Grandstream HT801: does it support call forwarding/divert?

I asked this question about the Grandstream HT801 over in the VoIP sub-forum but lack of familiarity with the Hyperoptic VoIP service seems to have caused it to lose focus!

I'm interested in swapping out the Hyperoptic Hub with a third party router without VoIP support, but still want to keep my landline which I've ported to Hyperoptic. My DECT phone recently got fried by a power surge, and so I currently forward all calls to the landline to my mobile phone, which actually woks very well (to the point where I'm not planning on installing a replacement landline phone).

Does anyone know if the HT801 when connected to the Hyperoptic service (through a third party router) will support call forward/divert (with caller id etc. etc.) in the same way as the Hyperoptic Hub?

Many thanks!

I use a Gigaset CL750A with a third party router, and caller ID is fine. Never tried call divert as I never use my landline but I can't see any reason why it wouldn't work as long as the option is in the menu?

Once you get your SIP settings from Hyperoptic, you could just set it up on your mobile as a SIP account and not have to do the divert.

Edited by locutus (Mon 24-May-21 09:04:23)

In reply to a post by Milhouse:

I asked this question about the Grandstream HT801 over in the VoIP sub-forum but lack of familiarity with the Hyperoptic VoIP service seems to have caused it to lose focus!

I'm interested in swapping out the Hyperoptic Hub with a third party router without VoIP support, but still want to keep my landline which I've ported to Hyperoptic. My DECT phone recently got fried by a power surge, and so I currently forward all calls to the landline to my mobile phone, which actually woks very well (to the point where I'm not planning on installing a replacement landline phone).

Does anyone know if the HT801 when connected to the Hyperoptic service (through a third party router) will support call forward/divert (with caller id etc. etc.) in the same way as the Hyperoptic Hub?

Many thanks!

As you don't plan on having a phone connected, it may be worth asking if Hyperoptic can just forward all calls to your mobile from their end.

Thanks
Dan

In reply to a post by locutus:

Once you get your SIP settings from Hyperoptic, you could just set it up on your mobile as a SIP account and not have to do the divert.

While waiting for a HT801 to arrive I have been trying to use Acrobit Softphone which is a possible solution (no extra hardware, cheaper calls as there's no additional forwarding cost to mobile etc.) but there's a problem receiving the incoming call push notifications to my Android 10 phone from the Acrobit SIPIS server because (according to Acrobit Support) Hyperoptic appear to be blocking the IP addresses that the Acrobit SIPIS server is using to register my account.

https://faq.acrobits.net/about-push-notifications

I went on chat to Hyperoptic yesterday where I was told they don't block any IP addresses, which I relayed to Acrobits Support who ran tests from their end and they have now confirmed their IP addresses ARE being blocked by Hyperoptic, so possibly the Hyperoptic person I chatted with didn't quite understand the issue.

I'm guessing that Hyperoptic only permit registrations to the SIP server from their own Hyperoptic IP address range, and block all non-Hyperoptic IP addresses.

To confirm this, I tried to make a call with Acrobits Softphone over a cellular connection, and that also now fails, presumably as I'm no longer able to register from a non-Hyperoptic IP address (I'm using 3 UK).

I can make calls from Acrobit Softphone without a problem over WiFi (when connected to my Hyperoptic Hub) so it looks like Hyperoptic have locked down their SIP server to only accepts registrations from their own IP address range, which likely means the Hyperoptic SIP server is not going to be compatible with anyone wanting to use a mobile VoIP client.

This is the reply from Acrobits Support:

Unfortunately, it is like I thought. We send register request, but get no response from them. SIPIS is behind neither a firewall or NAT so it won't be some network issue on our side. I still think it is some blocking on their side most likely (maybe unintentional) and they need to take a closer look.

I can add that the issue is specifically from
159.65.186.176
right now, though as I said, we could potentially register from any of those IPs I sent.
159.65.186.176
159.65.251.173
159.65.252.186
159.65.253.49
165.227.184.188
167.99.48.91
167.99.119.203
167.99.119.244

Hopefully someone from Hyperoptic CS can see this and tell me what is going on and is able to resolve the issue (if not, then I guess Hyperoptic VoIP is going to be permanently incompatible with Acrobits Softphone, and possibly many others).

Just had another chat on the Hyperoptic web site and the Hyperoptic CS are adamant they don't block IP addresses to the SIP server, yet it doesn't appear possible to register with sip.hyperoptic.com from a non-Hyperoptic IP address.

They've asked if the Acrobits tech support can call them, so hopefully we can make progress that way otherwise I think the Hyperoptic VoIP service will be limited to registrations only from the Hyperoptic network (which will be very limiting for users of mobile devices).

Oh well if all else fails there's always the HT801 (and additional call costs for the forwarded calls).

Acrobits have reached out to Hyperoptic support by email (ironically, Acrobits "don't do phone support"!), so let's see how that goes, but I'm more than happy to discuss this here with Hyperoptic CS as well!

Acrobits have provided me with a test Python script (it contains some private credentials so I won't be posting it - I can provide it to Hyperoptics CS if needed) which connects to the Hyperoptic SIP server, what follows are screenshots of the different responses when run on Hyperoptic and non-Hyperoptic networks..

First, from a Raspberry PI running on the Hyperoptic LAN/WAN:

Hyperoptic SIP on Hyperoptic LAN

And then the same script, this time on a FreeBSD server running on a Sky (UK) network:

Hyperoptic SIP on Sky LAN

This is not in any way conclusive, but it does demonstrate that it is possible to get a response from the Hyperoptic SIP server when connecting from the Hyperoptic network, and that there is no response when making the same connection from a non-Hyperoptic network (Sky, cellular etc.). The Acrobits SIPIS server is not behind a firewall or NAT, but is located in the US, although it's unlikely that geographical location is a factor here.

I'm guessing this blocking (or lack of response) is indeed intentional, perhaps as some sort of "security" measure, but it significantly reduces the usefulness of the Hyperoptic VoIP offering. It could also be an unintentional misconfiguration, which is why nobody at Hyperoptic seems to be aware of any issues when connecting from non-Hyperoptic networks.

At the very least it would be good to get to the bottom of this and either have it confirmed that registrations from non-Hyperoptic networks are NOT allowed, or have the problem resolved so that it is possible to register from non-Hyperoptic networks.

Not sure how it's meant to work but the visible parts don't appear to show a connection to port 5060 but rather a dynamic high port.

The only mention of port 5060 in that output is response to the DNS SRV lookup.

My hunch would be that you wouldn't get a responses flowing for the additional UDP media traffic ports until the SIP registration / authentication succeeds on port 5060, at least from the outside.

Hyperoptic might not be so worried about random port scanning from inside their own network (but I would be).

However I understand why you would redact some output and not want to show the script either.

Edited by prlzx (Thu 27-May-21 18:44:51)

In reply to a post by prlzx:

Not sure how it's meant to work but the visible parts don't appear to show a connection to port 5060 but rather a dynamic high port.

The only mention of port 5060 in that output is response to the DNS SRV lookup.

That's probably because the test script is using a "conversation" gleaned from a log I previously provided to Acrobits from my phone, so some of the information in the SIP server response may not be entirely accurate, however I think the point is that there is no response whatsoever when trying to communicate over the Sky network, but you do get a response (even if it's garbage, or just plain echo) from from the Hyperoptic network.

OK here's a redacted version of the test script that should still work (ie. you'll get a response when run over the Hyperoptic network, and no response from a non-Hyperoptic network):

sip.py (pastebin)

If anyone tries it, let us know how you get on!

Indeed, apologies but it doesn't seem to work does it. I just tried it. Fine on wifi on my mobile phone, but won't register when on Vodafone.

Any chance of a reply from @Hyperoptic_CS ?

So far the email to Hyperoptic Support has not got us any where and is only causing confusion as Hyperoptic Support replied stating they would have to share the information (IP addresses, etc.) with their colleagues then Hyperoptic Support followed it up with another email asking if we (ie. Acrobits) still needed any more help. Which was weird. And confusing, because so far Hyperoptic Support haven't been of any help.

It would be great if we could connect with someone from Hyperoptic support that understands their SIP server configuration and can explain why it is actively blocking registrations from non-Hyperoptic IP addresses.

I can't say I ever expect you to get this one working - Hyperoptic provide voice service to what is probably a minority of their customers, they aren't a hosted voice provider and it seems sensible to lock their SIP infrastructure away so that only customers connected to their network can use it.

Why should it matter whether I'm connected to their network or not, so long as I'm their customer?

Perhaps Hyperoptic should make it clear that their VoIP service is only for use on their network, ie. from your home address, and that unlike "normal" VoIP services the Hyperoptic VoIP is completely useless on mobile devices and/or away from your home.

There was a time when Hyperoptic posted to twitter about how to use their VoIP service on your mobile phone (although whatever pages it linked to are now gone). Maybe they had a change of heart.

But yeah, I'm not expecting to make much progress on this and will most likely port out at some point. I was a Hyperoptic Champion at one stage, so this whole experience has been pretty disappointing so far.

Edited by deleted (Wed 02-Jun-21 16:49:02)

I dont know if you have seen this on twitter from them https://twitter.com/jsmithjnr/status/680035614851489792 ? According to that they say its not possible unless you set up a vpn.

In reply to a post by iannewson:

I dont know if you have seen this on twitter from them https://twitter.com/jsmithjnr/status/680035614851489792 ? According to that they say its not possible unless you set up a vpn.

I'd seen the original tweet but somehow missed the VPN discussion. Regardless, even a VPN isn't enough these days, at least for mobile VoIP access, as apps like Acrobits work best (ie. most efficient battery usage) when using push notifications (which are apparently becoming mandatory on iOS, with other methods deprecated) and it's the push notifications that are not working because Hyperoptic don't allow registrations from outside their network (ie. not from the Acrobits SIPIS server).

So even if you're on the Hyperoptic network, you can't receive a VoIP call on a mobile device using Acrobits unless you use the soon to be deprecated non-push notification method which means maintaining a constant registration connection to the SIP server (and chewing through your mobile battery in no time).

Did I break @Hyperoptic_CS?

Is nobody from Hyperoptic able to comment on their excessively restrictive SIP configuration?

The level of support (here, online chat and email) has been very disappointing.

Too hard basket.

Take the (relatively small £) one time hit and port the number to an indy SIP provider and use Acrobits to seamlessly take the inbound calls. If you choose something like sipgate basic there is no ongoing/monthly sub charge for hosting the number and no call forwarding costs if you use Acrobits as your mobile softphone solution.

Future flexibility is assured as you decoupled your voice from your ISP, so if you move house or change broadband provider etc in future it’s seamless.

Edit: you’ll also have 2 landline numbers!

Edited by Pheasant (Sun 06-Jun-21 11:54:56)

What's really disappointing is the radio silence from [email protected]

I totally understand that Hyperoptic CS here on this forum has its limits, limits that have clearly been reached, but I would have expected a comprehensive reply from the official support email address after almost 4 weeks of waiting.

So far, there's been nothing from [email protected] other than one or 2 nonsensical scripted replies which yet again indicate Hyperoptic don't even understand the fundamental question being asked, which is more than a little worrying.

All in all, the response from Hyperoptic has not been any where close to good enough.

So this saga has finally reached a conclusion with the Hyperoptic support ticket closed after 2 months with the the only suggestion being "Try a static IP address to see if that helps" (despite me already having a static IP address).

Apparently multiple departments within Hyperoptic were involved in the conversation regarding the ticket over the last 2 months, but unfortunately - at least judging by the "use a static IP address" suggestion - none of them actually understood the problem or question being asked. This has been the fundamental issue from day #1 with Hyperoptic support.

At no point have Hyperoptic acknowledged let alone accepted that they are blocking SIP registrations from non-Hyperoptic IP addresses, or given any justification for doing so. Hyperoptic firmly believe the problem is with everyone else's connection despite multiple attempts to prove to them that their configuration is the problem.

This has been a total let down, and I'm very disappointed with Hyperoptic.

Anyway, I've wasted far too much time dealing with Hyperoptic who have been utterly hopeless and unhelpful every step of the way. I totally understand that their VoIP service is just a side line for their main business, but they don't seem to have any ability to support SIP/VoIP beyond the most basic queries (to which the answer will be, "You can have a static IP address for £5 a month").

Porting my landline number out to a competent VoIP provider is my next step - I'd much rather give my cash to someone else than continue funding a business that doesn't know what they are doing.

For VOIP suppliers, iIf you want good support I would suggest using Voipfone. Sipgate are cheaper as there is no monthly charge.

Predictable conclusion given the lack of timely or cogent response from their support. As said you're def better off in the longer term moving off from their "walled garden" approach to voice services.

Meanwhile the Groundwire app has impressed me so much I may keep the Asterisk box in the cupboard and not rebuild it. Times move on.