What is a context? Simply said, a context is a group of extensions. Each extension must exist within a context. There is more to contexts than grouping extensions though.
In our extensions.conf
file (or any included files), a context is denoted by square brackets "[ ]", as shown:
[mycontext] . . .
So, if a context is a group of extensions, why do we need more than one? Let's think for a minute. Not all employees should be able to dial every phone. Would you trust your 16-year-old intern with the ability to dial international calls? I wouldn't. Also, do you want your president to be bothered by customers in the waiting room who use a courtesy phone and misdial? We could find that hazardous to our continued employment.
Certain extensions are hidden or made inaccesible from other extensions by context. This gives us some level of security. It also allows us to host multiple phone systems on a single server.
Imagine you have two businesses on the same phone system, each with...