VoIP handsets 'Discovering' 1

[telesonic]

Hi. We have two 4620 handsets that repeatedly get stuck in 'Discovering' mode. If when restarting the handsets we change the handsets ip address by one digit then the handset seems to restart ok, otherwise it is a pain.

The set up has these two handsets running over vpns created by Vigor 2600g routers over ADSL which has no static IP.

The routers can reconnect and re-create their tunnel automatically when the ADSL IP address changes etc, but the phone will not reconnect of its own accord without the change - anyone else had this issue or does anyone have a thought as to something we could try?
Other than getting an ip address which will mean loss of broadband service for too long and valuable a period.

thanks

 

[IPAlot]

Are you using static IPs on the phones? Would dhcp fix the prob???

Soopa Doopa Intergalactic IP Office installation mechanic and configuration corruptor from way back.

 

[telesonic]

We have not set the IP address setting in the extensions VoIP settings (that will stop us resetting it to a new ip address and thus stopping us recovering the connection), but the ip address is set on the phone during the set up. This fixes the IP address until it is changed - as far as I understand.

How would you put the handset on to DHCP?

 

[telesonic]

Aha!!

0.0.0.0 sets DHCP. Our avaya IP course did not mention that!!! I'll give that a go...

 

[Morrack]

There are certain option strings you need to configure on your DHCP server for the hardphones to work - there is a job aid detailing it nicely.

Peter

 

[telesonic]

Thanks Morrack that sound liek something I should read, but I'm having problems finding what you are refering to, I can see the Aid called 'Alternate HDCP servers for 4600 installation...' that refers back to the installation guide which does not show any info such as you describe.

Which aid one should I be looking for?

 

[Morrack]

That is the correct job aid - I hate the way they did that on the 2.1 admin CD, all the pertinant info was in one nice place

Go to support.avaya.com and search through the older firmwares job aid downloads, you'll find the orignal job aid as a .pdf there somewhere.

Peter

 

[Nokarro]

2. Windows 2000 DHCP Setup for 4600 Series IP Telephones
2a. Creating the Scope
A DHCP scope defines the IP addresses that the DHCP server can issue in response to DHCP
requests. Different scopes may be defined for different types of devices.
1. Select Start | Programs | Administrative Tools | DHCP.
2. Right-click on the server and select New | Scope.
3. The scope creation wizard will be started, click Next.
4. Enter a name and comment for the scope. Click Next.
5. Enter the address range to use, for example from 200.200.200.1 to 200.200.200.15 (remember the host part cannot be 0).
6. Enter the subnet mask as either the number of bits used or the actual mask, for example 24 is the same as 255.255.255.0. Click Next.
7. You can specify addresses to be excluded. You can do this either entering a range, eg.
200.200.200.5 to 200.200.200.7 and clicking Add, or just enter a single address and click Add.
Click Next.
• Note: You should exclude the IP Office from this range, as the DHCP Options in the IP
Office should be disabled. This is only a recommendation. You can also accomplish this
by leaving available addresses outside of the scopes range.
8. You can now set the lease time for addresses. If set too large, addresses used by devices no
longer attached will not expire and be available for reuse in a reasonable time, reducing the
number of addresses available for new devices. If set too short it will generate unnecessary traffic
for address renewals. The default is 8 days. Click Next.
9. The wizard gives the option to configure the most common DHCP options. Select Yes and click
Next.
10. Enter the address of the gateway and click Add. You can enter several. Click Next when all are
entered.
11. Enter the DNS domain, eg. savilltech.com and the DNS server addresses. Click Next.
12. Enter the WINS server addresses and click Add. Click Next.
13. You will then be asked if you wish to activate the scope. Select No and click Next.
14. Click Finish to the wizard.
The new scope will now be listed and the status as Inactive.

2b. Adding the 176 Option
In addition to issuing IP address information, DHCP servers can issue other information in response to
requests for different DHCP option numbers. The settings for each Option are attached to the scope.
4600 Series IP telephones need the IP address of an H323 Gatekeeper (normally the IP Office) and a
TFTP server (normally the PC running Manager). They do this by requesting the Option 176 settings
from the DHCP server.
1. Right-click on the DHCP server.
2. Select Predefined options from the pop-up menu.
3. Select Add.
4. Enter the following information:
• Name: 46xxOptions
• Data type: String
• Code: 176
• Description: IP Phone settings
5. Click OK.
6. In the string value field enter the following:
MCIPADD=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx,MCPORT=1719,TFTPSRVR=yyy.yyy.yyy.yyy,TFTPDIR=z
where:
• xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the H323 Gatekeeper address. Normally this is the IP Office Control
Unit's LAN1 address.
• yyy.yyy.yyy.yyy is the TFTP Server IP Address. Normally this is the IP address of the
PC running Manager.
• z is the directory on the TFTP Server where the 4600 Series IP telephone software files
are located. This information is not required if those files are in the TFTP server's default
directory, eg.
MCIPADD=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx,MCPORT=1719,TFTPSRVR=yyy.yyy.yyy.yyy
• You can enter more than one IP address, separating each by a comma with no space.
This allows fallback should access to the H323 server fail.
MCIPADD=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx,xxx.xxx.xxx,MCPORT=1719,TFTPSRVR=yyy.yyy.yyy.yyy
• The maximum string length is 127 characters. To reduce the length the TFTP Server
address can be specified through attaching an Option 66 entry to the Scope, see
"Alternate Options".
7. Click OK.
8. Expand the server by clicking on the [+] next to it.
9. Click on the scope you just created for the 4600 phones.
10. In the right-hand panel, right-click on the scope and select Scope Options.
11. In the general tab make sure 176 is checked.
12. Verify the String value is correct and click OK.
2c. Activate the Scope
The scope can be manually activated by right clicking on the scope, select All Tasks and select
Activate. The activation is immediate.
You should now be able to start installing 4600 Series telephones using DHCP. Ensure that Manager is
running of the PC specified as the TFTP server.

 

[telesonic]

Thanks for that Nokarro,

the aid is slightly off topic from my problem though.

The 4620's would get their IP address from the Vigor Routers that they are locally set to - not from a full blown DHCP server which is across the VPN link. It looks like the guide is refering to a server set up.

not sure it relates to the end I have issues with.