Hello,
I am from Canada and would like to use a separate [default] VOIP provider to call only Canadian area codes and reserve Google Voice for everything else.
Is there a way to setup a dial plan so that it automatically uses Provider A for Canada numbers and Google Voice for all others?
Also, I am expecting voice messages from both VOIP services. Since Google Voice won't forward calls to Canadian numbers, would I be best off buying a phone with an answering machine? Otherwise I would be forced to check two separate voice mail boxes, correct?
Thanks for the help!
Quote from: Quickstrike on May 25, 2011, 06:42:19 PM
I am from Canada and would like to use a separate [default] VOIP provider to call only Canadian area codes and reserve Google Voice for everything else.
Is there a way to setup a dial plan so that it automatically uses Provider A for Canada numbers and Google Voice for all others?
SP1/ITSPA = Google Voice
SP2/ITSPB = Canadian VoIP Provider
Physical Interfaces -> PHONE Port -> Primary Line : SP2 Service
Service Providers -> ITSP Profile B -> General -> DigitMap:
(1204xxxxxxx|1250xxxxxxx|1289xxxxxxx|1306xxxxxxx|1403xxxxxxx|1416xxxxxxx|1418xxxxxxx|
1450xxxxxxx|1506xxxxxxx|1514xxxxxxx|1519xxxxxxx|1604xxxxxxx|1613xxxxxxx|1647xxxxxxx|
1705xxxxxxx|1709xxxxxxx|1778xxxxxxx|1780xxxxxxx|1807xxxxxxx|1819xxxxxxx|1867xxxxxxx|
1902xxxxxxx|1905xxxxxxx|<1AAA>xxxxxxx|<**1>1xxxxxxxxxx|<**1>011xx.|(Mipd)|[^*]@@.'@'@@.)
AAA = your local area code
Quote from: Quickstrike on May 25, 2011, 06:42:19 PM
Also, I am expecting voice messages from both VOIP services. Since Google Voice won't forward calls to Canadian numbers, would I be best off buying a phone with an answering machine? Otherwise I would be forced to check two separate voice mail boxes, correct?
You will have to have your answering machine set to pick up within 25 seconds (4 rings max) as this is when Google Voice voicemail answers and it cannot be changed.
Quickstrike,
RonR's dial plan suggestions is an interesting approach to automatically handle calls to Canadian area codes, and the others calls over GV.
Have a look in this thread.
http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=93.0
You will learn that GV for some reason allows for area code 403. This happens to be a Canadian area code. Through this door you will be able to forward your calls with a GV tel #. Don't forget at this time only US numbers are available.
In that thread I mention Freephoneline, a Canadian SP with gives out free DID numbers. If you have GV forward your calls to the 403 number you can use the Freephoneline service to recieve your voice mail. VM mail can be emailed to you just like the GV VM service. This way you can handle all your VM from your email inbox. If you choose to go with another SP you can unconditionally call forward a second time from 403 Freephoneline acct to the SP of your choice. This will automate everything. I'm not certain what CID you will get in that case on the receiving end.
I have an account with Freephoneline on my OBI box+GV. I can recommend the service. However, about once a month I loose the SIP registration. I still have not been able to figure out why.
Have a look, and work out your own ideas. Good luck.
That is what I signed up for earlier [freephoneline] :).
This is going to be a gift for my sister that lives in Vancouver. Trying to get all the kinks worked out before I ship it over.
Sucks that your Obi loses registration info :(. I was hoping I wouldn't have to touch the device after I was done with the initial setup.
"Service Providers -> ITSP Profile B -> General -> DigitMap:
(1204xxxxxxx|1250xxxxxxx|1289xxxxxxx|1306xxxxxxx|1403xxxxxxx|1416xxxxxxx|1418xxxxxxx|
1450xxxxxxx|1506xxxxxxx|1514xxxxxxx|1519xxxxxxx|1604xxxxxxx|1613xxxxxxx|1647xxxxxxx|
1705xxxxxxx|1709xxxxxxx|1778xxxxxxx|1780xxxxxxx|1807xxxxxxx|1819xxxxxxx|1867xxxxxxx|
1902xxxxxxx|1905xxxxxxx|<1AAA>xxxxxxx|<**1>1xxxxxxxxxx|<**1>011xx.|(Mipd)|[^*]@@.'@'@@.)"
For some reason when I enter this string and reboot the Obi, it will turn on for about 5 seconds then reset itself back to the default settings. I made sure to replace the 'AAA' letters with an actual area code.
Quote from: Quickstrike on May 25, 2011, 10:03:28 PM
For some reason when I enter this string and reboot the Obi, it will turn on for about 5 seconds then reset itself back to the default settings. I made sure to replace the 'AAA' letters with an actual area code.
If you're making changes directly to the OBi, you must disable Auto Provisioning:
System Management -> Auto Provisioning -> Auto Provisioning -> Method : Disabled
Thanks!
That fixed the problem :).
Dial plan works like a charm :D.
Just something that popped in my head.
If you turn off Auto Provisioning and then set up an Obi remotely, there will be no way to manage it remotely.
Correct? Or is there any way to turn the provisioning on so as to mange the device from the Obitalk portal.
Offhand, do you happen to know of a DECT Cordless phone system that will allow you to change the answering machine pickup time to "within 25 seconds (4 rings max)"?
Thanks again!
Interesting question, jimates. I will let the experts answer that.
I have 2 sets of the Uniden Dect 6.0 systems. I can adjust the ring time to 2, 4, 6 & toll saver.
As far as management, I know RonR does not use the Obitalk portal and doesn't see why anyone would. As many times as we have said about turning off the Auto Provisioning I never thought about remote management coming into play.
Quote from: Quickstrike on May 25, 2011, 10:35:34 PM
Offhand, do you happen to know of a DECT Cordless phone system that will allow you to change the answering machine pickup time to "within 25 seconds (4 rings max)"?
I'm very fond of the Vtech DS-6321. In addition to the normal features, it has Bluetooth that can link to a cell phone. It's nice to be able to make and receive cell phone calls from any of the cordless handsets in addition to making and receiving calls through the OBi.
jimates,
I was going over the admin guide to see if there was a possibility of enabling/disabling the Auto Provisioning using the phone attached to the OBi, unless I missed it, I don't think it can be done. That would have been good to be able to control via the phone. We could have asked someone to press a few digits on the phone to toggle the feature on/off.
It will not be obvious to someone to preconfigure the OBi unit and then ship it off to someone. Chances are the auto provisioning will be toggled off. All the config changes you can do via the OBi portal Expert Configuration will be useless until the unit auto provisions the changes. Unless a remote sys admin has complete control of the OBi unit web page thru port forwarding methods, there will be times when changes to the OBi will be difficult to do.
I was thinking that some of the features using the phone could be possible using the OBi App. Since the App is linked to the OBi unit why not give it the ability to control some of the configurations. Until the OBi App can communicate with the unit some of the phone controls would not make any sense, however the ability to turn on/off auto provisioning might make sense. That would give the sys admin of the unit an alternate way of supporting the unit long distance. Perhaps a few other controls could come to mind.
I guess I'm not seeing the problem here.
Leave auto-provisioning on (personally my feeling is you should NEVER turn it off except perhaps in a few "edge cases" that cannot be handled by the OBiTALK portal "Expert Configuration" mode, if such exist. I realize a few paranoid types will not heed that advice, but especially if you are might need to make configuration changes remotely then you will want to leave auto-provisioning on).
Then use the Expert Configuration mode of the OBiTALK portal to make your DigitMap changes. Don't make ANY changes directly on the device itself. That way, if you ever need to make a remote configuration change (and you almost certainly will at some point), it's as easy as making the change on the OBiTALK portal.
As for that DigitMap, it appears to be an incomplete list of Canadian area codes, specifically missing area codes 226 (the part of Ontario closest to lower Michigan), 343 (Ottawa-Hull/Kingston/Pembroke in Ontario), 438 (Montreal area), 581 (Quebec/Gaspe etc. in Quebec), and 587 (Alberta). It appears that most or all of these are "overlay" area codes but all do have several exchanges assigned within them (use http://www.telcodata.us/search-area-code-exchange-detail to search those codes if you don't believe me), so you might want to add patterns for them to your DigitMap.
MT,
I agree that since the introduction of the Expert Configuration I see no need to turn off the provisioning. I do still visit the web interface occasionally, but not to make any changes.
Some people that started configuration before the expert config came along might not think about the potential problem if they configured for a remote Obi later. And RonR recommends to everyone to turn off provisioning and only mange the device from it's web interface, never from the Obitalk portal.
I will also agree with RonR that the Obitalk portal is lacking in some areas such as System Management & Status.
Quote from: jimates on May 26, 2011, 07:43:29 AMAnd RonR recommends to everyone to turn off provisioning and only mange the device from it's web interface, never from the Obitalk portal.
Yeah, well, there's always
one guy in every forum... don't even get me started. Suffice it to say that I think many users would be better off if they would take RonR's advice with several grains of salt (not that he's
always wrong, mind you, but he's not always right either).
Quote from: jimates on May 26, 2011, 07:43:29 AMI will also agree with RonR that the Obitalk portal is lacking in some areas such as System Management & Status.
That much is true. I don't know why, and I almost feel this in a very subjective way, but somehow I feel like the OBi developers may have lost some momentum in the past couple of months. Seemed like for a while there they were rolling along and adding features and fixing bugs, and then all of a sudden it's like something happened and they stopped adding features, and even responding in these forums as frequently as they used to (there are a whole bunch of feature requests in the feature request forum, but when was the last time we saw a requested feature added?). I could attribute some of that to the change of seasons (people get "spring fever" and hate being cooped up inside) but I don't know — it's like something has changed and I can't quite say what. The fact that the portal is a bit incomplete in the areas you mentioned is just a symptom of that.
Even so, Obihai is still a lot more responsive than some other companies I could name, but I do wish they'd go through all the feature requests and at least try to make us feel like we haven't typed in all those requests for nothing. I know they can't implement all of them, but there are some good ideas in there.
http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=934.msg0#new
Quote from: jimates on May 26, 2011, 04:26:59 AM
Call history cannot be obtained from the Obitalk portal. You must access the Obi through it's web interface. Dail ***1 for the device's IP Address.
from the web interface
Status > Call History
Here is a real example of a user not being able to view his call history, perhaps to consult or trouble shoot an issue. The expert config setup fails him in this case. As sys admin I think it is normal to want to have phiysical control of the equipment (when possible) and administration of the these assets. It is not a question of being paranoid, it is more about giving yourself the proper tools. Afterall, once it is working the way you want it, you will probably have very little need to be modifying the config. In the future you might think of offering them other features like forking calls to multiple phones, or setup a callback senario, ect... If as sys admin you decided to offer these features on a remote OBi, you had better get it right the first time. It is sometimes difficult to configure something perfectly the first time. There is almost always some tweaking or troubleshooting involved.
jimates headsup about turning off the Auto provision is a valid point. Those that plan on sending an OBi to remote locations need to consider how to support the unit remotely. This has been a consideration since day one. That is why there is a sticky advising people to "Managing Your OBi Device Configuration: OBiTALK or OBi Web Page but NOT Both"
----------------
MT
I agree that the Expert Configuration mode config method is useful in the remote adminisration of the unit in many/most use case senarios. You will end up with the same results either way. We can agree on this point.
I have read on your Blog and agree with your beef with the FreePBX people. (Editorial: I confess I do not understand why you take such a harsh tone about it). I realize that this is not at all the same issue, however the common point is that as sys admin you are looking for ways to allow yourself the ability to design the behavior of the equipment.
How do you configure your OBi? Wheter it be a local or remote unit I prefer to be able to work directly from the OBi web page, as it offers 100% of the config settings. I don't know if you have had an opportunity to deal with supporting something in a different time zone, different language/culture, and with people who are non Tech savy. It is easier to do everything yourself and let them enjoy the unit. The users in the remote location don't care how the unit works. We set it up and it just works. Everyone likes it that way.
Regarding the digimaps. I thought RonR's desgin provided a useful template to build on. Since I am originating from Canada, I noticed immediately that some area codes were missing. I realize the OP poster asked for "Canadian area codes". It would be left up to him to decide which ones to include or omit. In fact it is actually more complex than that. Some numbers in the 450 are local calls to Montreal, while others require 1450 to complete the call making them long distance calls. It may be the case elsewhere in Canada as well.
In RonR's defense his batting avg is better than you make it sound. He is right on the money most of the time. I love seeing how he crafts his digimaps to perform all sorts of tricks.
Interesting observation about Obihai not following up on some of the feature requests. I agree that there are some interesting feature requests in there. Pound for pound Obihai is still the standard I hold other companies to when it comes to supporting their product.
Peace
QuoteI realize the OP poster asked for "Canadian area codes". It would be left up to him to decide which ones to include or omit. In fact it is actually more complex than that. Some numbers in the 450 are local calls to Montreal, while others require 1450 to complete the call making them long distance calls. It may be the case elsewhere in Canada as well.
Also, I have noticed that FreePhoneLine doesn't always support area codes in their entirety.
For instance, Calgary and Lethbridge share the same 403 area code, but calls to Lethbridge will not go through - not on the free calling city list.
I can probably get around this by implementing a speed dial plan to a couple Lethbridge numbers - instructing the Obi to use Google Voice.
Quote from: QBZappy on May 26, 2011, 09:48:47 AM
jimates headsup about turning off the Auto provision is a valid point. Those that plan on sending an OBi to remote locations need to consider how to support the unit remotely. This has been a consideration since day one. That is why there is a sticky advising people to "Managing Your OBi Device Configuration: OBiTALK or OBi Web Page but NOT Both"----------------
I sent a PM to ShermanObi and asked that a note be added to the referenced sticky
http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=61.msg109#msg109
informing of the inability to manage the device remotely after turning off auto provisioning.
I noticed that all the Lethbridge numbers that I call on a regular basis either start with a 328 or 329.. so 403-32x-xxxx.
Would I somehow be able to incorporate this into the dial-plan? 403-32x-xxxx numbers sent through GoogleVoice, all other 403-xxx-xxxx go through FreePhoneLine?
Then I just need to get the Betamax account I signed up for working through a voice gateway (to make calls to Australia).
This is what I have configured so far:
-[Most] Canadian calls through FreePhoneLine
-USA [+a few Canadian numbers] through GoogleVoice
-AutoAttendent setup so my sister can call the Obi from her cell and talk for free (if she adds the phone number to her Fav 5 Friends list) - also have AA setup to call her back after a couple rings (if she chooses to use her free incoming minutes instead of Fav 5 Friends plan).
-Xlite and ObiTalk setup on her laptop - so she can make calls from her computer
-Vtech phone synced up with her Blackberry - can answer cellphone calls + use the cellphones address book
-Vtech phone answering machine is configured to pick up the call after 4 rings
-Everything done through ObiTalk Expert config so that AutoProvision works.
Are there any other tweaks that I have overlooked?
I bought the Vtech DS-6321-2 for $29.97 CDN! Normal retail is $99.99 .. price was lowered to $59.97 and then finally $29.97 on clearance. Looks like they are replacing that model with the DS-6421.
Thanks again for all the help!
Quote from: Quickstrike on May 27, 2011, 09:04:09 PM
Would I somehow be able to incorporate this into the dial-plan? 403-32x-xxxx numbers sent through GoogleVoice, all other 403-xxx-xxxx go through FreePhoneLine?
Simply add another rule to your existing ITSPB DigitMap: |<**1>140332xxxxx|
Quickstrike,
Another neat trick you might like to know is that the OBi can ring multiple phones at the same time on an incoming call. I could not tell from your posts if you have an OBi 110 or 100. You might consider having incoming calls ring the attached phone+cell simultaneously, if you have the OBi110. She will be able to answer the call from the most convenient phone, or answer when she is not at home.
Nice work guys :).
I own the Obi110 BTW.
I reread the Obi Admin guide - for some reason I originally thought that Voice Gateways were a way to get around the 2 SP voice service cap, whilst still using a single Obi unit :-[.
Will just have to add credit to the Google Voice account - for international calls.
Costs 2 cents a minute to Australia Landlines, compared to BetaMax's 4 free months (limit 300min/5 hours a week) and 1 cent a minute thereafter.
Usage : ~75% of the time the outgoing call will be to Canada / ~15% to Australia / ~10% to USA
Quote from: Quickstrike on May 28, 2011, 09:16:17 AM
I reread the Obi Admin guide - for some reason I originally thought that Voice Gateways were a way to get around the 2 SP voice service cap, whilst still using a single Obi unit :-[.
Since you have a SIP provider configured on SP2, you can use the Voice Gateways for additional SIP providers:
http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=526.0
Ugh.. Do you know if this (http://www.internetcalls.com/en/sipp.html) service [or BetaMax services in general] requires SIP registration?
Aren't you registering with the server if you fill in the "AuthUserID" & "AuthPassword" fields? The SIP server is communicating/registering with your Obi to verify that the Username and Password are correct?!
I don't know if BetaMax services require SIP registration. I had a bad experience wirh VoIP Buster a long time ago and wouldn't do business with BetaMax again under any circumstances.
SIP registration is not necessarily required to make calls. Authenticated INVITE's are used to verify the client's identity and to place the call. I'm using Voice Gateways with IdeaSIP and Whistlephone without any registration.
(http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/6057/222ej.png)
Full DigitMap : (1xxxxxxxxxx|<1>[2-9]xxxxxxxxx|011xx.|xx.)
Direct copy and paste config changes from your thread: (http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=526.0)
(http://img849.imageshack.us/img849/3978/223s.png)
QuotePhone Port DigitMap:
|**1(Msp1)|**2(Msp2)|**3(Mvg3)|**4(Mvg4)|**6(Mvg6)|**7(Mvg7)|**8(Mli)|**9(Mpp)|
PHONE Port OutboundCallRoute:
{(<**1:>(Msp1)):sp1},{(<**2:>(Msp2)):sp2},{(<**3:>(Mvg3)):vg3},{(<**4:>(Mvg4)):vg4},
{(<**6:>(Mvg6)):vg6},{(<**7:>(Mvg7)):vg7},{(<**8:>(Mli)):li},{(<**9:>(Mpp)):pp},{(Mpli):pli}
How I dialed to Australia : **301161282557444
Result : Busy tone
Xlite softphone configured with details provided on Betamax site
How I dialed to Australia : 01161282557444
Result : Call successfully connected
Are there any errors in my Obi110 config?
Does this confirm that you must register BetaMax accounts?
Thank You!
SPx should be SP2 in your case.
The bolded parts of the PHONE Port DigitMap and OutboundCallRoute are ADDITIONS to the default values, not entire replacement values.
EDIT: It seems to be working AFTER the alterations I made below + DISABLING THE FIREWALL [NAT] on my router :)!!
I forget.. is there a way to get around the NAT / Voice Gateway issue? Apparently you can't use STUN, so I am forced to disable NAT 24/7?!
I added "SP2" to the AccessNumber field + changed the PHONE Port DigitMap and OutboundCallRoute.
(http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/5097/134pl.png)
(http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/4641/156y.png)
Now when I try calling an Australian number, there is silence for ~30 seconds.. followed by a series of clicks.. and finally I am left with a dial tone.
Obi Call History:
(http://img24.imageshack.us/img24/7452/111wr.png)
BetaMax Call Log - says that my calls are between 7-9 seconds long .. even though I hear nothing on my end:
(http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/553/112f.png)
See Top of my Message to see that I have fixed this issue by disabling NAT.
Quote from: Quickstrike on May 28, 2011, 11:41:05 PM
Now when I try calling an Australian number, there is silence for ~30 seconds.. followed by a series of clicks.. and finally I am left with a dial tone.
Is the OBi spontaneously rebooting? If it is, the UpTime is usually displayed with no reboot reason code in parenthesis:
UpTime 0 Days 5:42:27
You might want to post your entire PHONE Port DigitMap and OutboundCallRoute. There's no error checking in the OBi and a malformed value can cause the OBi to crash, although that's probably not happening since the call appears to be being processed.
That was a quick reply!
Please see my revised post.
I am getting audio now that I disabled NAT :).
Since you have a SIP provider registered on SP2, you can add a STUN server on ITSPB and it should be effective on Voice Gateways.
There We Go!
Can't thank you enough for your help :).
Best Regards.