This document describes the procedure to create a background image for
a Cisco 7970 IP Phone in the Cisco CallManager Express environment.
Cisco recommends that you have knowledge of Cisco CallManager
The information in this document is based on Cisco CallManager Express
Version 4.1(0), Cisco Unified CallManager Express 7.0 and laterter.
The information in this document was created from the devices in a
specific lab environment. All of the devices used in this document started with
a cleared (default) configuration. If your network is live, make sure that you
understand the potential impact of any command.
Technical Tips Conventions for more information on document
Complete these steps to create a customized background image for a
Cisco 7970 IP Phone on Cisco CallManager Express:
Use an image manipulation program of your choice to create two
Portable Network Graphics (PNG) files for each image:
The size ratio of these two images is 4 to 1.
Use a text editor to edit the List.xml file.
The List.xml file can include up to 50 background images. The
images are in the order that they appear in the Background Images menu on the
phone. For each image, the List.xml file contains one element type, called
Image Item. The Image Item element includes these two attributes:
Image—The uniform resource identifier (URI) that
specifies where the phone obtains the thumbnail image that appears on the
Background Images menu on a phone.
URL—The URI that specifies where the phone
obtains the full size image.
This example shows a List.xml file that defines
one image. The required image and URL attributes must be included for each
image. In this example, TN-velara.png is twenty-five percent of the original
full size image of velara.png.
Place the new .png files and List.xml that you created in the tftp
folder on the TFTP server.
This is the folder name if you use the TFTP server that runs on
Use this command to move the List.xml and .png files to the Cisco
CallManager Express Flash one-by-one:
copy tftp flash:Desktops/320x212x12/
This next output is of the command when the transfer of List.xml to
the Cisco CallManager Express Flash from the TFTP server occurred. In similar
manner, copy the TN-velara.png and velara.png from the TFTP server to the
CME-CUE#copy tftp flash:Desktops/320x212x12/
Address or name of remote host ? 172.16.1.1
Source filename ? List.xml
Destination filename [Desktops/320x212x12/List.xml]?
%Warning:There is a file already existing with this name
Do you want to over write? [confirm]
Loading List.xml from 172.16.1.1 (via GigabitEthernet0/1): !
[OK - 251 bytes]
251 bytes copied in 0.948 secs (265 bytes/sec)
After the loading process completes, the Desktops/320x212x12
directory on the Cisco CallManager Express Flash contains List.xml and all .png
files. The output of the dir command is shown
Directory of flash:/Desktops/320x212x12/
3 -rw- 120049 Jul 3 2008 11:20:42 -05:30 velara.png
4 -rw- 251 Feb 4 2009 06:09:14 -05:30 List.xml
5 -rw- 8947 Jul 3 2008 11:22:06 -05:30 TN-velara.png
Note: If the Desktops/320x212x12 directory is not
found, you need to create a folder in that name using the
mkdir command. Some flash file systems do not allow
creating a directory with the mkdir command.
Note: In that case you need to backup the flash content and format the
flash using the format flash: command, and make a
Class C Flash file system.
Add the appropriate tftp-server commands
on the Cisco CallManager Express configuration to load List.xml and all .png
Note: Use the debug tftp events command to
find out which file the phone searches for when the backgound selection button
is pressed on the IP phone.
Complete these steps to load a new background image on the Cisco
7970 IP Phone:
Select User Preferences (choice
Select Background Images (choice
Download and display the reduced images as
Select the image and press
Complete these steps in order to change the background image of your
7970 Cisco IP Phones registered to Cisco Unified Call Manager Express
Create your background image as per the size mentioned here. In
CUCME you can have the Full image size as:
Create an XML file and save it as List.xml. Because this file is
case-sensitive you can also follow the same steps for CME as mentioned in step
2 above. This is a sample List.xml file:
<ImageItem Image=”TFTP:Desktops/320x212x16/TN-NantucketFlowers.png” URL=”TFTP:Desktops/320x212x16/NantucketFlowers.png”/>
Make sure to match the correct directory path and the image name.
The “TN-NantucketFlowers.png” is the thumbnail image and “NantucketFlowers.png”
is the full size image.
Check if there is a directory on flash, such as
Desktops/320x212x16. If not, login to the CUCME
and create the necessary directories.
Place the background files (both thumbnails and full size) and
list.xml inside the tftp server.
Copy the *.png files and list.xml across to CUCME flash from the
copy tftp://10.10.210.5/List.xml flash:Desktops/320x212x16/List.xml
copy tftp://10.10.210.5/small.png flash:Desktops/320x212x16/TN-NantucketFlowers.png
copy tftp://10.10.210.5/small.png flash:Desktops/320x212x16/NantucketFlowers.png
Enter these commands in order to make the router as a TFTP
This is a sample:
C3825-ORIG#show run | sec tftp-server
In order to load a new background image, go to IP Phone and
complete these steps:
Select User Preferences.
Select Background Images.
Download and display the reduced images as
Select the image and press
For troubleshooting enable debug tftp
events on the router.
This is similar to the IP Phone 7975. The background image on 7970
can also be used on 7975.
The background image is stored in the Flash memory of the IP phone.
This cannot be deleted unless you perform a factory reset of the 7970 IP phone.
Complete these steps in order to perform a factory reset of the IP phone. The
phone must be on a network that supports DHCP.
Unplug the power cable from the phone and then plug it back in. The
phone begins its power up cycle.
While the phone powers up, and before the Speaker button flashes on
and off, press #. Each line button flashes on and off in
Press 123456789*0#. You can press a key twice in a
row, but if you press the keys out of sequence, the factory reset does not take
The phone is loaded with the default background factory
The background image chosen by the user depends upon the images
available in the TFTP folder. If you need to restrict the background images
used by the user, remove the images from the TFTP folder. Then, take off the
TFTP bindings for the file and modify the List.xml.
When you try to change the background image in
Settings > User Preferences >
Background Images, the Selections
Unavailable error message appears.
This issue can occur when the List.xml file is absent
from the C:\Program
Files\Cisco\TFTPPath\Desktops\320x212x12 folder on the TFTP
server. Make sure the \Desktops\320x212x12
folder is present in the TFTP server and that the List.xml
file is available under this directory.
Note: Make sure the TFTP server IP address configuration on the IP phone
refers to the Cisco CallManager Express router.