Sangoma has recently announced in a blog post that FreePBX 17 is now generally available. As such, we thought it would be a great opportunity for us to share with you our plans to launch FreePBX 17th on FreePBXHosting.

FreePBX 17 Overview

The biggest news with FreePBX by far is the fact that it will be distributed via an open source installer script intended to be run on a fully patched instance of Debian 12, rather than a full Linux distribution as in previous versions. 

Launch Status

Now that FreePBX 17 has entered GA status, we have entered our final phase of QA testing and adapting it for auto deployment on our hosting platform, and a release will typically occur in a few months. 

Key Changes from FreePBX 16

Aside from changing the underlying Distro from RHEL based SNG7 to Debian and updating several underlying components, here are a few things you’ll find changed in FreePBX 17.

Legacy SIP Unavailable by Default

The biggest changes you’ll notice in FreePBX 17 is that it ships with Asterisk 21 which no longer supports the long deprecated chan_sip channel driver. While it’s strongly recommended that you stick with the supported chan_pjsip driver, there are downgrade instructions available.

Deprecated Modules in FreePBX 17

Support for a few modules has been removed from FreePBX in version 17, including XMPP, iSymphony, and Zulu. The latter has been replaced by the vastly superior Sangoma Softphones module which supports the Sangoma Talk mobile app and Sangoma Phone desktop application. If you need a replacement for iSymphony, we recommend checking out the queue management features in Sangoma Phone Desktop which are currently available at no extra charge, though we understand that this may change in the future.

Upgrade Path from FreePBX 16 and Earlier

Sangoma has published a FreePBX 17 upgrade guide that covers this in more detail, but the process goes something like this:

• Backup your current FreePBX server and download the backup

• Release your deployment ID from your server

• Reinstall your server with FreePBX 17

• Upload & restore your backup to the server

• Apply your deployment ID to transfer licenses

While this may sound slightly daunting, the actual process goes fairly smoothly. If you have a large volume of data, you may want to order a new VPS so you can run them in parallel while you transfer data and backup. You can spec out your new server here, and if you’re looking for a more maintenance free option, now would be a great time to consider moving to a Managed Server which includes full service updates & upgrades, among other benefits.

Professional Services Available

Of course if you prefer not to do the upgrade to FreePBX 17 yourself, we have professional services available to get you updated with minimal downtime and minimal effort on your part. More information about our Managed Upgrade service can be found on our Professional Services page.

Stay Informed

Keep an eye on our blog, or follow us on X to be in the loop when the FreePBX 17 launch is announced.