How do i configure AsteriskNow?

[HodgeHi]

Hello all,

I am in the process of looking into how VoIP systems work. I posted here a little while ago as to where to start. I have since downloaded AsteriskNow and installed it into a Parallels VM.

Where do i go from here?

Where would i start the configuration process to allow users to contact each other through the asterisk system?

Can we use a software based voip client (such as skype) or do we need additional hardware.

What would be essential configurations to make before any thing else like extensions is added?

Sorry for all the questions. I would like to have Asterisk running in a trial environment to get my head around the whole configuring process. I have downloaded the o'reily book for asteriskNow and will be reading it pretty soon. It is BIG though

Any help appreciated.

[plexer]

You need a software voip phone.

Ben

[HodgeHi]

would skype do the trick for this? we run both windows and os x so skype would be ideal.

[plexer]

No you can't use skype clients you need a sip software phone.

[plexer]

Ok well that's not quite true a bit of research shows:

Skype to SIP Software - Connect SIP to Skype Networks
Skype gateway,Asterisk Skype,SIP gateway,Skype Exchange,Skype pbx,TDM800,SIP to Skype solution
Skype Gateway per centralini SIP, Analogici ed ISDN*-*Skip2PBX
AstriCon : September 22-25, 2008 : Glendale, AZ

Ben

[localzuk]

Using skype will most likely be more hastle, and will add latency to and reduce the quality of your calls (as the data has to be converted from one type to another then back again).

You could use QuteCom, which I do on my machine, but there are plenty of other soft phone packages available.

However, if you want a proper phone system, then you will want proper desktop phones.

What are you wanting to use the system for? Staff? Pupils? External calls? Internal only calls? etc...

[localzuk]

Asterisk is a complex system, so, until you are 100% happy that such a system would work for you, you shouldn't make it a live system.

We took roughly 6 months implementing our system - most of which was planning, testing and configuration.

[HodgeHi]

we are looking at it to give us internal phone system. Our external it support may be looking at implimenting a borough wide voip system (a meeting about that next week) so ours may hook into that one. I was going to use skype to test configuration settings first off so to see if I can make a call to call connection. Where could we get some voip phones from that are supported by asterisk

[localzuk]

we are looking at it to give us internal phone system. Our external it support may be looking at implimenting a borough wide voip system (a meeting about that next week) so ours may hook into that one. I was going to use skype to test configuration settings first off so to see if I can make a call to call connection. Where could we get some voip phones from that are supported by asterisk

Asterisk Hardware, IP Telephones, Snom, Sangoma - VoIPon Solutions do hardware phones.

QuteCom - Welcome to the QuteCom developer's home is a software phone.