Conference calls on Rails

This application is an example of hosting conference calls with Twilio in a Ruby on Rails application.

There are three types of conference call available and blog posts to describe how to build and run them.

1. An open conference line
2. A passcode protected conference line
3. A one-time passcode protected conference line with Twilio Verify

The path you use when setting your phone number's webhook will define which type of conference you are using.

Running the application

Make sure you have the following:

• Ruby and Bundler installed
• A Twilio account (sign up for a free account here)
• A Twilio phone number that can receive incoming calls
• ngrok for testing webhooks with our local application

Clone or download the repo:

git clone https://github.com/philnash/conference-calls-on-rails.git
cd conference-calls-on-rails

Install the dependencies:

bundle install

Copy the config/env.yml.example to config/env.yml and fill in the details:

Environment variable	Meaning
CONFERENCE_PIN	A static passcode to protect conference calls using the ProtectedCallsController
TWILIO_ACCOUNT_SID	Your Account Sid from the Twilio console
TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN	Your Auth Token from the Twilio console
VERIFY_SERVICE_SID	A Verify Service Sid, create the service in your Twilio console
PERMITTED_CALLERS	A comma separated list of e.164 formatted phone numbers that are permitted to join a conference call using the VerifiedCallsController
MODERATOR	An e.164 formatted phone number that is allowed to moderate conference calls using the VerifiedCallsController

Start the application:

bundle exec rails server

Start ngrok exposing port 3000:

ngrok http 3000

Take the ngrok URL, add the required path:

• /calls for an open conference line
• /protected_calls/welcome for a passcode protected conference line
• /verified_calls/welcome for a one-time passcode verified conference line

Then open the edit page for your Twilio phone number and enter it in the field marked "When a call comes in". The full URL should look like: https://YOUR_NGROK_SUBDOMAIN.ngrok.io/PATH. Save the number.

Place a phone call to your Twilio number.

LICENSE

MIT © Phil Nash 2020