How do I configure Cisco 7970G Phone with SIP Firmware?

[jcharles12]

I would like to use this phone with my asterisk Pbx server, but first I need to flash the phone with sip firmware. I have read almost everything on how to do it but, I feel like I am getting nowhere. I am new to this. What is the correct firmware and where can I get it?  Please help explain how to configure this phone.

Thank You

[kcnajaf]

Hi Charles,

Do you have a Cisco Call Manager?

Have you followed below procedures? Even if the model specificed on below links are different i think that should work for you.

http://blog.voiplink.com/how-to-convert-a-cisco-ip-phone-to-sip

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/phones/ps379/products_tech_note09186a0080094584.shtml

Belive me i have done this before (with 7960) and all i can say i had to spend two days to get two ip phones upgraded to sip :-)

Regards

Najaf

[jcharles12]

I don't have call manager. I still don't understand how to obtain the firmware.

[kcnajaf]

HI Charles,

Ideally you need Smartnet contract to download SIP firmware from Cisco web site. But looks like you are lucky enough to find the firmwares on below url.

http://ftp.itl.ua/pub/cisco/ip-7900ser/

You will have to download the file named "P0S3-08-4-00.zip" and follow the instruction provided on the above cisco website.

Hope that helps.

Regards

Najaf

Please rate when applicable or helpful !!!

[jcharles12]

Is that all I need to upgrade the firmware?

I could just load it on the TFTP server. By the way How to do setup the tftp server with tftp32 program for windows?

Thanks

[kcnajaf]

Hi Charles,

Ensure the all the files mentioned on the Cisco url is available on the zip folder which you are downloading.

TFTP32 is just double click and use. You dont have to install it. When double click the exe and go to setting and ensure TFTP security is set to none.

Hope that helps.

Regards

Najaf

[jcharles12]

I have all the files now.

Heres how I have it.

The phone connects to my little power over ethernet (poe) block and then plugs into my computer ethernet port. This is on my laptop.

So I, Reboot the phone by unpluging poe and plugging back in , Hold #,  then 3491672850*#

The line lights cycle amber and then They are Red.

The Whole time the screen is Black and it does nothing, like it shut off or something.

On the TFTP program, nothing is showing in LOG View

I am hearing the poe could be the problem why its not upgrading???

Do I have to have the power brick?

This phone is so frustrating me, But I really really want to get it working.

Thanks

[jcharles12]

By the way, I have been reading this website as well, but no avail.

http://www.voip-info.org/wiki/view/Asterisk+phone+cisco+7970+SIP

[kcnajaf]

Hi Charles,

As said before it is a pain to get this phone upgrade to SIP.

Do you mean to say the laptop where tftp is running is connected the ip phone directly.

I dont think power adaptor is mandatory even though i have done this upgrade through a power adaptor.

Is  your phone assigned with a static ip address or is it dhcp ip address? Are you able to ping the ip phone from the tftp machine?

Have you manually configured the ip phone with tftp ip address?

Regards

Najaf

[jcharles12]

Yes, the laptop where tftp is running is directly connected to the phone.

I think my problem is that its not even communicating with the tftp server. I must have a setting wrong.

I am not able to change the phones setting, because the screen is black the whole time.

It does however request an IP Address from the router.

So, I think I need help again configuring tftp. please tell me how to do that.

Also , what is the proper way of connecting the phone to my laptop.

I think I am almost there.

[kcnajaf]

Hi Charles,

I'm not really sure about the physical setup, how your devices are connected toghter :-( The above post you are saying tftp is running on pc which is directly connect to the phone. If you have connected the laptop to the pc port on the ip phone this is not goin to work because ip phone looks for the tftp server during the boot up process and only after the boot up process the pc port on the ip phone will come up. So by the time pc port of phone come up the phone would have passed the tftp look up process.

So you will have to remove the pc from ip phone port and connect it to the poe switch.

Also you have mentioned that ip phone is requested ip address from router? Does this means you run dhcp on a router? If this is the case which router are you usuing here?

As said before if you are using tftp32 there is no specific congigurations requried. I think the problem you have is ip phone is not able to talk to tftp server when it requires due the reason mentioned above.

Regards

Najaf

[jcharles12]

ok, I have changed my physical setup. i will Explain.

I recieved my phone power adapters, so POE is no longer necessary to receive power.

1. My Cisco phone is connected via ethernet to my router. The DHCP address it received is 192.168.1.43

(The ethernet is connected on the switch port of the phone.)

I am able to ping the phone and I am receiveing a response.

2. My laptop has a DHCP address of 192.168.1.40

TFTPD32 is on this laptop.

My Router is a  : Netgear WNDR4500.  The Router is running dhcp

In tftpd32 program, I never see anything in the log view, it seems the phone cannot see tftp server.???

[kcnajaf]

Hi Charles,

I think you will have a problem here.

The ip phone should know what is the tftp ip address. Usually while configuring the ip address on the phone you have an option to configure tftp server ip address as well.

Since you are not able to configure the static ip address on the phone the option left out is to tell the ip phone what the tftp ip address through the dhcp option.

In order to do this you will have to enable option 150 on the dhcp scope. I assume your current dhcp router (Netgear WNDR4500) does not support option 150.

Other choice you have got is it enable a dhcp scope on your poe switch and connect the ip phone to the poe switch. A typical dhcp configuration on an Cisco IOS switch would looks like as below.

   Switch(config)#ip dhcp pool VOICE

   Switch(dhcp-config)#network 192.168.1.0 255.255.255.0

   Switch(dhcp-config)#default-router 192.168.1.1

   Switch(dhcp-config)#option 150 ip 192.168.1.10 (ensure that you configure static ip address 192.168.1.10 on the

                                                                               laptop and it is also connected to same switch)

If everything is working as expected you should be able to see some logs on the tftp server.

Hope that helps

Regards

Najaf

[jcharles12]

I don't understand. I will try it again. if it fails , I will just give cisco a call.

[kcnajaf · Accepted solution]

Hi Charles,

Do you have a support contract with Cisco? If not im afraid to say you dont get any help from them :-(

Ok..Let me try to explain the best way i can.

For the Cisco IP phone to get the new image it will have to know the tftp ip address. The usual way of letting the ip phone to know what the tftp ip address is manually configuring the tftp ip address on the phones through the phone keys on the phone setting.

Since you dont have display on the phone this method does not work.

The other way of letting the ip phone know what the tftp ip address is telling it through the dhcp option. Usually dhcp scope is used to sepcficy network, gateway and dns server but it has option to configure the tftp option as well. This option is called as option 150.

The option 150 can not be enabled on your wireless router. So one option is to enable this on switch as mentioned in the above post.

This is the best way i could explain this :-)

Regards

Najaf