sipXecs 3.2

High Availability

In sipXpbx, basic calling depends on three components: the two proxies and the registrar/redirect service. The proxies can be replicated and DNS SRV records can be used to share load and provide for failover. The registrar/redirect service, however, cannot currently be deployed on multiple servers because the 'soft' state in the registry database (mappings from registered Addresses to Contacts) cannot be shared. While replicating the proxies alone does help with scaling, the registrar is a single point of failure for basic calling service. In release 3.2 we are planning to introduce high-availability for basic calling features by adding the required replication of registration information.

Updated SOAP Interface

The SOAP interface first became available in release 2.8 and was then dropped in release 3.0 because of the re-design of the Config Server. Release 3.2 will re-introduce the SOAP interface. For more details on the API.

Simpler Upgrades

The sipX team set out to develop a solution to simplify upgrades. Data migration for configuration data is done automatically as part of the release upgrade process. With 3.2 therefore, the user will be able to install 3.2 over 3.0.

Plug & Play Management Improvements

Already release 2.8 introduced plug & play management of phones. Release 3.0 enhanced that capability significantly providing support for many additional phones, including the first gateway, as well as provide a simple XML-based framework to add support for new phones and gateways. Release 3.2 will add the capability to manage firmware upgrades using the sipX Configuration Server. 3.2 will also have an update to the Polycom phone templates. All testing will be conducted with 3.1 boot rom and 1.6.4 SIP firmware.

Improved Logging

Release 3.2 will introduce snapshot logs that can be easily created and downloaded using the Web interface. Eventually we would like to introduce much more comprehensive server and application performance management.

Time of Day/Day of Week Auto Attendant Routing

The 3.2 Auto Attendant has been enhanced to support a time-based routing feature. Auto Attendants can be configured to answer based on working hours, closed hours or holidays. A system overide is also available that can be envoked from a remote telephone in cases where the office may be closed unexpectedy – snow days etc.

CSV Import Tool ("Cut Sheet")

Administrators will be able to bulk load users, user groups, user aliases, phones, phone MAC addresses, phone types, phone groups and group settings,

Improved Navigation

In 3.2 the navigation structure is now configurable with a CSS. A new search feature has also been added that indexes users, phones and all associated settings.

Improved Performance

Registration as well as subscribe / notify performance has been significantly imporved. In installations with large numbers of phones, transactions generated by re-registration and subscribe / notify can far exceed the actuall call rate. sipX release 3.2 is tested up to 5,000 users for adequate re-registration and subscribe / notify performance.