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Prune old voicemail messages

How to automatically delete voicemail messages older than a specified number of days on NethVoice

Guide Objective​

The purpose of this guide is to explain how to configure automatic voicemail pruning on NethVoice and to describe the setup, operation, and data backup procedures to ensure safe deletion of old messages.

Introduction​

NethVoice stores voicemail messages in a MariaDB database. Over time, this database can grow significantly, consuming disk space. The voicemail pruning feature allows you to automatically delete voicemail messages older than a configurable number of days (default: 10 days) using systemd timers and services.

How it Works​

  • A systemd timer triggers a service every day at midnight.
  • The service executes a MariaDB query that deletes voicemails older than the configured retention period.
  • The retention period is configurable (default: 10 days).
  • Deleted messages are permanently removed from the database.

Use Cases​

  • Disk space management: Prevent database bloat by removing old messages automatically.
  • Data retention compliance: Maintain organization-specific retention policies.
  • Performance optimization: Keeping the database lean improves query performance.

Prerequisites​

  • SSH access to the NethServer 8 cluster where NethVoice is running.
  • Familiarity with systemd user services.

Setup Instructions​

Step 1: Access the Application​

First, connect to NethServer using SSH, then access the NethVoice container environment:

runagent -m nethvoice1

Then navigate to the systemd user directory:

cd ~/.config/systemd/user/

(The full path is /home/nethvoice1/.config/systemd/user/)

Step 2: Create the Timer File​

Create a file named voicemail-prune.timer with the following content:

File: voicemail-prune.timer

[Unit]
Description=Daily timer to prune old voicemails

[Timer]
OnCalendar=daily
Persistent=true

[Install]
WantedBy=timers.target

This file defines a daily timer that triggers the pruning service every day. The Persistent=true setting ensures the timer runs even if the system was shut down at the scheduled time.

Step 3: Create the Service File​

Create a file named voicemail-prune.service with the following content:

File: voicemail-prune.service

[Unit]
Description=Prune old voicemail messages
Wants=voicemail-prune.timer

[Service]
Type=oneshot
Environment=PODMAN_SYSTEMD_UNIT=%n
EnvironmentFile=%S/state/passwords.env
WorkingDirectory=%S/state
Environment=DAYS=10
ExecStart=podman exec -i mariadb mysql -uroot -p"${MARIADB_ROOT_PASSWORD}" asteriskcdrdb -e "DELETE FROM voicemessages WHERE msgnum <> -1 AND CAST(origtime AS UNSIGNED) < (UNIX_TIMESTAMP() - ${DAYS}*24*60*60);OPTIMIZE TABLE voicemessages;"

The Environment=DAYS=10 line sets the retention period to 10 days. You can change this value to modify how many days of voicemail to retain.

Step 4: Enable and Start the Timer​

Enable the timer to start automatically at boot:

systemctl --user daemon-reload
systemctl --user enable --now voicemail-prune.timer

Done! The voicemail pruning service is now configured to run once a day.

Backup and Restore Procedures​

Before relying on automatic pruning in production, it is strongly recommended to create a backup of your voicemail data.

Before executing any commands, ensure you are in the NethVoice application environment:

runagent -m nethvoice1

Creating a Backup​

To back up the voicemessages table:

export MARIADB_ROOT_PASSWORD="$(awk -F= '/^MARIADB_ROOT_PASSWORD=/{sub(/^[^=]*=/,""); print}' ~/.config/state/passwords.env)"
podman exec -ti mariadb mysqldump -p$MARIADB_ROOT_PASSWORD -uroot asteriskcdrdb voicemessages > backup.dump

This command:

  • Extracts the MariaDB root password from the passwords.env file.
  • Uses mysqldump to export the voicemessages table to a file named backup.dump inside the host environment.

Restoring from a Backup​

To restore the voicemessages table from a backup:

podman cp backup.dump mariadb:/tmp
podman exec -ti mariadb /bin/bash -c "mysql -p$MARIADB_ROOT_PASSWORD -uroot asteriskcdrdb < /tmp/backup.dump"
podman exec -ti mariadb rm /tmp/backup.dump

This command:

  • Copies the backup file into the MariaDB container.
  • Restores the data from the backup using the mysql command.

Management and Troubleshooting​

Before executing any commands, ensure you are in the NethVoice application environment:

runagent -m nethvoice1

Run Service Manually​

To test the pruning service manually:

systemctl --user start voicemail-prune.service

Check Timer Status​

To view the timer and its last execution:

systemctl --user status voicemail-prune.timer

View Service Logs​

To see the output of the pruning service:

api-server-logs logs --entity module --name nethvoice1

This displays the logs for the NethVoice module. Look for entries related to the voicemail pruning service:

2026-01-20T13:51:42Z [1:nethvoice1:systemd] Starting Prune old voicemail messages...
2026-01-20T13:51:42Z [1:nethvoice1:systemd] Finished Prune old voicemail messages.

Adjust the Retention Period​

To change the retention period from the default 10 days:

  1. Edit the voicemail-prune.service file.
  2. Locate the line: Environment=DAYS=10
  3. Replace 10 with your desired number of days.
  4. Save the file.
  5. Reload the systemd user daemon: systemctl --user daemon-reload

Disable the Pruning Service​

To disable the timer and stop automatic pruning:

systemctl --user disable --now voicemail-prune.timer

To remove the service and timer files:

rm ~/.config/systemd/user/voicemail-prune.service
rm ~/.config/systemd/user/voicemail-prune.timer
systemctl --user daemon-reload

Common Issues​

Timer not running:

  • Check if the timer is enabled: systemctl --user list-timers
  • Verify the service files are in the correct location: ls -la ~/.config/systemd/user/voicemail-prune.*
  • Reload the systemd user daemon: systemctl --user daemon-reload

Database connection errors:

  • Confirm the MariaDB container is running: podman ps | grep mariadb
  • Test the MariaDB connection manually using the provided credentials.
NethVoice 8.0