asterisk users - Nov 2004 - Using Asterisk as an external MOH for Televantage5?

Having a similar issue, I modified one of the zaptel tools to create a
program I call ztplay.  This simply opens a channel and plays audio it
gets on stdin or a file, or fifo.

It does not even require that asterisk is running and can run along side
asterisk as long as they are not both trying to use the same channel.
This would allow you to connect your TDM card directly into your phone
system.

I use it in conjunction with mpg123 which streams audio to a fifo and
ztplay simply reads audio from the fifo and resides in memory.

I sent a copy to Mark a while back to include in the zaptel cvs if he
wanted, but I haven't noticed it there.

Contact me off list if you would like a copy of this.
Ben

-----Original Message-----
From: asterisk-users-bounces@lists.digium.com
[mailto:asterisk-users-bounces@lists.digium.com] On Behalf Of Kyle
Bresin
Sent: Monday, November 15, 2004 5:36 PM
To: asterisk-users@lists.digium.com
Subject: [Asterisk-Users] Using Asterisk as an external MOH for
Televantage5?


As a little testbed asterisk project, to get my company comfortable with
the idea of linux telephony, I decided to ask undertake a rather small
project, replace our two boomboxes, which current supply our on-hold
music
via CD and a 1/8" jack to RJ12 plug cord, and instead use Asterisk to do
it via mp3s.

With the goal of reducing clutter in the server room, and be able to fix
music on hold issues remotely.

Sure, a 4 port sound card machine might have worked too.  But I'd still
need 4 1/8" -> RJ12 cables, and I wanted it to be 1U, and I don't
know
of
any double or quad port sound cards...
>From what I read, I thought it was going to be easy, but now that I've
attempted to implement it with a 4 port FXS TDM card, I've run into a
hitch.

Asterisk seems to only want to play onhold music in response to a
"Pickup".  But since televantage just listens to the line and
broadcasts
that to all the callers on hold, rather than actually *transfering* them
there, the "pickup" even never seems to get passed through.

Plugging a phone into the asterisk ports, and picking it up triggers the
music, but not plugging in the RJ12 from the televantage server.

In any case, anyone have advice on how to fool asterisk into doing what
I
want?

I'm using Asterisk and Zaptel version1.0.0 compiled against a 2.4.27
kernel.

My /etc/zaptel.conf:
fxoks=1-4

My /etc/asterisk/zapata.conf:
immediate=yes
callprogress=no

context=musiconhold1
signalling=fxo_ks
channel=1

context=musiconhold2
signalling=fxo_ks
channel=2

My relevant /etc/asterisk/extensions.conf:
[musiconhold1]
exten => s,1,MusicOnHold(brand1)        ; Play hold music immediately

[musiconhold2]
exten => s,1,MusicOnHold(brand2)        ; Play hold music immediately

My relevant /etc/asterisk/musiconhold.conf:
brand1 => mp3:/var/lib/asterisk/brand1mp3
brand2 => mp3:/var/lib/asterisk/brand2mp3


Yell at me if I'm missing something obvious, or left something important
out.

Thanks to any who take the time to mull this over, been driving me
crazy.

kyle.

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Ben Miller wrote:
> Having a similar issue, I modified one of the zaptel tools to create a
> program I call ztplay.  This simply opens a channel and plays audio it
> gets on stdin or a file, or fifo.
> 
> It does not even require that asterisk is running and can run along side
> asterisk as long as they are not both trying to use the same channel.
> This would allow you to connect your TDM card directly into your phone
> system.
> 
> I use it in conjunction with mpg123 which streams audio to a fifo and
> ztplay simply reads audio from the fifo and resides in memory.
> 
> I sent a copy to Mark a while back to include in the zaptel cvs if he
> wanted, but I haven't noticed it there.
> 
> Contact me off list if you would like a copy of this.
> Ben
Ben,

I'm not the OP, but I would love a copy of this.  I've got an overhead 
paging system that uses standard RJ12 connectors for its two input 
signals.  This little app would allow me to eliminate the 'wiring hack' 
I've been running up to now.  Plus it would allow me to remove the sound 
card from the * box, thus freeing up more resources for * to do it's thing.

Thanks,
Chris

-- 
Christopher L. Wade                     Unistar-Sparco Computers, Inc.
Senior Systems Administrator                            dba Sparco.com
Email: clwade@sparco.com                             7089 Ryburn Drive
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