Configuring Asterisk server and integrating with Openfire

Asterisk Asterisk Support
1

Hello all, well this is my very first time with asterisk and every related topic, I will try to explain my scenario and will appreciate all the support you could give.

In the begining I was implementing Openfire server solution with Spark-IM client for internal communication and file transfer over a 2008 server PDC with DNS and DHCP servers, later on I´ve configured the VPN PPTP to access all the network resources from anywhere, so that i could connect my cellphone or laptop via VPN and use the spark or access my data etcs…

Everything was running OK till the moment my Boss asked me to implement a VideoConference/voicechat but takind advantage of the plataform we have without spending money, so that I started to look for opensource software and the first thing I thoug was… IM DONE… I JUST NEED TO FIND A JABBER CLIENT WITH VIDEO SUPPORT AND IM DONE!!.. sadly i could not find ANY of them able to use my openfire resource and work ok.

Later I was looking on openfire solutions then I´ve found this RED5 plugin for SPARK but it works if the openfire server is INTEGRATED with the ASTERISK-IM plugin so that the SPARK will be able to use the SIP phone pluggins, at that point i was thinking that i just needed to simple configure the ASTERISK-IM plugin and i was DONE!!!.. but that was a mistake… at the end i figured that i need a ASTERISK server able to connect to mi openfire server trough ASTERISK-IM plugin with my asterisk server.

So, I´ve downloaded the ASTERISKNOW.ISO. burned the cd, installed it in a small machine (P4 2.8Ghz with 1.5 Gb ram and 80 Gb Hard Drive), I am able to acces the server via web browser (FireForx 3.6) without changing anything and seems like its all ok, but then I go to my openfire server, and try to add the asterisk server and nothing happens… the ASTERISK-IM pluggin ask me for my servername(private name), the asterisk server IP address(wich i saw typing ifconfig in the asterisk machine), the access port as far as I know is the 5038 the user and the password that im guessing is the user for the asterisk server root and password XXXXXXX but I tried also with the user wich i log via web Browser and is not connecting.

Ok, so thats the whole picture, I hope someone will be able to help me configure correctly the asterisk server to do what i want to do (explained earlier), or maybe another solution to get my videoconference server implemented localy(intranet) with opensource solutions…

Thank you in advance… and sorry for my english, im from Venezuela South America (native language Spanish).

2

The connections its made via Asterisk Manager Interface, so you need to configure the /etc/asterisk/manager.conf via ssh, and add a user, secret and the permisions type:

[openfireuser] secret = strongpass displayconnects = yes read = system,call,log,verbose,agent,user,config,dtmf write = system,call,agent,user,config,command

The name between [] is the user in your openfire configuration, then reload asterisk and try again.

Also you can use Asterisk for Video Conference using softphones like Xlite, BRIA, etc. Or Maybe buy some IP-PHones with Video support.

3

Ok, thank you for the response… but you need to know that im also newb to linux… (Windows lover) :unamused: … the solution seems very easy but what you mean with via ssh, I have been reading some and everyone says that I need to configure my manager.conf, the thing is that the asterisk server does not have a GUI, its a core centOS my asterisk version is 1.5.0 and i will apreciate some example or screenshots to show me how to edit the manager.conf via ssh… sorry for my ignorance at that matter but like i said im newb to the Linux/Opensource world…

and another thing… i guess that once i get to configure the asterisk-im openfire pluggin ill be able to use x-lite softphone with my ldap users or in the case i decide to bypass the openfire configuration and use the softphones directly with the asterisknow can i use my active directory users to create extensions for asterisk? and how to do that?..

Thanks again…

4

Via ssh, means secure-shell, You need a ssh client like putty, so you put the ip of your asterisk server and the port 22 and connect. You need to insert user and password for the connection, generally user is root and the password that you establish. If you have access to the server you can do it directly.

Once you made the connection you will see the console, yes Asterisk don’t provide a Desktop, the console only show a prompt:

So here you put the commands, if you want edit files you need to put the editor program and the path for the file to edit, in your case you want to edit manager.conf, it is located in /etc/asterisk/ so:

nano is the editor, exist other like “vi” or “vim”, but nano is like a notepad very easy to use. If your server don’t have nano installed just install with “yum install nano” on redhat based distros or “apt-get install nano” in debian based distros.

Once you have edited your manager.conf for save and Exit just type: ctrl+x for exit, nano will ask to you if you want to save the file, just type “y” and then an enter.

For the LDAP question I never use that so maybe googling you find an answer

5

already figured thanks

6

After configuring the above, I am still having problems getting the user’s status to update. i.e. 200 calls 201. Both users should sho up on the phone, but in my case, they stay green. Any ideas?

7

Hi,

I hope you have installed AsteriskIM plugin in Openfire server and mapped the phone with the users.

But have you installed the presence plugin. If not try installing it.

8

Thanks for the reply. I have these installed. I just came across some more informaiton regarding the “hints” for each device. I have now configured it. Now its testing time. Thanks again.