phones" function.
On the same gmail account, if I go back and forth between US IP and Egypt IP, the "Call Phones" function appears and disappears.
My incoming SIP calls work fine, and outgoing GV calls work, but incoming calls don't (Google Voice number ringing Google Chat) which makes me think that Google is doing geolocation blocking... which sucks.

QBZappy

#25
occamsrazor,

If it was really important to have some type of permanent connection, security, and US or Canadian IP (or any other your local IP), I would consider setting up VPN in a router. I know it might be a bit of a geek project, but it would work. There are some router firmwares with built in VPN and GUI interfaces that allow us to setup this VPN. Installing this 3rd party firmware is no more difficult than backing up and restoring the OBi configuration file.

Choosing the correct router + an easy to install firmware = OBi (SIP) perfect setup solution

For anyone interested I find that Asus routers are nearlly impossible to brick. That is my router of choice. I like using the Tomato firmware on this router. Many flavors of Tomato out there. Versions with OpenVPN is relatively easy to stup. I spent more time setting up the certificates than installing the firmware. For a complete newbie installation avoiding the creation of VPN certificates, I would consider the Tomato firmware "Neorouter" version which creates VLans without the fuss of having to create certificates. I have not tried this version, but the concept behind it seems to simplify things for the uninitiated.

This is my setup:
Asus WL-500gp V2 + Tomato firmware (teddybear USB version) OpenVPN Server
Asus RT N16 + Tomato firmware (teddybear USB version) OpenVPN client

This type of setup solves most VOIP issues and adds security into the mix. This is also not a very expensive solution to implement. You don't need to use the top of the line Asus router. There are Asus models in the $25-50 price range. There are so many other advantages using this approach that are outside the scope of OBi (SIP) discussion.
Owner of the 1st OBi110/100 units in service in Canada & South America. 1st OBi202 on my street. 1st OBi1032 in Montreal.

occamsrazor

@QBZappy

Funny you should suggest all that... I already use Tomato routers: Cisco E3000, Asus WL-500GPv2, both running Victek's Tomato mod and OpenVPN server. I also have an account with the commercial VPN provider Witopia, which can give me IPs in various countries ncluding USA, though I don't currently use it on the router.

Everything you say makes perfect sense... but for me Google Voice is an "extra", not totally essential. For years I've used a combination of Linksys SPA-3102 connected to www.pbxes.org and then on to various SIP providers. I was also using Google Voice through PBXes via my Gizmo5 account.... but now they've said they're killing Gizmo5 at the start of April so it won't be viable anymore.

I'm sick of geolocation blocking hassles to be honest, and while it would be nice to have some of the features of Google Voice, in the end I'm going back to my trusty Linksys, PBXes, and SIP providers. Maybe I'll give the Obi and GV another go in the future....

QBZappy

#27
Obitalk,

Hi

I just can't seem to get an acceptable voice quality call with the unit in South America. I believe your unit is in Sri Lanka. Are your calls of a "normal" quality? Anything special you did that might help me? Thanks.
Owner of the 1st OBi110/100 units in service in Canada & South America. 1st OBi202 on my street. 1st OBi1032 in Montreal.

earthtoobi

Has anyone setup Obi in Dubai/Middle East and confirm that Obi to Obi calls work(it would be nice to know if Gtalk calls work too). i gather that the ISPs Block Voice traffic in Dubai.hence the question.

wintek

Quote from: CodaMan on March 11, 2011, 04:55:38 PM

Can I just get it all working here state side, go to Australia and connect the Obi110 to a router in my hotel room, connect an analog phone to it and it will all work -- and people can call my GV number and the Obi110 will ring the phone?

Is it that easy?  if not, how can I make it work?

It should be that easy.  However it's hard to say what firewall restrictions will be on the Hotels network.

MagicVoice

Where were you? Philippines
How were you connected to the Internet?PLDT DSL
What kind of calls worked?Calls to and from US and Canada
What kind of calls did not work?None
Any other observations?The bigger your bandwidth, the better the call quality.  Calls to and from US cellphones work as well.

elminakid

Are there any UK OBItalks users out there? Please contact me. I want to purchase and set up an OBI device for fam there. Just need some guidance

Doraemon

I'm using OBi110 in Japan :)

As long as there's energy and internet connection there,I think you can use OBi110 and Obi100 all around the world ;D

No need to worry!

shap

Where were you? Israel
How were you connected to the Internet? Cable +012 ISP, 5 Mbit
What kind of calls worked? Calls to and from US and Canada
What kind of calls did not work?None
Any other observations?  Calls to and from US cellphones work as well.

Note:Obitalk network is not working when using 014 ISP (Bezeq International). UDP port 10000 to amazon cloud is blocked for some reason.

yhfung

#34
Where were you? Shenzhen China
How were you connected to the Internet? China Telecom ADSL 4Mbps DL, 512 UL
What kind of calls worked? Calls to and from US and Canada
What kind of calls did not work? None
Any other observations? The voice quality will be degraded very much after 15 minutes due to packets dropped intentionally by China Telecom

YH
Hong Kong and China OBi Users Group
www.telecom-cafe.com

yhfung

Where were you? Hong Kong
How were you connected to the Internet? PCCW 30Mbps DL, 10Mbps UL
What kind of calls worked? Calls to and from US and Canada
What kind of calls did not work? None
Any other observations? None

YH
Hong Kong and China OBi Users Group
www.telecom-cafe.com

Kaizer

Quote from: yhfung on May 01, 2011, 05:32:18 PM
Where were you? Shenzhen China
Any other observations? The voice quality will be degraded very much after 15 minutes due to packets dropped intentionally by China Telecom

YH


i noticed that after getting the obi's to connect. so if you want a long chat, we would need to keep disconnecting and call back immediately?

yhfung

Yes, you are right. You just hangup the call and reconnect it again. This operation is very annonying.

However, if you want to make/receive all to/from Mainland China, you may consider to use ET263 which is an offical voip call in Mainland China and the voice is excellent.

The official website of ET263 is www.et2008.com.

You may consider to install ET263 in your sp2 and sp1 is gv. If you want to have a long chat, you may consider to initiate your call from the US with ET263 (installed in sp2), it will go to the ET263 server in Beijing and then your call will be directed to other ET263 account on another OBi110 intalled in other city of Mainland China.


YH
Hong Kong and China OBi Users Group
www.telecom-cafe.com

WASEIGE1

Where were you? South Korea
How were you connected to the Internet? Cable TV Modem
What kind of calls worked? Calls to and from US and Canada
What kind of calls did not work? None
Any other observations? Limited testing so far but all seems well.

humble

Where were you? India
How were you connected to the Internet? Tomato Router - 2MBPS Speed
What kind of calls worked? Calls to and from US and Canada
What kind of calls did not work? None
Any other observations? None

Awesome and worked out of the box. Thanks.

Auto Provisioning is very useful where you don't rely on portforwarding etc.,

Keep up the good work