Switching to VoIP

This is the Title of the Book, eMatter Edition

Copyright © 2007 O’Reilly & Associates, Inc. All rights reserved.

284

|

Chapter 12: PSTN Trunks

groups in the dial-plan using the Dial command. Here’s an example that dials a

PSTN-bound call on the group in sequential order (

g):

exten => _XXXXXXX,1,Dial(Zap/g1/${EXTEN})

In the previous project, we set up a two-switch dial-plan that used the PSTN to auto-

matically call between the switches. These calls were always placed on the same

channel, but we could’ve just as easily used a group like the one set up in this

project:

exten => _34XX,1,Dial(Zap/g1/5551340,35,mD(${EXTEN}))

Project 12.4. Create an Automatic Call Distribution (ACD)

Scheme Based on Area Code

What you need for this project:

• Asterisk

• A PSTN trunk connected and working

• Two or more soft or hard SIP phones

Automatic call distribution is a way of delivering incoming calls logically based on

the time of day, the availability of users to answer, or perhaps the number of calls

already answered by a certain user. So, if a particular user hasn’t answered as many

calls as another user, she might be more likely to receive the call, if that’s what your

ACD policy calls for.

There can be very elaborate ACD policies that route calls based on the availability of

users with certain skills or in certain departments. These ACD policies are often tied

to IVR applications that allow the caller to qualify