User guide

5.1.1 Installation Tips
This is a list of installation tips:
If you need to install a TDM400P card
• Be sure that your PC has an empty 2.2 PCI slot.
• If you are going to use an FXS module in the TDM400P card, you need to
have a free big molex connector
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• If you are using a small form-factor mother board as a mini-ITX you need a
PCI “raiser” card to be able fit the TDM400P by turning the card position 90
degrees
Do not connect a phone line (FXS) into an FXS port. It will break the port.
Image 4: A portable PBX running in a mini-ITX board with a Digium TDM400P Card.
6. Installing Asterisk
Asterisk is a huge piece of software. Its powerful architecture and flexibility implies a complexity that
comes from the numerous options and configuration files. Asterisk allows you to accomplish almost
anything you can imagine, so the start can be quite a painful experience. Learning to configure
Asterisk reminded me about the endless nights learning other powerful pieces of software such as
Apache webserver and Sendmail ten years ago. They can do so much that doing “very little” sometimes
becomes a challenge.
28. A Molex connector is a 4-pin power connector used in PCs. Yellow and red wires provide +12V and +5V respectively, with
blank wires being ground.
Page 20 TRICALCAR | www.wilac.net/tricalcar – Version: February 2008