[FAQ] - Support and Troubleshooting - *READ BEFORE POSTING*

Asterisk Asterisk Support
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[size=150]Does my topic belong here?[/size]
Read Where to post. How to post. What to post.

Note: Digium provides this forum for users of Asterisk and AsteriskNOW to exchange ideas and to support each other. As open source software is provided without warranty, Asterisk and AsteriskNOW are community-supported. Although you may find Digium employees active in this forum, you should not expect a reply to your forum post from Digium.

[size=150]Support FAQ[/size]

Before requesting support, read Requesting Support and Troubleshooting

  1. Digium provides this forum for users of open source Asterisk and AsteriskNOW (as made available for download on Asterisk.org and AsteriskNOW.org) to exchange ideas and to support each other. As open source software is provided without warranty, Asterisk and AsteriskNOW are community-supported only. Although you may find Digium employees active in this forum, you should not expect a reply to your forum post from Digium.

  2. No support will be given for commercial versions of Asterisk as found on Digium.com with the exception of support provided for open source Asterisk with the purchase of Digium hardware.

  3. Asterisk and AsteriskNOW are designed to be easily installed. Support is available for specific questions on installation, configuring and troubleshooting Asterisk.

  4. The Support Forums are not to be used for questions regarding Apache, Linux, etc. These questions should be directed to the support site of the relevant software.

  5. Members are asked to attempt to solve their issue themselves first, which includes reading the Digium Knowledge Base, online documentation, and searching the Asterisk Forum for the issue in question.

  6. Bumping of a support question is permitted only after 24 hours have elapsed without a response. Members who abuse bumping will be warned.

  7. Members should note that the Asterisk software and Asterisk Forums are maintained by the Asterisk Forum Teams with the Asterisk Developers being the major contributors of Asterisk, a time-consuming responsibility. Therefore, out of consideration, Members should not post demanding support requests. Members who disrespect the work of Team Members will be warned and/or banned.

[size=150]Where the answers are[/size]

While the initial learning curve of Asterisk may be steep, there is ample information online to get you started. It is highly recommended that you take the time to peruse the information available, as knowledge is power and you will be able to articulate any further questions for faster responses.

Some of the most useful links (among many) are:

[size=150]Troubleshooting and Requesting Support[/size]

If you have not found an answer to your problem in the above links you should follow the below guidelines in order to accelerate time to resolution. It is best to post a base set of details to save being asked to post before any insight may be provided. While all users and all questions related to Asterisk are welcome, you only help yourself by doing research prior to posting a question.

Before you post requesting support, be sure to read the Support FAQ.

When posting to troubleshoot a problem, please be sure to include the following:

- Which version (1.2.x or 1.4.x) and flavor of Asterisk are you using and which version?

Asterisk from source
Trixbox (previously: Asterisk@Home)
Asterisk Business Edition
Pound Key rPath Asterisk Soft Appliance

This is an important point, as the distribution you are using has an impact on how the issue may be addressed.

- What is your use case and call flow?

Clearly stated what you are trying to do, what elements are involved in the process (ie - endpoints, Asterisk, providers, etc) and exactly what is failing…

- What is your configuration?

Post the relevant configuration files:

  • /etc/asterisk/sip.conf
  • /etc/asterisk/iax.conf
  • /etc/asterisk/extensions.conf
  • etc

Without passwords of course!

- What is your network environment?

This is VERY important if you are having problems sending or receiving sound.

  • Is your Asterisk server on NAT network or a publically addressable IP?
  • Are your endpoints/clients on a NAT or publically addressable IP?

Please refer to this about how to address Asterisk and NAT issues.

- What is Asterisk saying when you attempt the use case?

A ‘verbose CLI’ output in your post (not too lengthy though) goes a long ways towards shedding light on an issue.

Following these simple recommendations will go a long ways towards getting you constructive responses quicker. And of course gain the respect of the Asterisk community as you go along.

Good luck!