VoIP Asterisk Resources

All the leading Asterisk resources for hardware, software, news and advice.

Asterisk is the leading software engine for creating a business IP PBX, VoIP gateway, or other communications system. Asterisk is free and open source, with many official and unofficial Asterisk resources available on the Internet.

VoIP Asterisk Resources Listing

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DirekTel

DirekTel is a VoIP service and telephony consulting company providing a
wide range of telecommunication solutions for small and medium
businesses alike. Our mission is to provide companies with high
quality, fully managed telecommunication services at reduced cost.

Midwest Voice and Data

Midwest Voice & Data specializes in the deployment, maintenance, and support of the latest Voice Over IP solutions available today. With the ability to service business clientele as well as the residential market, Midwest Voice & Data can meet any of your communication needs.

Vast Communications

Vast Communications provides consulting and development for Asterisk and custom VoIP applications.

VoiceNEXT

VoiceNEXT, Tomorrow's Technology Today. VoiceNEXT Hosted PBX is revolutionizing the way businesses communicate. Our state of the art solution uses the power of the internet to deliver reliable next-generation voice services including managing your phones, local and long distance calling, voicemail and conferencing. VoiceNEXT is different from most of the other VoIP providers. We recognize that your calls are important and vital to your business and provide you with a carrier-class fully redundant, fault tolerant network backed by our 24/7/365 support. For a free consultation, call us at 888-369-NEXT(6398)

Lantone Information Systems LLP

Incorporated in Singapore, Lantone Communications specializes in VoIP, IP PBX, IP PA System, SIP Servers, Systems Integration, Digium Hardware, Voicemail, Virtual Numbers, Call Accounting Software and Computer Telephony Solutions.

VoIP Experts

VoIP Experts are committed to provide professional technical services in VoIP area to small and medium-size ISP/ITSP and help Enterprises to implement the VoIP solution that would serve their current and future business needs in the most efficient way.

DirekTel

Offering Business Grade VoIP Telephony and Consultancy Services. Free 30 day trial - Unlimited North America and Western Europe - Hosted PBX - 911 Service.

Broadband Solutions

Over the last 3 years, Broadband Solutions have developed our very own business grade VoIP network. We have full control over our call routing, meaning we can guarantee call quality equivalent to PSTN. We terminate calls into local infrastructure, ensuring low latency and high availability. We use the industry standard SIP protocol, and our service is compatible with almost any SIP handset/ATA/gateway device available.Broadband Solutions specialize in helping businesses migrate their telephony systems to VoIP. Whether it's installing a new native VoIP PABX with new SIP handsets, or adapting your existing PABX to use VoIP lines, we have solutions to suit almost any business. Our PABX solutions can cater for businesses with anywhere from 2 to 2000 staff.

Delacon

Delacon is dedicated to providing Voice XML based technology and services to businesses, corporations and governments throughout Australia. Our team creates VoiceXML server and voice application software that is used on our IVR systems. VoiceXML improves automated phone systems by providing a standards-based software solution that works seamlessly with existing enterprise applications and data.

QTEC

Qtecs core business revolves around two distinct but interrelated business units professional services and network services. In each of these business units Qtec has pioneered a managed services philosophy. Where appropriate managed services are complemented with traditional IT outsourcing methodologies to deliver complete IT department services.Data services including hosted content, email and Internet access have always been part of Qtecs product portfolio. In 2004 Qtec added fixed line voice services becoming a full service telecommunications carriage service provider (CSP) in Australia. Currently Qtec provides switched and directly connected fixed line voice services as well as 13/1300/1800 inbound voice services. VoIP and IP Centrex lead the voice product portfolio and many of Qtecs innovations are in this space. Qtec is a member of all Australian telecommunications industry and regulatory bodies.

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Asterisk is Linux-based software for creating an easily manageable and feature-rich business communication system. Asterisk includes all the drivers, protocol converters, scripts, codecs, and more needed to perform functions that range from routing and call handling to call recording and generating call detail records.

Asterisk VoIP software is open source and free, with many configuration options, features, and modules. An Asterisk VoIP solution is preferred by businesses — small and large — who want a robust and customizable IP PBX system to handle their business telephony traffic.

Who Uses Asterisk VoIP?

Asterisk is a framework for building a communications network, which can include conference servers as well as the basic PBX system Asterisk was originally designed to support. Asterisk uses the most common protocol — session initiated protocol (SIP) — and is built on one of the most stable and advanced operating systems (Linux). This makes Asterisk a reliable and extendable VoIP solution for businesses of all types.

Some of the business and organizations using Asterisk include:

  • Small and medium businesses
  • Carriers (CLECs, ILECs, and wholesalers)
  • ITSPs, ISPs, and VoIP providers
  • Government agencies
  • Large corporations
  • Call centers
  • Call shops
How Can Asterisk Be Used?

Asterisk is powerful, flexible, and stable. Asterisk was named for the * character in Linux, which is a wildcard character. Like its namesake, Asterisk is capable of performing many different functions — singularly or combined. Some of the functionalities of Asterisk VoIP software are:

  • VoIP gateway
  • IP PBX
  • Skype gateway
  • Call center automatic call distributor (ACD)
  • Conference bridge
  • IVR server
  • Voicemail system
  • Fax server
  • Speech server
  • Call recorder
  • Unified messaging

Asterisk resources such as whitepapers, videos, and forums can be found at asterisk.org, where the software can also be downloaded. As an open source platform, additional resources for Asterisk VoIP software — such as tutorials for integration with OpenSIPS or software for reporting — can be found all over the Internet. Looking for Asterisk software, hardware, tips, tutorials, or forums? We can help — check our Asterisk resources directory.

Installing an Asterisk VoIP PBX System

Building an Asterisk VoIP PBX is relatively simple from an installation standpoint, as long as you are familiar with Linux and comfortable using the command line interface (CLI). Binary installations using Yum on CentOS or RedHat makes Asterisk easier to maintain, according to the software's developers. There are many Asterisk resources offering installation instructions, including the Asterisk website as well as numerous unofficial how-tos.

Once the Asterisk software is set up, additional software — a graphical user interface (GUI), or front-end — is needed to interface with the Asterisk VoIP system to manage and configure standard features such as music-on-hold and voicemail. There are a number of Asterisk GUIs available, such as Mini Asterisk or GEOTEK Phonebook. You can find Asterisk GUIs in our Asterisk resources directory below, and a complete list of Asterisk GUIs at VoIP-Info.org.

However, that might not be the most stress-free process for many. Thankfully, there are also many software packages out there called distros that roll up the open source Asterisk VoIP PBX software and the GUI with additional components and an easy-install executable. AsteriskNOW is the distro offered by Asterisk, which does the heavy lifting by installing Linux, Asterisk, and the GUI as an ISO image, simply and easily. Some of the more popular distros for Asterisk VoIP service include:

  • AsteriskNOW
  • Elastix
  • PBX in a Flash
  • Trixbox
  • FreePBX
  • Switchvox

You'll find Asterisk resources like distros for setup, configuring, and customizing the PBX software in our Asterisk resources directory.

Using an Asterisk Appliance

One of the easier ways to install the Asterisk VoIP system is to use an Asterisk appliance. Asterisk appliances are small standalone servers and complete PBX solutions for small and medium businesses (SMBs).

Asterisk appliances come fully loaded with custom compiled Linux configurations, FXO and FXS ports, and a front-end (or GUI) to manage and configure Asterisk's features. Some well-known Asterisk appliances are:

  • Asterisk Appliance
  • Rhino Ceros Appliance
  • WARP Appliance
  • PhoneBochs MiniVoIP Appliance

Some developers of Asterisk distros also produce Asterisk appliances, so you can find a simple, comprehensive solution to Linux and Asterisk installation issues, the need for a dedicated machine, and the need for a GUI to manage the Asterisk software all in one compact package. Digium's Switchvox and AsteriskNOW as well as Trixbox are just a few of the distros that also come preloaded on Asterisk appliances.

You'll find more Asterisk appliances, GUIs, and other software in our VoIP Asterisk resources directory.

Choosing an Asterisk Appliance

When considering an Asterisk appliance, it's best to weigh a few factors carefully before making a final choice. Even though Asterisk is open source, a Digium Asterisk appliance — Switchvox — offers certain advantages in that it's fully supported and will upgrade at pace with Asterisk. Relying on community maintenance for independent Asterisk appliances can be a more complicated and even risky process.

Things to consider when evaluating an independent Asterisk appliance:

  • Upgrades
  • Extendability and portability
  • Installation
  • Compatibility with other programs/interfaces
  • Adequate support
  • Statistical aggregation ('phoning home' with usage data)

You can find these and more Asterisk appliances in our VoIP Asterisk resources directory, as well as links to tips, reference material, and hardware options.

Asterisk Resources: Getting Help

The official Asterisk site offers a forum, instructional videos, documentation and more. However, there are also plenty of other Asterisk resources available as well, including forums and installation help at AsteriskGuru and courses and certifications at Digium.

There are also sites featuring extensive documentation, such as the online O'Reilly guide to Asterisk, and sites with how-to vodcasts. Local Asterisk user groups are another online Asterisk resource, as are sites with news about Asterisk developments, updates, and releases. You can find links to these online Asterisk resources and more in our directory.

Asterisk Software

Because Asterisk is open source software, many companies and independent developers offer modules and add-ons for additional PBX features and functions — especially for industry-specific functions relating to call centers or VoIP providers. For instance, software for call center stats, call recording, autodialers, or conference management, as well as channel drivers, scripts, and other tools are all available through third-party agents.

Information about these and other Asterisk resources can be found in our directory.

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