Topic: [Announce] Sail-2.2.1 Beta - testers needed!

[SARK devs]

Hi All

Well, it's that time again.  A whole bunch of new software to obfusticate and discombobulate.

Sail-2.2.1 is big on underlying architectural change but relatively small on functional change.  The main news is that it doesn't run with Selintra's Asterisk rpms (except for one specific case).  Instead it runs with ATrpms.net rpms.  These can all be yum installed and they are, quite frankly, streets ahead of our versions.

2.2.1 is intended to run purely with Asterisk 1.4 (although we think it will run OK with 1.2 - any takers?)

You can find full instructions how to download and install 2.2.1 here...

http://www.selintra.com/docs/cgi-bin/view/Main/DocChapter03b

Let us know how you get on.

oh.. almost forgot.  2.2.1 has a new starter daemon for asterisk, so if asterisk doesn't start then give it a kick with

/etc/init.d/sark start

..and kill it with

/etc/init.d/sark stop

For all those of you with ISDN HFC cards, we have a special Bristuff-1.4 version rpm (ATrpms don't do one for 1.4 yet) which we can ship you if you drop us a line.

Kind Regards

Selintra

[ldkeen]

Hey Jeff,
Looks good, I'm just about to fire it up now and have a look. Just a quick one, the wiki states:

Notice the ATrpms Zaptel Kernel-modules rpm (zaptel-kmdl). You must ensure that you install the correct kmdl for your kernel. In the above example the target system was running 2.6.9-55.0.2.EL.

However the latest kernel is 2.6.9-55.0.9.EL
A better way to install the kernel module would be:

yum install zaptel-kmdl-`uname -r` --enablerepo=atrpms

This will avoid any problems trying to install the wrong kernel module. I've updated the wiki.
Best Regards, Lloyd

[SARK devs]

Nice one Lloyd

Thanks mate

Best

Jeff

[ldkeen]

Looks good, just some points:
In the server manager at the top of the pages it states that asterisk is not running:

NOTE: asterisk is not running. If it does not start after saving a setting something is wrong...

But everything is working and status shows OK:

Code: [Select]

[root@asterisk ~]# /etc/init.d/sark status
asterisk (pid 12267 9813 9812 9811 9810 9809 9808 9807 9806 9805 9804 9803 9802 9801 9800 9799 9798 9797 9790 9789 9788 9787 9786 9785 9784 9783 9781 9765 9764 9760 9734 9679) is running...
I now have very low outgoing volume on the zap channel (txgain?) tdm400. Is it OK to play around with txgain and rxgain and ztmonitor or do I need to play with fxotune. Just not too sure how to correct this. The sip lines are great.
Is it OK to use oslec with this version of asterisk or is it not required?
And finally, I had an issue with MoH. The directory /var/lib/asterisk/mohmp3 was missing. I created a symlink which seemed to fix the problem:

Code: [Select]

ln -s /var/lib/asterisk/moh /var/lib/asterisk/mohmp3Apart from a little problem with one of my G729 licenses (which took way too much longer than it should have to solve  - was fixed by moving the problem license out the /var/lib/asterisk/licenses directory) everything seemed to go pretty well.
Keep up the good work, you guys are on fire just like the pommy rugby team 
Regards, Lloyd

[SARK devs]

HI Lloyd

I'm assuming you are running the 1.4 ATrpms - yes?

Asterisk not running message - hmmmm - unsure.... the check hasn't changed...

unless ( -e "/var/run/asterisk.pid" ).... yada yada yada

can you check if the .pid is being created on your system?  I guess not.

MOH - 1.4 doesn't use mp3 files, it uses .wavs.  Check in musiconhold.conf it should reference
/var/lib/asterisk/moh

This is where your MOH files should be.

If they aren't then there is something not quite right with the ATrpms

Ours works fine here.

There is no OSLEC capability with the ATrpms at the moment.  OSLEC demands a patch and reconpile of zaptel amd the kernel modules.  We intend to either produce our own or ask ATrpms to provide the option (which I think they probably will).

If you really need OSLEC, then you should be able to run 2.2.1 with our 1.2 Asterisk rpms.  You'll need to disable the asterisk start up (with config setprop asterisk status disable) and start the system with /etc/init.d/sark start.  You'll also need to link mohmp3 to moh or chnage the musiconhold.conf file for 1.2 mp3s.

Other than that, you should be good to go with 1.2 OSLEC.

 

You can mess around with gains and tuning as much as you like, you shouldn't hurt anything.

[ldkeen]

Hi Jeff,

I'm assuming you are running the 1.4 ATrpms - yes?

Yep

unless ( -e "/var/run/asterisk.pid" ).... yada yada yada

can you check if the .pid is being created on your system?  I guess not.

Maybe it's moved, mine is in /var/run/asterisk/

Code: [Select]

[root@asterisk ~]# ls -la /var/run/asterisk/
total 12
drwxr-xr-x   2 asterisk asterisk 4096 Oct 14 14:49 .
drwxr-xr-x  20 root     root     4096 Oct 14 14:15 ..
srwxr-xr-x   1 root     root        0 Oct 14 14:49 asterisk.ctl
-rw-r--r--   1 root     root        5 Oct 14 14:49 asterisk.pid

MOH - 1.4 doesn't use mp3 files, it uses .wavs.  Check in musiconhold.conf it should reference
/var/lib/asterisk/moh

Nope mine is /var/lib/asterisk/mohmp3, I don't know where that came from? I'll have to stop twiddling 

You can mess around with gains and tuning as much as you like, you shouldn't hurt anything.

OK, Thanks for that.
Regards, Lloyd

[SARK devs]

OK

We'll put up a fresh image and do a clean install to see what we can see.

Which zaptel-kmdl are you running?

I'll have the source pack checked but I'm sure I personally checked in the moh changes (oh dear - If I didn't then it will be me who gets shot at our regular Monday morning execution session)

Best

S

[ldkeen]

Which zaptel-kmdl are you running?

[root@asterisk ~]# rpm -q zaptel-kmdl-`uname -r`
zaptel-kmdl-2.6.9-55.0.9.ELsmp-1.4.5.1-40.el4

Regards, Lloyd

[SARK devs]

Try -532

It looks a bit more like it should.

Best

J

[gippsweb]

Hi Jeff

When I go to install atrpms asterisk rpm, yum tells me I'm missing libodbc.so.1

Any ideas??

[ldkeen]

gippsweb,
What is the output of:

Code: [Select]

#rpm -q unixODBCmine shows:

Code: [Select]

[root@asterisk ~]# rpm -q unixODBC
unixODBC-2.2.11-1.RHEL4.1If you don't have it you can get it from here:
ftp://ftp.nluug.nl/pub/os/Linux/distr/CentOS/4.5/os/i386/CentOS/RPMS/unixODBC-2.2.11-1.RHEL4.1.i386.rpm
Regards, Lloyd

[gippsweb]

I don't have it Lloyd, well I do now. But why wasn't it there to begin with?

I'll have another go at this update tonight..

EDIT: Couldn't wait till tonight, 2.2 upgrade done & all seems well so far. Will let you all know if we strike any problems.

Now if I could just figure out how to get iaxmodem installed......

UPDATE: upgrade done and working, but have a few issues with incoming calls on a zap channel going to a ring group. The ring group is a SPA941 and a Digium card. I can get one or the other ringing, but not both. Deleted the ring group and recreated it, even with a different number, but no success as yet.
I can get the call through to the phone on the zap channel ok. As soon as I create the ring group we have always ran, incoming callers get about 5 seconds of fax line noise, the SPA941 then starts ringing, but the caller gets disconnected as soon as the SPA is answered.....

[SARK devs]

Hmmm

That's odd.  Try running PCI and re-sniffing the card.  If it still p[lays up let us know and we'll re-create it here.

Best

S

[gippsweb]

Hylafax and iaxmodem are on the back burner temporarily.

If I get time tomorrow I may go back to 2.1.5 with *1.4. I'm kinda' lost without ring groups.

Poor card is starting to get a complex it's been resniffed so many times today.But this software has had so many updates, it may be something left from one of the earlier versions.

[SARK devs]

ok mate,

We'll set up a test rig tomorrow (wednesday)

Best

S

[gippsweb]

to add to the above, calls received with the ring group enabled don't show in the CDR.

[SARK devs]

Hi

Results from the ring-group test-rig

Group includes Snom360, Aastra 57i, Linksys 941, Cisco 7960, POTs phone.

Group ring works as advertised.  No problems.

Results from CDR test.

Concur - no CDR written after a pickup from a group ring.  No idea why.  Will pursue with Digium.

Best

S 

[gippsweb]

I shall sit down tomorrow while we are closed and do a yum remove and reinstall all from scratch then 

Glad to see at least the cdr thing wasn't just me. Will see how we go after replacing the packages then...........

Thx Jeff

[jester]

Hi Selintra,

Want to give the bristuffed version a go. Can i download the modules i found on your ftp-server or are those not the correct ones?


Kind regards,
jester.

[SARK devs]

Hi Jester

Yeah that's the correct ones.  However, right now they will only run with 2.6.9-55.0.2 kernel.  That's the kernel that gets installed with vanilla 7.2 (no yum updates).

If you are running a later kernel you may get away with...

cp -a /lib/modules/2.6.9-55.0.2.EL/misc to /lib/modules/`uname -r`/

..., but no guarantees.

We've been running this bristuff release on our main office PBX for almost a month and we can only find one problem.  DON'T attempt to park a call with #*5#.  If you do, it will segfault.  To be fair to Junghanns, we are almost certain that this has nothing to do with Bristuff itself, but it is present in the 1.4 release which Bristuff uses.

Other than that, it just runs.

Best

S
 

[jester]

Selintra,
What packages do i need to install in addition to the two bristuff ones (Selintra docs does not tell) ?! BTW do you know if a Junghanns OctoBri will be recognized by this version (2.2.1) of SAIL?!

Kind regards,
jester.

[SARK devs]

sail-2.2.1

OctoBRI & QuadBRI won't be recognised.  Release due next week which should recognise both.  HFC only for now.

Best

S

[jester]

Selintra,

I've still got a pc/server at home running SAIL 2.1.15 (with mISDN), there was a note about discontinuing bristuff and permanently switching over to mISDN. Is this version being abandoned?! Can i use 2.2.1 with this Asterisk1.4/mISDN version?!

BTW, i somewhere stumbled across a msg about a build system for SME (buildsys.contribs.org), also i thought i've read somewhere that it was much  trouble four you to build the releases/modules etc..... I don't know if it would be of any use, but just to let you know.

Kind regards.

[SARK devs]

HI Jester

Hope you are well.

there was a note about discontinuing bristuff ...

Yes... and that was our intention.  Let me try and explain where we are with SARK/SAIL and then answer your question.  We wanted (still want) to go with mISDN in 1.4 because it doesn't require any patches to asterisk.  For a long time, we've wanted to drop our own asterisk rpms and use more generic items (in particular the ATRPMS products).  Unfortunately, mISDN doesn't quite cut it at the moment because it doesn't seem to offer any soft echo cancellation.  Bristuff, on the other hand, can run with both OSLEC and HPEC.  Echo is still a major issue for Asterisk based systems.  You can't predict in any given installation whether or not you will experience echo but if you do, then you have to have some way of fixing it.  The latest generation of echo cancellers (OSLEC, HPEC and the Octasic hardware boards) are truly excellent and, more than any other improvement, have made asterisk based systems a true alternative to conventional TDM gear.   For the first time, you can confidently install a system knowing in advance that you willl not experience echo problems on your TDM circuits.

2.1.15 was put together as a development mule for 1.4 and mISDN.  Herve built the mISDN code and did a truly excellent job of it.  Unfortunately, while we were experimenting with 2.1.15, 2.1.14 continued to gain new functionality and the two bases diverged somewhat.

2.2.1 is essentially a late release of 2.1.14 modified to run with Asterisk 1.4 and the ATRPMs.  The next step is to fetch forward the mISDN functionality from 2.1.15 and merge it into 2.2.1.  However, in the meantime, we need to support ISDN2E in 1.4 for our existing customers and Junghanns have produced a Bristuff for 1.4. 

So, for now we have 2.2.1 with either ATRpms or Bristuff 4 rpms (built by us).  Bristuff 4 seems to run well and we've had it in production on our own office switch for over a month without problems.  However, we still would really like to go with mISDN provided someone cracks the echo issue (we won't do it - it's too far outside our brief) because then we don't have to produce any asterisk rpms. 

So that's where we are.  Not quite where we planned but not too bad when you consider all of the conflicting currents swirling around in the asterisk world.     

Unfortunately for you, 2.2.1 SAIL will NOT run with the selintra asterisk 1.4 rpms becasue there is currently no support in it for mISDN. 

We would recommend, for the moment that all of our users plan to move to 2.2.1.  It is very nearly ready for production and we will begin moving our own customers in the next month or so.

Re buildsys.contribs.org...  I've seen references to this system but it isn't obvious how to use it.  Currently, we handbuild our own custom .iso (which we've never distibuted except to our customer base) by breaking into the SME7.2 .iso.   It isn't hard but it does take time.

Kind Regards

S

 

[jester]

Hi Jeff,
Thanx for this heads up! I've seen several patches for echo cancellation for mISDN so that together with your view of the future sounds promising.

regards,
jester.