GV porting questions
Howard687:
I am a complete OBI/SIP novice but am looking to buy an OBI 200. I have been reading tutorials, faq's, and the forum but am still somewhat confused. I currently have a landline, 2 cell phones, and a GV account. The GV number is different from the other 3; i.e I did not port an existing number when setting up the GV account.
My understanding is that if I configure the OBI with my current GV account, then my home phones will ring when the GV number is called. And if the land line number is called, that won't ring anywhere. But that is a problem because most callers know our land line number and only some know our GV number. Is there a configuration that says if either the land line number or GV number is called, the call will, via OBI, ring our home phones? We just have one home phone line. Would we want to setup another GV account, porting our land line to that account, and configuring that GV account on the OBI as well?
thanks in advance
SteveInWA:
Hi Howard:
Typical for telephony stuff, there are several different approaches you can take, depending on the overall goal you have in mind.
The OBi devices can act as Google Voice forwarding "phones", pretending to be Google Chat clients. So yes, when someone calls your GV number, it will ring whatever forwarding phones you have added and check-marked on this page:
https://www.google.com/voice#phones
If you add Google Chat as one of the forwarding destinations, your OBi-attached analog telephone (for example, a cordless or corded touch-tone phone) will ring.
Now, that takes care of using an OBi with a GV number. But, what about your existing home number. That is entirely up to you. You can turn it into a Google Voice number, or you can keep it as-is and get a two-line telephone, using one line for the home number and another for the GV number. Or, you can port the home number to Google Voice, and have two different inbound GV numbers, a primary and a secondary. Inbound calls to either number will ring the OBi-attached phone, AND all your other forwarding phones. Outbound calls from the OBi-attached phone can be configured to use either the caller ID of the old home phone number, or the original GV number.
If you want to port the home number to GV, there is a catch. GV's porting system can't accept ports in from land lines. You'd have to temporarily port it into a prepaid mobile phone service first, wait possibly a few days to a week, and then port it into GV, for a $20 fee. After porting, you'd then pay another $20 fee to keep the original GV number permanently, or else you can just let it expire in 90 days, keeping only the newly-ported-in home number.
See my conversation with Robert about doing the landline-->mobile-->GV port:
http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=8905.msg59039#msg59039
Howard687:
Hi Steve
Thanks - your explanation is very helpful and raises a few more questions. My primary goal is to eliminate my land line charges. Also, I set up my GV# several years ago to ring multiple phones. In fact, we have a 2nd home and I use GV to direct which home to ring depending on where we are staying at the time.
Am I correct to understand that it is "forwarding to" Google Chat that enables GV to communicate with OBI?
In order to port my home# to GV, and still preserve the current GV#, would I need to create a new Gmail, and hence GV, account? E.g. My wife could add GV to her Gmail account. Or is this related to having to pay $20 to keep the original GV# permanent?
Once the home# is ported, is there a tutorial that explains how to configure the OBI to have two inbound GV#'s?
Again, thanks for taking the time to answer my basic questions.
regards
howard
SteveInWA:
Quote from: Howard687 on November 04, 2014, 06:35:29 am
Am I correct to understand that it is "forwarding to" Google Chat that enables GV to communicate with OBI?
Yes, that's correct. If you have the Google Chat pseudo-phone on the list, outbound calling from the OBi-attached phone will work. If you also have a check-mark next to that pseudo-phone, then inbound calling will work, too.
Quote
In order to port my home# to GV, and still preserve the current GV#, would I need to create a new Gmail, and hence GV, account? E.g. My wife could add GV to her Gmail account. Or is this related to having to pay $20 to keep the original GV# permanent?
No, a single Google (Gmail and GV) account can have two inbound phone numbers; a primary and a secondary. This condition is created when you have one GV number already, and then you pay to port in another number, or you pay to change your GV number (get a new one issued by GV). In both cases, paying the additional $20 allows you to keep both numbers on the one account.
While you can certainly use either your own or your wife's Gmail account to host these numbers, you may prefer to create a dedicated Google/Gmail account for hosting both numbers. That way, emails to your mistress won't be visible to your wife, nor will her dalliances be visible to you ::)
If you decide to create a dedicated Google account, you'd follow this procedure to transfer your existing GV number into the new account, which must be empty (not already have a GV number):
https://support.google.com/voice/answer/3527591?hl=en&ref_topic=1708124
Regardless of whether you move the number into a dedicated account, or you keep it where it is, the next step is to click the "change/port" link next to the number on your GV Settings page, Phones tab:
https://www.google.com/voice#phones
Then, assuming you previously, successfully ported the home number to a prepaid mobile phone line, port that number into GV. Carefully read the directions and FAQs in this link:
https://support.google.com/voice/answer/1065667?hl=en&ref_topic=1708124
After several days, when the porting has completed, the former home number will become the primary GV number, displacing the original GV number, which is now "on death row". You can then pay $20 to keep it as secondary, or let it expire in 90 days...your choice. If you pay to keep it, it will then let you flip-flop between both numbers, exchanging primary vs. secondary designation. This designation only matters to set the outbound caller ID.
https://support.google.com/voice/answer/115136?hl=en&ref_topic=1708124
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Once the home# is ported, is there a tutorial that explains how to configure the OBI to have two inbound GV#'s?
All inbound calls to either number will ring your OBi/Google Chat phone, and will ring all other forwarding phones you've check-marked on GV settings. There is nothing to configure on the OBi side; this is controlled at the GV account level. The OBi doesn't know or care which phone number you are using.
Quote
Again, thanks for taking the time to answer my basic questions.
regards
howard
My pleasure. Ask more questions if any of this is unclear, or if you have any uncertainties when you go through the procedures.
Howard687:
Hi Steve
I am getting closer to giving this a try; just ordered the OBI 200. But I have a couple more questions
1. I read the instructions (https://support.google.com/voice/answer/1065667?hl=en&ref_topic=1708124) for porting a mobile phone number to GV but I am confused. Those instructions say to click on change/port and then select "I want a new number". But that path does not allow me to specify the mobile number (my land line # now a Go Phone) so I think that I should check the other option;namely, "I want to use my mobile number". Am I missing something?
2. Can one buy an ATT gophone online and as part of that purchase, transfer theland line # - or do I need to go into an ATT store?
3. When I purchase, e.g., a gophone, and have my current land line # "transferred" (ported?) to that phone/account, then I assume this takes effect immediately (i.e. a call to the land line # will ring the gophone) and I might as well cancel my current land line account.
thanks
howard
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