Go-Live Checklist

Before launching your Exotel integration in production, work through this checklist to ensure your setup is reliable, secure, and scalable. Each section covers critical areas that should be verified before handling live customer traffic.

Account & Compliance

Item	Status	Notes
KYC verification complete		Required for production access
Account upgraded from trial to paid plan		Trial limitations removed
Billing payment method configured		Credit card, debit card, or net banking
Auto-recharge enabled		Prevents service interruptions
Sufficient credits loaded		Budget for first month of expected usage
DLT Entity ID registered (SMS, India)		Required for all SMS in India
DLT templates approved (SMS, India)		All message templates must be pre-approved
DLT Sender IDs registered		Associated with your templates
TRAI calling hours configured		Campaigns scheduled within 9 AM -- 9 PM IST
DND/NDNC filtering verified		Contact lists scrubbed against NDNC registry

ExoPhones & Call Flows

Item	Status	Notes
Production ExoPhones purchased		Replace trial numbers with production DIDs
Call flows assigned to all ExoPhones		Every ExoPhone must have an active flow
Call flows tested end-to-end		Test every IVR path, routing option, and fallback
Call recording consent configured		Greeting plays consent message before recording
Voicemail fallback configured		Calls are handled when agents are unavailable
Agent phone numbers verified		All agent numbers correct and active
Ring timeouts appropriate		15-30 seconds recommended

tip

Create dedicated production ExoPhones separate from your trial numbers. If you used trial numbers during development, switch to production numbers before publishing them to customers.

API Integration

Item	Status	Notes
Production API credentials configured		Not trial credentials
Correct regional API base URL		api.exotel.com (Singapore) or api.in.exotel.com (India)
Credentials stored securely		Environment variables or secrets manager; not in code
.env file added to .gitignore		Prevents credential exposure
API error handling implemented		Handle 401, 403, 404, 429, 500 responses
Rate limiting / retry logic in code		Exponential backoff for 429 errors
Timeout handling configured		Set reasonable HTTP timeouts (30 seconds)
API response validation		Verify expected response structure before processing

Webhooks

Item	Status	Notes
Webhook endpoints publicly accessible		No firewall or VPN blocking
HTTPS endpoints (not HTTP)		Encrypted transport required
Endpoints return HTTP 200 within 5 seconds		Fast acknowledgment prevents delivery failures
Async processing implemented		Queue webhook payloads; process asynchronously
Idempotency handling		Use CallSid/SmsSid as dedup keys
Webhook failure alerting		Monitor for delivery failures
All callback URLs configured		call_status_callback, sms_status_callback, status_callback

warning

Webhook endpoints that consistently fail (non-200 responses or timeouts) may be deactivated by Exotel. Monitor your webhook endpoint's health with uptime checks and error alerts.

Security

Item	Status	Notes
API credentials not in source code		Use environment variables
API Token rotated from development token		Generate fresh production token
IP allowlisting configured (if applicable)		Enterprise feature for additional security
Webhook signature validation		Verify webhook authenticity
Call recording access restricted		Only authorized personnel can access recordings
SSO configured (if applicable)		Enterprise SAML/OAuth integration
Team access review completed		Verify user roles and permissions

Scaling & Performance

Item	Status	Notes
Expected call volume estimated		Concurrent calls and calls per minute
Account capacity sufficient		Default: 60 calls/min, 300 SMS/min
Capacity increase requested (if needed)		Contact support before go-live
Campaign throttle settings configured		Prevent capacity overload
Database sized for webhook volume		Each call generates 3-5 webhook events
Webhook endpoint can handle peak load		Test with expected concurrent connections
Auto-scaling configured for your servers		Handle traffic spikes from large campaigns

Capacity Planning

Estimate your capacity needs:

Metric	Calculation	Example
Peak concurrent calls	(calls per minute) x (avg call duration in minutes)	60 CPM x 2 min = 120 concurrent
Daily call volume	(calls per minute) x (operating hours) x 60	60 CPM x 8 hrs x 60 = 28,800 calls
Webhook events per day	(daily calls) x 4 events per call	28,800 x 4 = 115,200 events
SMS per day	Campaign volume + transactional volume	Varies

info

If your estimated peak concurrent calls exceed your plan's limit, request a capacity increase at least 1 week before go-live. Exotel needs time to provision additional capacity for your account.

Monitoring & Alerting

Item	Status	Notes
Credit balance monitoring		Alert when balance drops below threshold
Webhook delivery monitoring		Track success/failure rates
Call quality monitoring		Monitor duration, connect rates, error rates
API error rate monitoring		Alert on elevated 4xx or 5xx rates
Campaign completion monitoring		Track campaign progress and failures
Uptime monitoring for webhook endpoints		External health checks every minute
Dashboard access for operations team		Supervisors can monitor real-time activity

Recommended Alerts

Alert	Trigger	Action
Low credit balance	Balance < INR 1,000	Add credits immediately
High API error rate	> 5% errors in 5 minutes	Investigate; check credentials and rate limits
Webhook delivery failures	> 10% failures in 10 minutes	Check endpoint health; fix and re-deploy
Campaign connect rate drop	Below 25% for 30 minutes	Pause campaign; review list quality and timing
No calls in expected window	Zero calls for 15 minutes during business hours	Verify ExoPhones and call flows are active

Documentation & Runbooks

Item	Status	Notes
Integration architecture documented		API flow, webhook handling, data flow
Runbooks for common issues		Steps for credential rotation, campaign management
Escalation contacts documented		Exotel support, account manager, internal team
Exotel support channel established		support.exotel.com, hello@exotel.com
Team trained on dashboard usage		Supervisors and agents know their tools

Pre-Launch Verification

Before flipping the switch to production:

1. Run a pilot campaign with 50-100 real contacts
2. Verify end-to-end flow from API call to webhook to CRM
3. Check all integrations (CRM, helpdesk, analytics)
4. Confirm billing is set up and auto-recharge works
5. Validate compliance (DLT, DND, calling hours)
6. Brief your team on the new system and escalation procedures

Post-Launch Monitoring

During the first 48 hours after go-live:

Check	Frequency	What to Look For
Credit balance	Every 2 hours	Unexpected depletion rate
Call connect rate	Every hour	Sudden drops below baseline
SMS delivery rate	Every hour	DLT rejections or delivery failures
Webhook health	Continuous	Delivery failures or timeouts
Customer complaints	Continuous	Incorrect routing, wrong caller ID, spam reports
Campaign progress	Per campaign	On-track completion

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Quick Reference: Support Contacts

Channel	Contact
Support portal	support.exotel.com
Email support	hello@exotel.com
Dashboard chat	Bottom-right corner of my.exotel.com
Account manager	As assigned during onboarding
Emergency support	Contact your account manager directly

Next Steps

• Regions & Availability -- Understand regional options
• Browser Requirements -- WebRTC and dashboard compatibility
• Voice API Quickstart -- Start building with the Voice API
• Campaign Guides -- Launch your first production campaign