From Linux Man Pages
asterisk - All-purpose telephony server.
SYNOPSIS
asterisk [ -tThfdvVqpRgcin ] [ -C file ] [ -U user ] [ -G group ] [ -x command ] [ -M value ]
asterisk -r [ -v ] [ -x command ]
DESCRIPTION
asterisk is a full-featured telephony server which provides Private Branch eXchange (PBX), Interactive Voice
Response (IVR), Automated Call Distribution (ACD), Voice over IP (VoIP) gatewaying, Conferencing, and a plethora
of other telephony applications to a broad range of telephony devices including packet voice (SIP, IAX2, MGCP,
Skinny, H.323) devices (both endpoints and proxies), as well as traditional TDM hardware including T1, E1, ISDN
PRI, GR-303, RBS, Loopstart, Groundstart, ISDN BRI, and many more.
At start, Asterisk reads the /etc/asterisk/asterisk.conf main configuration file and locates the rest of the con-
figuration files from the configuration in that file. The -C option specifies an alternate main configuration
file. Virtually all aspects of the operation of asterisk's configuration files can be found in the sample con-
figuration files. The format for those files is generally beyond the scope of this man page.
When running with -c, -r or -R options, Asterisk supplies a powerful command line, including command completion,
which may be used to monitors its status, perform a variety of administrative actions and even explore the appli-
cations that are currently loaded into the system.
Asterisk is a trademark of Digium, Inc.
OPTIONS
-C file
Use file as master configuration file instead of the default, /etc/asterisk/asterisk.conf
-c Provide a control console on the calling terminal. Specifying this option implies -f and will cause
asterisk to no longer fork or detach from the controlling terminal.
-d Enable extra debugging statements.
Note: This always sets the debug level in the asterisk process, even if it is running in the background.
This will affect the size of your log files.
-f Do not fork or detach from controlling terminal.
-g Remove resource limit on core size, thus forcing Asterisk to dump core in the unlikely event of a segmen-
tation fault or abort signal. NOTE: in some cases this may be incompatible with the -U or -G flags.
-G group
Run as group group instead of the calling group. NOTE: this requires substantial work to be sure that
Asterisk's environment has permission to write the files required for its operation, including logs, its
comm socket, the asterisk database, etc.
-h Provide brief summary of command line arguments and terminate.
-i Prompt user to intialize any encrypted private keys for IAX2 secure authentication during startup.
-L loadaverage
Limits the maximum load average before rejecting new calls. This can be useful to prevent a system from
being brought down by terminating too many simultaneous calls.
-M value
Limits the maximum number of calls to the specified value. This can be useful to prevent a system from
being brought down by terminating too many simultaneous calls.
-n Disable ANSI colors even on terminals capable of displaying them.
-p If supported by the operating system (and executing as root), attempt to run with realtime priority for
increased performance and responsiveness within the Asterisk process, at the expense of other programs
running on the same machine.
-q Reduce default console output when running in conjunction with console mode (-c).
-r Instead of running a new Asterisk process, attempt to connect to a running Asterisk process and provide a
console interface for controlling it.
-R Much like -r. Instead of running a new Asterisk process, attempt to connect to a running Asterisk process
and provide a console interface for controlling it. Additionally, if connection to the Asterisk process is
lost, attempt to reconnect for as long as 30 seconds.
-t When recording files, write them first into a temporary holding directory, then move them into the final
location when done.
-T Add timestamp to all non-command related output going to the console when running with verbose and/or log-
ging to the console.
-U user
Run as user user instead of the calling user. NOTE: this requires substantial work to be sure that Aster-
isk's environment has permission to write the files required for its operation, including logs, its comm
socket, the asterisk database, etc.
-v Increase the level of verboseness on the console. The more times -v is specified, the more verbose the
output is. Specifying this option implies -f and will cause asterisk to no longer fork or detach from the
controlling terminal. This option may also be used in conjunction with -r and -R.
Note: This always sets the verbose level in the asterisk process, even if it is running in the background.
This will affect the size of your log files.
-V Display version information and exit immediately.
-x command
Connect to a running Asterisk process and execute a command on a command line, passing any output through
to standard out and then terminating when the command execution completes. Implies -r when -R is not
explicitly supplied.
EXAMPLES
asterisk - Begin Asterisk as a daemon
asterisk -vvvgc - Run on controlling terminal
asterisk -rx "show channels" - Display channels on running server
BUGS
Bug reports and feature requests may be filed at http://bugs.digium.com
RELATED
*CLI> help - Help on Asterisk CLI
*CLI> show applications - Show loaded dialplan applications
*CLI> show functions - Show loaded dialplan functions
http://www.asterisk.org - The Asterisk Home Page
http://www.asteriskdocs.org - The Asterisk Documentation Project
http://www.voip-info.org/wiki-Asterisk - The Asterisk Wiki
http://www.digium.com/ - Asterisk sponsor and hardware supplier
http://www.markocam.com/ - Asterisk author's web cam
CATEGORY