[Asterisk-Users] Mediatrix 1204 help please.

[C F]

On 12/16/05, Rich Adamson <radamson at routers.com> wrote:
>
> > OK we need some help in setting up a good wiki-info page for setting up the Mediatrix
> 1204 to work with asterisk.  If anyone has
> > set these unit's up and have them working please post your settings here so we can
> create a page on the wiki. These unit's are
> > being sold to be used via sip format with asterisk and there is no real information
> on getting them working.  At present there one
> > of the worst I have run into to get correctly working. These are very expensive and
> some of us can't afford to send them back for
> > a restocking fee.
> >
> > If someone working with Mediatrix has a white paper on getting these unit's working
> please let us know the link for it.  It would
> > be very helpful for many asterisk users.
> >
>
> If you search the -users archives, you'll see where a couple of people
> have made them work. I believe there was at least one posting reflecting
> a working config.
>
> I did an eval on the 1204 in early 2004, but did not care for the way
> it interfaced with asterisk. The 1204 was really intended to interoperate
> with the 1104 as a toll bypass box.
>
> I was able to make it work and the audio was excellent with no echo
> whatsoever. Key items (in early 2004) included:
> - the 1204 does not have any sip register functions. One must configure it
>   (and asterisk) to work with static IP addresses (instead of relying on
>   the registration process).
> - calls from asterisk "to" (or through) the 1204 are treated as a group
>   and the 1204 chooses the first available pstn port for all calls. If you
>   want to direct a call to a specific port, one has to jump through hoops
>   to force a CallerID (from asterisk) and then program 1204 to look for the
>   callerid (which is then used to match a port number). Not cool.
> - programming the 1204 could only be done via snmp, and the snmp facility
>   provided only ran on Windows. Each firmware upgrade to the 1204 required
>   a new snmp implementation as the mib variables constantly changed. The
>   snmp community string (eg, password) could not be changed from public,
>   therefore exposing the 1204 to the internet would be a major security
>   risk. (If you know snmp extemely well, you can use the mib definitions
>   within a linux system to program the box, but you better be very good
>   at snmp to do that.)

They now support a limited set of things that could be programmed via http.

> - Support for the box is only offered through resellers, and their typical
>   resellers are those firms reselling traditional pbx's. A fair number of
>   those don't have a clue what voip is about and even fewer can spell
>   asterisk.

I thought they teach you how to spell asterisk in 4th grade math? :)

> - All firmware upgrades are chargable regardless of what problem might be
>   found. The upgrade charge was very high (something like $500 in 2004).
>
> Given the above (in 2004), the risk associated with using the 1204 was
> far to great and I returned the unit for full credit. (The eval was arranged
> through Mediaxtix sales rep even though the unit came from a reseller.)
>
> I've not touched or seen the 1204 since early 2004, so can't help any more
> then what is stated above. The product may have improved since then, but
> I don't have clue what might have changed.
>
>

I have set it up many times now, but each time I have to do that, it
takes around an hour, which is a very long time for me compared to an
Adit or Sipura, but because of the quality of the box (sound is very
good) I still use it.
Each time I do it I just go thru the SNMP settings one by one, and
set/change what I think/know is needed, then test it to make sure it
works as I want. It would take me an extra hour to write it down and
post on the wiki, but I'll try to do it next time anyhow, that way it
might save me some time in the future as well :)