Trouble with Distinctive Ring

[petegerster]

I am having trouble with #308 distinctive ring.

My church’s telephone setup is a Partner ACS R7.0 with a Partner Messaging System R7. The extensions are all MLS-12 except for extension 10 which is MLS-34D. I installed the system with help from this forum in early 2005. Over the last 5 ½ years except for the addition of an 012E expansion module I have had little to do except to back the system up from time to time.

We have a new minister who would like calls which have been transferred to her from another extension, to ring differently from ones that originate from the outside, through the messaging system. I went back and reread the manuals and, lo and behold that’s the way the system is supposed to work by default. But it doesn’t .

Whether the call comes from outside, is transferred from another extension, or is an intercom call, the ring is a two part one with a longer ring followed by a very short one.

I have checked the status of the distinctive ring on the extensions and they indicate that it is active. That is the default status and I have never made any change to it.
Would anyone be kind enough to tell me where I have gone wrong? Thank you.
Pete Gerster

 

[Westi]

the first ring of a transferred call will still ring like an internal ring and only when the transfer is completed by the person who transfers it will change the ring patterns. That means the person transferring has to hang up the receiver to have the extension ring correctly.
I am not sure if that is the reason but I had it happen that it was just not done.


Joe W.

FHandw., ACSS

insanity is just a state of mind

 

[sysconsultant]

Try resetting the system and see if that corrects the problem.
To reset it:
Press Feature 00
Press the left intercom button twice
Press #728

The system will back itself up and restart. Do it when the system is idle, because it will disconnect anyone on the phone. Sometimes this will correct little things that aren't working right.

 

[petegerster]

Thank you for your help. I reset the system (#728) as suggested and found the following.

For a call that originates outside the building the first ring is a long and a short and each of the remaining rings before the call is transferred to voice mail is a long followed by two shorts

If a call from outside the building is transferred to another extension then it rings at that other extension with each ring being a long and a short.

If an intercom call is initiated it rings with each ring being a long and a short i.e., the same as a transferred call.

The downside is that one has to wait for the second ring to tell whether the call is coming directly from the outside. i.e., the first ring for all calls are the same. Also one cannot discern the difference between an intercom call and an outside call being transferred from another extension.

I cannot find anything which provides confirmation that the above distinctive ringing patterns are correct.
Pete

 

[sysconsultant]

Is Auto Attendant answering the calls right away?

 

[TouchToneTommy]

If a call from outside the building is transferred to another extension then it rings at that other extension with each ring being a long and a short.

The person initiating the transfer hasn't completed the sequence by putting the handset back into the cradle. So at this point, it is still an Intercom call. Ring-Beep. Once they hang up, it's Ring-Beep-Beep. Just like when it comes from the Auto Attendant.

 

[petegerster]

Thank you for that information. However it is bad news, because it means that the person receiving the transferred call is unable to tell that it is a transferred call rather than one coming from the Auto Attendant.

Is it even possible to configure the system so that the ringing pattern would indicate the difference? Actually I suppose the ring-beep followed by the ring-beep-beep would do that. However the receiver of the call would have to be very alert to interpret that correctly.
Pete

 

[petegerster]

Ignore the last two sentence in the previous post. It arose from my confused mind. Thanks.
Pete

 

[petegerster]

I am sorry that I neglected to answer Sysconsultant's question about the Auto Attendant picking up. The Auto Attendant picks up immediately. I hear no rings at all. Thanks
Pete

 

[sysconsultant]

There is a difference in the ring when calls come in from the outside. It is a straight ring without any beeps at the end. However you don't hear that ring, because AA is set up to answer the call and then transfer it to an extension. You only hear the transferred call ring. If you allow the phones to ring in before the AA answers, you would hear it.

Is there someone or a group of people who could answer the calls before the AA answers? The minister's phone wouldn't have to ring and the calls could be screened and then transferred upon her approval or sent directly to her voice mail.

Or - the AA could be programmed so the caller who chooses her "ext" would actually be transferred to someone else or a group of people who would answer and screen her calls in the same manner.

 

[petegerster]

Thank you for thinking about my problem.

The Auto Attendant is the heart of the system. It provides functions that replace the need for a human to be involved such as providing directions to the church, times of services, extension numbers, etc. It would be costly in terms of people's time to provide a person to handle those tasks. The Auto Attendant and messaging system features justified the system originally.
Pete

 

[sysconsultant]

One more option: When the caller chooses the minister's ext in the AA, they could hear a brief greeting instead of directly ringing her phone. This greeting would direct them to leave a message for her or to press 0 for immediate assistance. "0" can transfer them to an ext/ring several phones at once. Whoever answers the call can then let her know who is calling. Either way, if the caller presses "0" or leaves a message, the calls would be screened. You could set up a phantom mailbox or an AA ext to do this.

This work-around has worked for some.

 

[petegerster]

Thank you for your help. The information you guys have provided has improved my understanding of the distinctive ringing operation.

I think I need to go back to the minister now and try to determine what she is really trying to accomplish rather than my getting too hung up on the ringing patterns.
Thanks again.
Pete