Phone system (Asterisk) · Beginner conferencing guide

VICIdial ConfBridge: check the audio room before switching

Understand how an agent and caller meet in a conference, check the running module, profiles and server setting, and plan a controlled switch with a clear recovery path.

Start the guide

By Vicigeek Editorial DeskStep-by-step guide6 minute readUpdated November 7, 2026

01 / 09

1. Understand the shared audio room

An agent can stay connected to Asterisk while customer calls come and go. The conference is the shared audio room where they meet. MeetMe and ConfBridge are different conference applications; PJSIP is the phone-connection driver.

A bridge profile controls the room. User profiles control participants: an agent, customer, monitoring session and recording channel can have different rules.

Check whether the selected server engine agrees with the loaded profiles, routing and cleanup process. Finding a module alone does not prove that calls use it.

You should seeA real agent/customer room was observed on the existing ConfBridge setup; no engine migration was performed.

02 / 09

2. Check the version before using an old setup recipe

The current VICIdial document says ConfBridge changes are integrated in trunk revision 3894 and later for Asterisk 18 and later. Its older patch, SQL, timing and Asterisk 16 sections describe earlier deployments.

Record your versions first. On an older or mixed cluster, ask the administrator to map a supported upgrade. On a current installation, inspect existing configuration and schema instead of adding duplicate columns, conference rows or patches.

Before you use it: Run these on the Asterisk server that owns the intended agent session.

asterisk -rx 'core show version'asterisk -rx 'module show like app_confbridge.so'

Not executed · deliberately not run on the demo

This sample changes a system, contacts an outside service, needs a live call, or would print real data from a shared server, so it was not run on the demo. Run it only where you are authorized, and compare the result with the success and stop guidance.

Success looks like: You know the running Asterisk version and whether the conference application is loaded.
Stop if: A missing module or unsupported version is a failed prerequisite, not a reason to force the server setting to CONFBRIDGE.

03 / 09

3. Check the room and participant profiles

Read the profile names Asterisk has loaded. VICIdial’s named bridge and separate user profiles let agents and customers join with different behavior. A file on disk does not prove that the running process recognizes it.

Before you use it: These commands inspect configuration; they do not join a room or change anyone’s microphone.

asterisk -rx 'confbridge show profile bridges'asterisk -rx 'confbridge show profile bridge vici_agent_bridge'asterisk -rx 'confbridge show profile user vici_agent_user'asterisk -rx 'confbridge show profile user vici_customer_user'

Not executed · deliberately not run on the demo

Success looks like: The named bridge and the intended agent/customer user profiles are recognized. Review their actual options rather than assuming defaults.
Stop if: If a profile is missing, check the supported VICIdial configuration include and generated files with your administrator before changing the engine.

The three names you should be able to explainScroll sideways to compare columns
Object	Plain-language purpose	Useful check
vici_agent_bridge	The room’s shared settings.	The loaded bridge profile is present.
vici_agent_user	The agent participant’s rules.	The loaded user profile is present.
vici_customer_user	The caller participant’s rules.	The loaded customer profile is present.

04 / 09

4. Match the VICIdial server setting and cleanup process

Open Administration → Admin → Servers → Show Servers and select the test phone’s server. Record Conferencing Engine and Conf Update Interval without saving. MEETME means this server has not switched, even if ConfBridge profiles exist.

Conf Update Interval controls conference-state checks, not audio quality. The required AST_conf_update_screen.pl worker helps clear abandoned channels and release rooms.

Ask the administrator to verify the worker and its keepalive setup. The source describes the C keepalive flag; adding it blindly can create duplicate work.

Record the selected server’s engine and interval. Keep server identifiers private in shared evidence.
Confirm the administrator can find the running AST_conf_update_screen.pl process for this dialer.
Check that required conference records already belong to this server; do not paste the sample IP address or bulk INSERT statements.
Compare the selected engine with the loaded profiles and routing checks below. Resolve any mismatch before attempting agent login.

05 / 09

5. Inspect the route without placing a call

The dialplan contains Asterisk’s routing instructions. VICIdial uses separate entry routes so customer and agent channels join with the appropriate profiles. Showing a route is read-only; dialing it is different.

These examples use the documented patterns in the default context. Confirm your actual context before interpreting a missing route.

Before you use it: These are inspection targets, not numbers to dial. They do not create a room or select a live participant.

asterisk -rx 'dialplan show 9600000@default'asterisk -rx 'dialplan show 29600000@default'asterisk -rx 'confbridge list'

Not executed · deliberately not run on the demo

Success looks like: The matching customer and agent routes lead to ConfBridge with the expected profiles when this installation is configured for it. The conference list shows only rooms currently in use.
Stop if: No active bridges can be normal on an idle host. A route/profile mismatch needs a configuration review; do not originate a call to find out.

You should seeA route, profile and selected engine that agree establish configuration readiness. They still do not establish two-way sound.

06 / 09

6. What we checked on the demo

The demo already used CONFBRIDGE, so we did not switch its conference engine. The native server field selected CONFBRIDGE, with a 60-second conference-update interval, and the expected bridge and user profiles were loaded.

During the real answered internal call, conference 9600000 contained PJSIP 8902 using vici_agent_user and the controlled customer using vici_customer_user, both on vici_agent_bridge. The separate known-tone recording confirms that media from both controlled sources reached the recording path.

There were 300 configured conference records before the exercise and zero active calls. That is a configuration count, not a measured capacity of 300 concurrent calls. A loaded module, an empty room and a two-party answered call establish different things.

Configuration, live room and capacity are separate checksScroll sideways to compare columns
Layer	Actual observation	What remains untested
Saved setting	CONFBRIDGE in the native server form	Migration from MeetMe.
Live room	Agent and customer profiles in conference 9600000	Transfers and other participant combinations.
Controlled media	Known agent/customer tones in the actual recording	Human speech quality and remote networks.
Configured rooms	300 records; no capacity load test	Concurrent-agent or multi-server capacity.

Native server Conference Engine setting is CONFBRIDGE — Genuine native server form capture: Conference Engine is CONFBRIDGE.
Capture details
This field establishes the saved setting; the live agent/customer room is checked separately.

You should seeA real agent/customer room was observed on the existing ConfBridge setup; no engine migration was performed.

Download the dated practical test results and limits

07 / 09

7. Plan one controlled switch and internal call

Changing the engine affects more than one web field. Arrange a maintenance window and preserve the previous server record and configuration through independent access. Start with one test dialer.

Choose an approved dialer without affected active calls or agent sessions. Record its engine, configuration and cleanup setup.
Confirm supported code/schema, server conference records, includes, entry routes and cleanup worker. Keep working timing settings unless separately diagnosed.
Change only the approved server setting and apply the reviewed configuration-generation/restart method. A generic reload does not prove every component updated.
Log in one synthetic agent with its approved phone. Inspect its room, then add only the authorized internal second participant.
Check two-way sound and the join/leave, recording or transfer behaviors actually included in scope. Record each result separately.
End the call and log out. Confirm the test channels and participants clear and the host returns to its expected state.

08 / 09

8. Find the first disagreement

Separate phone registration, channel routing, participant profiles and audio transport. One layer can work while another fails.

ConfBridge symptoms and a focused next stepScroll sideways to compare columns
Observation	Meaning to investigate	Next step
Module exists; server says MEETME	ConfBridge is available but not selected for this server.	Keep the current engine until an approved switch is planned.
Named profile is missing	The intended include or generated profile was not loaded.	Review configuration generation and the expected include before a call.
No conferences are listed	The host may simply be idle.	Compare with the expected synthetic session; do not infer failure from zero rooms.
One participant appears; the other does not	One channel may have entered the wrong route or failed before joining.	Trace the controlled agent/customer routes and their selected profiles.
Channels remain after hangup	Conference cleanup or another channel lifecycle may be failing.	Check the required cleanup worker and scoped logs; avoid blindly killing live channels.
Sound breaks up	Timing, resource load or media transport needs diagnosis.	Review actual modules and symptoms; do not copy old noload timing directives as a universal fix.

09 / 09

9. Keep the observed result and the way back

Record the server engine, version, profiles, routes and cleanup worker, plus any actual test participants, sound check and post-hangup state. A form screenshot supports only its visible values.

If a switch fails, restore the exact prior server setting and scoped configuration/process changes through the reviewed method. Repeat baseline checks. Do not delete tables or conference records, or reapply old patches as a rollback.

If you only inspected the server, no engine change needs undoing. Investigate the missing prerequisite before another test.

Version and supported integration path confirmed.
Loaded bridge and participant profiles checked.
Server engine, routing and required cleanup process agree.
Any actual internal call and sound results documented separately.
Test participants clear after hangup and working service remains available, or the scoped baseline was restored.

Checks and sources

What was checked

November 7, 2026: the native CONFBRIDGE setting and actual two-role room were independently observed during the controlled answered call.
No conference-engine migration, transfer scenario or multi-server capacity test was performed.

Primary references

Sources

VICIdial ConfBridge supportVICIdial Group · accessed November 7, 2026
Asterisk ConfBridge conceptsAsterisk · accessed November 7, 2026
Asterisk ConfBridge configurationAsterisk · accessed November 7, 2026
Asterisk ConfBridge CLI commandsAsterisk · accessed November 7, 2026