ok, if you self-provision a Sipura SPA-2000 for Broadvoic...

[dhochman]

...how will you ever know when BV does something like upgrade the firmware they support?

The BV support page for BYOD is not oriented to self-provisioners...it assumes they have your MAC number on file and therefore you can reprovision from their site. In my case, I started service with a softphone so they have no MAC number on file for me and I couldn't use their provisioning script if I wanted to.

The minimal information you can get from the BYOD pages still recommends Sipura firmware 2.0.10e .. no mention of 2.0.13g, let alone v. 3.1.5. How will self-provisioners ever know if BV is prepared to support somethng later?

for that matter, how does the author of the Voxilla configuration wizard (thanks, whoever you are!) know when the recommended settings have been changed, whichever firmware is in use?

Thanks,
David

[mberlant]

Originally Posted by dhochman

The BV support page for BYOD is not oriented to self-provisioners...it assumes they have your MAC number on file and therefore you can reprovision from their site.

It is true that the BV Account Portal is not oriented to self-provisioners. Self provisioning is a courtesy extended by BV to those of us who crave the flexibility to craft a Dial Plan, use an Asterisk PABX, exploit the features of an SPA-3000, etc. In exchange for this freedom we relieve BV of responsibility for supporting our nonstandard configurations. When you self provision BV has no need for your MAC address, since they have no way of knowing what [type-specific] configuration you might need.

Originally Posted by dhochman

In my case, I started service with a softphone so they have no MAC number on file for me and I couldn't use their provisioning script if I wanted to.

BV does not have any provisioning script for any softphone, so a MAC address would do them no good. As for any hardware device you might have migrated to since subscribing, if it is supported by BV you have options. If you want to relinquish provisioning responsibility back to BV you can simply change your device type on the Account screen, enter your device's MAC address and follow the directions for preparing your device to accept BV provisioning.

Originally Posted by dhochman

The minimal information you can get from the BYOD pages still recommends Sipura firmware 2.0.10e .. no mention of 2.0.13g, let alone v. 3.1.5. How will self-provisioners ever know if BV is prepared to support somethng later?

If you are self provisioning you are responsible for one device. This affords you the luxury of following the latest firmware release for your particular device model. You can upgrade to the latest firmware and, if you find a bug in that release, retreat to the previous working version. BV is responsible for the smooth operation of tens of thousands of devices comprising almost a dozen makes and models. They must evaluate new releases, determine if each new release offers a new desired feature or solves an identified problem, and then test this release in a test environment to be sure that no new problems are introduced.

Originally Posted by dhochman

for that matter, how does the author of the Voxilla configuration wizard (thanks, whoever you are!) know when the recommended settings have been changed, whichever firmware is in use?

I am one of a small cadre of people who maintain the wizard. We learn about changes that require modifications to the wizard just like you do - right here in the forum. Let's say, for example, that BV decided one day to relocate their Los Angeles proxy server to San Francisco, renaming it from lax to sfo. All of a sudden, everyone who used the BV West Coast selection would stop working, members would clamor to a thread here, someone would figure it out (maybe me, maybe you), and we would go modify the wizard.

No magic here - just members supporting ourselves and each other because we have relieved BV of that responsibility.

[dhochman]

thanks for the courteous and full reply.

i only point out that BroadVoice might be tweaking all sorts of parameters (including obscure ones that don't cause crashes but affect quality) in their provisioned systems that you (and I) are not aware of precisely because we self-provision and the BYOD documentation doesn't specify.

So I guess part of what I'm asking is, do you maintain more than one box, with one provisoned by yourself and another by BroadVoice so that you can check what they are currently loading into the systems they provision?

Just curious.

[mberlant]

Chasing changes as they occur is part of the deal. I am constantly observing quality and reliability in order to make changes in the devices under my control. I would say that on average I make a small change about once every other week. The change is usually to home into a different proxy server when the current one suffers a quality decline. Since most of my devices are in the Far East, I tend to home into LAX proxy, but switch to DCA on occasion.

And, yes, I manually access each device remotely and reconfigure it on the fly. Often as not, my customers don't even know I have made a change. I personally do not keep any boxes on BV provisioning, but I talk every day with colleagues who do.