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GoogleVoice OAUTH + Configure locally

Started by azrobert, September 23, 2014, 04:55:08 PM

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azrobert

There has been much whining on this forum by users that configure their OBi's locally (including myself) about the new GV OAUTH authentication forcing us to use OBiTalk to configure our OBi devices.

The below procedure will allow us to continue to locally configure the OBi.

Starting with an un-configured OBi:
1. Add the device to OBiTalk.
Auto Firmware Update and OBiTalk Provisioning will be automatically enabled. The latest firmware will be downloaded to the OBi.
2. Define a GV trunk using OBiTalk.
3. Sign into the OBi locally and disable Auto Firmware Update and OBiTalk Provisioning.
4. Configure the OBi locally including changes to the GV trunk. The only settings you can't change are the GV UserID and PW.

If you need to add another GV trunk in the future:
5. Create a Configuration Backup locally in System Management/Device Update.
Check Use OBi Version.
6. In OBiTalk Expert import the backup. Now the OBi and OBiTalk will be in sync.
7. Locally enable OBiTalk Provisioning.
8. In OBiTalk define the GV trunk.
9. Locally disable OBiTalk Provisioning again.
10. Locally make any necessary config changes.

The config backup does not contain any passwords, so when you do the import there aren't any passwords on OBiTalk. When OBiTalk downloads the new config after you define the GV trunk it does NOT overlay the locally defined passwords with blanks.

If you have a configured OBi, start at step 5.

This procedure is acceptable for me. How often do we change GV passwords or add a new GV trunk? However, I still hope OBihai adds OAUTH 2.0 to the local interface.




QBZappy

Owner of the 1st OBi110/100 units in service in Canada & South America. 1st OBi202 on my street. 1st OBi1032 in Montreal.

corporate_gadfly

Quote from: azrobert on September 23, 2014, 04:55:08 PM
This procedure is acceptable for me. How often do we change GV passwords or add a new GV trunk? However, I still hope OBihai adds OAUTH 2.0 to the local interface.
Thanks for trying this out.

I wasn't too keen on messing with my "production" setup. So kudos for letting us know how it worked out.

Rick

Seems simple enough, except for:

Define a GV trunk using OBiTalk.  

I only use the local configuration options, and have Callcentric on both SP1 and SP2.  I have two GV numbers, each of which forwards to a Callcentric number, and then rings the OBi.  For about a month, GV has not forwarded calls reliably - GV says it's a CC issue, CC says it's a GV issue.  I have little hope it's going to get resolved.

So unless I want to move from GV (which I may), it appears I have to do something like this.  

Does this mean that I can keep CC on SP1 and SP2, because the trunk is setup for GV?  I really don't understand the trunk concept.  Reading OBi's documentation doesn't help.   :o

SteveInWA

"Trunk" is telco jargon, meaning a circuit or, in this case, a ITSP registration, providing a connection from your premises to some telephone company or ITSP.

Substitute the term "service provider configuration" in the context of OBi-speak, and it makes more sense.

You currently have Google Voice set up to forward to Callcentric numbers.  That setup is on the Google Voice website, not on your OBi, which has the CC numbers configured.  So, you can decide what you want to do with GV, and either enable "Do Not Disturb" on GV settings, or delete your GV number(s) entirely.  I'd suggest just placing them into DND and recording a new voicemail greeting directing people to call your CC number(s), for now, until you are darn sure you want to get rid of GV.  It's difficult to get a new GV number at the moment, due to dwindling supply.

Since you already have Callcentric defined on SP1 and SP2, if you now decide to use those numbers directly, without using GV, then you don't have to do anything at all on your OBi.  IF you also have GV defined on one of your SP slots, then just delete it locally.

TL;DR: in your particular case, since you are not adding GV service, you don't need to use the OBiTALK portal now.

Taoman

Quote from: Rick on October 14, 2014, 12:18:48 PM
I really don't understand the trunk concept.

You already have 2 Callcentric "trunks" configured on your OBi. I think you are misunderstanding the use of the word "trunk" in the context that azrobert is using it. He is not referring to configuring a "Trunk Group" if that is what you are thinking of. A "trunk" is just a DID in this context.

Suggestion: get yourself an IPComms free DID (2 if possible) and forward those DIDs to your Callcentric account(s) via iNum. (Order a free iNum number(s) from CC if you don't already have one). Add the DID(s) as forwarding numbers in your GV accounts. If forwarding to your CC DIDs is really that unreliable then uncheck the boxes in front of those DIDs.

Although you won't get free CNAM the call will be forwarded reliably as will the number. If you don't use the CC phone book I would highly recommend it as it supports CNAM override. So if most of your incoming calls are already entered into your CC phone book it will mitigate, to some degree, not having CNAM on your IPComms DID(s).

Rick

Thanks for the translation(s).  Yes, I understand SP instead of Trunk I was confusing it with Trunk Groups.

Steve - Thanks for the idea, but I really want the GV number (which is our old home TELCO number) to ring the house phones, not give a recording.

Taoman - I get the concept, but don't understand how iNum is used to forward IPComms' DID to Callcentric.  Interesting, when I try to go to IPComms website I get Fatal error: Cannot call overloaded function for non-hobject in /home/content....   A provider whose website doesn't work?  They seem to talk about it on their Facebook page back in September.

I don't care about CNAM.  We get a handful of calls a week.  What I more care about is that when people call the phone ring - which hasn't been happening for weeks now due to the GV==>CC problem.

Taoman

Quote from: Rick on October 14, 2014, 01:28:14 PM

Taoman - I get the concept, but don't understand how iNum is used to forward IPComms' DID to Callcentric.  Interesting, when I try to go to IPComms website I get Fatal error: Cannot call overloaded function for non-hobject in /home/content....   A provider whose website doesn't work?  They seem to talk about it on their Facebook page back in September.

I don't care about CNAM.  We get a handful of calls a week.  What I more care about is that when people call the phone ring - which hasn't been happening for weeks now due to the GV==>CC problem.

I just got to their web site without issue but use this url:
http://ipcomms.net/freedid

Don't try using Facebook. Just call the number listed.

You should be able to forward IPComms DIDs to Callcentric via standard SIP URI. However, because of an "incompatibility" between the back end DNS servers of IPComms and CC that isn't possible so you have to use iNum (which is really SIP URI via a different route). You would just configure the IPComms DID on their web portal to forward to your CC iNum number. I've been doing this for quite awhile and it is very reliable.

Rick

That URL yields:

Fatal error: Cannot call overloaded function for non-object in /home/content/37/11662737/html/ipcomms/libraries/gantry/gantry.php on line 432

both in Google Chrome and IE.


Taoman

#9
Quote from: Rick on October 14, 2014, 01:44:51 PM
That URL yields:

Fatal error: Cannot call overloaded function for non-object in /home/content/37/11662737/html/ipcomms/libraries/gantry/gantry.php on line 432

both in Google Chrome and IE.


Yikes! I use Firefox but I just now tried it in IE and Chrome and had no issue. What is your OS and what versions of browsers are you using?

Can you get here?
http://2way.ipcomms.net/

Rick

Called them, they fixed it on their end.

Taoman

I should note that IPComms supports direct registration with SIP credentials. So you could remove iNum and Callcentric out of the equation entirely if desired. However, IPComms is more of a SIP trunking company so their web portal is minimalistic to say the least. But if you don't care about CNAM then you may wish to consider this option also. I prefer to forward to CC because of their feature rich web portal and their phone book which supports CNAM override. However, this would mean reconfiguring your OBi device.

Whoa. This may not work for you. I only have one free IPComms DID. I know Callcentric will give you two free DIDs but I just saw this on the IPComms web site regarding their free DID offering:

QuoteLimit of 1 FreeDID per user. Registration of multiple FreeDID accounts by a single user is not permitted, and will result in immediate service cancellation.

Rick

I called them, jury-rigged into their site (which is full of typos), read info, found the sign up form,  they called, waiting for email.

Figure I can use this for main line which gets all the calls.  I setup two inums on CC.


Taoman

Quote from: Rick on October 14, 2014, 02:48:09 PM
I called them, jury-rigged into their site (which is full of typos), read info, found the sign up form,  they called, waiting for email.

Figure I can use this for main line which gets all the calls.  I setup two inums on CC.


Once you get your DID, login to your account at 2way.ipcomms.net and click on DID and forward your DID to your CC iNum number. Here is the exact syntax:

SIP/XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX@sip.inum.net where XXX.... is your iNum number.

There is nothing to do on the Callcentric side of things if you already have your iNum number. Also, you could keep your CC DIDs checked in your GV account. Won't hurt anything. First DID to hit your OBi wins. I keep both my CC DID and my IPComms DID checked in GV. The IPComms DID wins about 80% of the time.

If you're feeling adventurous you could set up a Voice Gateway with your IPComms SIP credentials. That way you could make outbound calls thru IPComms to use those 50 free minutes of outgoing they give you. However, you would need to use IP Authentication since you're not using registration. This means you would need a static IP address and you would need to contact support@ipcomms.net and have them enable this. They also allow you to spoof your outgoing CID.

Rick

#14
First, thanks to Taoman for providing this information.  I'm going to relate my experience so it may help others.

First - my setup.  I have two GV phone numbers, one for home and one for business.  The home number is my original TELCO number, we want to keep it.  I ported it to GV when I initially setup my OBi several years ago.

Then I setup Callcentric for E911.  After CC had issues with DoD attacks and then the Sandy power failures, I turned off E911 as it was unreliable.  

In May, based on the upcoming deadline for GV working on the OBi, I reactivated my Callcentric account, and setup two numbers.  Each GV number forwarded to a CC number, and I setup CC on my OBi.  This gave me unique rings so I could tell if a call was personal or business (neither line gets a lot of activity).

In September, I started having issues with GV.  My GV number is forwarded to my cell and to my CC number.  My cell would ring, but not the OBi.  I thought this was an OBi issue until I played around and determined it was an issue with GV communicating with CC.  It got to the point that the house phone would not ring at all, so if someone called I HAD to have my cell setup as a forwarding phone and had to answer the call.  Well, that's not reliable enough service for me.  After a few missed important calls (luckily GV sends an email when a voicemail is left), I probed some more and sought the help of Steve.  

I also had the problem that during a call the audio would become faint and scratchy on my end (we'll see if that is now resolved).

I provided Steve with my call logs, and he contacted his contacts at GV.  They contacted their contacts at the companies that complete the calls for them.  The result has been that GV says the issue is at CC.  CC says the issue is at GV.  In other words, "mine's bigger".

On CC's site, there is now an FAQ (with no date as to when posted) that says:

Are there any known issues with Callcentric and GoogleVoice?

At this time we have identified that GoogleVoice has trouble forwarding and placing calls to random Callcentric numbers. The symptoms include:

Lost calls
Dropped calls
Incorrect callerID
Anonymous callerID

We would like to make it clear that there is no difference in quality nor functionality between free numbers and paid numbers offered by Callcentric. Customers experiencing these GoogleVoice issues will note that they can reliably receive incoming calls directly on their Callcentric numbers when GoogleVoice is not involved.

Based on our industry experience and extensive testing/troubleshooting; we believe this issue may be due to the outgoing carrier being used by GoogleVoice potentially using poorer quality routes. We are currently working with GoogleVoice on this issue to try to attain additional information and also to see what changes can be made on their end (GoogleVoice) to resolve the problem satisfactorily.

Unfortunately, as it has been determined that the above mentioned concerns are related to the way that a third-party provider (GoogleVoice) provides service and delivers calls; we will not investigate your specific issue if it relates to any of the symptoms above.

With that said, we are committed to providing the best service experience possible for our customers and with this in mind we will continue working with GoogleVoice regarding these concerns. Further updates and information will be provided as soon as they are available. In the interim, you may contact Google to inform them of this issue and show that it affects a wider range of their subscribers
.

I posted a trouble ticket to CC giving them the specific info Steve had given me.  Their response was
We are currently investigating the issue further. Once we have more information, we will update this ticket. [/color]

In the meantime, I need reliable phone service.  I need the phone to ring when someone calls.  Taoman suggested IPcomms, a company I had never heard of (not that this means anything, I'm not a VoIP expert - I got an OBi to cut my phone bill to near nothing with GV).

My initial experience with them has been very disappointing.  Their website was unreachable, I found certain pages accessible but not others.  They made a change, and most, but not all of the pages were reachable.  I found multiple typos on the site (a yellow flag to me).  I filled out a form (they push you to like them on Facebook but I found the form without doing that), and then they called to ask a few questions and then said I would receive a setup email.  That was at 5:13PM last night.  I never got the email, sent a trouble ticket, got response to check my spam folder, went back and forth during the evening, was asked to give an alternate email address.  This morning I discovered that after I went to bed I received an email, to the original email address at 10:50 PM.  Since I only got 1 email (and none to the alternate email address), it's not due to delays in their system it's due to something not working until they fixed it.  

During the evening I also setup iNum numbers as Taoman suggested on Callcentric's site.  I was able to setup two, thinking I might be able to forward both GV numbers if I have to.  Unfortunately, as was noted by Taoman, IPComms only gives you one free DID.  So yes, I can handle all my calls by forwarding both GV numbers to IPComms, but I'll lose any distinct ring if I do that.  Since I get infrequent calls, and since my cell is setup as forwarding (and doesn't use minutes), this is fine for now.

This morning I logged into IPComms and discovered that you cannot change your initial password (which was in the email) online, so I asked how to change it - don't want it sitting in email folders anywhere.  I followed Taoman's instructions, but it took several tries to get IPComms system to show the info accurately, and I have no idea why.  Their website as noted as numerous typos, no "Call Treatments" that I can see (which would allow me to take my business calls and send them to the second iNum number I setup), no way to change a password, etc.  

Once setup I tested things.  If I don't forward to IPComms, my house phone takes about 15 seconds to ring (vs. 6 for my cell to ring).  That means that in 10 seconds or less GV is going to ask the caller to leave a Voicemail message).  I then forwarded my GV number to IPComms and retried the call.  My house phone rang instantly.  My OBi is still setup for CC and I do not have to put GV on it and use the portal or update my firmware (and take the risk of possibly bricking the OBi).

So, as of now, I have "fixed" the problem.  I've also proved that GV can forward immediately to IPComms (a California number), which unscientifically proves to me that the issue MAY be with CC.  

If this keeps working then I have no reason to change anything.  IPComms is free for incoming calls, CC is free for incoming calls, and GV is free.  If GV and CC stop the "mine's bigger" contest and actually fix things, then I can remove IPComms from the loop if I want.

I also noted that none of the IPComms account pages are secure.  Not one of them.  Big concern.

I hope things keep working, my initial experience with IPComms screams "Danger Will Robinson, Danger".  We'll see.  As I said I hope to help others by posting this.

Rick

Callcenter's update to my trouble ticket a little after 12 noon:

We have opened a ticket with one of the problematic carriers to find out what could be causing the issue. We will get back to you once we have further information.

Apparently, by providing the info that Steve gave me (i.e. carrier names), that resulted in some movement.

If this doesn't work, I'll see if Steve can get the GV people to get their carrier's people to contact the right person at CC to get this working.

Then, if they all chip in and send me $20,000, we'll be good.

SteveInWA

Quote from: Rick on October 15, 2014, 09:45:38 AM

"I provided Steve with my call logs, and he contacted his contacts at GV.  They contacted their contacts at the companies that complete the calls for them.  The result has been that GV says the issue is at CC.  CC says the issue is at GV.  In other words, "mine's bigger"."


That's not an entirely accurate description of what happened, as it implies that GV and CC are just blaming each other, which is not the case at this point in time.  The point of failure is downstream from GV, and it's between the last carrier in the routes, and CC's switches.  I worked with Rick to collect logs of his calls.  I then worked with Google to compare those logs to his GV account's logs, and then to examine the routes that the failed calls took.  Google identified the intermediate, or "transit" carriers that were used to send those calls to CC.  GV then contacted those carriers to troubleshoot.  Both of the carriers (which, contrary to CC's description, are major market players, not cheapo/low-quality) found that the calls were unable to route to CC for some reason).

I gave that information to Rick, and encouraged him to pass it to CC.  It's good to see that CC is finally willing to contact the carrier(s), given that it won't get fixed without their participation.

ramjet73

#17
Quote from: Rick on October 15, 2014, 05:14:25 AM
In the meantime, I need reliable phone service.  I need the phone to ring when someone calls.  Taoman suggested IPcomms, a company I had never heard of (not that this means anything, I'm not a VoIP expert - I got an OBi to cut my phone bill to near nothing with GV).

Have you considered purchasing a Dirt Cheap DID through Callcentric as was recommended by one of their technicians in response to my trouble ticket on a similar CID issue:

Quote
You can try purchasing a Dirt Cheap DID (http://www.callcentric.com/dids/phone_number_sale) which is provided by a different carrier. If you would like, you can purchase a Dirt Cheap DID and if the caller ID issue persists, we will provide you with a full refund for the product (as long as you update us within 48 hours of purchasing the number).


Contrary to their statement that customers with free DID's get the same service as those that pay, there is some evidence to the contrary, and the suggestion to buy a DID essentially to change the routing tends to contradict that.

I've been resisting that suggestion in principle since Callcentric does not have any option to acquire a Hawaii DID, paid or not, but am getting close to biting the bullet and spending $2.95 for a month just to satisfy my curiosity. If the quality of your phone service is important to you that's something you might want to consider as well.

Prior to testing again with Callcentric I had migrated my primary DID connection back to Google Voice but it doesn't offer all the features (like message waiting) of a real ITSP using SIP connections.  If the caller ID issues with free Callcentric DID's don't get resolved soon I will probably use my voip.ms account instead where I can get up to 3500 incoming minutes (way more than I need) for a $1 setup fee and $6.95 per month, including a Hawaii (808) DID number. Or just live with the limitations of Google Voice which I will continue to use as my primary service for outbound calls regardless of how my inbound calls are handled.

ramjet73

SteveInWA

Roger, given your location in Hawaii, and your preferences for phone service, I think voip.ms is the best solution.  I'd write off the extra cost as the "I get to live in Hawaii surcharge"!

ramjet73

Quote from: SteveInWA on October 15, 2014, 07:01:21 PM
Roger, given your location in Hawaii, and your preferences for phone service, I think voip.ms is the best solution.  I'd write off the extra cost as the "I get to live in Hawaii surcharge"!

8)

ramjet73