Installing FreePBX(5)

demo

FreePBX base installation

Now that we have a working Linux install, all prerequisite packages, and a functioning MySQL database, we can finally install FreePBX. As FreePBX has already been downloaded, the process is simply to switch to the FreePBX directory and run the installer:

cd /usr/src/freepbx-2.5.1
./install_amp install

You will be asked a series of configuration questions that the installer uses to generate a configuration file located at /etc/amportal.conf. If a mistake is made during the question and answer part of the installation, simply remove this file using the following command, and run the install_amp install command: rm -f /etc/amportal.conf
Question         Suggested answer


Enter your USERNAME to connect to the 'asterisk' database         The username we set up with permissions on the asterisk database is simply called asterisk. Type "asterisk" and hit the Enter key.


Enter your PASSWORD to connect to the 'asterisk' database         This is the password that you setup during the grant all privileges step for the Asterisk database. Type your password and hit the Enter key.


Enter the hostname of 'asterisk' database         This is the location of your MySQL server. Using the setup listed in this tutorial, this will be localhost (as the MySQL server resides on the same server as the Apache server does). If the MySQL server resides on a different server than Apache, the answer to this question should be the hostname or IP address of the server where MySQL resides. Type the hostname or IP address of the server running MySQL and hit the Enter key.


Enter a USERNAME to connect to the Asterisk Manager Interface         Pick a username that FreePBX can use to communicate with the Asterisk Manager Interface. Leaving this as "admin" is fine. Type the desired username and press the Enter key.


Enter a PASSWORD to connect to the Asterisk Manager Interface


        Pick a password that FreePBX will use when communicating with the Asterisk Manager Interface. It is strongly recommended that the password be changed from the default of "amp111". Type your desired password and press the Enter key.


Enter the path to use for your AMP web root


        This is the location of your Apache root folder. By default, Ubuntu Server 8.10 will place this in /var/www. Type your web root and press the Enter key.


Enter the IP ADDRESS or hostname used to access the AMP web-admin         This is the IP address or hostname that you have assigned to your Asterisk server. This is usually the IP address that you will type into your browser to view the FreePBX web interface when you are ready to configure your Asterisk PBX. Type your IP address or hostname and press the Enter key.


Enter a PASSWORD to perform call transfers with the Flash Operator Panel         The Flash Operator Panel is a visual switchboard that allows you to view activity on your PBX, as well as bridge, transfer, or disconnect calls. It is strongly recommended that you change this default password value. Type your desired password and press the Enter key.


Use simple Extensions [extensions] admin or separate Devices and Users [deviceanduser]         FreePBX can associate one user to one device (extensions mode) or one user to many devices (deviceanduser mode). This value can always be changed at any time, and the differences will be discussed later in this tutorial. For now, it is recommended to leave the default value of "extensions" and push the Enter key.


Enter directory in which to store</code> AMP executable scripts         This is the directory in which FreePBX will store any scripts that execute against the system. Unless your system calls for a specific change to this location, it is recommended to leave this at the default value of /var/lib/asterisk/bin and press the Enter key.

At this point, the FreePBX installer will run through the rest of the install process automatically. As the final step, we need to configure FreePBX to start automatically when the system boots:

echo "/usr/sbin/amportal start &" > /etc/rc.local
Source

The source of this content is Chapter 1: Installing FreePBX of FreePBX 2.5 Powerful Telephony Solutions by Alex Robar (Packt Publishing, 2009).