Call Forwarding Problems

[Rick108]

I am installing an OBi 200 with Google Voice to replace the landline in my Mom's apartment.  I am familiar with how this works, as I have two similar setups at home.  However, I made a tactical error that I cannot figure out how to fix.

After hooking up and testing the new OBi box and setting up the GV connection in OBiTalk, everything was working as expected.  The final step was to transfer Mom's landline to her GV number.  So from her phone I dialed "*72 xxx xxx xxxx#" to set up the transfer - but ... the phone was still connected to the OBi box instead of the wall.  Oops....  So, effectively I transferred her GV number back to itself.    Now, whenever I dial her GV number from anywhere else, I immediately get the message "To access your account, please enter your pin...", and in the GV History I see my incoming call immediately followed by an outgoing call to the GV number.

How do I fix this problem?  I have tried dialing "*73" from the connected phone, but it does nothing.  I'm not even sure if the solution is an OBi thing or a GV thing.  I don't see anywhere in the GV settings or on OBiTalk where anything is forwarded or how to undo it.  Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[SteveInWA]

WTF!?!  Why on earth would you do that?  NEVER unconditionally forward a number TO a Google Voice number.  That's backwards.  Forward the Google Voice number TO linked numbers, via the Google Voice settings page:

https://voice.google.com/settings

The correct procedure is to add (link, in Google's terminology) the personal phone number(s) to GV settings as forwarding numbers.  Then use the Google Voice number as the single point of contact, not the carrier landline number.

If the landline supports it, then enable conditional call forwarding on the landline number.  That will send busy or unanswered calls back to Google Voice voicemail.

For now, if you added it to Google Voice, then delete the number off of Google Voice settings, then disable call forwarding on the landline number.  Then add back the landline number.

[Rick108]

Yeah, like I said, I did this by mistake...   The plan was to have the existing landline number be handled by GV and continue to ring her phone.  No one would ever call the GV number directly.  For several reasons, we don't want to port the landline number away from the existing carrier, so the plan was to just forward the landline number to the GV number, which would then ring the OBi box with the phone attached.  This lets us control what calls actually ring through to the house using the GV account, but people just keep calling the old number.  This plan works just fine.

Currently, the landline is not forwarded anywhere, and her phone is still connected to the wall and working fine on the old number.  It's the GV line that's messed up - it's transferred to itself (by a careless mistake, not on purpose).  How do I undo THAT transfer of the GV number to itself?  That's my question.

[SteveInWA]

You can't do that.  As I said, it's backwards, and it won't work properly.

[drgeoff]

It is an OBi setting and *73 should disable it.

You can do it the long-winded way. Log in to the portal and on your dashboard click the gearwheel containing a red E. Proceed into Expert mode. Click on Physical Interfaces, then on Phone1. Scroll down to the Call Forwarding section. To change any of those settings you first need to clear the two tick boxes at the right hand side. When done click Submit at the bottom and wait for the OBi to automatically reboot.

Note that if a GV number is called from a phone in the GV forward list which has been declared in that list as a mobile number the default is to answer with the "PIN to access voicemail" prompt.

[Rick108]

Thank you, DrGeoff - that is exactly the kind of helpful information I was looking for!  I will give your suggestions a try this afternoon.  Thanks! 

[Rick108]

It is all working as expected now, after turning off Call Forwarding in the Expert settings as you suggested, DrGeoff.  I hadn't appreciated that it was the OBi that was forwarding the calls and not GV.  I really appreciate your helpful information!