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Will this work with OBI202?

Started by allmyphones, February 10, 2013, 11:54:55 AM

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allmyphones

Hi - I'm considering OBi202 to work with 3 Google Voice accounts and one other SIP account and was wondering if the following setup would work. 

For Line 1 - Port 2 cell numbers to Google Voice and have them ring line 1 of the OBI202.
- Each should have a distinctive ring. 
- I should be able to make calls from each of these lines separately so the right caller ID appears on the other side. 

Will this work?  What happens if one of the lines is being used and the other line rings? Is there a way to identify the number being used through the caller ID(other than the ring)?  Can the OBI be made to not ring if the mobile phone that support the number is not within wifi range?

For Line 2 - Port the home number to Google Voice;  In addition get a number from a SIP provider that supports 911 calls/fax.  Pay the least amount possible for the second number.
- Same as above;   Both these numbers should ring the second line (distinctive rings)
- When I dial out, the receiver should be able to see the number the call is coming from.  This is especially important for this line since the second line is needed for emergency calls/fax.
- Can this line output be split to permanently connect to the fax and to a handset so I'm using the GV number for calls and the fax machine for faxes/E911 calls.  I don't expect inbound calls and minimal inbound faxes.

Wondering if the above setup will work with OBI202?  Appreciate your thoughts..

Thanks!

Rick

Hi - I'm considering OBi202 to work with 3 Google Voice accounts and one other SIP account and was wondering if the following setup would work. 

For Line 1 - Port 2 cell numbers to Google Voice and have them ring line 1 of the OBI202.
- Each should have a distinctive ring. 
- I should be able to make calls from each of these lines separately so the right caller ID appears on the other side. 

Will this work? 

Standard feature of how the OBi works, so yes.

What happens if one of the lines is being used and the other line rings?

It rings.  Two lines, each with two service providers.  Two phones. 

Is there a way to identify the number being used through the caller ID(other than the ring)?

No.  Callerid represents WHO is calling, not what number they called.  Unless you forward a call from A to B, in which case you'll see A's number represented.

Can the OBI be made to not ring if the mobile phone that support the number is not within wifi range?

No idea.

For Line 2 - Port the home number to Google Voice;  In addition get a number from a SIP provider that supports 911 calls/fax.  Pay the least amount possible for the second number.
- Same as above;   Both these numbers should ring the second line (distinctive rings)
- When I dial out, the receiver should be able to see the number the call is coming from.  This is especially important for this line since the second line is needed for emergency calls/fax.

That's how the OBis function.
- Can this line output be split to permanently connect to the fax and to a handset so I'm using the GV number for calls and the fax machine for faxes/E911 calls.  I don't expect inbound calls and minimal inbound faxes.

I think what you'd want to do is connect the fax to the OBi, then your phone to the fax.  Setup dialing to use whichever service provider you want, i.e. phone uses first provider on that line, fax uses 2nd.

Wondering if the above setup will work with OBI202?  Appreciate your thoughts..

Thanks!

MikeHObi

Some of the questions indicate you may not be fully aware of how the Obi works.  I may also just be misunderstanding your questions.

The obi202 has 4 internal ports which can be configured for a sip provider or google voice.  The obi202 can route calls to and from 2 external telephone ports as well as some bluetooth devices (via Bluetooth dongle, usually cell phones) through any of the 4 internal ports.  Multiple internal ports can be routed to one or both of the external phone ports.

Each google voice account you wish to use uses up one of the 4 internal ports.
The lowest price SIP 911 service doesn't give you a DID number as they don't support direct inward dial.  Instead they create one time use number passed to the 911 service that the 911 service can use to call you and get routed to your device.  Thus no need for CID. Typically this is only an issue if you use Smart911 services that rely on your CID to find your enhanced information.

Each of the 4 internal ports can have custom ring patterns.


Obi202 user & Obi100 using Anveo and Callcentric.

giqcass

#3
MikeHObi  is correct, based on your questions it sounds like you need to do a little more research before you purchase anything.  Your plan is mostly doable however.

I would set up E911 for all connected devices with one "SIP" 911 service.  You would only have one E911 account but all devices connected to the OBi could use it seamlessly.    If you plan on only a few incoming faxes then Callcentric can give you "Virtual fax reception" for free that service will email the faxes to you as a PDF.  The E911 from Callcentric would cost $1.50 per month.  Outgoing faxes would incur a small per minute fee depending on where they were sent.  This would eliminate the need to know which incoming number is being called on the second physical phone port because incoming calls to the fax line would not need to ring any device.  The fax machine would be connected to the OBi but only used for outgoing faxes.

There are a number of ways to make sure the correct outbound caller ID is shown.  One way is to prefix the number you are calling with a special code.  You could also set up a speed dial or a call plan that would add the prefix for you.

With Google Voice you can choose to have incoming caller ID sent to you OBi in two different ways.  You can receive the callers number or you can receive your Google Voice phone number for all calls to that Google Voice number.

If you set one Google Voice account on physical port 1 to always show its own number for caller ID then you could tell which number was being called with caller ID but for that account you would not know who was placing the call.

QuoteCan the OBI be made to not ring if the mobile phone that support the number is not within wifi range?
I don't even know what you are trying to do based on this statement.  Maybe you mean the reverse of what you said.  In that case you could try the following.
If you used Google Talk on the cell phones it would probably stop the OBi from ringing when Google Talk on that phone was connected. (This is not reliable or recommended just possible.)

I think a simpler solution that you might want to consider is one OBi202 and one OBi100 working together to get 3 completely separate lines. Plus a virtual fax line.
Long live our new ObiLords!

allmyphones

Thanks everyone for your responses!  That was very helpful.

Appreciate the perspective on the 911 and fax setup through Callcentric.  Did not realize all my numbers could be used to dial 911 with a single Callcentric account.   The fourth number would then be limited to outgoing faxes (if at all) which are few and far between (once every couple of months or so).   If GV supports faxing out, I may not need that number at all.

- Outbound caller ID - I guess my real question is "How do I dial out through the right internal port?" using the physical phone devices attached to the external port such that I'm using the intended outbound number.

Assuming I have 3 GV (GV 1, GV2, GV3) and 1 Callcentric (C1) numbers each tied to one of the 4 internal ports and tie GV1/GV2 to External port 1(EP1) and GV3/C1 to External Port 2 (EP2).   When I pick up the physical phone device tied to EP2, the receiver will be able to see my GV number, would they not?
For GV1 and GV2, I'm assuming I can set up a prefix for each (e.g. *1 for GV1 and *2 for GV2) so the person receiving the call sees the right GV number on their caller ID.

The second part of my question was about what happens when the line is busy and a call comes in through the other line.  E.g. I'm on the phone on EP1 taking a call through GV1.  If a GV2 call comes in, does it automatically ring EP2 or does it default to it secondary action (e.g. go to voicemail or ring the mobile phone)?

-   Obi/Cell phone integration:
I'm also interested in the possibility of a setup where Obi does not ring for GV 1 and 2 if their associated cellphones are not in the house (within wifi range of the device).  I read somewhere that we could set up rules on when the Obi phone should ring vs when the cell phone should ring.  However, I'm looking for a more flexible solution that will not ring the obi phone when I'm not at home.

Based on this input, I'll likely go with 3 numbers – GV1,2 and 3 since 911 is a virtual number and does not need a dedicated number on my end.   I'll have to figure out a fax solution through GV or Call centric that does not need a dedicated DID on my end. I'll start with a 202 and try out the first 2 numbers and expand as necessary.

Thanks!

Rick

I think you would benefit from reading through the existing documentation.

You direct calls through a specific service provider (SP1, SP2, SP3, SP4) by typing **1 (or 2, 3, or 4) in front of the number, and you can only use the service providers associated with the physical port as you noted. 

I don't know what "When I pick up the physical phone device tied to EP2, the receiver will be able to see my GV number" even means.  If you make a call, you put it on a service provider with the prefix as stated. 

If GV1 is in use, then yes, GV2 does the secondary action as you noted.

You can put rules in place all over the place - but the easiest thing to do is in the GV interface simply   uncheck Chat when you're going out OR if it's a regular schedule you can set that schedule in GV, so it rings your cell between 8 and 5, but not the house phone, then rings both till 11, then doesn't ring the cell when you're sleeping.  Lots of options, all in GV.  Lots of GV documentation on their site.

Felix

I would separate two questions:

1. Can OBi202 do all the things you are describing? - the answer is yes.
2. How does OBi202 do the things you are describing? - once you have the device, you will follow the prompts, read documentation, ask specific questions on this forum.

If you don't purchase the device all "how-to" questions are moot; and if you do, it may turn out easier than you think!

Good luck!

Jog7

Hi allmyphones,

I think I know what you mean as I did a similar setup when porting our family's cell phones to google voice.

The simplest solution for me to keep the phone from ringing when I'm away was to put my home phone into permanent silent mode. My wife's GV number is hooked up to a different home phone. When I'm home, my cell phone will ring alerting me of a call and my home phone still blinks with the caller ID of who is calling. The cell phone travels with me so when I'm away, nothing is ringing at the house to disturb anyone.

Hopefully it's going well. The Obi devices are working great for me.

azrobert

Quote from: allmyphones on February 10, 2013, 11:54:55 AM

Is there a way to identify the number being used through the caller ID(other than the ring)?

You can add a prefix to the inbound CallerId, so you can identify the SPx service.
The following X_inboundCallRoute will prefix a numeric CallerId with "9"
{(<9>xx.):ph},{ph}