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Add a Conference Room

A Conference Room is a virtual room callers dial into to talk together. UnifiedBX has two conference modules: Conferences (free, basic) and Conference Pro (commercial, with web admin & moderation features). This page covers Conferences (free).

Before You Start

  • Pick a conference room number that doesn't conflict with extensions, queues, or feature codes.
  • Decide if a PIN is required (admin PIN for moderator, user PIN for participants).

Steps

  1. Go to System Attributes → Conferences.
  2. Click + Add Conference.
  3. Fill in:
    • Conference Number — e.g. 8000.
    • Conference Name — e.g. Sales Standup.
    • User PIN — 4-6 digits prompted for participants. Leave blank for no PIN.
    • Admin PIN — separate PIN for moderator privileges (mute room, kick users). Leave blank if no admin features.
    • Join Message — System Recording played to caller on join.
    • Leader Wait — Yes waits for an admin to join before letting participants out of MoH.
    • Talker Optimization — Yes.
    • Talker Detection — Yes enables CLI/CDR talker indication.
    • Quiet Mode — Yes skips entry/exit beeps (recommended for many-participant rooms).
    • User Count — Yes announces the count on join.
    • User Join/Leave Sound — Yes plays a beep on join/leave.
    • Music on Hold — pick a class for when only one person is in the room.
    • Allow Menu — Yes lets users press * for in-conference menu (mute self, etc.).
    • Record Conference — Yes records the conference to disk.
    • Maximum Participants — 0 (unlimited) or a cap.
  4. Click Submit.
  5. Click Apply Config.

Use the conference

  • Internal: any extension dials the conference number (e.g. 8000) and follows prompts.
  • External: point an inbound route, IVR option, or DID at Conferences → .

In-conference menu (if Allow Menu = Yes)

Users press * then a digit: - 1 — Mute self. - 4 — Decrease listening volume. - 6 — Increase listening volume. - 7 — Decrease talking volume. - 9 — Increase talking volume.

Admins (joined with admin PIN) get extra options: - 2 — Lock conference (no new joins). - 3 — Eject last user. - 5 — Mute/unmute conference. - 8 — Exit menu.

Verify

asterisk -rx "confbridge list"
asterisk -rx "confbridge list 8000"

The active conference appears with participant count.

Common Issues

  • Echo or feedback. Multiple participants in same room with active mics. Use Quiet Mode and remind users to mute when not talking.
  • Conference is silent. No MoH class set, or class is empty. Configure MoH.
  • PIN rejected. Wrong PIN entered, or trailing spaces in the PIN field. Re-set PIN.
  • External callers can't join. No inbound route points at the conference. Add one, or expose via IVR.
  • Recording missing. Storage path not writable, or the recording option wasn't on. Check /var/spool/asterisk/monitor/.