To configure each device (soft phone, hard phone, or other SIP equipment on your end) to use our service you will need several items of information which we provide you when an account is established.
1. The DNS name of our sip gateway (this is sip.ralden.com).
2. For each device, two SIP endpoint identifiers:
The first we call a “dialable” ID which looks like a telephone number that starts with 87800 (and indeed can be used to place a call to a SIP endpoint on our network);
the second is an “authorization” ID which is accompanied by;
3. an authorization password.
Your system will perform two separate actions that involve this information.
The first is to "register". Registration is performed on a regular basis and allows our system to know how to contact you if we need to send a call to you. A successful registration also informs you that you have your credentials (name and password) set up correctly. If you mistype your name or password or otherwise make a mistake, registration will fail. You do not have to configure your end to register if you do not want to; registration is optional.
The second step is to make a call. In SIP terminology this involves the "invite" message. For every invite we will challenge your end for your correct authorization ID and password. Assuming registration worked earlier, these should already be in the correct form.
Many SIP clients (hardware and software) have a number of confusing options and use different terminology.
SIP makes a distinction between a "user" identifier and a "logon" or "authorization" identifier. In many systems the user identifier looks like a telephone number because it determines how the endpoint is addressed in terms of dialed numbers. The authorization identifier is more important; it pairs with a password and establishes your authority to access a particular service.
In our system the “authorization” ID we assign you can be used for both purposes; so, when in doubt, try that. You only need to configure the “dialable” ID if you want to place “on network” calls to your endpoint. In our call accounting records all calls are noted by “authorization” ID and it is the “authorization” ID which can have an independent credit limit.
Again, the “dialable” ID and the “authorization” ID come together in related pairs but you do not have to use or configure the “dialable” ID unless you want to receive inbound calls using that number assignment from us.
Generally the correct place to configure the password is fairly obvious.
There are another set of options which are potentially confusing. A SIP identifier is like an email address, so technically there is an @something.com on the end of it. However, you generally never enter that with the "user" ID part of the SIP ID; rather it will be entered elsewhere. Often it will be referred to as the "domain" or sometimes the "gatekeeper" or the "proxy". In all cases these parameters expect to see an IP address or a DNS name. For our service, when in doubt, use sip.ralden.com.
Your system may refer to a proxy, an "outbound" proxy and possibly an "alternate" proxy. When in doubt, use sip.ralden.com for the "proxy" and leave the others blank.
If your endpoint is behind a NAT device you should still not need to do any special configuration (such as entering a parameter for a "stun" server). Our system works fine for endpoints behind NAT devices which are only making outbound calls. For inbound calls there are some issues to consider which we will review if you are an inbound customer. |