Asterisk 1.4 – the Professional’s Guide Table Of Contents

Table of Contents

• Preface

• Chapter 1: The Dialplan
• Dialplan location
• Extensions and contexts
• Pattern matching
• Why use contexts?
• Call barring made simple
• Time and day call routing
• Variables
• Inheritance of channel variables through the dialplan
• Using the AstDB
• Dialplan features and additions
• func_devstate
• What can we use the DEVSTATE() function for?
• Using multiple broadband lines
• Configuration overview
• System() application
• Summary

• Chapter 2: Network Considerations when Implementing Asterisk
• Centralized and distributed installations
• Centralized installations
• Distributed solutions
• Latency and jitter
• Jitterbuffer
• Echo
• Do your homework
• SLAs are for everyone
• Achieving the goal
• Backups
• To share or not to share
• Ensuring quality
• When things go wrong
• Red
• Amber
• Green
• Increasing resilience
• Summary

• Chapter 3: Call Routing with Asterisk
• Routing methods
• Where to start
• Internal calls
• Local calls
• National calls
• International calls
• Alternative options
• ENUM
• DUNDi
• Types of routing
• Routing techniques
• Summary

• Chapter 4: Call Centers—Queues and Recording
• Asterisk queues
• Queue gotchas
• A practical queue
• Using queues to cascade calls
• Call recording—the issues
• Show-stoppers
• VoIP recording approaches
• Impact of VoIP on recording systems
• Hardware convergence
• Distributed call centers
• Home working
• VoIP recording challenges
• Routing
• Bandwidth
• Encryption
• Solutions
• Asterisk call center solutions
• How VICIDIAL works
• Handling inbound calls
• Installation
• Timing sources
• Scalability
• Summary

• Chapter 5: Asterisk and Speech Technology
• Why speech-enable?
• Types of speech technologies
• Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR)
• Isolated Word Recognition
• Connected Word Recognition
• Natural Language Recognition
• Text-to-Speech (TTS)
• Speaker Verification and Identification (SVI)
• MRCP
• Implementation considerations
• ASR and Asterisk
• Installing LumenVox speech recognition with Asterisk
• Checking that things are working
• Grammar files
• Implementation advice for ASR
• TTS with Asterisk
• Implementation advice for TTS
• Summary

• Chapter 6: Call Accounting and Billing
• Call Data Records (CDRs)
• CDR frontends
• Call accounting
• Providing termination billing
• Every little helps
• Selecting a billing platform
• Introducing A2Billing
• Reasons to consider A2Billing
• A2Billing requirements
• Monitoring usage
• Coding for A2Billing
• Billing gotcha!
• High call volumes
• Other high-call-volume solutions
• Summary

• Chapter 7: Resilience and Stability
• Increasing availability
• Stability
• Network
• Cables
• Switches and routers
• Endpoints
• Telephony switches and gateways
• Server
• Environment
• Dealing with failure
• Network resilience
• Server
• High availability
• Telephony switches/gateways
• Redfone foneBRIDGE2
• Junghanns ISDNguard
• Endpoints
• Round robin DNS
• Say hello to Rsync
• Limiting the number of calls per server
• Summary

• Chapter 8: Localization and Practical Security
• Tones
• Time and date and localization
• Changing the language of system prompts
• Local telephony interfaces
• Analog
• Digital
• Localizing caller ID signaling on Digium analog interfaces
• Checklist
• Practical security
• Out of hours
• Summary

• Chapter 9: Interfacing with Traditional Analog and Digital Telephony
• Analog
• Digital
• ISDN BRI (Basic Rate Interface)
• ISDN PRI (Primary Rate Interface)
• Choices, choices
• Using external adaptors
• Using cards
• Installing a Digium card
• Troubleshooting with Digium cards
• Summary

• Chapter 10: Integrating Asterisk with Wireless Technologies
• Why integrate Asterisk with wireless technologies?
• Wireless technology overview
• Wi-Fi (only) phones
• SIP desk phones with a wireless link
• Dual-mode (GSM and SIP) phones and PDA/smart phones
• SIP/DECT phones
• Connecting Asterisk to mobile networks
• Why connect to mobile networks?
• The GSM gateway (box)
• The GSM card
• Configuring wireless devices
• Configuring Asterisk to work with wireless technologies
• Deployment choices
• Neat money saving tricks
• Calling a mobile phone
• Avoiding those nasty roaming charges that arise from receiving calls
• Summary

• Chapter 11: Graphical User Interfaces
• Reasons for going GUI
• Good to GUI
• Ease of administration
• Access to enhanced features
• Easier upgrade process
• Standardized code
• GUI, phooey!
• Performance
• Stability
• Restricted functions
• FreePBX
• How it works
• Installation
• Configuration
• Extensions
• Inbound routes
• Outbound routes
• Trunks
• Other records
• Summary

• Appendix A: Selling Your Solution
• In the beginning ...
• Drivers for changing phone systems
• A word on cost
• Generating interest
• Alliances
• Advertising
• Search engines
• Become an expert
• Relationship marketing
• Email as a marketing tool
• Tracking prospects
• Converting the prospect into a sale
• Determining your customer's hardware requirements
• Choosing the right phones
• Remote support
• Make it secure
• Do's and don'ts
• The do's
• First impressions
• Get brochures printed
• Take notes
• Send the quote in a timely manner
• Follow up the quote
• Target the decision makers, but don't ignore IT
• The don'ts
• You don't need a fancy office
• Don't cut corners on the solution
• Don't under price
• Don't have a huge margin on handsets
• Don't supply a PC as the phone server
• Summary

• Appendix B: Sample Email Content
• What is VoIP?
• Why should I consider VoIP?
• Cost savings
• Call costs
• Line rental costs
• Wiring costs
• Reduced infrastructure costs
• Centralized management
• System integration
• Unified messaging
• Reliability
• Closed and open systems
• Superior sound
• Fallback solutions
• Broadcasting calls
• A number for life
• Number porting
• Local numbers
• About XYZ
• Our philosophy
• Our passion

• Appendix C: Sample Appointment Sheet

• Index