MMSGate2

Introduction

MMSGate2 is a MMS message gateway between VoIP.ms and Linphone clients. Linphone is an open-source soft-phone. It makes VoIP SIP calls and can send/receive SMS/MMS messages over the SIP protocol. It can also use push notifications to ensure no calls are missed and SMS/MMS are delivered quickly.

VoIP.ms provides voice and SMS over SIP protocol. While MMS messages are possible, the service is provided over a customized API and web hook. MMSGate2 provides the link between VoIP.ms's MMS service and Linphone clients.

The Linphone clients connect through OpenSIPS to VoIP.ms via SIP protocols. MMSgate2 communicates via SIP and web interfaces with VoIP.ms and Linphone clients. Calls are established via the standard SIP protocol. However, the voice data is sent directly between VoIP.ms and the Linphone clients so as to reduce delays. Optional Push Notifications are sent via REST API, utilizing the existing Linphone infrastructure.

MMSGate2 relies on VoIP.ms sub accounts and their extensions. When clients are configured, it includes contacts for the extensions. Messages and calls between extensions are free of charge. All communications are encrypted. Messages between extensions are passed directly from client to client via MMSGate2.

Requirements and Prerequisites

MMSGate2 has a very small footprint, as little as 100 megabytes of memory. This allows it to run on residential routers with OpenWRT installed, a low cost VPS server, or even a pocket sized hobby computer like a Raspberry Pi Zero W. As long as the system can run Docker; Docker Community Edition (CE) or Docker-Desktop; it can run MMSGate2. That includes laptops or desktops running Windows, Ubuntu Desktop or MacOS. Most recent Raspberry Pi devices loaded with Ubuntu make an excellent platform. Many NAS devices that you may already own can also run Docker.

If you can download and install software, type URLs into a web page, copy-and-paste text, you can install Docker and MMSGate2.

Prepare the Host

The host is the device you will install Docker. MMSGate2 will run within Docker. The host preparation will be different for different hosts. Let's look at each one:

Windows

For any Windows system, start by downloading Docker-Desktop for Windows from https://www.docker.com/. You will most likely want the AMD64 version.

Once installed, open the Docker-Desktop application. Confirm that it says "Engine Started" in the lower left. It may take a little while. If it does not appear, you may have to reboot and try again.

Once the engine is started, click on the ">_ Terminal" prompt in the lower-right of Docker Desktop. A terminal window will appear. This is where you will be pasting commands.

Tip: Closing the Docker Desktop window does not stop the Docker engine. If you wish to stop Docker completely, use the taskbar in the lower-right of the Windows desktop. Right-click on Docker Desktop and select Quit Docker Desktop.

Apple MacOS

For any MacOS system, start by downloading Docker-Desktop for Mac from https://www.docker.com/. You likely know if you need the Intel or Sillicon version. If not, try one. It it won't install, try the other.

Once installed, open the Docker-Desktop application. Confirm that it says "Engine Started" in the lower left. It may take a little while.

Once the engine is started, click on the ">_ Terminal" prompt in the lower-right of Docker Desktop. A terminal window will appear. This is where you will be pasting commands.

Tip: Closing the Docker Desktop window does not stop the Docker engine. If you wish to stop Docker completely, You can open the Activity Monitor, select Docker, and then use the Quit button.

Ubuntu Desktop

For most any Linux GUI desktop system, start by selecting Download Docker-Desktop, Download for Linux from https://www.docker.com/. It will take you to the steps needed for your distribution.

Once installed, open the Docker-Desktop application. Confirm that it says "Engine Started" in the lower left. It may take a little while.

Once the engine is started, click on the ">_ Terminal" prompt in the lower-right of Docker Desktop. A terminal window will appear. This is where you will be pasting commands.

Tip: Closing the Docker Desktop window does not stop the Docker engine. If you wish to stop Docker completely, You can open the Activity Monitor, click Docker, and then select Quit Docker Desktop.

OpenWRT

OpenWRT runs a wide variety of hardware. If it has enough memory, i.e. 100m free; also ARM32 (v7+), ARM64 processor or an AMD64 (Intel x86); plus some storage; you can install Docker.

First, make sure you have storage. Don't try to run Docker on your internal flash storage. Read Using storage devices to get started. Then setup the Extroot configuration. On that same page, there is a section on swap. It is recommended to also perform the swap steps.

To install Docker, open a SSH session and paste these commands:

opkg update
opkg install docker
opkg install luci-app-dockerman

The default network for docker has some issues, so we'll create a new one:

uci show network
uci set network.docker1='device'
uci set network.docker1.type='bridge'
uci set network.docker1.name='docker1'
uci set network.dockerlan='interface'
uci set network.dockerlan.proto='none'
uci set network.dockerlan.device='docker1'
uci set network.dockerlan.auto='0'
uci commit network
/etc/init.d/network reload
# tell docker about the new network
docker network create -o com.docker.network.bridge.enable_icc=true -o com.docker.network.bridge.enable_ip_masquerade=true \
  dockerlan -o com.docker.network.bridge.host_binding_ipv4=0.0.0.0 -o com.docker.network.bridge.name=docker1 \
  --ip-range=172.19.0.0/16 --subnet 172.19.0.0/16 --gateway=172.19.0.1

Next, we need some firewall settings:

uci show firewall
# create a zone for docker
uci set firewall.docker=zone
uci set firewall.docker.name='docker'
uci set firewall.docker.input='ACCEPT'
uci set firewall.docker.output='ACCEPT'
uci set firewall.docker.forward='ACCEPT'
uci set firewall.docker.network='docker'
uci add_list firewall.docker.network='dockerlan'
uci set firewall.docker.device='docker0'
uci add_list firewall.docker.device='docker1'
# docker can talk to all and lan to docker, but wan can't talk to docker
uci set firewall.docker2lan.src='docker'
uci set firewall.docker2lan.dest='lan'
uci set firewall.lan2docker=forwarding
uci set firewall.lan2docker.src='lan'
uci set firewall.lan2docker.dest='docker'
uci set firewall.docker2wan=forwarding
uci set firewall.docker2wan.src='docker'
uci set firewall.docker2wan.dest='wan'
# open ports for mmsgate2
uci set firewall.mmsgate2=rule
uci set firewall.mmsgate2.src='wan'
uci set firewall.mmsgate2.name='mmsgate2'
uci set firewall.mmsgate2.dest_port='5061 38443'
uci set firewall.mmsgate2.target='ACCEPT'
uci set firewall.mmsgate2.dest='*'
# good to be paranoid
uci set firewall.mmsgate2noadm=rule
uci set firewall.mmsgate2noadm.src='wan'
uci set firewall.mmsgate2noadm.name='mmsgate2noadm'
uci set firewall.mmsgate2noadm.target='REJECT'
uci set firewall.mmsgate2noadm.dest_port='38000'
uci set firewall.mmsgate2noadm.dest='*'
uci commit firewall
/etc/init.d/firewall reload

Raspberry Pi/VPS/Ubuntu Server

For all these devices, you'll need Ubuntu Server installed. Once on the system, you can follow the guide Docker install Ubuntu. You'll want to use the "Install using the apt repository" method.

To make future activity easier, grant your user Docker rights:

sudo usermod -a -G docker $USER

Tip for the Raspberry Pi: These devices don't need many accessories. It is often successful with just flashing Ubuntu Server onto the SD card with SSH enabled and network setup (including Wifi). Once the SD card is in the Pi, power it up and a few minutes later, check the DHCP server in the router to get the Pi's IP address. Thus, no keyboard or monitor needed. Just SSH to it. Be sure to disable power management and add a swap file. Details for the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W are here: RASPI02W.MD.

Tip for VPS: The admin interface is not available except via a private network such as 192.168.0.0/16 or 10.0.0.0/8. Naturally, A VPS may not have a private network. However, it is available locally within the container via port 38080. Use the following command to open a web browser locally:

docker exec -it mmsgate2 lynx http://127.0.0.1:38080/admin

NAS

NAS devices that are ARM or AMD (Intel) based have applications that you can install that run Docker; apps like QNAP's Container Station or Synology's Container Manager.

The command prompt will still be needed, so once the app is install, enable SSH and open a SSH comand prompt.

Synology tip: Commands pasted into the SSH sessions will usually need a "sudo" prefix. This is because the default user via SSH may not have docker permission.

QNAP tip: To make sure MMSGate2 starts when the NAS starts and has correct resource limits, open "Container Station", open "mmsgate2", stop then open "Settings" and enable "Auto start" and set resource limits. QNAP devices often prefer the web interface for creating a container. Skip the "docker run" command and use the web interface to define the same settings for the container.

The host and up-time: For the long term, It is not recommended to run MMSGate2 on a system that has active power-management (can go to sleep) or is also used for web browsing, email and office documents. For the long term, please use a host that will be up and operational 24/7.

Install MMSGate2

Now that the host is all set, we can install MMSGate2.

Docker Image

Open the Docker Command Line Interface (CLI). For Docker-Desktop, that is the ">_ Terminal" in the lower right of Docker-Desktop. For OpenWRT, NAS and Ubuntu Servers, that is the SSH session.

Copy-and-paste the following command into the Docker CLI:

docker pull rvgo4it/mmsgate2

You will see multiple downloads and extracts for the image layers. It may take a few minutes. Once done, we can run MMSGate2.

Docker Container

For the following command, make note of some options you may want to change. For example, to give MMSGate2 more memory, adjust the "-m 100m" to "-m 200m" for 200 megs of memory as an example. You can adjust the "--cpus 2" option to use more CPU cores. However, more cores means more processes and more processes need more memory. Also note the "TZ=America/New_York" value. Depending on your time zone, you may want to change it to "TZ=America/Chicago", "TZ=America/Los_Angeles" or "TZ=America/Denver".

For Windows, use this command:

docker run -m 100m --name mmsgate2 -d `
  -p 5061:5061 -p 38443:38443 -p 38000:38000 `
  --cpus 2 `
  -e "TZ=America/New_York" `
  -v datavol:/data `
  -v confvol:/etc/opensips `
  rvgo4it/mmsgate2

For OpenWRT, use this command:

docker run -m 100m --name mmsgate2 -d \
  -p 5061:5061 -p 38443:38443 -p 38000:38000 \
  --cpus 2 --network dockerlan \
  -e "TZ=America/New_York" \
  -v datavol:/data \
  -v confvol:/etc/opensips \
  rvgo4it/mmsgate2

For MacOS, NAS and Ubuntu desktop and server (includes Pi and VPS), use this command:

docker run -m 100m --name mmsgate2 -d \
  -p 5061:5061 -p 38443:38443 -p 38000:38000 \
  --cpus 2 \
  -e "TZ=America/New_York" \
  -v datavol:/data \
  -v confvol:/etc/opensips \
  rvgo4it/mmsgate2

Set the container to always restart:

docker update --restart unless-stopped mmsgate2

Backups

Use these commands to see where the MMSGate2 data and configuration is stored. Make note of the "Mountpoint".

docker inspect confvol
docker inspect datavol

Make sure that the backup system used on the host includes these paths.

Configure MMSGate2

MMSGate2 is now running, but it needs to be configured for you.

Connect

Open your favorite web browser and connect using http to the host's IP, port 38000 and path /admin. For Docker-Desktop users, you can use 127.0.0.1 for the local host. Thus, the URL will be:

http://127.0.0.1:38000/admin

For others, use the IP address you used for SSH. It may be something like:

http://192.168.99.99:38000/admin

It will prompt for an ID and password:

prompt	default
Username:	admin
Password:	Apple99

It will look something like this:

Password Change

IMPORTANT: Change the admin password right away. It is under Advanced->Set_Admin_Password.

Enter the password twice and click Apply.

Once done, return to the main menu.

Wizard

Click Wizard. The Wizard will walk you through the setup of MMSGate2 one step at a time. The Wizard will help you with these items:

Disable and stop OpenSIPS.
Reserve the host's IP address in the router so it won't change.
Open the network ports required for MMSGate2 via the router.
Test the network ports.
Setup a Dynamic Domain Name System (DDNS).
Create an encryption certificate.
Setup VoIP.ms API access.
OpenSIPS is enabled and container restarted.

For OpenWRT hosts, no router configuration needed. Those steps in the Wizard can be skipped. Once the Wizard is completed, you will return to the main menu.

Linphone Accounts

If you want to use Push Notifications, click Linphone.

You can create new Linphone accounts from this page or add existing one. Once they are created or added successfully, they will appear as "Activated!" and can be used for Push Notifications.

You will need one Linphone account for each mobile device running the Linphone App and Push Notification is needed. You cannot use a Linphone account on more than one client. When done, click Cancel to return to the main menu.

VoIP.ms Sub Accounts

From the main menu, select VoIP.ms.

This page displays all your sub accounts. It will not make any changes to VoIP.ms.

It may ask you to make changes to your sub accounts or DIDs if needed. MMSGate needs a DID selected as the CallerID for any sub accounts. Also, the sub account needs to be configured for encrypted SIP traffic and be assigned a unique extension. Any DID used with MMSGate2 also needs to have a web hook URL entered. This page will tell you if needed. After making changes to sub accounts or DIDs at the Voip.ms web site, click Refresh to load the new settings.

The SMS/MMS Ignore/Accept is for when a message arrives for one of your DIDs. It can be accepted and forwarded to any sub accounts associated with that DID. Or, the message can be ignored for the sub account. For an ATA device, SIP phone or other devices that cannot receive SMS and MMS messages, always set to ignore.

Under Push Notif, a Linphone account can be selected for the sub account. If selected, Push Notifications can be used by to wake up the mobile app. If the same Linphone account is assigned to multiple sub accounts, it tells MMSGate that all those sub accounts will be used on the same mobile app.

When modifying Push Notif or SMS/MMS settings for a sub account, press Apply after making selection.

Once done setting preferences, click "Client Config".

Client Config

By default, the client config includes an encrypted copy of the sub account password. This assumed the authentication "realm" matches the domain/server for the VoIP.ms PoP. It normally does match. If using Push Notification, the config will include all sub accounts assigned the same Linphone account. If not using Push Notification, additional sub accounts can be selected. Each sub account can be used on only one client at a time. If the password preference is changed or a sub account added, press Refresh. If the encrypted password is not included, the client will prompt for a password. You may also choose to include the password un-encrypted, allowing the client to connect via a non-standard realm. Once ready, click the "Generate Config" button.

Install a Linphone client. They are available via app stores for mobile devices or as a download for laptops and desktops.

Android - Linphone - Apps on Google Play
Android - Linphone - F-Droid - Free and Open Source Android App Repository
- Note: Linphone installed from F-Droid cannot use Push Notification
Apple iOS - ‎Linphone App - App Store
Apple MacOS - Download
Windows - Download
Linux - Download

The QR code is the easiest way to configure the client.

Once the client is installed, open it and respond to the usual prompts. Stop short of registering or providing any credentials. When offered, use the camera to scan the QR code. Once scanned, logon is done and you are online.

Some clients cannot scan a QR code. For them, you will need to copy-and-paste the XML Config URL into the client.

If Push Notification was NOT configured, be sure to adjust your mobile device's power management settings so as to keep the app alive so that you can receive calls and messages at any time.

Normally, the first account is selected as the default account. When you pull-down the menu from the upper-left, you will see it highlighted. If it is not highlighted, tap on it to select it. Don't tap on status. That will only re-register without selecting a default.

FAQ

VoIP.ms already has an app for iOS and Android. Why use MMSGate2?
- The VoIP.ms Softphone cannot do MMS. Thus, MMSGate2 is still needed. In addition, it cannot send messages to other extensions. Extension messaging is very useful and 100% free!
What happens if you attach a non-media file, for example a PDF, to a MMS message?
- If it is sent to an extension, Linphone will accept it as an MMS message and allow the receiver to open and view the file. This is a handy method for transferring files between devices like phones or tablets.
- If it is sent to a cellular mobile number, it will be converted into a SMS message containing the URL for downloading the file.
I have a cable modem and home Wifi router. Configure both?
- If the cable modem is purely a modem, it will provide an Internet IP address to your home Wifi router. So, just the home router needs to be configured.
- However, some cable modems also act as a router. This is called a double NAT, and can complicate things. It can still be done by configuring both. But it would be better to simplify things and remove the double NAT.
The contacts that are imported during client config, where do they come from?
- All the sub accounts that have an extension will be imported as contacts. The name is from the optional description fields on the sub account. If it's blank, the contact will use the internal CNAM for the sub account. If it is also blank, it will default to just the extension as the name. The extension in the contact will include the "10" prefix to the number.
Why does MMSGate2 use so little memory?
- It is mostly due to OpenSIPS. OpenSIPS is very memory efficient. Much more so than Flexisip that was used in the older MMSGate. Also, OpenSIPS has lots of features and functions that it took over from the Python scripts and PJSIP. Python and PJSIP used lots of resources in the old MMSGate. In the new MMSGate2, the Python scripts have been replaced by a Go language program. Go is very memory efficient.
- Currently, the Go program primary function is for the web hook from VoIP.ms for receiving SMS/MMS messages and also uploading files from the mobile app for new MMS messages. The admin interface is secondary.
What happens if MMSGate2 exceeds the 100m of memory?
- If that happens, Docker will kill MMSGate2 processes. Depending on the process, different things will happen. The Go program is only a single process with many threads, so it will stop and restart. For OpenSIPS, a killed process may be restarted or cause the application to exit and restart. If process 1 is killed, the entire container will restart.
A new image version for MMSGate2 was released? How to install?
- To install a new MMSGate2 image, clear out the old container with these commands:
- ```
docker stop mmsgate2
docker container rm mmsgate2
```
- Jump to the Docker Image and Docker Container sections and perform just those commands again. The config and data volumes will be retained.
How much data?
- The size of the data stored by MMSGate2 is determined by the size and number of files in your MMS messages. However, after 90 days, the files will be removed.
How can I change the 90 day limit?
- From the command prompt, type:
- ```
docker exec -it mmsgate2 sudo crontab -e
```
- Look for a "find"" command and adjust the -mtime parameter.
I may have missed some messages. MMSGate2 was down for hours earlier today. How can I recover them?
- If MMSGate2 is offline when a SMS or MMS message is sent to one of your DIDs, the web hook call from VoIP.ms to MMSGate2 will fail.
- However, the message is still in the logs at VoIP.ms. The Go program performs a reconcile every 6 hours and at start up. It will compare the message logs at VoIP.ms to the local logs. Any messages missed will be resent. It will check for messages as old as 7 days.
Why does the Linphone app show two accounts connected?
- When the client was configured, a Linphone account was selected so as to use Push Notifications (PN).
- PN requires credentials shared between the sending server, Linphone.org and the Linphone app. MMSGate2 triggers the PN by using the REST API via the Linphone.org server.
I forgot my password. How do I reset it?
- From the command prompt, i.e. SSH or ">_ Terminal", paste the following command:
- ```
docker exec -it mmsgate2 lynx http://127.0.0.1:38080/admin
```
- The admin page will appear in text format. Select Advanced->Set_Admin_Password.
Sometimes I get double messages. Why is that?
- SIP protocol requires positive hand-off of messages. If delivery of a message is not confirmed, MMSGate2 stores it and tries again later. Once in a while, the message gets to the client but the confirmation does not get to MMSGate2. Thus, it sends it again, resulting in the appearance of double messages.
How do I build from the source code?
- First, make sure "git" is install on your host. Also, you will need more than 100m of free memory.
- From the command prompt, i.e. SSH or ">_ Terminal", paste the following commands:
- ```
mkdir ~/mmsgate-system
cd ~/mmsgate-system
```
- Get a copy of this repository:
- ```
git clone https://github.com/RVgo4it/mmsgate2 --recursive -b main
```
- Build OpenSIPS:
- ```
docker buildx build -t rvgo4it/opensips --network host -f mmsgate2/Dockerfile_opensips .
```
- Build MMSGate2:
- ```
docker buildx build -t rvgo4it/mmsgate2 --network host -f mmsgate2/Dockerfile_mmsgate2 .
```
- You now have the needed local images. Use MMSGate2 normally, but skip the "docker pull" command.

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 13 Commits
images		images
scripts		scripts
tls-patch		tls-patch
.gitignore		.gitignore
Dockerfile_mmsgate2		Dockerfile_mmsgate2
Dockerfile_opensips		Dockerfile_opensips
LICENSE		LICENSE
RASPI02W.MD		RASPI02W.MD
README.md		README.md
admin		admin
globalcfg.sh		globalcfg.sh
globalcfg.txt		globalcfg.txt
opensips.cfg		opensips.cfg

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MMSGate2

Table of Contents

Introduction

Requirements and Prerequisites

Prepare the Host

Install MMSGate2

Docker Image

Docker Container

Backups

Configure MMSGate2

Connect

Password Change

Wizard

Linphone Accounts

VoIP.ms Sub Accounts

Client Config

FAQ

About

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RVgo4it/mmsgate2

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MMSGate2

Table of Contents

Introduction

Requirements and Prerequisites

Prepare the Host

Install MMSGate2

Docker Image

Docker Container

Backups

Configure MMSGate2

Connect

Password Change

Wizard

Linphone Accounts

VoIP.ms Sub Accounts

Client Config

FAQ

About

Resources

License

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