🚀 How to Deploy Issabel PBX on Rocky Linux VPS

This article provides a guide to deploy Issabel PBX on Rocky Linux VPS.

Here is a complete, start-to-finish deployment guide for installing Issabel PBX + Contact Center on a Rocky Linux VPS (recommended: Rocky Linux 8.x).

🚀 Overview: What You’re Deploying

Issabel PBX is a full VoIP + unified communications system (based on Asterisk) that includes PBX, call center, email, and more

• Issabel 5 is built on Rocky Linux 8 with long-term support
• Contact Center is an addon module that enables call queues, campaigns, agents, and predictive dialing

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Deploy Issabel PBX on Rocky Linux VPS

To deploy Issabel PBX on Rocky Linux VPS, follow the steps below:

1. VPS Requirements (Production Recommended)

   Minimum

   • 2 vCPU
   • 4 GB RAM
   • 40 GB SSD
   • 1 public IP

   Recommended (Contact Center)

   • 4+ vCPU
   • 8–16 GB RAM
   • Low-latency network (VoIP critical)

   Open Ports

   dnf install firewalld -y
   systemctl start firewalld
   firewall-cmd --zone=public --permanent --add-port=22/tcp
   firewall-cmd --zone=public --permanent --add-port=80/tcp
   firewall-cmd --zone=public --permanent --add-port=443/tcp
   firewall-cmd --zone=public --permanent --add-port=8088-8089/tcp
   firewall-cmd --zone=public --permanent --add-port=5060/udp
   firewall-cmd --zone=public --permanent --add-port=10000-20000/udp
   firewall-cmd --reload
   

2. Deploy Rocky Linux (Minimal Install)

   Use:

   • Rocky Linux 8.x Minimal ISO
   • Set:
     • Static IP
     • Hostname (VERY important for PBX)

   Example:

   hostnamectl set-hostname pbx.example.com
   

   Update system:

   dnf update -y
   

3. Prepare the Server

   Install dependencies:

   dnf install -y epel-release
   dnf install -y wget nano git yum-utils
   dnf groupinstall "Development Tools" -y
   

   Disable SELinux (required for Issabel):

   sed -i 's/SELINUX=enforcing/SELINUX=disabled/g' /etc/selinux/config
   reboot
   

4. Install Issabel 5 (Rocky Linux)

   Official NetInstall Script

   Run:

   dnf -y install wget
   wget -O - http://repo.issabel.org/issabel5-netinstall.sh | bash
   

   This script:

   • Installs Asterisk + PBX stack
   • Configures web UI
   • Installs MariaDB + Apache

5. Installer Configuration (Interactive)

   During install, you will set:

   Required Credentials

   • MySQL root password
   • Issabel admin password

   Recommended Options

   • Asterisk version: latest available
   • Enable firewall integration
   • Enable Fail2Ban (security)

6. Access Issabel Web Interface

   

   After install:

   http://YOUR_SERVER_IP
   

   Login:

   • Username: admin
   • Password: (set during install)

7. Post-Install Critical Configuration

   Set Static IP (mandatory)

   Edit:

   nmtui
   

   Configure Firewall

   firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=http
   firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=https
   firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=5060/udp
   firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=10000-20000/udp
   firewall-cmd --reload
   

   Enable Services

   systemctl enable asterisk
   systemctl enable httpd
   systemctl enable mariadb
   

8. Configure Basic PBX

   

   In Web UI:

   Create Extension

   PBX → Extensions → Add Extension

   Example:

   • Extension: 1001
   • Secret: password

   Configure SIP

   Use PJSIP (recommended)

9. Install Issabel Contact Center Module

   1. Verify PBX is working

      Contact Center requires:

      • Working extensions
      • SIP trunk (optional but recommended)

   2. Install Module

      In Issabel UI:

      Addons → Issabel Addons → Contact Center
      

      Or CLI:

      issabel-addons install contactcenter
      

   3. Register Issabel Instance

      Required before enabling contact center:

      • Go to System → Registration

10. Configure Contact Center

    Create Agents

    Contact Center → Agents

    Create Queues

    Contact Center → Queues

    Create Campaign

    • Inbound (support)
    • Outbound (dialing)

    Assign:

    • Agents
    • Queue
    • Dialplan

11. Configure VoIP Provider (SIP Trunk)

    PBX → Trunks

    Example (generic SIP):

    username=YOUR_SIP_USER
    secret=YOUR_SIP_PASS
    host=provider.com
    

12. Security Hardening (CRITICAL)

    Enable Fail2Ban

    dnf install fail2ban -y
    systemctl enable fail2ban
    systemctl start fail2ban
    

    Restrict SIP Access

    firewall-cmd --permanent --add-rich-rule='rule family="ipv4" source address="YOUR_IP" port protocol="udp" port="5060" accept'
    

    Disable Anonymous SIP

    Edit:

    /etc/asterisk/pjsip.conf
    

13. Performance Optimization

    Increase File Limits

    echo "* soft nofile 65535" >> /etc/security/limits.conf
    echo "* hard nofile 65535" >> /etc/security/limits.conf
    

    Tune RTP

    /etc/asterisk/rtp.conf
    

14. Verify Installation

    Check services:

    systemctl status asterisk
    systemctl status httpd
    systemctl status mariadb
    

    Check Asterisk:

    asterisk -rvvv
    

15. Test Call Flow

    1. Register 2 softphones (Zoiper, Linphone)
    2. Call extension-to-extension
    3. Test queue routing
    4. Test campaign dialing

⚠️ Common Issues

Installer fails

• Ensure Rocky Linux 8 (not 9)

No audio

• Open RTP ports (10000–20000 UDP)

Contact Center not working

• PBX not fully configured
• Instance not registered

🧠 Key Notes

• Issabel 5 is designed specifically for Rocky Linux environments
• Contact Center depends on proper PBX setup first
• Always deploy on clean VPS (no control panel)

✅ Done

You now have:

• Fully functional Issabel PBX
• Contact Center module (agents, queues, campaigns)
• Production-ready VoIP system

Conclusion

You now know how to deploy Issabel PBX on Rocky Linux VPS.