The first step in configuring the SMS/MMS gateway is to configure SMSC (Short Messaging Service Centre) settings, which tell the gateway how it connects to the GSM network to send SMS messages.

Step 2a - Configure SMSC Settings

When the Now SMS/MMS Gateway configuration program is first loaded, you will see a setup screen similar to the following:

 

If you do not see this particular screen, select the “SMSC” page from the gateway configuration dialog.

For an initial installation, no SMSC connections will have been defined. You will need to define an SMSC connection to tell the gateway how to send SMS messages.

This quick start guide will focus on GSM Modem connections. For more information on other types of SMSC connections, follow the highlighted link to open a page that explains the configuration settings for the type of SMSC connection that you will be establishing: SMPP, UCP/EMI, or HTTP. When you have completed SMSC configuration, you can continue with the section titled “Configure Web Settings for SMS/MMS Gateway”.

When no SMSC have yet been defined, only the “Add” button will be available on this dialog. Select “Add”, and then “GSM Phone or Modem” to display a list of available modem drivers on your computer.

 

 

 

Select an available modem and press the “Test and Add Modem” button. The gateway will then attempt to initialize the modem, and confirm that the modem supports the necessary interfaces to send and receive SMS messages. The modem will only be added to the configuration if the gateway confirms that it can properly communicate with the modem.

What if the gateway says it cannot initialize my modem?

• It is possible to define a modem connection by either selecting the name of the Windows modem driver, or selecting the name of the COM port to which the modem is connected. If you are attempting to connect to a modem by specifying a COM port and are experiencing problems, the best way to troubleshoot this problem is to ensure that you are connecting to the phone or modem using a Windows modem driver supplied by the phone or modem manufacturer, instead of going directly to a COM port. When you configure a GSM modem connection for the gateway, you are presented with a list of modem drivers installed on your system, as well as a list of COM ports. You will achieve better results going through the modem driver. If you have not installed a Windows modem driver for your device, visit the manufacturer web site, or use the CD supplied by the manufacturer, and install the appropriate modem driver.

• Assuming an appropriate modem driver is installed, go into the Windows Control Panel, and select the “Modems” or “Phone and Modem Options” applet. In the diagnostics section, ensure that you are able to use “Query Modem” to interface with your modem, which will ensure that Windows is able to properly communicate with the modem. The Now SMS/MMS gateway will not be able to access the modem if it is not accessible to Windows. Follow the instructions from the device manufacturer if you encounter problems accessing the modem in the Windows Control Panel.

• One common problem is an incorrect cable. Some phone manufacturers have different cables for different purposes. You want to the type of cable that allows your PC to use the phone as a modem (sometimes referred to as a “data/fax cable”). For example, most Nokia phones have DLR-3 and DAU-9 types of cables. The DLR-3 type is for data/fax applications, and the DAU-9 is for use with Logo Manager. The Now SMS/MMS gateway requires the DLR-3 type (data/fax).

 

 

Once the modem has been added to the SMSC list, as shown below, continue with the next step of the configuration process.

 

Step 2b - Configure Web Settings for SMS/MMS Gateway

When you wish to submit any type of SMS message, including MMS notifications or WAP push messages, you will submit the request via the gateway’s web interface. The “Web” page of the configuration dialog contains settings relevant to this web interface.

 

 

You configure the gateway to listen for web/HTTP requests on a particular TCP/IP port number. The standard web port on the internet is 80, however you will most likely want to use a non-standard port for this service. The service defaults to the non-standard port 8800.

The PC that is running the gateway might have other web services installed. For this reason, the gateway allows you to specify which of the available IP addresses on the current PC should be used by the gateway. The “IP Address for web interface” prompt displays the available IP addresses on the current PC. To make the gateway service available via any address on the current PC, select “(all available)”, otherwise select a specific IP address.

“Enable menu driven web interface” specifies whether or not an HTML menu will be displayed when a user connects to the gateway via the web interface. This menu interface can be helpful when you are first exploring the features of the gateway. If this menu setting is disabled, then the gateway will require the appropriate URL parameters to perform any tasks. For the purpose of this “Quick Start Guide”, we recommend enabling this option. You may decide to disable this option after you become more familiar with the product.

Important: Click the “Apply” button at the bottom of the dialog to save the configuration settings that you have entered thus far.

Step 2c - Install the SMS/MMS Gateway Service

The next step in configuring the SMS/MMS Gateway is to install the service. The Now SMS/MMS Gateway installs as a Windows service, which means that it is automatically loaded and run when the computer is restarted. The service can also be manually started and stopped via the Services option in the Windows control panel.

To install the Now SMS/MMS Gateway as a service, select the “Service” page of the configuration dialog.

 

Click the “Install Service” button. After several seconds, the text of the “Install Service” button should change to “Remove Service”. That indicates that the Now SMS/MMS Gateway service is now running.

If an error occurs when installing the service, ensure that you are logged into Windows with an account that has administrator privileges which is allowed to install and remove services.

It is also possible for an error message to be displayed indicating: “Gateway is not active. Port number for web interface already in use by another application. Please change the port number on the Web page of this dialog.” This error message indicates that the “Port Number for Web Interface” configured on the “Web” page of the dialog in Install the SMS/MMS Gateway Service, is in use by another application. Return to Configure Web Settings for SMS/MMS Gateway, and select another port, or change the port setting in the other application.