Sniffer upgrade

This guide covers VoIPmonitor sensor (sniffer) upgrades and downgrades. Two methods are available: Web GUI (recommended) or manual CLI.

Quick Reference

Task	Command
Stop service	systemctl stop voipmonitor
Start service	systemctl start voipmonitor
Check version (local)	/usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor --version
Check version (remote)	echo 'sniffer_version' | nc 127.0.0.1 5029
Download latest stable	wget https://www.voipmonitor.org/current-stable-sniffer-static-64bit.tar.gz

Method 1: GUI Upgrade (Recommended)

1. Navigate to Settings → Sensors
2. Click the blue UPGRADE button next to the sensor
3. Select the desired version from the dropdown
4. The GUI handles download and restart automatically

ℹ️ Note: This method requires the sensor to be running and connected to the GUI.

Scheduling Upgrades to Avoid Rate-Limiting

When upgrading many sensors simultaneously, you may encounter 429 Too Many Requests errors from download.voipmonitor.org.

Solution: Stagger upgrade times:

1. Click the wrench icon next to each sensor
2. Go to the UPGRADE subtab
3. Set different auto-upgrade datetime values for sensor groups

💡 Tip: Example: Upgrade 10 sensors at 06:30, next 10 at 06:40, etc.

Method 2: Manual CLI Upgrade

Step 1: Stop Service

systemctl stop voipmonitor

Step 2: Download Binary

wget https://www.voipmonitor.org/current-stable-sniffer-static-64bit.tar.gz -O voipmonitor-sniffer.tar.gz

Alternative - Direct binary download:

# For specific version (replace version number)
wget https://download.voipmonitor.org/senzor/download/2025.04.4/voipmonitor.gz.64 -O voipmonitor.gz
gunzip voipmonitor.gz
cp voipmonitor /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor
chmod +x /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor

Step 3: Install

tar xzf voipmonitor-sniffer.tar.gz
cd voipmonitor-*-static

# Backup old binary
mv /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor.backup

# Install new binary
cp ./voipmonitor /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor
chmod +x /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor

Step 4: Start Service

systemctl start voipmonitor

Offline Upgrade

For servers without internet access:

1. On a machine WITH internet:

   wget https://www.voipmonitor.org/current-stable-sniffer-static-64bit.tar.gz

2. Transfer to offline server:

   scp voipmonitor-sniffer.tar.gz user@offline-server:/tmp/

3. On offline server: Follow Steps 1, 3, 4 from Method 2 above

ℹ️ Note: Restore backup if needed: cp /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor.backup /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor

Reinstalling After OS Upgrade

After major OS upgrades (e.g., Debian 10→11→12), perform a fresh installation:

# 1. Stop and disable old service
sudo systemctl stop voipmonitor && sudo systemctl disable voipmonitor

# 2. Backup configuration
sudo cp /etc/voipmonitor.conf /etc/voipmonitor.conf.backup

# 3. Download and install fresh
wget https://www.voipmonitor.org/current-stable-sniffer-static-64bit.tar.gz
tar xzf voipmonitor-sniffer-*.tar.gz
cd voipmonitor-*-static
sudo ./install-script.sh

# 4. Restore configuration
sudo cp /etc/voipmonitor.conf.backup /etc/voipmonitor.conf

# 5. Enable and start
sudo systemctl enable --now voipmonitor

💡 Tip: For client-server deployments, verify firewall rules for ports 5029 (manager) and 60024 (packet buffer).

Deprecated Options (v2025.09.1+)

Remove these obsolete directives from voipmonitor.conf:

Removed Option	Replacement
vxlan, vxlan_port, vxlan_skipcrc	udp_port_vxlan = 4789
packet_buffer_total_size	max_buffer_mem, ringbuffer
udp_reassembly*, sipdefrag*	Handled internally
interface_snaplen	snaplen = 3200
max_sip_size, sanity_checks, check_sip_header	Built-in improvements

Verify after cleanup:

systemctl restart voipmonitor
journalctl -u voipmonitor -n 50 | grep -i "unknown\|option"

Troubleshooting

Upgrading One Sensor Affects Multiple Sensors

Cause: Multiple sensors share the same Manager IP + Port combination.

Fix:

1. Check Settings → Sensors for duplicate IP/Port entries
2. Ensure each sensor has a unique Manager IP (or unique port if on same host)
3. Never use 127.0.0.1 for remote sensors

Cannot Enable Auto-Upgrade for Default Local Sensor

The default "local sensor" entry does not support auto-upgrade.

Solution: Create a new sensor entry:

1. Settings → Sensors → Add new sensor
2. Set: Sensor ID (unique), Manager IP: 127.0.0.1, Manager Port: 5029
3. Restart service: systemctl restart voipmonitor
4. Configure auto-upgrade on the new sensor entry

"New Sensor Version Available" Notification Persists

Cause: Development version option is enabled.

Fix: Disable System Configuration → Advanced → "enable upgrade sniffer to development version"

"sniffer error: need AES!"

After upgrade, the GUI cannot communicate with sensor due to encryption key mismatch.

Solutions:

# Option 1: Remove old AES key from GUI database
cd /var/www/voipmonitor && php php/run.php delete_aes_key

# Option 2: Disable encryption in sensor config
echo "manager_enable_unencrypted = yes" >> /etc/voipmonitor.conf
systemctl restart voipmonitor

⚠️ Warning: manager_enable_unencrypted = yes reduces security. Use only in trusted networks.

"Permission denied" During Upgrade

Cause: /tmp mounted with noexec flag.

Fix:

# Temporary fix
mount -o remount,exec /tmp

# Permanent fix: edit /etc/fstab and remove 'noexec' from /tmp line

Binary Lacks Execute Permission After Upgrade

Symptom: Service fails to start, "Permission denied" on /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor.

Fix:

chmod +x /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor
systemctl start voipmonitor

"Could not resolve host: download.voipmonitor.org"

Solutions:

1. Configure proxy (if required):

# In /etc/voipmonitor.conf
curlproxy = http://proxy.example.com:3128

2. Manual binary copy from another sensor:

scp working-sensor:/usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor /tmp/
cp /tmp/voipmonitor /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor
chmod +x /usr/local/sbin/voipmonitor

SSL/TLS Protocol Error During Upgrade

Symptom: tlsv1 alert protocol version error.

Temporary fix:

# In /etc/voipmonitor.conf
upgrade_try_http_if_https_fail = yes

⚠️ Warning: Disable this option after upgrade completes. HTTP is less secure than HTTPS.

Missing Database Table After Upgrade

Symptom: Table 'voipmonitor.cdr_audio_transcribe' doesn't exist

Fix: Create the missing table manually:

-- Connect to database
mysql -h your_db_host -u your_db_user -p voipmonitor

-- Create the missing table (example for cdr_audio_transcribe)
CREATE TABLE `cdr_audio_transcribe` (
  `ID` bigint unsigned NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `calldate` datetime NOT NULL,
  `fbasename` varchar(255) DEFAULT NULL,
  `a_language` varchar(10) DEFAULT NULL,
  `b_language` varchar(10) DEFAULT NULL,
  `a_text` mediumtext,
  `b_text` mediumtext,
  PRIMARY KEY (`ID`,`calldate`),
  KEY `fbasename` (`fbasename`)
) ENGINE=InnoDB DEFAULT CHARSET=utf8mb3
PARTITION BY RANGE COLUMNS(calldate)
(PARTITION p_future VALUES LESS THAN MAXVALUE ENGINE = InnoDB);

Then restart: systemctl restart voipmonitor

See Also

• Sniffer_installation - Initial sensor installation
• Sniffer_configuration - Configuration parameters
• Settings#Sensors - GUI sensor management
• Systemd_for_voipmonitor_service_management - Service management

AI Summary for RAG

Summary: Guide for upgrading/downgrading VoIPmonitor sensor. Two methods: (1) GUI upgrade - Settings → Sensors → UPGRADE button, includes scheduling to avoid 429 rate-limiting errors by setting different auto-upgrade datetime per sensor group. (2) Manual CLI - stop service, wget binary, backup old, copy new to /usr/local/sbin/, chmod +x, start. Covers offline upgrade (SCP transfer), fresh install after OS upgrade (backup config, run install-script.sh, restore config). Deprecated options in v2025.09.1: vxlan→udp_port_vxlan, sipdefrag→internal, interface_snaplen→snaplen. Troubleshooting: duplicate Manager IP causes multi-sensor upgrade, default local sensor needs manual replacement for auto-upgrade, "need AES" fix with delete_aes_key or manager_enable_unencrypted, noexec /tmp fix with remount, missing chmod +x, curlproxy for network issues, upgrade_try_http_if_https_fail for TLS errors, manual CREATE TABLE for missing DB tables.

Keywords: upgrade, downgrade, sniffer, sensor, GUI upgrade, manual upgrade, wget, systemctl, chmod, version check, Manager API, OS upgrade, reinstall, rate limiting, 429 error, schedule upgrades, auto-upgrade datetime, need AES, delete_aes_key, manager_enable_unencrypted, deprecated options, 2025.09.1, permission denied, noexec, curlproxy, TLS error, upgrade_try_http_if_https_fail, missing table

Key Questions:

• How do I upgrade the VoIPmonitor sniffer via GUI or CLI?
• How can I downgrade the sensor to a previous version?
• How do I avoid "429 Too Many Requests" errors when upgrading many sensors?
• How do I schedule sensor upgrades to prevent rate limiting?
• Why can I not enable auto-upgrade for the default local sensor?
• What should I do after upgrading the operating system?
• Why does upgrading one sensor upgrade multiple sensors?
• How do I fix "sniffer error: need AES!" after upgrade?
• Which configuration options are deprecated in version 2025.09.1?
• How do I fix "Permission denied" during sensor upgrade?
• How do I fix "Could not resolve host" during GUI upgrade?
• How do I fix SSL/TLS protocol version error during upgrade?
• How do I fix missing database table error after upgrade?