Preston Burns Moore

Adding an LCD display to your ClarkConnect server is very easy. This project assumes you have basic soldering skills and a working knowledge of command-line linux. If your not handy with a soldering iron, and don't care to learn, you can purchase a kit. The LCD for this project is driven by LCD4Linux software.







Hardware

You are going to need a Hitachi HD44780 compatible module. These modules are available in different colors and sizes from many sources. I purchased mine from 411 Technology Services and have nothing but good things to say about them. 411 Technology includes a CD with every order with software, diagrams, specs, and schematics that are very helpful.

I am not going to "re-invent the wheel" here and instruction on hardwiring the module is available from several websites. I followed the instruction provided by Overclockers Austrailia with a few personal modifications. If the soldering scares you then purchase the kit I mentioned earlier which has the added benefit of a frame designed to fit into a drive bay.

Before you continue, make sure you plug the module into the computer to test to see if it is working. When you plug the assembly into the parallel port your display should show a series of horizonal bars. This is a sign your wiring is correct and the display is not dead.


Software

From the command prompt:

apt-get update
apt-get install cc-devel
cd /tmp
cvs -d:pserver:anonymous@lcd4linux.cvs.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/lcd4linux login <--just hit return when prompted for a password
cvs -z9 -d:pserver:anonymous@lcd4linux.cvs.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/lcd4linux co lcd4linux
cd lcd4linux
./configure
make
make install

That's it for installing LCD4Linux software. That was the easy part, the tricky part is the configuration file . I have modified the "lcd4linux.conf" file for use with the 411 Tech Systems LCD module to get you started. This config file should work for other "generic HD44780" modules as well.

cd /etc/
wget http://prestonmoore.com/images/lcd4linux.conf
chmod 600 lcd4linux.conf

Now you are ready testing. Cross your fingers and issue the following command:

lcd4linux -Fvv

With luck you should see the "default" layout displayed on your LCD. If you don't, you have some troubleshooting to do. I would first check the bios settings concerning the parallel port. I am using the "AT" setting versus the "ps/2" setting on my Dell Optiplex computers. If you are given the bios choice of EPP, ECP, or SPP then select SPP(Standard Parallel Port). If you are still having problems post them in the forum or check around for a solution.

You got it working and now you want LCD4Linux to run in the background. Issue the following:

lcd4linux (shows splash screen)
lcd4linux -q (suppresses splash screen)

Add this to the bottom of your /etc/rc.local file to make display start on boot:

echo "Starting LCD4Linux..."
/usr/local/bin/lcd4linux -q


LCD4Linux uses "widgets" to display various functions. You can make your own such as this one I made to display used memory:

Widget RAMused {
class 'Text'
expression (meminfo('MemTotal')-meminfo('MemFree'))/1024
prefix 'RAM '
postfix ''
width 8
precision 0
align 'R'
update tick
}

I guess you are getting the hang of it now. Good luck!

Anyone else with some interesting widgets please add to comments

I have been using the Asterisk PBX and the FreePBX GUI on my ClarkConnect gateway for some time now with great success. I recently upgraded to CC 4.0 and have concluded the system works as well or better than it did on the 3.2 version. During my experimentation I wrote an install script to quickly install Asterisk and FreePBX onto the ClarkConnect gateway. At the time, I was working off a "cut and paste" guide written by Samy Antoun and decided to make an executable script. The result was cc-freepbx(for CC3.2) and cc-freepbx40(for CC4.0) which I recently released on several VOIP online forums. The scripts have proven to be very popular judging by the number of downloads. The following guide will assist you in the minor tweaking necessary after initial intallation.

What you get...

- ClarkConnect 4.0 (Community or Enterprise)
- Asterisk 1.2.14
- Zaptel 1.2.12 (running "ztdummy" module)
- Libpri 1.2.4
- Addons 1.2.5
- Sounds 1.2.1
- FreePBX 2.1.3

Note that I am running the Zaptel dummy timing module. I have never used any of the hardware cards and I personally use a cheap ATA I bought on ebay. I will leave the hardware card experimentation to those who are inclined.

There are a few addons/mods that I included that I use to make the system more user friendly.

- an updated index.html page
- vnStat network monitor w/ web interface
- Asterisk "phpconfig" GUI
- FreePBX additional "missing modules"
- PHPSysinfo
- password protection for FOP, Netstats, PHPconfig, & Sysinfo
- Additional Music On Hold Mp3 files
- probably other mods I can't think of right now.

Getting started...

1) Install ClarkConnect 4.0 making sure you selected the Web Server, Mail Server, and Database modules.

2) After installation you should be presented with the console menu screen. Press ALT+F4 and login with "root" and your password.

3) At the prompt issue the following commands:

wget http://www.prestonmoore.com/images/cc-freepbx40

sh cc-freepbx40

At this point the script will begin downloading and installing the software from different sources. You will be prompted to configure Freepbx. Leave everything as default except you will need to set you ip address [xx.xx.xx.xx] and pick a password [passw0rd]. The last prompt will ask you to pick a password for the Flash Panel, Net-stats, etc. The intstallation is complete and it will reboot.


Post-install configuration...

Login to ClarkConnect and set the Mysql password. The rest of the configs can be done from the console.

nano +73 /var/www/html/admin/modules/phpmyadmin/config.default.php
change "passw0rd" to your CC Mysql password you entered above.

nano +37 /etc/amportal.conf
(you should see AMPWEBADDRESS=youripadd)
remove your ip address (there should be nothing past the "=" mark.

nano +34 /var/www/html/panel/op_server.cfg
remove the ip from web_hostname= (like above)

sensors-detect
If you motherboard supports monitoring, configure lm-sensors by following the on-screen instructions.(you will need to reboot after configuring)

Change the address in the following files to your CC box. You can use an IP or FQDN (ie. asterisk.pointclark.net)

nano /var/webconfig/htdocs/admin/freepbx.php
nano /var/webconfig/htdocs/admin/fop.php
nano /var/webconfig/htdocs/admin/ari.php

You will need to configure your firewall. It should look similar to this if you want remote access.

Please contact me with comments, questons or additions.

10-21-2006

I updated the scripts to include the lastest Asterisk packages.

I started a forum to support any issues, suggestions, etc.