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TrixBox Made Easy
TrixBox Made Easy

TrixBox Made Easy: A step-by-step guide to installing and running your home and office VoIP system

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TrixBox Made Easy

Chapter 2. Introducing Asterisk

In this chapter, we will be looking at what Asterisk is, and what it can do for us. As we explore the features, we can make note of what will help us to accomplish our goals and be useful in our environment. Creating a phone system based on Asterisk is an affordable alternative to a traditional PBX system. As we plan our deployment we will need to have an idea of the features we will use.

Open-Source Software

The concept behind open-source software is that not only is the application available to the general public at no cost, but the actual source code that created the application is also available and freely distributable. This allows other users of the application to make changes to the source code and optionally pass these changes on to other users of the software.

Asterisk and the other components of TrixBox, however, are released under the GPL (General Public License) that comes with the caveat that when someone makes changes to the original code and decides...

Open-Source Software


The concept behind open-source software is that not only is the application available to the general public at no cost, but the actual source code that created the application is also available and freely distributable. This allows other users of the application to make changes to the source code and optionally pass these changes on to other users of the software.

Asterisk and the other components of TrixBox, however, are released under the GPL (General Public License) that comes with the caveat that when someone makes changes to the original code and decides to distribute the modified version they have to provide it under the same license. There is no obligation to distribute the source code, but if we choose to we must release it under the GPL.

Note

GPL

The GPL is a license produced by GNU (http://www.gnu.org) and is one of the most common licenses used by open-source software. There are many other open-source licenses recognized by the OSI (Open-Source Initiative) (http...

Asterisk: The Core of TrixBox


Asterisk is basically a telephony toolkit enabling developers to create numerous types of applications that interface with telephone networks. The most obvious application is that of a PBX. Asterisk can also be used as an IVR (Interactive Voice Response) system, for teleconferences and as a voicemail system. These functions can also be combined to create a powerful multi-faceted telecommunication system, which is the focus of this book. Asterisk is, however, most commonly used to build hybrid PBX systems that utilize modern PCI cards instead of banks of switches and relays, and software instead of custom hardware. By using relatively simple PCI cards in a standard x86 computer system running on Linux, the cost to build a working system is greatly reduced as compared to the often expensive and inflexible traditional PBX.

Asterisk PBX is, simply put, just software. While different hardware connectivity components are available, all of the features and routing...

Asterisk Features


Amazingly enough, Asterisk has more features than most traditional PBX systems, which are composed of a large box full of hardware. Hence, the Asterisk mantra of 'it's just software'. The following is only a partial list of the many features included with Asterisk:

  • Automated Attendant: An automated system for answering incoming calls and routing them based on the caller's responses to voice prompts.

  • Blacklists: Blacklisting is the ability to easily add numbers to a central database that will prevent calls from the blacklisted phone numbers being processed by the system.

  • Call Detail Records: The detailed call reports and usage statistics to show an administrator the activity of the phone system.

  • Call Forward on Busy: This feature automatically forwards a call to another extension if the called extension is busy.

  • Call Forward on No Answer: This feature automatically forwards a call to another extension if the called extension does not answer.

  • Call Parking: This feature refers...

Related Websites


There are a number of good information sites for additional Asterisk information. A few of the more popular ones are:

For further information, you can also refer to the book Building Telephony Systems with Asterisk from Packt Publishing (ISBN 1-904811-15-9) also co-authored by Barrie Dempster.

Summary


In this chapter, we have introduced Asterisk as an open-source PBX with just a glimpse of the hundreds of features that are built into the system. There are many other features, and since Asterisk has a built-in programming language, many new features can be, and have been, added by end users and programmers. We will see some of these customizations in the later chapters. We also have an idea of the history of Asterisk and why it came into fairly popular use. We have information on websites and books for further information on Asterisk, if necessary. However, from now onwards we will be very TrixBox specific with our discussion.

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Key benefits

  • Plan and configure your own VoIP and telephony systems
  • Setup voicemail, conferencing, and call recording
  • Clear and practical tutorial with case study format

Description

TrixBox is a telephone system based on the popular open source Asterisk PBX (Private Branch eXchange) Software. TrixBox allows an individual or organization to setup a telephone system with traditional telephone networks as well as Internet based telephony or VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol). SugarCRM can be integrated with Asterisk, and is bundled with Trixbox offering real power and flexibility. The book begins by introducing telephony concepts before detailing how to plan a telephone system and moving on to the installation, configuration, and management of a feature packed PBX. This book is rich with practical examples and tools. It provides examples of well laid out telephone systems with accompanying spreadsheets to aid the reader in building stable telephony infrastructure.

Who is this book for?

Because the book covers the concepts and practices of both telephony and Asterisk, it is suitable for both professional and home users with no prior telecom experience. It's ideal for any user wishing to set up a telephony system for individual or small business usage. No previous knowledge of Trixbox or networking is required, although some basic knowledge of PBX and Linux would be an advantage.

What you will learn

  • Chapter 1 introduces the essential telephony and IP telephony concepts to give the reader the necessary background.
  • Chapter 2 gives an overview of Asterisk the PBX software at the core of TrixBox and gives the reader a feel for the features of a powerful VoIP telephone system.
  • Chapter 3 explains the relationship between Asterisk and TrixBox and introduces the enhancements and power the combination of these tools provides.
  • Chapter 4 walks the user through planning a telephone system with accompanying spreadsheets to fill in, in order to properly plan for the installation and configuration of the system.
  • Chapter 5 gives the reader details on how to install TrixBox and how the basic administration components are used.
  • Chapter 6 applies the previous planning to the configuration of TrixBox to provide the features the reader requires from their telephone system.
  • Chapter 7 covers the telephone system from the point of view of the telephone handset and how the user of the telephone system can interact with it.
  • Chapter 8 looks at more advanced configuration options and differing types of telephone line that can be managed with TrixBox.
  • Chapter 9 briefly introduces the SugarCRM customer relationship management tool, integrated with TrixBox.
  • Chapter 10 shows the reader how to secure and backup TrixBox to ensure reliability of their system.
  • Appendix A has some acronyms and terms used throughout this book, which are also common terms in Telephony. This can be used as a quick reference to the terms when reading the book or configuring the TrixBox system

Product Details

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Publication date, Length, Edition, Language, ISBN-13
Publication date : Oct 01, 2006
Length: 168 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781904811930
Languages :
Concepts :
Tools :

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Product Details

Publication date : Oct 01, 2006
Length: 168 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781904811930
Languages :
Concepts :
Tools :

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Table of Contents

10 Chapters
Introduction to VoIP Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Introducing Asterisk Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Introducing TrixBox Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Planning TrixBox Deployment Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Installing TrixBox Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
TrixBox Configuration Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Standard PBX Features Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Advanced TrixBox Settings Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
SugarCRM Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Securing our TrixBox Server Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customer reviews

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Rating distribution
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Half star icon Empty star icon 3.1
(8 Ratings)
5 star 25%
4 star 12.5%
3 star 37.5%
2 star 0%
1 star 25%
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citicalls Sep 15, 2007
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
This is a complete guide for newbies starting out with Trixbox CE and for a good reference guide for oldtimers, too!I have been playing Trixbox for sometime and see a lot of things I have been missing that are actually found in this guide!Special thanks Kerry G!tech-r-us.com
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Brian Connelly Nov 15, 2006
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
I am not a Linux Guru, and I only have a few weeks working with telephony. I found this book to be incredible. I read "Trixbox Without Tears" it was helpful, but found this to be much more comprehensive and well rounded. Easy reading for anyone new to the field like myself. SO if you are interested in a new adventure! Download the ISO image and buy the book, fun is on the way!
Amazon Verified review Amazon
John F. Ervin Mar 09, 2007
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon 4
Very good for the first timer, it will answer your questions, it will point you to good websites for further research, it will allow you to get your first Trixbox system up and running.Could use some fleshing out of the Index and I had some questions that weren't answered. Like how to create new password for FreePBX.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Phillip K. Jan 28, 2016
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon Empty star icon 3
Good beginner information to understanding this platform to manage Asterisk. A current note is that this platform no longer is supported and should not be implemented in any new installation.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Diamond Cobra May 07, 2007
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon Empty star icon 3
I know the book is for noobs, but i think anyone who is looking at trixbox has at least googled and read about it enough to know everything that's covered in this book. the book is really good to give to someone who knows nothing about trixbox/asterisk though, and you want them to get a basic idea of what's involved.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
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