Trouble Ticket Processing
From Pbxnsip Wiki
For solving problems, there are two paths to go:
- Public: You can resolve the ticket in a public way. By using the forum at http://forum.pbxnsip.com you can describe your problem or you can post your problem on the mailing list. We prefer the forum; this is more structured and other users with similar problems can find the solution right there.
- Personal: If you don’t want to reveal your problem and make the problem resolution public, you may open a trouble ticket. Depending on the product which you bought, this service might be chargeable. In any case, in order to get access to the trouble ticket system, you need to contact sales.
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General Tips
In many cases, you can isolate the problem by taking components in and out. For example, if you have instable registrations from a home network, you can try to use a different routers or check if the problems occur only during a special time of day. By identifiying the source of the problem, it becomes much easier to locate the problem.
Also, if the behavior changes while changing software versions, it is a clear hint where the source of the problem is.
Firewalls are frequently a source for problems. If you have problems, you may open them up for test purposes and then later close the ports down step by step. Then you will be able to locate problems as they policy gets more strict.
If you are using different SIP phones, you may see differences in their behavior. This might also help locating devices with problems.
Using the Wiki and the manuals
The Wiki serves as content management system for the system description. We keep this content up-do date. The manuals are just snapshots of the Wiki content, possibly with some pictures that make the document look nice.
Using the forum
If you are just searching a problem that someone else had, you can use the forum without an account. The forum is organized by topics and you can search the forum.
If you don’t find your topic, you can create an account and post a new topic. Usually the answering takes a few hours to several days. When describing your problem, be as precise as possible and try to attach log information. This will speed up the resolution process.
Of course you can also help others solving problems. If you are a registered user, you are welcome to comment to other person’s topics.
Opening a trouble ticket
If you need personal support, you may request access to the trouble ticket system. For general help about the usage of the trouble ticket system, please see http://doc.otrs.org.
Ticket Content
When opening a trouble ticket, please include as much information as possible. The more specific you are, the better and faster we can help you. You can easily attach files to the ticket:
- Log files
- Ethereal (PCAP) files that show the traffic on the PBX
- Configuration files
Please don't copy files into the trouble ticket text, use the attachment feature of the trouble ticket system.
If you are using an appliance, please indicate this. Please also indicate what version you are using (C5 with one Ethernet port or C8 with two ports) and if possible what upgrade image you applied last.
If you have diagrams how the network setup looks like, please make them accessible. If the PBX uses more than one IP address, it would also be good to show the route setup (use the route command for that). Please mention firewalls and other SIP-aware devices, as they may interfere with the traffic and cause the problem.
You should also include a telephone number in the trouble ticket, so that we can get back to you if there is a quick question.
System Access
We strongly recommend giving us access to the system. If we have Remote Desktop connection we can easily perform all necessary steps on our own. In Linux, a secure shell login is the preferred way to access the system. If you give us just http access to the system, we might need to ask you to perform changes that we cannot do from the web interface.
If you are using Linux, it is usually easy to provide a SSH login. If we have this kind of access, we are able to perform all neccessary lookups and change the system if neccessary.
Please understand that telephone support usually is not very efficient, especially when you give us a cold call and/or the problem cannot be fixed within a minute. We prefer to collect information first, then take a look at the system and then come up with a solution.
