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Nortel Phone System 2

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Danielle316

Technical User
Mar 9, 2023
3
US
Hi,

First time poster here and I know very little about this system.

We have the big on the wall Nortel Networks phone system, it powers our phones, we purchased new vtech cordless phones, but upon trying to switch the phone line to the new system it does not work, it shows it is connected but there is no dial tone/way to make or receive calls.

Is there a way we can just disconnect the nortel system and use the new phones with our router (we have ATT modem that controls two of our phone lines)?

I appreciate any advice, and sorry I do not know all of the technicals.

Danielle
 
Welcome.

The lines provided by the carrier wire up to the phone system
The phone system will provide station ports for phones, Digital or IP phones.
If analog devices are required for cordless, fax, modem, conference units etc then you need an ATA installed.
The ATA converts the digital signal from the phone system to analog.

How many pre-existing desk phones do you have?
How many new cordless phones do you have?
What model Nortel phone system do you have?
--You might see boxes on the wall, the larger one is the phone system, the smaller one is the voicemail system, images here
--You can look carefully at images here to match yours then look at the name of it.
Possible names:
3X8
6X16
8X24
CICS
MICS
BCM

If you want to remove the system then you need to call in a tech to rewire the main panel.
Note that you will lose a lot of features if you do that, possible loose your voicemail/mailboxes etc.
The tech can also install ATA's and put an Answer key on the current desk phone so both their phones ring.

Yes Don, all products from Vtech are Analog.


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Toronto, Canada

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Hello Danielle

It might be easier if you can take a photograph of the phone system on the wall and post it here as it will be easier for us to advise you on a possible solution.

Firebird Scrambler

Nortel & Avaya Meridian 1 / Succession & BCM / Norstar Programmer

Website = linkedin
 
Thank you all for such the fast responses.

I am attaching all the pictures of our equipment and the phones we are getting now.

We have three office phones and are switching to this where there is one base and two extra cordless phones. Each of the office phones have that little white box attached to it.

I appreciate all your help.

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You have:
Norstar CICS (Compact ICS) phone system - The one thats says Nortel Norstar with 1 LED light
Nortel Callpilot 100 voicemail system - The one that says Nortel Networks

Do you want desk phones and cordless or mix match?
Either way you need a tech, but if its a mix and match then you do have 1 ATA port built into the CICS, you could loop all 3 of that but it depends on what your trying to achieve.








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Toronto, Canada

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We were just hoping to switch all of our corded phones to cordless.

We thought it would be a simple unplug the old and plug in the new but that does not seem to be the case HA!

 
This splitter might do the trick.

There is not much room to plug it into your Router, the port that says Lines 1&2

Workaround is to not plug it in but rather be an inline splitter.

Get 3 line cords, the cordless base may have come with 2 of them, steal another from one of Nortel phones.

Unplug the white or grey cable going to Lines 1&2 on the router (white port), do nothing else with it.

Line cord 1 - Goes from Line 1 on the splitter >>>> to the Line 1 under the Cordless Base.
Line cord 2 - Goes from Line 2 on the splitter >>>> to the Line 2 under the Cordless Base.
Line cord 3 - Goes from the port on the router that says Lines 1&2 >>>> to the LN 1+2 on the splitter

That should do it.


Should you change your mind and keep phone system:
Norstar Feature Card
CICS System Coordinator Guide
Callpilot Reference Guide
Callpilot Setup & Operation Guide



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Toronto, Canada

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I'm curious. What do you want to accomplish by taking the Norstar out of the mix? I get that you want new phones, but is there a reason for that? As curlycord said, you'll lose quite a bit of functionality when you disconnect it. You have T7316E phones, you could clean them, replace the cards and paper underneath and get wireless headsets, they'll look much nicer that way!

An option like that will give you the ability to roam around the office on the phone, but you'll get to keep the Norstar, along with all the functionality it brings to the table.
 
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