Cisco IP Phone Background Images (CUCM)

Good evening, colleagues!

Today I'd like to tell you about how to install and change the background images of Cisco IP phones. This process is very well described in the phone Administration Guides, but I would still like to make some generalization for the most commonly used phone models and show the process itself using the example of installing a background image for the Cisco 7965 phone on the CUCM server.

So, first, let's figure out where background images are stored and how the phone receives them. Background image files must be in .png format. They are stored on a TFTP server (usually one of the CUCM servers in the cluster). To install a new picture, you will need two files: one will actually be used for the screen, and the second (thumbnail) will be used as an icon in the phone's background image selection menu (Settings->User Preferences->Background Images). The phone receives information about which images are available for selection from the List.xml file, which is also stored on the TFTP server.

Files with images, both the main file and the thumbnail file, must be modified in a graphics editor (for example, you can use even Paint) before loading, namely, you need to set the required width and height of the image, suitable for the IP phone screen. You will also need to rewrite the List.xml file - specify the names of new background image files (both the main file and the thumbnail file) in it. After that, the image files and the List.xml file are uploaded to the appropriate folder on the TFTP server. The following table shows the required image file settings for different phone models, as well as the names of the folders on the TFTP server where they should be uploaded:

Phone Model	Full Image Size	Thumbnail Image Size	TFTP Directory Path
7906 / 7911	95×34	23×8	/Desktops/95x34x1
7941 / 7961	320×196	80×49	/Desktops/320x196x4
7942 / 7962	320×196	80×49	/Desktops/320x196x4
7945 / 7965	320×212	80×53	/Desktops/320x212x16
7970 / 7971	320×212	80×53	/Desktops/320x212x12
7975	320×212	80×53	/Desktops/320x216x16

Now let's take a step-by-step look at the process of adding new background images for your phone. We use the phone model 7965 and CUCM v8.5:

1. In the graphical editor (we use Paint), change the size of the image for the main file (320x212) and do similar changes for the image of  file for the thumbnail file (80x53).

We save the main image file with the name zastavka_kc.png, the thumbnail file - with the name zastavka_kc_thumb.png.

2. Make changes to the List.xml file. We describe the paths to the thumbnail file and to the file with the main image.

<CiscoIPPhoneImageList>
<ImageItem Image="TFTP:Desktops/320x212x16/zastavka_kc_thumb.png"
URL="TFTP:Desktops/320x212x16/zastavka_kc.png"/>

</CiscoIPPhoneImageList>

3. Upload both image files and the List.xml file to the TFTP server into the folder Desktops/320x212x16

4. After uploading the files, you need to restart the TFTP server.

5. Now you are ready to select a new background image on your phone. Press Settings button on your phone and then follow the path: 

Settings->User Preferences->Background Images

Select the new thumbnail icon that appears, and after that a new background image screen appears on the screen.