simple script for factory resetting unregistered phones

[Dan Pride]

I just completed a mass install of 8861s provisioned for Webex Calling and I wanted to relay this tip.

Our number port didn't occur until 9 PM and we had to install the phones all day to make sure they all got installed in one day. 

Because there were no devices actually created in the Control Hub yet, the phones would boot to "Enter Activation Code" and be completely unlocked from an API POV.

So when the port happened, we ran the device CSV to load them all to the Control Hub. We then collected the list of phone IPs from our switches and then put them in a simple csv. 

NOTE: this only works on brand new phones that have not registered to the Webex cloud. Webex will lock down all admin functions and the factory reset can only be done from the device. 

From there, we ran this powershell script which factory reset all the phones and they registered to webex calling successfully.

$addresses = Get-Content C:\Users\username\Downloads\ipaddress.csv

foreach ($ip in $addresses){
Write-host "Targeting : $ip"
Invoke-WebRequest -uri http://$ip/admin/direct-factory-reset -TimeoutSec 1
}

[Vaijanath Sonvane]

Hi @Dan Pride,

I tried your process to one of my phone but getting an error message:

Is this process applicable for phones that are showing "Enter Activation Code"? or is it also applicable for registered phones?

[Dan Pride]

This process will only work on a phone that came straight out of a box. If the webex cloud knows about it, it will lock down all admin functions. 

[Vaijanath Sonvane]

Hi @Dan Pride,

This is what I thought. Thanks for clarification. 

[Vaijanath Sonvane]

Hi @Dan Pride,

Thank you for sharing this information. You mentioned "you collected the list of IPs for our switches and then put them in a simple csv". How did you factory reset IP Phones using switch IP? Did you mean the IPs of IP Phones?

[Dan Pride]

We use Meraki switches, so I was able to sort on the phone vlan and download the list of phone IPs. The CSV referenced is a just a list of those phone ips.