I have an OBI100 device; I needed to update my Google Voice Config, and the ObiTalk page isn't lettingme saying that I need to pay $10/yr to upgrade support. I thought Obi advertises that there are no recurrent costs after purchasing the device.
How do I update the Google Voice Config?
There hasn't been any official information on this policy change posted here on the forum. Users can speculate, but why don't you open a ticket with Obihai and ask them directly? Posting here, what you find out, would help other users understand the change.
This behavior seems to vary by device type and individual situation. I tested deleting my GV configuration off of a SP slot on an out-of-warranty OBi 200, and I was able to add it back in, with no notice regarding a support fee. It's possible that the fee is triggered if you're trying to add or update a device that is both out of warranty and has downlevel firmware. All my devices have the latest firmware, so I can't test that theory. Again, the only definitive answer has to come from Obihai, and they don't respond here in the forum.
I did reach out to Obihai, and got this response from them:
-------------------------------
This device is out of warranty and does not have an Extended Support on it.
To continue using Google Voice with the OBi, you will need to purchase a
Support contract to enable firmware upgrades.
To purchase it, please log into your OBitalk.com account and click on your
dashboard.
Further click on your device, and go to Support and Warranty tab.
-------------------------------
It's not very clear if you require Extended Support to enable firmware upgrade only, or is it required for GoogleVoice service as well. I have another Obi202 device which is out of warranty, and I was able to upgrade firmware w/ the expired support contract.
What is the latest firmware for Obi100 (I thought the latest firmware was released in 2014) - my unit doesn't have a "warning sign" telling me that newer firmware is available, so I think I'm running the latest. How do I confirm?
See:
http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=10028.0
Thanks for reporting your experience with Obihai support regarding this issue.
The behavior seems inconsistent from one device to another at this point. It's possible that their recent change to this strategy has an implementation bug, resulting in invalid warranty or support status. The linked discussion describes some devices in various warranty states, with different results. In one case, it looks like the device just needed to be factory reset after getting it up to the latest firmware release.
In any case, there are 3 ways to find your device's firmware version: on the OBiTALK portal, expert configuration menu, status page, or via the local web page, or via the attached telephone's voice interface. For the latter method, use the attached phone, key in ***0, then 1#, and the voice will tell you the version. For the 2xx series, the current version is 3.0.4738. If you want to experiment by downgrading the firmware to 4581, you can read the information in the linked discussion thread that Robert posted.
Firmware information: http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=9.0 (note that Mark no longer works at Obihai, and nobody has been updating the release notes since then).
Thanks for your help. after manually upgrading my firmware to 2872; I was able to re-configure Google Voice.
Thanks for confirming that it eventually got sorted out.
Just to add another data point: I tested my old OBi 110 (hardware ver. 2.8, long out of warranty) last night. I had previously removed it from my portal account. I factory reset it, and then added it back to the portal. I was able to successfully configure a previously-unused GV test account with no prompt to pay for support service. It appears to me that the pay-for-support issue may only surface if the device added to the portal is both out-of-warranty, and has a down-level firmware version installed. Of course, the latter issue can be solved by manually updating the firmware.
Wonder if any more info is available on this as I got error message and another has posted they did too. I see you implied that one could just upgrade the firmware. I did but says I had latest. i still get note to purchase service and automatically will get software upgrade..not sure if they mean firmware, and if they now don't let you get, or not easily, manually. In any case when I try to reinstall firmware from site, says I have the latest but doesn't give firmware numbers...Any thoughts or advice?
Quote from: rickame on May 19, 2016, 07:52:40 PM
Wonder if any more info is available on this as I got error message and another has posted they did too. I see you implied that one could just upgrade the firmware. I did but says I had latest. i still get note to purchase service and automatically will get software upgrade..not sure if they mean firmware, and if they now don't let you get, or not easily, manually. In any case when I try to reinstall firmware from site, says I have the latest but doesn't give firmware numbers...Any thoughts or advice?
https://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=11252.msg73904#msg73904 (https://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=11252.msg73904#msg73904)
The issue I also faced and after lot of testing and trying..I paid.
Post payment it took less than 5 minutes to get the back up and working.
Thanks - Forum..
I had the same notice this morning. After reading through all threads, it is clear that the problem is firmware on the OBI100. Mine was 1.3.0.2872, which is listed as the latest, but it is not.
I manually installed the OBI110 update 1.3.0.2886 by logging in to my device's IP and travelling to the System Management page. After reboot my GV was working properly
Nice attempt at a cash grab they promised us would never be required, though.
Thank you to everyone that weighed in on this issue.
You just have to pay. I have an Obi110 set up for my Mom, so it's not worth it to not pay on principle.
But before I did so, I manually upgraded to SoftwareVersion 1.3.0 (Build: 2872) manually, which was the latest FW on the website at http://fw.obihai.com/OBi-latest.fw. It still wouldn't let me configure GoogleVoice.
Then I paid and it upgraded to a new, secret FW, 1.3.0 (Build: 2886)
After that, it took a couple minutes and GVoice was back in action.
Paying the $10 fee is not required. You can update manually: http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=11256.msg73954#msg73954
I just downloaded the firmware and updated it
http://fw.obihai.com/OBi110-1-3-0-2886.fw
It works for obi100 (which i what i have)
OK, here is a tricky issue that I have.
1 of 2 devices is located at my parent's house. The remote device is currently the only one that is having a problem connecting. I would like to do the manual firmware upgrade, but if I type the IP address on the REMOTE phone into my LOCAL browser, will it reach the remote device? Or must you be physically connected to the obi device in order to access it via the address?
I cannot travel to the remote location, and my father is not capable of performing these tasks himself. At least not reliably or a high risk of really messing up something.
I just did with a family members OBI remotely
You can if you have set up Portforwarding to the Obi Webserver previously. (Which I did)
If not, you can try to Remote Desktop into a PC on that network and use that PC's browser to log in to the OBI.
If you do not know how to Remote Desktop, you can both download Teamviewer at
https://www.teamviewer.com/en/download/
and then swap USER ID and PW (shown on each others Teamviewer screen) and Remote Desktop through each other's PC into the OBI IP address.
Quote from: hapollo on June 14, 2016, 03:37:52 PM
I just did with a family members OBI remotely
You can if you have set up Portforwarding to the Obi Webserver previously. (Which I did)
If not, you can try to Remote Desktop into a PC on that network and use that PC's browser to log in to the OBI.
If you do not know how to Remote Desktop, you can both download Teamviewer at
https://www.teamviewer.com/en/download/
and then swap USER ID and PW (shown on each others Teamviewer screen) and Remote Desktop through each other's PC into the OBI IP address.
Quote
and my father is not capable of performing these tasks himself. At least not reliably or a high risk of really messing up something.
1. How do you set up port forwarding?
2. After setting up port forwarding, how do you log into the device remotely and do the fw update procedure?
Check your router's port forwarding section in the manual.
At this point, go for option 3. It's the least risky. Your dad should download Teamviewer QS, run it and just tell you the the user ID and Password so you can enter those credentials in your Teamviewer.
If you don't think your Dad can download and run a program, without risk, don't try it.
For this particular task, I will use an alternate method.
For future knowledge and use (possibly for myself), I still would like to know the detailed steps, if you would be so kind :).
I have no idea what router you have so here is the generic that I used when I set mine up.
https://www.ukvoipforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=176
Once you find out your router model, you can do a google search for port forwarding on that specific model and apply those general rules.
Once you're done, make absolutely sure you remove your port forwarding.
Otherwise, expect your OBi to be hacked and used to place calls to expensive international destinations. This may not be of concern with a free service, but is good practice.
I was able to fix the problem device remotely with some very careful hand-holding.
Now, I am curious about my own local device. It has not given me any trouble either last month or this month with losing connection on me and it still works fine as I type this, but it has version 2872 and I don't want to mess with it if I don't absolutely have to.
I do get the "warning" on my device page, but it shows "connected" so I can make calls.
1. Should I leave it alone until it chokes like most recent complaints or should I make it a priority to load 2886 even before it quits? Don't want to open a new can of worms.
2. Is there a reason my 2872 is not quitting, or is it just a matter of time and it hasn't hit me yet?
Quote from: mo832 on June 14, 2016, 07:12:49 PM
I was able to fix the problem device remotely with some very careful hand-holding.
Now, I am curious about my own local device. It has not given me any trouble either last month or this month with losing connection on me and it still works fine as I type this, but it has version 2872 and I don't want to mess with it if I don't absolutely have to.
I do get the "warning" on my device page, but it shows "connected" so I can make calls.
1. Should I leave it alone until it chokes like most recent complaints or should I make it a priority to load 2886 even before it quits? Don't want to open a new can of worms.
2. Is there a reason my 2872 is not quitting, or is it just a matter of time and it hasn't hit me yet?
The only can of worms that will open is the one that will cause your device to stop working. Just follow the instructions and get it over with.
I had the same issue everyone else had where my ObiTalk device configured with GV stopped working this morning and it said I needed to log into Obitalk to fix it. I went to this part of the Obi site that has the latest firmware for their devices and I downloaded it and installed it and the device rebooted and now my home phone is working again. I have the Obi200.
But to the larger point, they sold the device saying you only had to pay once and not reoccurring charges. I don't expect to have to pay for support once a year either to get my device to work. in this particular case, you can download the latest firmware yourself and install it without having to pay for extended support so please do don't that until you've tried this first.
OBiTALK Community > Firmware, Software Updates > Firmware / Advisories / Notifications for OBi Products > Release Notes - OBi2xx and OBi3xx ATAs: https://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=8982.0
Can someone dumb this down for me?
My obi200/202 has run seamlessly since '12. It stopped working a few months ago. I tried to fix it when it went down 2 months ago by updating the firm ware. It has been unplugged for the last month and i am trying to get it running this week.
What number do i call to get the firm #? I have looked at my dash board and can not find the #
When i call ***6 , It says "software update not available"
I so much need to get this resolved but am too cheap to spend 10 bucks
You've posted five years' worth of clueless questions.
http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=2900;sa=showPosts (http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=2900;sa=showPosts)
Why should we continue to hand-hold with you if you can't take some time to read and figure things out, or pay the $10 for support? Be considerate of what other people's time is worth.
Read and follow the instructions linked below, but instead of downloading the firmware file mentioned in the linked post, substitute this file: http://fw.obihai.com/OBi202-3-1-0-5285.fw (http://fw.obihai.com/OBi202-3-1-0-5285.fw)
http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=11384.0 (http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=11384.0)