Extensions
Users communicate to the system through extensions. Extensions can be called directly or they can be part of ring groups and call queues. Typically an extension has one or more registrations with devices of the user, like VoIP phones, apps or the browser. There are a lot of settings available for an extension. This page explains how to create and manage extensions.
Creating new extensions
Creating a single extension
To create extensions, navigate into a tenant and click on Accounts → Extensions. At the bottom of the table, there is a button which opens a dialog for creating a new extension.
The dialog prompts for the most important fields for an extension. Other settings for the extension can be set after creation.
- Account number(s): The unique account number for the extension, for example "40".
- First Name, Last Name: The first name and last name fields will be displayed for all internal and external calls.
- Use name in announcements: If this setting is enabled, the system will generate audio files from the name in the mailbox and when calling an extension through the auto attendant.
- Email addresses for extension: The email address used for this extension.
- PIN: The PIN code for the extension. When you create extensions, you can leave the PIN field empty and opt to have users set up their own PINs.
- Cell phone number: A optional cell phone number associated with the extension.
- Automatically generate web password: When enabled the system will generate a random account password for the extension (see below).
- Automatically generate SIP password: When enabled the system will generate a random password for VoIP phones for the extension.
- Profile picture: A profile picture for the account. The system will generate a random profile picture using the initials for the extension if there is no image available.
- Clone settings from account: If there is another account that has all settings already configured, this field can be used to clone that account using the settings of the dialog.
After submitting the form, the extension will be created which you can see in the table. By clicking on the account number, you can edit all details of the account. If an email was provided, the system will send a welcome email to the user that contains the information for the extension.
It is recommended to let the system choose a random password. This avoids the problem that users choose trivial passwords. When using automatic provisioning of VoIP phones, there is no need to see or set the account password. And when using the apps, the pairing typically does not involve a password either. If the user needs to log in through a browser, it is recommended to use passkeys instead of passwords.
Creating multiple extensions
Creating multiple extensions is done through CSV files. Those files can typically be prepared with an external spreadsheet tool and those files can contain hundreds of entries that would be too labor intensive to manually create through the web interface. See CSV for more information.
Vodia Extension Tutorial
Configuring an Extension
There are a lot of settings for each extension. When clicking on the account number, the web browser will show several tabs on top of the extension settings.
- The first tab is General which has the general settings of the extension.
- The next tab is Redirection which has settings involving redirection of the extension like DND, call forwarding, cell phone inclusion etc.
- The next tab is Mailbox which has the mailbox settings, including interface for uploading the greeting wave files, and shows the voicemails of the extension.
- The next tab is Email for setting up the email address and other email settings of the extension.
- The next tab is Registration for settings related to registrations for the extension.
- The next tab is Permission where you can define what permissions the extension has.
- The next tab is Buttons for setting up the buttons of VoIP devices that will register to this extension.
- The next tab is Provisioning that allows to control the provisioning of devices and the apps.
- The next tab is Webhooks which controls what web clients requests are triggered from the extension.
- The next tab is Customize which lets you change the look and feel for this user. It also allows you to change the web pages & phone config templates, etc.
- The next tab is Graphs that shows the usage of the extension over the past 24 hours.
General
At the top of the page, there is a link that will take the administrator into the user portal. This allows the administrator to view the extension from the users point of view.
Administrator only
Account number(s): The number or numbers assigned to this extension.
Extension feature set: This field controls what features are available for this extension. This setting is available only with license types that provide for different extension types, see extension types for more information.
Account class name: This field can be used for billing and is not used by the phone system itself. For example, if the extension is used in a service environmente with some special VoIP phone, the name might reflect that.
Dial plan: Dial plans determine which trunks are used for outbound calls. Dial plans that are available in the tenant show up in this dial plan dropdown.
Outbound Number (ANI): ANI (Automatic Number Identification) is a service that tells the recipient of a telephone call which telephone number made the call. For more information, see Trunk ANI.
ANI for emergency calls: When this field is populated, this ANI will serve as the callback number when an emergency number has been dialed. For more information, see Trunk ANI. The Emergency ANI will now be shown, enclosed in parenthesis when displaying "All Accounts" list, in versions above 63.0.
ANI for SMS: This field can be used to assign a specific SMS number to the extension when creating new SMS conversations.
ANI for FAX: When sending a FAX, the PBX will look into this field for a number that should be presented when sending a FAX.
FAX DID numbers: In this setting you can enter the numers that should be routed directly to the mailbox as FAX calls.
FAX header text: If this text is set, it will be used in the header line for a FAX message. If not, it will use the tenant setting and if that is not set, the ANI for the call.
Send daily CDR report to: Enter the extension number(s) that should receive the CDR report for this extension. Use semicolons between multiple email addresses, since email addresses may contain spaces.
Send daily CDR report at: Instead of sending email out at midnight, reports can also be generated at different times. If is possible to send at multiple times, for example at the end of the week and at the end of the day. In such cases the patterns are seperated by spaces. Reports can be send daily, weekly (specify a day of the week), monthly, quarterly and yearly.
Duration for keep activity logs: This setting how long activities are stored on the system. Activities are shown in the user front end, for example when a call was missed and a callback is suggested.
Use ACD dialplan when logged in as an agent: This setting is useful for agents making outbound calls. When this setting is enabled, the dialplan selected under ACD will be used instead of the dialplan designated for that user's extension.
Number ACD groups this extension can log into: This setting allows the admin to restrict the number of agent groups the agent can be logged into at any one time.
Maximum number of CDRs: This setting allows the admin to control the number of CDRs that a particular user can retain. The admin can also control the accumulative number of CDRs that are stored on the disk (see also the tenants Maximum number of CDRs.
Maximum call duration As the name suggest, this helps set the time limit allowed on the duration of the call on the extensions. It ranges between one minute to four hours.
Generate PCAP traces for calls The PCAP traces of the call for troubleshooting could be generated from this level. There is another option under Trunk → VoIP Providers for capturing traces which shows, both the legs of the call, unlike extension level option.
Store syslog messages: This flag is used to collect syslog messages from VoIP phones. This flag will automatically set the provisioning files for the VoIP phones and show the syslog messages in the registration tab. This feature can be useful to troubleshoot problems with VoIP phone even when there is no practical way to log into the phone.
Account Profile
First name and last name: These fields will be displayed for all internal and external calls (international characters are permitted).
Short name: A short name for the extension. This short name is used in places where there is not much space, for example on soft labels of certain VoIP phones.
Note field: A general purpose for taking notes on the account. This field is not used by the PBX and it is only visible to the administrator.
Profile picture: The profile picture will be displayed whenever the user calls another extension within the same domain (as long as the other extension has picture-displaying capability).
Position: This field is for the user's position/job function in the company.
Department: This field is for the user's deprtment. The field is free text, however a select button is available to pick an existing value to avoid double entries because of typing differences.
Building: This field is for the user's building. This is field is also free text and there is also a button available.
Room: This field can be used to assign a room in the builing.
SIP Password: The SIP password influences the connection between the VoIP phone and the system. Users should not change this password, as it will interfere with access to other registered SIP devices (e.g. soft phone). SIP passwords are not needed when VoIP phones are automatically provisioned.
Password for the account: This password is used to access the Vodia PBX user front end. The system checks if the password is in the password history and rejects repeat passwords.
PIN: The user's PIN will be used in several areas of the system (e.g., when accessing their voicemail from an outside phone, when using the calling card account, and when hot desking). For optimum security, users should be required to use at least five digits.
Timezone
Timezone: This setting tells the system the user's time zone. It will affect the time stamps of the mailbox and all other time stamps related to the extension. When using the extension from a time zone that differs from the domain's time zone, users will need to override the domain setting.
Language
IVR Language: This setting controls the language of voice prompts delivered by the system, as well as the language that is displayed on the LCD of the user's phone. (Callers will not hear the language when calling into the user's mailbox.)
Web Language: This setting allows users to control the language of the Vodia PBX web interface and in the emails they receive from the system. Users can override this setting during their initial login to the web interface.
Ring tone
Ring melody: This ring melody will be suggested when someone calls the extension.
From-header: This header will control what is shown on a VoIP phone when someone calls the extension.
Monitoring and call pickup
Explicitly specify pickup preference: This setting allows users to specify the accounts that will be picked up when they execute the Call Pickup (*87
) feature. This setting is especially useful when extensions have been grouped with certain agent groups and hunt groups, as it will prevent the wrong calls from being picked up.
Explicitly specify park orbit preference: This setting allows users to specify a list of park orbits that can be used for parking calls. When park orbits have been entered into this field and the user executes the Call Park (*85
) feature, the system chooses the first available orbit.
Miscellaneous
Block outgoing caller-ID: This setting allows the user to control whether their caller-ID is shown when making outbound calls.
Enable Call Waiting: This setting allows the user to turn call waiting on and off.
Wakeup time: This field allows users to receive automatic wakeup calls from the system. Though this feature is used primarily in hospitality environments, it can also be used on an individual basis. A wakeup call can also be activated using star code *62
.
Address Book
Address book visibility: This setting controls what address book the user will see, the user address book and/or the shared address book.
Include accounts in the phone address book: This setting controls weather the accounts of the tenant are included in the address book. The setting may include all account types, only extensions or none.
SPAM score for regular address book entries: If set, this will set the SPAM score for regular address book entries.
SPAM score for numbers not found in the address book: If set, this will set the SPAM score for numbers which are not found in the address book.
Music On Hold
Music on hold source This is the extension level music on hold feature which takes precedence over the one set on tenant level, given that various wav files are uploaded in the tenant to be used here.
Ringback source: This setting controls what ringback music the caller hears when calling the extension directly.
Ringback source busy: This setting controls what ringback music the caller hears when calling the extension directly and the extension is another call.