Usually in our VoIP Q & A Blog Series, we answer questions about submitted to us through tech support tickets on VoIPSupply.com or via the “Ask The Expert” tab on our product pages.

This time we’re sharing the questions and answers from the Grandstream UCM6100 PBX webinar that was held as part of our Grandstream Learning Series.

These were real questions from the attendees that were answered by Grandstream’s tech support team. We hope that this is a comprehensive guide on how to use a UCM6100 series PBX and what they’re capable of.

Door Phone and Door Station Support

Q: Can it [UCM6100] support door phone, control, attendance systems? E.g. Helios 2N, any others?

A:  Yes, it supports door stations. We have verified this against FXS/FXO devices from Viking Electronics as well as 2N.

Q: Can we use this system to open gates or use in a system gate?

A:  Yes, this system can perform door station functions depending on the device being used. We’ve interoped with Viking Electronic devices.

Q: The scenario would be a system with several video-doorphones + one GXV3140 + UCM6102. While one video-call from a video-doorphone is being attended from the GXV3140, there are other video-calls being received from other doorphones and those video-calls should be put on queue. How many calls can be queued?

A:  This would be handled like any other call. Since it is video, it will now have video codec being negotiated. You can configure the call queue based on your own preference.

Asterisk

Q: Because Asterisk is open source, does Grandstream contribute to this effort?

A:  Yes, we comply with GNU/GPL and provide the source details on our FAQ page.

Video Softphones

Q: Any recommended free video softphones for use?

A:  At the moment, we do not have any free apps listed for video calls. It would be suggested to use a softphone that supports h263, h263+, h264.

IVR Security

Q: Standard set of security protocols to avoid hacking, security issues through IVR?

A:  There are several ways of securing the UCM IVR.

1. Password on outbound route
2. Specify permission/privilege level
3. Disable dial trunk option.

Park BLFs and Shared Line Appearances

Q: Are there plans to add Park BLFs or Shared Line Appearances?

A: On the latest firmware for the UCM we support BLF for parking lot. Shared line appearance has already been requested and is taken into consideration for the future release.

API

Q: Is there a way to install A2Billing?

A: The UCM is a locked down asterisk system so you cannot instlal any applications onto the appliance. however, a later firmware release will support API and allow users to pull caller data for billing programs.

Zero Config

Q: Does the endpoint manager support other vendor phones for configuration and Key defs?

A: No. The UCM can only zero-config Grandstream products at the moment.

 

BroadSoft Softswitch

Q: Is the UCM6102 certified to work on BroadSoft softswitch?

A: At the moment, it is stil under certifcation and has not been fully supported. Working in progress.

Voicemail to Email and Remote Voicemail Access

Q: Are we able to listen and delete voicemail directly from Outlook so the voicemail is also deleted in the UCM?

A: No. Voicemail sent to your email needs to be removed from the PBX. It does not sync up with your email. This has been requested for future consideration.

Q: How do you listen to your voice messages remotely, from a phone not registered to the UCM?

A: You can dial into the UCM via IVR, then dial an option for a dummy extension(not registered) and have that dummy extension undconditional forward to your voice mail system *98

Call Monitoring and Recording

Q: Calls Monitor Feature?

A: This has already been requested and is being implemented for a future release. However, we do have an option to record calls.

Q: Can we direct the recordings to external storage?

A: This is done automatcally when a USB/SD is connected to the UCM.

Service Providers Tested

Q: What providers have been successfully tested with this?

A: 3NG, Nexvortex, Callcentric, Clearfly, vitelity, Phonepower.

Google Voice Support

Q: Can google voice be integrated on the UCM?

A: No, this is not supported unless it uses SIP signalling.

G.729 Codec

Q: Any license fees to use G.729 codec?

A: No licensing fee for G.729, we have a license for the max number of concurrent calls on the UCM.

How to Add Additional Analog Phones

Q: How to add FXS phones if i need more analogue phones?

A: All UCM models come with 2 FXS ports. You can add more by using an ATA or FXS gateway like the HT700 series or GXW400x/4200 series.

LAN Ports for Failover

Q: Are the 2 LAN ports in UCM6104 – for a failover mode – i can use 2 separate internet connections? or is there another purpose to the 2 LAN ports?

A: Exactly, this is used for failover purposes.

Demo Programs and Training

Q: If we want to be more familiar with the product do you have some DEMO programs?

A: We do provide UCM trainig events. You can visit this page for all the upcoming events: http://www.grandstream.com/ucm-events

Need More Lines

Q: What I can do if i need more than 16 lines?

A: You can peer an FXO gateway to the UCM. We provide FXO gateways to extend this. Here’s the link to the guide.

T1 or DSL Support

Q: Can we use a T1 or DSL Service?

A: T1/E1 is not supported on the UCM61xx series. However, we are coming out with a UCM65xx series that will support such services.

Desktop Clients

Q: What kind of desktop clients are you supporting? And on what OS?

A: We support either Linux/Mac/Windows. Any soft client that is SIP compliant works with our UCM. E.g CounterPath Bria.

Concurrent Video Calls

Q: Max concurrent video-calls supported?

A: This is anywhere between 6-10 calls.

Storage

Q: Does the UCM6100 series use a disk or SSD for storage?

A: Internal flash storage.

Q: Does the USB port of UCM6104 suport a passport drive (which doesn’t have its own power)?

A: That should be fine. I have used a Buffalo 1TB drive without power and was just fine.

System Recovery

Q: I have read that asterisk-based systems have known lock-up issues that typically have to be resolved by a system reboot. How has that been dealt with for this solution?

A: Our system recovers itself during these moments and provide core dump files that can be analyzed by our developers for root cause.

Stay Tuned

Check back next time  for more VoIP Q & A.

Thanks for your questions!