How to migrate from OSDial to VICIdial

OSDial is a fork of VICIdial that diverged several years ago. It keeps the same MySQL schema structure, the same Asterisk AGI scripts, and the same agent interface URL patterns. If you run a current OSDial installation the migration to a maintained VICIdial is largely a data lift - pick up the tables, do a quick schema diff to catch any OSDial-specific columns, and restore on the new host. There is no data model translation to do.

The broader migration framework is in the complete VICIdial migration guide - read that alongside this post.

Why teams move off OSDial

OSDial's open-source development slowed significantly after its peak years. Security patches lag behind the VICIdial trunk, and the project's support forums are sparse. Many operators stay on old OS versions because upgrading OSDial in place is undocumented and risky. The practical move is to take the data and stand up a fresh VICIdial on a current Ubuntu LTS.

Schema differences to watch

Before any data move, run SHOW COLUMNS FROM vicidial_list on both sides. OSDial added columns in some builds (lead scoring fields, custom flags) that VICIdial does not have. Those extra columns will fail silently on restore if you do a straight dump-restore without stripping them. The safest approach is to dump to CSV per table, remove unrecognized columns, and re-import using the Lead loader for Lead data.

The Campaign table (vicidial_campaigns) is the most likely place to find drift. OSDial patched some dial method defaults and added per-campaign settings that VICIdial handles differently. Rather than migrating the campaigns table directly, it is safer to recreate campaigns by hand in the new VICIdial UI, then import lead lists into them. A campaign only has about 40 meaningful fields - it takes under an hour to rebuild five campaigns manually.

Tables that move cleanly

• vicidial_list - lead records, move via CSV + lead-loader
• vicidial_dnc - system DNC, direct table insert is fine
• vicidial_users - agent accounts, dump and restore with a column check
• vicidial_inbound_groups - ingroup definitions for inbound routing
• vicidial_statuses - disposition/status code list

Migration sequence

sequenceDiagram
    participant OS as OSDial server
    participant Diff as Schema diff
    participant VD as New VICIdial
    OS->>Diff: SHOW COLUMNS on both sides
    Diff->>VD: Identify safe tables
    OS->>VD: Dump vicidial_list as CSV
    VD->>VD: Import via lead-loader
    OS->>VD: Dump vicidial_dnc direct insert
    OS->>VD: Dump users and ingroups
    VD->>VD: Rebuild campaigns manually
    VD->>VD: Repoint SIP trunk
    VD->>VD: Test dial and verify dispositions

Recordings and DNC

OSDial stores recordings in the same path as VICIdial: /var/spool/asterisk/monitor. Rsync the archive to your new server or to object storage. Your DNC list from OSDial is a direct table match - dump vicidial_dnc and load it into the new instance before enabling any campaigns.

For the data checklist before you start, see the migration data export checklist.

If you want a managed destination for your data rather than another self-hosted box, VICIfast managed plans spin up a fresh secured VICIdial in under 40 seconds. Import your data, point your carrier, and you are running on current software with no server maintenance overhead.