Accessing Comfort from Local phone on PABX

[admin]

This is a question posted on the defunct Yahoo Groups which I would like to answer here..

I want to access Comfort using the local (Internal) phones in the house. The problem I have is that Comfort is connected to the incoming line, after the ADSL filter but before a PBX which provides me with 8 extensions. The PBX is set so that the internal \'extensions\' get outside dial tone by default, you do not need to dial 9 for an outside line... This is ideal as 99% of calls go out... The problem is that when you want to make an internal call on the PBX you dial * first. this gives internal dialtone and away you go... You can probably see what is happening already... When I want to connect to Comfort I need to dial * but the PBX is then taking the call and giving me internal dial tone disconnecting me from the Comfort Tel Out connection... Is it possible to change the setting for the Comfort digit that would allow me to connect to say a hash key? I have checked with the PBX and it cannot be changed. Reverting to having to dial 9 for an outside line on the PBX is not an option...

Unfortunately there is no option to change the access key to something other than *
We did consider this in the early days of Comfort but we did not do it as we had not come across a PABX which was like this (until now)

Luckily there is a work around

In Comfigurator > Telecoms > Dialing, there is a setting for \"Time to detect * for Menu\" which is 6 seconds by default

This means that Comfort will wait 6 seconds for the * key to be pressed before it will wait for the user code and # key. After 6 seconds, Comfort stops listening and the * goes out to the telephone line. Hence just wait for 6 seconds before pressing * if you wish to dial an extension

You can shorten the time to 3 seconds so that you do not have to wait so long to dial an extension

[nigelgiddings]

Thanks for the quick response, and sorry for posting in the wrong place.

The solution you suggest won\'t work for me because the internal handsets (extensions) have the PBX between them and comfort...

Line---Comfort---PBX-----Extensions

If I dial * at any time the PBX routes the call so that I can call other (internal) extensions.

I could make Comfort an extension but I wanted as little H/W as possible between Comfort and the outside world. It would also mean I would need to dial * (to tell the PBX to dial the extension ), the extn no used for Comfort, and then * to access comfort, which probably wouldn\'t get a high WAF rating.

This would also mean the call would appear on the \'Tel In\' connection, I\'m not sure if there is a differance in features between calls which originate on \'Tel In\' compared with \'Tel Out\'.

Nigel, still head scratching...

[admin]

Sorry about the mix-up, I did not read your post thoroughly
It looks like you are stuck with the two alternatives.

If you connect Comfort after the PABX, you will have to dial the extension as you say. Comfort will treat it as an incoming call which it will answer after a number of rings

Another consideration is if you have a door station, in the current connection it will ring the PABX which means all extensions wil ring, while if you put Comfort after the PABX only the telephone connected to TEL OUT will ring

What PABX are you using, is it a common type?

[nigelgiddings]

The point you make regarding answering after a number of rings if I connect Comfort as an extension is very relavant... At the moment most of the extensions ring on an incoming call. I would have to set the extension Comfort would be connected to not to ring on incoming calls, only to ring if someone called that extension directly, otherwise an external call could end up in the Comfort menu... The plus side to this is I could set the number of rings very low, the minus side is that I would not be able to communicate with Comfort from an outside call.

I do not have a door station at the moment, I actually use a cheap add on from the same company that provide the PBX. The main reason is that I haven\'t been able to get SWMBO to approve a door station so we have a cheap temporary solution. This is fitted to the electric gates and calls all the house phones when pressed allowing us to open the gate through DTMF on any of the DECT handsets. I use Comfort to pulse open/close and hold open permanantly the gates using some toggle switches in the kitchen. I have to say Comfort is very good for this allowing me to use custom switches (retractive) to do whatever I want in S/W.

The PBX I am using is a TC-408A 4 CO line   8 Extensions

see http://www.tomat.com.tw/pabx-e.htm

The instruction manual is here:

http://www.tomat.com.tw/PABX/TC2000Aum-3OGM.htm 

The feature I am using is called:

Outward Dialing directly

Format: Pick up the handset and dial extension number directly after hearing the CO line tone.

Description: Making outgoing calls on extensions with direct dialing mode, no line access code required.

Allows you to redial the last telephone number.

and this works with

Intercom calling at direct outward mode

Format: * Extension number

Description: Make internal call from extension with direct outward mode.

Example: Extension 805 is at direct outward dialing mode and he want call extension 807.

  Pick up extension   Input   *807   Talking   Hang up

The PBX has a lot of features and so far has been 100% releiable, 1 year plus... and the price was very resonable

Thanks for looking at this for me.

Nigel

[nigelgiddings]

I have managed to work out a \'work-around\', however it is not very Wife Friendly...

I can use the following dialling pattern to access Comfort via the PBX.

* (causes the PBX to give me internal dial tone)

#1 (forces the PBX to connect me to LINE 1 (which is the normal O/G Line))

* (causes comfort to interupt the connection to the outside line (the PBX ignores this second *))

XXXX (entering PIN gives me comfort voice menu)

So all I need to do is enter *#1*XXXX to access Comfort. Haven\'t tried this as a short dial code on the handsets yet, not sure if it will be slow enough to be caught by the various devices between steps...

Nigel

[admin]

Congratulations on discovering these codes
I am sure you must have gone through a lot of documentation

Perhaps you can dial *#1* as a quick dial function and the code and # to be entered manually. This may raise the WAF