Raspberry Pi 3B+

[systemstech]

I see the instructions for install 3CX on Raspberry Pi have been updated for the Pi 4 B4/B8 but don't mention 3B+. So wondering if the 3B+ is no longer supported or if instructions are the same or if there is another download?

 

[N_G]

You should move up to Raspberry Pi4. We will no longer make builds for Raspberry Pi3. PBX will definitely not run on it....

 

[Nick B]

You should move up to Raspberry Pi4. We will no longer make builds for Raspberry Pi3. PBX will definitely not run on it....

There is no information suggesting that you will no longer make builds for Raspberry Pi3 besides your forum post.
PBX definitely does run on the Pi3 B+... See here: https://www.3cx.com/blog/docs/raspberry-pi-phone-system/
Aaaand... the Pi 3B+ is listed on your supported hardware page here: https://www.3cx.com/docs/recommended-hardware-specifications-for-3cx/
Should we start pulling our 3B+ SBCs and PBX's out of production in preparation for this?

 

[NDGsystems]

3cx answer for this?
I also use Pi 3b+ as SBC and now cannot register to 3cx instance with the current instructions.
Also a heads up would be nice...

 

[Nick B]

We are only deploying Pi 4 as SBC for new clients now and are starting to pull out our Pi3 SBC's and replace with Pi 4. It is strange how the Pi4 went from being 'unsupported' to alpha, to the only option with no interoperability referenced. Our Pi3 SBC's are working fine... for now. The Pi 4 is cheap enough to just eat the cost in most cases.

When looking at the 3CX roadmap, the planned features do indicate that the hardware requirements will exceed what the Pi3 is capable of doing. I think what @Nick Galea was indicating is that in the future, builds for the Pi3 will not be available and that future versions of the PBX will not run on its hardware. Clarification on that would be much appreciated.

 

[AWS2P]

Agree, clarification on a single 3CX line could be a good point

Actually everything seems blurry and contradictory according to the 3cx team member who answer and the information available online

 

[JohnS_3CX]

This is a bit of a transitional stage because the Pi Foundation now officially supports Debian 10 Buster for both the Pi 3B+ and the Pi 4B, but we still have customers using Debian 9 Stretch. We are also transitioning away from Debian 9 Stretch so that any Linux dependencies 3CX uses will continue to be updated and supported, ensuring your installation is futureproof.

This breakdown of your options should hopefully make things a bit more clear

PBX New and Existing Installs
Pi 4B: Buster only
Pi3B+: Stretch (for existing) and Buster (for new) - but if Stretch stops working in the future due to dependencies abandoning the older OS, the only way forward is to install Buster from scratch.

SBC New and Existing Installs
Pi 4B: Buster only
Pi 3B+: Stretch (for existing) & Buster (for new) - but as above if Stretch stops working in the future due to dependencies abandoning the older OS, the only way forward is to install Buster from scratch.


This will likely change in the future, so make sure you check out our blog and forum to stay updated, since this is a transitional period as mentioned above.

TL;DR version - Get a Pi 4 if you want to futureproof your PBX/SBC

 

[SteveITS]

So there's not going to be an upgrade path for SBCs? What about for 3CX servers?

e.g. https://www.3cx.com/blog/voip-howto/linux-windows/ -> "I find that the most compelling reason to go with Debian is that upgrading from one version to another can be done in-place."

 

[AWS2P]

Hope a way to upgrade will be there, because if we need to change os from scratch everywhere so what a pain

 

[r4ph0u]

So wondering if the 3B+ is no longer supported or if instructions are the same or if there is another download?

Just installed 3CX PBX on RPi 3B+ with latest raspbian lite. Everything worked fine, I just followed the guide for Rpi 4.

 

[JohnS_3CX]

So there's not going to be an upgrade path for SBCs? What about for 3CX servers?

e.g. https://www.3cx.com/blog/voip-howto/linux-windows/ -> "I find that the most compelling reason to go with Debian is that upgrading from one version to another can be done in-place."

The answer is tentative: this is currently under testing and consideration for the Pi platform

 

[JohnS_3CX]

Just installed 3CX PBX on RPi 3B+ with latest raspbian lite. Everything worked fine, I just followed the guide for Rpi 4.

Yep, effectively its the same exact guide (and image file currently linked on our site).

 

[Paul Reynolds]

the Pi Foundation now officially supports Debian 10 Buster for both the Pi 3B+ and the Pi 4B

They support it now? It's been the official version for Raspbian for the last 17 months. We've been begging for 3CX to support it instead of making us download old versions of Raspbian.

Now all of those SBCs that we were forced to install using Stretch might have to be rebuilt from scratch on Buster? Thanks!

 

[JohnS_3CX]

Hi Paul,

I think this comment is entirely out of place because we have been investigating Buster for a while now:

a) we never said that you won't be able to upgrade the old SBCs to the new OS

b) most importantly we need time to develop and test the software - simply switching to the new OS without doing the prerequisite work is just asking for trouble. This is especially true when the previous OS is still viable, very stable, mature, and receives LTS from the Debian Project until 2022

 

[Paul Reynolds]

I do appreciate that software needs testing. You can spend as long as you like testing the new software, I don't especially care about that, I care what's happening to the existing installs.

So are 3CX guaranteeing SBCs running Stretch will continue to work until at least June 2022 when Stretch exits LTS?

If you're saying it's fine we've had to use Stretch for the last 17 months because it still has LTS for another 19 months, then the existing installs need to also work for that period, if they do that's fine, ish.

If there's an in place upgrade from Stretch to Buster for the SBC like there has been for the PBX (Jessie to Stretch) then that's also fine, perfect even.

If we need to go to all the sites that have had Stretch SBCs put in in the last 17 months and manually rebuild from scratch, well then that is a bit of an issue and would I feel be "in place" as far as this discussion goes..

Really we just need some accurate messaging about what we do with all these Stretch SBCs. Might stop working is a bit vague, surely it's up to you guys whether they stop or not?

 

[JohnS_3CX]

Don't get me wrong Paul, we do understand the frustration and what it's like for a Partner who has to support a myriad of deployments, and know how difficult the task can be.

This is why we will strive to make it as easy and painless as possible, but at the same time we will avoid releasing too early as this could cause even more issues, putting both us and our Partners in an even worse position.

That being said, some things we cannot commit to yet because there are a bunch of unknowns we are still investigating. One example is that perhaps in the future we may need a dependency that is dropped from Debian 9 (even if the OS is still viable). In that case, existing installs will work just fine, but it may become necessary to rebuild them or upgrade them in place when the time comes if you wish to get the next update of the PBX or SBC. Hope this makes more sense now

 

[Paul Reynolds]

You'll have to forgive my lack of knowledge with how Debian releases and LTS works in detail, but why -or even how- would a component of an OS in LTS be remotely removed from said OS?

I simply don't see how software running on an OS would suddenly stop working unless either the OS or the software was updated. Windows I could maybe understand but not one that doesn't auto update like Debian. If we don't update the OS then the only thing that can change is the software you guys push out.

The only way that would happen is if you're running a unified installer for both Stretch and Buster and want to use a dependency that's only in Buster.

Again, excuse my knowledge but as far as I can tell it isn't a question of things being dropped from the OS, more a question of newer things being required by 3CX. So the question is why would you push out an update that relies on a component you know isn't in the older OS when that will essentially break it. Is it not possible to leave the Stretch installs alone and only update the Buster installs?

The way you've said twice now about dependencies being dropped from the OS makes me worried you're planning to push out an update that requires Buster and is going to break Stretch.

Thanks
Paul

 

[JohnS_3CX]

Hi Paul,

If you please bear with me I will try to address all points

You'll have to forgive my lack of knowledge with how Debian releases and LTS works in detail, but why -or even how- would a component of an OS in LTS be remotely removed from said OS?

I was referring to all the other dependencies that don't come with the core OS.

I simply don't see how software running on an OS would suddenly stop working unless either the OS or the software was updated. Windows I could maybe understand but not one that doesn't auto update like Debian. If we don't update the OS then the only thing that can change is the software you guys push out.

Yes, anything installed already on a machine should still work of course in the same way it does currently

The only way that would happen is if you're running a unified installer for both Stretch and Buster and want to use a dependency that's only in Buster.

The Stretch and Buster repositories are indeed separate, so changing something in one will not break the other. We do plan on maintaining only one though eventually, so going forward a day will come when only Buster will continue to receive updates.

Again, excuse my knowledge but as far as I can tell it isn't a question of things being dropped from the OS, more a question of newer things being required by 3CX. So the question is why would you push out an update that relies on a component you know isn't in the older OS when that will essentially break it. Is it not possible to leave the Stretch installs alone and only update the Buster installs?

As above, we release using two separate repositories, but at some point Stretch will stop receiving updates, and Buster will continue forward. More or less, this is what is meant by future proofing.

The way you've said twice now about dependencies being dropped from the OS makes me worried you're planning to push out an update that requires Buster and is going to break Stretch.

I hope the above clarifies everything, and of course we will post our news on the blog as we go forward, and for everything in between we can always discuss here.

 

[SteveITS]

I think the comment "the only way forward is to install Buster from scratch" alarmed everyone. It sounds like what you're saying is that 3CX is trying to make it possible to upgrade, but if "the powers that be" unwittingly create a problem in the Debian repos, 3CX may be unable to rectify it and in that case the upgrade won't be possible. In other words, it is more or less a race to see how fast 3CX can provide an upgrade path?