Installing 3CX

Introduction

Whether hosted or DIY, this guide will walk you through the essential steps of installing and setting up the 3CX system for your business.

Step 1: Which 3CX? Hosted or DIY?

First you need to decide whether you want 3CX to host your system or whether you want to do it yourself in a private cloud or on premise. Advantages and requirements of Hosted by 3CX

  • Leave System and Operating System management to us
  • All 3CX upgrades and updates are done automatically
  • Backups are run daily by 3CX
  • We will monitor your system 24/7 for system & security issues
  • This service does not include technical support
  • There are some requirements for hosted:

Hosted: FREE/SMB or Dedicated?

FREE/SMB: Preconfigured, FREE is ready-to-go for up to 10 users, SMB for up to 20 users in a shared instance. Recommended for most small businesses. FREE/SMB is only available hosted by 3CX.

Dedicated: Your own dedicated instance hosted by 3CX, for 20 users and up. With this instance you have more control.

DIY: Private cloud or On-Premise?

Private Cloud: Self-host on Google, Amazon, Amazon Lightsail, Azure or DigitalOcean 

On-Premise: Install on Windows or Linux (Virtualize with VMware, Hyper-V or KVM)

Requirements of DIY: On-Premise/Private cloud (Self-hosted)

  • You must have a manageable DNS server (e.g. Microsoft DNS or DNS on your firewall) and configure split DNS to ensure that your 3CX FQDN resolves to the 3CX host machine’s IP on your LAN, and from the internet to your public IP. Read how to create an FQDN using split DNS
  • You must have a static IP
  • If you are installing on premise, you must have a proper firewall on which you are able to configure the ports correctly for VoIP to pass. See our Firewall & Router Configuration guide
  • If you are going to install in a private cloud, it will have to be from: Google Cloud Marketplace, Amazon AWS Marketplace, DigitalOcean Marketplace or Azure Marketplace. You will have to be pretty technical and familiar with this cloud provider as you will be doing your own tech support (unless you pay a partner to do it for you).

Step 2: Deploy 3CX

Once you have decided, signup at https://www.3cx.com/signup/. Now you will need to select which 3CX you have decided to go for.

Hosted - FREE/SMB

  1. Select either “3CX FREE” or “3CX SMB”. Your instance will be set up
  2. Once ready, you will get a link to login to the 3CX Admin Console. Proceed to the next step.

Hosted - PRO/ENT

  1. Select “3CX Hosted - PRO/ENT” and click “Next”.
  2. Choose a personalized domain (FQDN) - Each 3CX install requires an FQDN (Fully Qualified Domain Name) via which you can login to the webclient. 3CX can set this up for you. This can not be easily changed later.
  3. Set Extension length - Specify the number of digits for your PBX extension numbers. This cannot be altered later. Click “Next”.
  4. Select your country and timezone. Click "Next"
  5. Choose your PBX Version (Version 18 or Version 20)
  6. Your system will be created. You can then proceed to the next step and login to the Admin console to configure the system.

DIY - Self-Hosted/On-Premise PRO/ENT

  1. Select “Self Hosted/ On-Premise - PRO / ENT” and click “Next”.
  2. Choose a personalized domain (FQDN) - Each 3CX install requires an FQDN (Fully Qualified Domain Name) via which you can login to the webclient. 3CX can set this up for you. This can not be easily changed later.
  3. Set Extension length - Specify the number of digits for your PBX extension numbers. This cannot be altered later. Click “Next”.
  4. Select your country and timezone. Click "Next"
  5. Choose your platform and PBX Version - you will be given a link to the ISO or installer or to the marketplace image of that hoster:
  1. Windows - Download /  How to install 
  2. Linux - Download ISO / How to install Debian linux
  3. Google Cloud Marketplace
  4. Amazon AWS Marketplace
  5. DigitalOcean Marketplace
  6. Azure Marketplace
  7. Amazon Lightsail
  1. Now  you need to download the configuration file or use a link to copy the configuration.
  2. Run the installer / marketplace image. When prompted, copy the link or upload the configuration file you downloaded earlier.

Uploading the Configuration File

Step 3: Sign in and go to Admin Console

3CX Admin Console: Central Hub for Setup and Management

  1. After deployment is ready, you will be automatically taken to the 3CX Web client.
  2. You can login using the password you set during signup.
  3. Change the password. This will make the 3CX Admin Console password different from the customer portal password.
  4. Now click on the “Admin” button on the left hand side to go to the 3CX Admin Console and setup your system.

See also

  • On-premise installs:

Last Updated

This document was last updated on 11 June 2024

https://www.3cx.com/docs/manual/install/