2-way SMS

2-way SMS access to Microsoft Office, Excel and VBScript

NowSMS 2-way applications are usually built on web technologies, using PHP or ASP.Net scripting.  But we do get a fair number of support questions from customers who want to use VBScript. The advantage of VBScript is that there are numerous examples available for interfacing with Microsoft Office, especially Excel, and no extra programming tools or environments are required. As a starting point...

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Android Modem – Problems Receiving SMS with 2-way commands

We have recently encountered 2 different scenarios where SMS and MMS messages could be sent, but not received for 2-way command processing. A key indicator of this problem is when the “SMS Received” counter in the Android app increases, but the “SMS Received” status at the NowSMS server remains blank.   There are two types of configurations that may experience this...

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2-Way Commands for SMS and MMS Processing (New 2014 Features)

The 2-Way command feature in NowSMS can be used to build automated SMS and MMS applications.  When an SMS or MMS message is received, NowSMS will evaluate the content of the message, and can either execute a program, or connect to an HTTP URL, based upon the content of the message. The program or script can perform actions based upon the message content, and optionally return a reply. For the...

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2-Way / Inbound SMS Retry Error Handling

This article will explain how NowSMS handles retry situations when processing inbound SMS messages via a 2-way command, and there is a connectivity or other problem processing the 2-way command, particularly with regard to HTTP based 2-way SMS message processing commands. There are other articles that explain how NowSMS handles retry situations for outbound message delivery.  A good overview can...

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Using PHP Scripts to Extend NowSMS

PHP scripts are a great tool for integrating NowSMS into another application environment, or extending the functionality of NowSMS. PHP scripts are often used for 2-way SMS or MMS processing, providing a convenient mechanism for processing the received message content in an application, and optionally replying back to the received message, updating or querying a database, or taking other action...

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2-way SMS Command Speed and Performance (updated)

Before I get to the speed/performance issue that I want to highlight, I’ll review some of the basics of 2-way SMS in NowSMS and provide a few starter links for beginners who might have stumbled upon this post. The 2-way SMS facility of NowSMS is designed to facilitate the processing of inbound, or mobile originated, SMS messages. When NowSMS receives an SMS message, it will evaluate the...

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Routing SMS messages to a Specifc SMSC Route

If you need control over routing to particular SMSC connections, the logic in NowSMS works like this: When NowSMS routes a message, it first looks to see if a sender address has been specified for the message submission (normally there is not a sender address specified, unless either you submitted the message via HTTP and specified a “Sender=” parameter, or a “Forced Sender...

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2-way SMS: Multiple operators with the same shortcode

This configuration issue comes up quite a bit. Let’s say that you are connecting directly to multiple mobile operators, and your service is using the same short code on each operator. When customers send a message in to your short code, you want to make sure that the reply is sent back via the same mobile operator as which the message was received. Additionally, if that message from the...

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2-Way SMS Returning a Non-Text Response

It is a relatively simple process to define a 2-way command that returns a text response to the message sender. The “2-Way” page of the NowSMS configuration dialog allows you to define commands that are executed when an SMS message is received. The receipt of an inbound SMS message by the gateway can cause an executable command to be executed, or the gateway can connect to an HTTP...

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