How to Install Asterisk in VICIdial [Complete Beginner's Guide]

Introduction to Asterisk and VICIdial

Asterisk is an open-source PBX (Private Branch Exchange) software that powers VoIP communications, allowing you to make calls over the internet. It's flexible and widely used for building telephony applications.

VICIdial is an open-source call center suite that includes predictive dialing, inbound/outbound blending, and agent management. It's built on top of Asterisk, which serves as the telephony engine. Asterisk is required for VICIdial because it handles call routing, SIP registrations, and voice processing—without it, VICIdial can't manage calls. In this guide, we'll focus on how to install Asterisk in VICIdial, ensuring they work together seamlessly.

👉 Related reading: Can You Install VICIdial on Shared Hosting?

Prerequisites for Installation

• Server Requirements: A dedicated server or VPS with at least 4GB RAM, 2 CPU cores, and 50GB disk space. For production, aim for 8GB RAM or more.
• Operating System: AlmaLinux 9 (a free CentOS replacement, as CentOS 7 is end-of-life in 2024). Install the minimal version for best performance.
• Root Access: You'll need root privileges to run commands. Use SSH to log in as root or use sudo.
• Basic Linux Knowledge: Familiarity with the terminal, editing files (we'll use nano), and basic commands like cd and ls.

Step 1: Updating the Server and Installing Dependencies

dnf check-update
dnf update -y

dnf -y install epel-release
dnf -y groupinstall 'Development Tools'
dnf -y update

dnf -y install https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/epel/epel-release-latest-9.noarch.rpm
dnf -y install http://rpms.remirepo.net/enterprise/remi-release-9.rpm
dnf -y install yum-utils
dnf module enable php:remi-8.2 -y

dnf install -y make patch gcc gcc-c++ subversion php php-devel php-gd gd-devel php-mbstring php-mcrypt php-imap php-ldap php-mysqlnd php-odbc php-pear php-xml php-xmlrpc php-opcache curl curl-devel perl-libwww-perl ImageMagick libxml2 libxml2-devel httpd libpcap libpcap-devel libnet ncurses ncurses-devel screen mariadb-devel ntp mutt glibc.i686 wget nano unzip sipsak sox libss7* libopen* openssl libsrtp libsrtp-devel unixODBC unixODBC-devel libtool-ltdl libtool-ltdl-devel htop speex speex-devel iftop sqlite-devel kernel* kernel-devel

reboot

Step 2: Downloading Asterisk Source Files

cd /usr/src
wget https://downloads.asterisk.org/pub/telephony/asterisk/asterisk-18-current.tar.gz
tar -xvzf asterisk-18-current.tar.gz
cd asterisk-18.*

Step 3: Installing Required Libraries (MP3, Codecs)

contrib/scripts/get_mp3_source.sh
dnf install -y speex speex-devel opus opus-devel

Step 4: Compiling and Installing Asterisk

./configure --with-jansson-bundled --with-pjproject-bundled --libdir=/usr/lib64
make menuselect
make all
make install
make samples

Step 5: Configuring and Starting Asterisk Service

nano /etc/systemd/system/asterisk.service

[Unit]
Description=Asterisk PBX
After=network.target mariadb.service

[Service]
Type=simple
ExecStart=/usr/sbin/asterisk -vvvg -C /etc/asterisk/asterisk.conf
ExecReload=/usr/sbin/asterisk -rx 'core reload'
Restart=always

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl enable asterisk
systemctl start asterisk

Step 6: Connecting Asterisk with VICIdial

cd /usr/src
svn checkout svn://svn.eflo.net:3690/agc_2-X/trunk astguiclient
cd astguiclient
perl install.pl

nano /etc/asterisk/manager.conf

asterisk -rx "reload"

Step 7: Testing the Installation with a Softphone

nano /etc/asterisk/sip.conf

[1000]
type=friend
secret=password
host=dynamic
context=default

asterisk -rx "sip reload"

• Install Zoiper on your phone/PC.
• Register with SIP server: your_server_IP, username 1000, password 'password'.
• Make a test call to another extension or echo test (*43).

Troubleshooting Common Problems

• Firewall Issues: Add rules for SIP (5060/udp), RTP (10000-20000/udp): firewall-cmd --add-port=10000-20000/udp --permanent; firewall-cmd --reload.
• Missing Packages: If a command fails, search with dnf search package_name and install.
• Service Not Starting: Check logs (asterisk -vvv or journalctl). Common: bad config or port in use.
• VICIdial Not Connecting to Asterisk: Verify manager.conf credentials match VICIdial's settings. Restart both.
• SELinux Blocks: If enabled, set to permissive with setenforce 0 temporarily.

FAQs

1. What is Asterisk and why is it required for VICIdial?
Asterisk is an open-source PBX software for VoIP calls. It's required for VICIdial as it handles call routing and voice processing, enabling the call center features.

2. What are the basic prerequisites for installing Asterisk in VICIdial?
You need a server with at least 4GB RAM, AlmaLinux 9 OS, root access, and basic Linux knowledge like using the terminal.

3. How do I download and compile Asterisk for VICIdial?
Download the source from the official site using wget, extract it, run ./configure with options, then use make menuselect, make all, and make install.

4. What should I do if Asterisk service fails to start after installation?
Check logs with journalctl -u asterisk, fix config errors in /etc/asterisk/, ensure no port conflicts, and restart the service.

5. How can I test if Asterisk is properly installed in VICIdial?
Create a SIP extension in sip.conf, reload Asterisk, register a softphone like Zoiper, and make a test call or use the echo test (*43).

Conclusion

Congratulations! You've learned how to install Asterisk in VICIdial from scratch. This complete beginner's guide covered updating your server, downloading and compiling Asterisk, connecting it to VICIdial, and testing with a softphone. By following these steps carefully, you should have a working setup. Remember, practice makes perfect—start small and scale up. If you encounter issues, revisit the troubleshooting section. Now, go ahead and explore more advanced features in VICIdial!