FOOD FOR THOUGHT A2Billing questions...

[Robert.Thompson]

Hello:

Is there a way to add A2Billing to my DigitalOcean pbx:

Incredible PBX 11.17.1 for Ubuntu 14
RAM: 114588 "Ubuntu 14.04.4 LTS" Disk:
Asterisk 11.21.2 FreePBX 2.11.0.35

I have many other questions about it but there is no point asking if A2Billing can't be installed.

Thanks,

Rob.

 

[simplydrew]

Hello:

Is there a way to add A2Billing to my DigitalOcean pbx:

Incredible PBX 11.17.1 for Ubuntu 14
RAM: 114588 "Ubuntu 14.04.4 LTS" Disk:
Asterisk 11.21.2 FreePBX 2.11.0.35

I have many other questions about it but there is no point asking if A2Billing can't be installed.

Thanks,

Rob.

It's possible, but it's going to require some reading, planning, and trying it a few times. A2Billing setups are, to my understanding, sometimes a large feat to accomplish. It may not necessarily be the best for what your planned use case is - which is currently unknown.

From the posts that I've seen throughout some of the boards you've posted on, it appears that you might be pretty new to the world of PIAF. My personal suggestion would not be to leap into something as complicated as A2Billing - which is really a more reseller geared product that isn't for the faint of heart.

Maybe if you tell us what you're trying to do, we can point you in the best direction.

 

[Robert.Thompson]

Hi Simplydrew; thanks for responding.

I have multiple DISA's on my PBX so that friends and family can make inexpensive long-distance phone calls by dialing in on local phone numbers and then, dialing out on my Anveo Direct trunk.

This might be what is referred to as a 'calling card' setup?

I will soon be moving to our cottage permanently. The cottage is located in an area with poor/unreliable Internet. (LOS wifi or satellite)

At the cottage, I would like to offer the local residents the same DISA service but be able to charge them a bit for the service.

I thought A2Billing might be the answer. I guess not, at least not for someone at my level of PBXology.

Rob.

 

[Robert.Thompson]

Hello:
I just installed Incredible PBX and Elastix 4.0 on a D/O droplet.
It seems that the 'Calling Card' part of A2Billing is included.

Does anyone know if this is enough to accomplish my goal?

Thanks for any suggestions,

Rob.

 

[jroper]

Hi

A2Billing is not too scary to install, it's only a LAMP application, so if you are familiar with Linux, Apache, PHP and Asterisk, it's straightforward - here's an overview. http://www.asterisk2billing.org/get-started/a2billing-install-guide/

My understanding is that Elastix is using an ancient version of A2Billing, version 1.9.4, you need to be using the latest version, mainly for the reasons stated at http://www.asterisk2billing.org/heartbleed-and-security-vulnerabilities/. Also, I'd hesitate to advise using Elastix as a base for A2Billing, Elastix is a very competent system, but it also includes a lot of stuff, meaning a big attack surface area, at the very least, each component needs to be kept up to date to avoid security vulnerabilities, which means a lot of work. I'd argue that for any internet connected server, you only expose what you need to, and only to those people who need to access it.

Joe

 

[Robert.Thompson]

Thanks Joe.
I've trashed my D/O Elastix server - I don't need any unnecessary complications.

I'll try to install it on this droplet instead:
Incredible PBX 11.17.1 for Ubuntu 14
RAM:240480 "Ubuntu 14.04.3 LTS" Disk: 30G
Asterisk 11.19.0 FreePBX 2.11.0.35

Thanks again for responding,
Rob.