BasicTalk GrandStream HT-701 ATA $10 at walmart- Unlock Instructions

[c64man]

So Walmart has these BasicTalk Boxes for 9.99.   Did some research and found the unlocking instructions.   They work great with CNET and other VOIP Providers.   I have 6 im going to be setting up on my asterisk box. 

Soft Unlock option 2 - use my hosted DNS and web server:
- make sure your internet is disconnected
- plug in the ATA, wait until it comes up and dial ***** to find the IP address
- login to the ATA with password "123" (that's the user password)
- go to the Basic tab and change all 4 DNS servers to 198.12.67.129
- click Update, Apply, Reboot
- re-connect your internet
- wait until the ATA reboots twice (you can do a ping -t ipaddress to find when it stops replying and comes back). For most BasicTalk HT701 ATAs this should take no more than 5 min.
Your ATA should now be unlocked, you can login with the password "admin". Before you do any configuration, please clear the value of Config Server Path under Advanced Settings. Also, if the 4 Preferred DNS servers in the Basic tab still show 198.12.67.129, please clear them or change them to some public DNS servers such as 8.8.8.8, 8.8.4.4, 208.67.222.222, 208.67.220.220.

[compubit]

The IP address has changed to  167.88.118.111  (After 20 minutes of no activity from boot up, I Googled). There's another couple of configuration steps I'll post once I consolidate them.

Jim

[poplar1]

Does this ATA recognize rotary dial pulses?

[unbeldi]

Does this ATA recognize rotary dial pulses?

Nope.

None of the Grandstream devices officially support DP, only the HT50x series has this undocumented feature.

[compubit]

The steps really depend on the firmware on the device from Walmart.

How to determine the firmware version:

1) Unplug your router from the Internet - if you connect the device to the Internet without the workarounds, the device will be permanently locked to BasicTalk (and it's bricked, as far as I'm concerned).
2) Plug the device in and determine the IP address (pick up the handset and dial *****, or check your DHCP logs)
3) Using a web browser, connect to the device:  http://xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx (replace the x's with the actual IP address)
4) At the login screen use   123     as the password
5) On the Status screen, there are 4 different Software Version values. You're looking for the "Program" value. If it's 1.0.2.39 or earlier, follow the instructions above (using the new IP address I provided). If it's 1.0.2.40, see the next step. If you run across 1.0.2.41, I don't know - I'd probably take it back until a process has been developed.
6) For 1.0.2.40 firmware, check the instructions at http://ozarkedge.mypressonline.com and select the "Grandstream HT701" link under the Contents section.  Note: this configuration takes more work and either involves Internet Explorer 11, or modifying the routing tables in your router (which most off-the-shelf routers do not support.

I've picked up a couple (a 39, 2 40s, and one with older firmware), and all are connected to my Asterisk switch running in my Raspberry Pi (though I'm going to go ahead and install Asterisk on an old Atom-based motherboard I have that's currently doing nothing...). So for less than $100, I have 4 endpoints that I can connect to phones, a switch, and more projects than time on my hands!

If you have questions, let me know - I think I have this down to a science...

Jim