Enclosed below is a FAQ-Like (notice we stated FAQ-Like, because it's a work in progress) document that should help you to get yourself up and running with CentPBX.

CD Install - Directions below..

Step 1: You'll need to download the ISO and Burn it to a Blank CD. Check the download link to get the latest ISO. CentPBX strives for simplicity, while other distributions offer separate ISOs for installation, we couldn't really see the reason for it. So we provide one ISO for both versions of Asterisk. You can choose your Asterisk Distribution at time of install. CentPBX will always provide the current "super-stable" (currently 1.2.x) release of Asterisk and the Newer Semi-Stable cooler functionality version of Asterisk (currently 1.4.x) as installation choices. When 1.6.x becomes available and is in semi-stable form, we will be phasing out 1.2.x and phasing in 1.6.x. Hope that makes sense. Once you've downloaded your ISO, you will need to burn it to a blank CD. While we don't support any particular software package for this purpose, Nero works well on Windows, cdrecord for Linux, and OS X called provides a facility called Disk Utility.

Step 2: Make sure you have hardware to install CentPBX to! Make sure there is no data on the hard drive you care about. All the Data Will Be Erased! So Double and Triple Check that the Hard Drive contains nothing important. It will be erased, wiped-out, killed, etc.. you get the idea. It's going to be replaced with your wonderfully functional CentPBX distribution. This will be your CentPBX box. So make sure the hardware is relatively stable. We recommend a minimum of P4, 512 MB RAM, and 20GB of Hard Drive Space. If you're going to install the G729 codec or intend to do a lot of transcoding, we recommend a faster CPU and lots of RAM. CentPBX will run on less powerful hardware, but your experience may vary depending on what you're doing with the box. If you just want to fool around with CentPBX, we recommend Using VMWare or XEN Virtualization. (It's tested and working with CentPBX)

Step 3: Boot the Machine with the CD in the drive. (Make sure your CMOS is set to boot the CD Drive prior to the Hard Drive) and just follow the directions. It's pretty self-explanatory.

Step 4: After you've installed CentPBX, reboot the machine for good measure (you can do this by logging in to the machine at it's assigned IP address via ssh or you can just do it from the console). Type 'shutdown -r now'

Step 5: You can access CentPBX via your web-browser (we like Mozilla, but Safari, Internet Explorer, and Opera work fine); just type in the ip address of your CentPBX box and hit "go". The Username and Password are:
Username: admin
Password: password
Remember to change these if you intend on running any type of non-test/non-lab environment.

Step 6: CentPBX currently uses the FreePBX engine for configuration and management. We recommend running an update from module admin prior to doing anything when you get your CentPBX box up and running.

Updates: We will be providing updates to your CentPBX distribution through our Yum Repository. At the moment, if you type "Yum Update All" you should be able to get all the updates installed automatically.

While we strive to provide a rock-solid PBX distribution, please realize that this project is managed by a few people who felt there was a need for a distribution that addresses a lot of shortcomings (we wanted to fulfill a community need). The project members all have other business they need to tend to and any donation of time, money, or resources is highly appreciated. If you're interested in getting involved, please don't hesitate to contact a forum moderator via PM (Private Message). Leave your name, telephone number, email, and any other pertinent information.