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Asterisk DIALGROUP is empty, stale or dials the wrong targets

Trace one failed attempt through group ownership, the last membership operation, exact readback, PJSIP contact expansion, Dial status and per-leg cause evidence.

Reviewed 2026-10-19Current Asterisk Latest API DIALGROUP, Dial, PJSIP_DIAL_CONTACTS, HANGUPCAUSE_KEYS, HANGUPCAUSE and HangupCauseClear references, the Asterisk CLI guide and the upstream func_dialgroup implementation were reviewed October 19, 2026. The generated Latest API pages reported branch 23; the installed Asterisk branch, loaded func_dialgroup module, dialplan revision, named-group lifecycle, concurrent writers, endpoint and contact state, channel-driver behavior and call outcomes remain deployment specific. No PBX, module, dialplan, group, endpoint, contact, channel, packet, media stream or live call was inspected or testedAdvancedDocumentation based · not lab tested

Freeze one group read and one failed attempt

Record timestamp and timezone, installed Asterisk branch, loaded module and dialplan revision, context, extension and priority, caller channel identifiers, exact group name, intended members, last known replacement/add/delete owner, redacted DIALGROUP readback immediately before Dial, PJSIP endpoint and AoR where relevant, timeout, options, DIALSTATUS and next branch.

Classify the first divergence: function unavailable, wrong dialplan loaded, wrong group name, writer did not run, whole-list replacement erased a member, add/delete targeted a different interface string, contact expansion changed, list blank or malformed, Dial failed per target, or the fallback branch is wrong.

Prove the function and loaded writer before editing state

Use the Asterisk CLI to confirm the running system exposes DIALGROUP and that the active context and priority match the reviewed dialplan. Follow the exact writer that most recently touched the group and distinguish no-operation replacement from the write-only add and del forms.

Do not repopulate a guessed list as the first diagnostic step. That destroys evidence about the owner, lifecycle and operation that produced the symptom.

Compare intended membership with exact readback

Read the disputed group at the same decision point as the failed call and preserve a redacted value. Compare interface strings exactly, including technology, endpoint, resource and any separators. Confirm that delete used the same member representation previously added and that another path did not replace the entire list afterward.

The reviewed reference does not define persistence or concurrent-writer guarantees. A value observed after reload, restart or simultaneous edits requires evidence from that installed branch rather than an assumed lifecycle.

Resolve PJSIP membership versus live contacts

If a member depends on PJSIP_DIAL_CONTACTS, capture the endpoint, selected AoR, optional request user and redacted expansion at the failed attempt. The function returns a dial string for current contacts; it does not make a contact exist or stay reachable.

A stable DIALGROUP read can therefore feed a changing PJSIP dial string. Check the existing PJSIP contact diagnostic when one device or no device rings, and do not treat registration state as proof of successful signaling or media.

Trace Dial status and per-leg causes separately

Preserve the timeout and options passed to Dial(), the returned DIALSTATUS and the next executed priority. For a multi-leg attempt, record HANGUPCAUSE_KEYS and query each returned channel with HANGUPCAUSE for both technology-specific and translated Asterisk cause information. Redact customer identifiers and credentials.

Clear prior causes only at a known trace boundary. Do not collapse an empty list, invalid argument, unavailable endpoint, busy response, no answer and a wrong post-Dial branch into one generic DIALGROUP failure.

Correct the earliest owner and repeat the same trace

Correct only the earliest demonstrated boundary: loaded module, active priority, group name, writer, operation, member grammar, contact expansion, blank-list guard, Dial input or later branch. Keep a rollback, then repeat the same call plus one empty-list control and one unavailable-target control.

Restore temporary logging and confirm the original group lifecycle. No PBX, module, dialplan, group, endpoint, contact, channel, packet, media stream or live call was inspected or tested for this diagnostic.

Sources & applicability

Primary references for the technical details above. Operational examples and planning checklists are VoIP.info editorial guidance.

Examples require adaptation to your topology. No live PBX or hardware testing is claimed.

Continue your research

Guide · Current Asterisk Latest API DIALGROUP, Dial, PJSIP_DIAL_CONTACTS, HANGUPCAUSE_KEYS, HANGUPCAUSE and HangupCauseClear references, the Asterisk CLI guide and the upstream func_dialgroup implementation were reviewed October 19, 2026. The generated Latest API pages reported branch 23; the installed Asterisk branch, loaded func_dialgroup module, dialplan revision, named-group lifecycle, concurrent writers, endpoint and contact state, channel-driver behavior and call outcomes remain deployment specific. No PBX, module, dialplan, group, endpoint, contact, channel, packet, media stream or live call was inspected or tested

Asterisk DIALGROUP: manage dynamic dial targets with explicit fallbacks

Build a named dial-target list with whole-list replacement or explicit add and delete operations, then keep membership, contact expansion and Dial outcomes independently observable.

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Troubleshooting · Current Asterisk branch-23-generated and branch 22 Dial references, pre-dial-handler guidance, hangup-cause guidance, HANGUPCAUSE_KEYS and CHANNEL references reviewed October 15, 2026; installed branch, channel driver, loaded dialplan, endpoint, contact set, signaling, causes, bridge, media and caller treatment remain deployment specific; no host, module, dialplan, channel, endpoint, trunk, packet, bridge, media stream or live call was inspected or tested

Asterisk Dial returns early, reports the wrong status or never answers

Find the first divergence among loaded dial string, outbound-channel creation, progress, final response, answer, bridge, application result and continuation.

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Troubleshooting · Asterisk Latest API PJSIP_DIAL_CONTACTS, Dial, PJSIP_AOR, PJSIP_CONTACT and AMI object documentation plus PJSIP configuration relationships reviewed October 12, 2026; the generated pages reported branch 23, but the installed Asterisk version, endpoint, AoRs, contacts, registration expiry, qualification, dialplan, SIP responses and call legs remain deployment-specific, and no PBX, endpoint, AoR, contact, registration, device, channel, request, response or call was inspected or tested

Asterisk PJSIP_DIAL_CONTACTS rings one device or none

Trace one call from endpoint and AoR selection through the live contact set, generated dial string, created PJSIP channels, per-leg SIP outcomes and the first answer.

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Guide · Current Asterisk branch-23-generated HANGUPCAUSE, HANGUPCAUSE_KEYS, HangupCauseClear, Dial and CHANNEL references plus the project mapping table reviewed October 6, 2026; exact behavior still depends on the installed Asterisk branch, channel driver, dialplan and call path

Asterisk hangup causes: preserve each called-channel result

Interpret Dial status, per-channel technology causes, translated Asterisk causes and hangup source without collapsing parallel or sequential call attempts into one reason.

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Guide · Current Asterisk CLI, logging, PJSIP troubleshooting and call-identifier documentation reviewed September 30, 2026; CLI commands are not shell commands; no PBX, trace, call or media tested

Asterisk CLI and PJSIP logging for one failed call

Bind one failed call to the loaded PJSIP objects, dialplan decision and short signaling trace, then prove diagnostic cleanup.

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