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Obi200 won't ring with newly ported Google Voice number

Started by BobHucker, February 03, 2016, 10:26:32 AM

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BobHucker

For a long time I have had a RingTo home number on SP1 and my Google Voice personal number on SP3. The Google Voice account for the personal number forwards to Google Chat for Obihai and to my cell phone.

Because RingTo is dropping support for Obihai, I ported the home number to Google Voice and set it up on SP1. The Google Voice account for this newly ported number forwards only to Google Chat, for Obihai. Now I can dial out on SP1, but the phone will not ring for incoming calls.

The phone does ring for incoming calls to the old Google Voice number on SP3.

I followed the advice to delete Google Chat from the Google Voice settings for the newly ported number, but Google restores it immediately.

What can I do to get the phone ringing?

SteveInWA

Hiya Bob:

You said "I ported the home number to Google Voice and set it up on SP1."  How, exactly, did you do that?  Google Voice doesn't accept ports-in from land line numbers.  Did you first port it out of ring.to and into a prepaid mobile phone carrier (e.g. AT&T GoPhone or T-Mobile Prepaid)?  If so, how long did you wait between doing that, and porting it into GV?  Did you add a forwarding PSTN (10-digit) telephone number to that account as a forwarding phone?

It's possible that your port either got screwed up by the multi-stage porting, or it hasn't fully completed yet.  It's normal for land line ports to take a few days to become active for inbound calls.  What was your timeline?

Try adding some other real telephone number as a forwarding phone to the problem account, and call the GV number from a totally unrelated number (not from another GV number).  Does that work, or does the caller hear an error message?

BobHucker

Yes, I realize that. I ported the number to a wireless carrier first and then to Google Voice. I ported it to Google Voice the day after the first port was finished.

You say, "Did you add a forwarding PSTN (10-digit) telephone number to that account as a forwarding phone?" What do you mean by "that account," and why would it matter? The number is definitely in Google Voice now. If I can dial out from Obihai on SP1, why don't the incoming calls make the phone ring, as long as the Google account forwards to Google chat?

And yes, if I make the Google account forward to another number, that number does ring. In fact, if I have Google forward to a Callcentric number that I have configured on SP4, the Obi will ring. It just won't ring on SP1. Previously I configured the RingTo number to forward to that Callcentric number to get caller ID names, but I want to get SP1 working right before I do that with the recently ported number.

BobHucker

Never mind. I figured it out.

Apparently in the past I had gone into Obi expert mode and set X_InboundCallRoute to {} for SP1. That was to prevent the call from coming in through Google directly and beating the forwarding to Callcentric. If the call arrived directly, I wouldn't get the caller ID name.

To make the phone ring for this test, I changed X_InboundCallRoute back to the default, ph. Now that I'm satisfied that SP1 is working, I went back to the original setup with forwarding through Callcentric.

SteveInWA

The reason I asked about whether or not calls would correctly forward to a regular number (vs. just Chat), is that you specifically said that the GV account hosting the newly-ported number was only set to forward to Chat.  You didn't mention that you had tested it already with another forwarding number.

As to your question about why it mattered, since outbound calling works:  that's not how VoIP works.  Outbound calling is provisioned and operates separately from inbound calling.  When a number is ported, the gaining carrier first provisions your service to make outbound calls using their trunks, and displaying your number's caller ID.  This is completely independent of routing inbound calls, which involves the carrier working with NPAC to assign their phone switch LRN to your number, so inbound calls know which switch to send the calls.  This can take another day or more, and it can get screwed up royally when people immediately port from the second carrier to the third carrier.

There is no need to make that inbound call route setting.  Making arcane changes like that, only causes problems down the road, exactly like you just experienced, when people don't recall that they changed something in the past.

The correct way to use Callcentric with Google Voice and an OBi, is to remove the check mark to the left of Chat in your Google Voice settings, and only have a check-mark next to the Callcentric number.  Google Voice only forwards to check-marked destinations.  Outbound calling is enabled by simply having Chat added to your GV account, and inbound calling is enabled via the check-mark.

BobHucker

OK, thanks. I've reconfigured as you suggested, and it works. I wish they'd put more of this in the documentation. :)

unsmiley

Quote from: SteveInWA on February 03, 2016, 12:34:47 PM
The reason I asked about whether or not calls would correctly forward to a regular number (vs. just Chat), is that you specifically said that the GV account hosting the newly-ported number was only set to forward to Chat.  You didn't mention that you had tested it already with another forwarding number.

As to your question about why it mattered, since outbound calling works:  that's not how VoIP works.  Outbound calling is provisioned and operates separately from inbound calling.  When a number is ported, the gaining carrier first provisions your service to make outbound calls using their trunks, and displaying your number's caller ID.  This is completely independent of routing inbound calls, which involves the carrier working with NPAC to assign their phone switch LRN to your number, so inbound calls know which switch to send the calls.  This can take another day or more, and it can get screwed up royally when people immediately port from the second carrier to the third carrier.

There is no need to make that inbound call route setting.  Making arcane changes like that, only causes problems down the road, exactly like you just experienced, when people don't recall that they changed something in the past.

The correct way to use Callcentric with Google Voice and an OBi, is to remove the check mark to the left of Chat in your Google Voice settings, and only have a check-mark next to the Callcentric number.  Google Voice only forwards to check-marked destinations.  Outbound calling is enabled by simply having Chat added to your GV account, and inbound calling is enabled via the check-mark.
So are you saying to be patient immediately after a completed port to Google Voice?  My number was successfully ported to GV this morning, and I can make outbound calls via OBI200 using this number, but my phone does not ring for incoming calls.  I have spent several hours trying to figure out what is wrong until I came upon this forum.  Are you saying I should just wait a couple of days to see if inbound calling gets enabled?  (FYI:  I am using an OBi 200 with preexisting GV number from another Google account on SP1.  I added the new ported number as SP2.  I do not have Callcentric, don't even know what that is).  Thanks for any help.

Lavarock7

I can attest that outbound and inbound connections differ.

I ported a number away from a provider and used it with a new provider for years. When I connected the old Linksys up again I got a dialtone. I dialed my cell and saw that it was my old ported number still active with the old provider.

Once during a port, both new and old providers rang simultaneously.

I agree, wait a while.
My websites: Kona Coffee: http://itskona.com and Web Hosting: http://planetaloha.info<br />A simplified Voip explanation: http://voip.planet-aloha.com

BobHucker

Quote from: unsmiley on March 02, 2016, 12:24:14 PM
So are you saying to be patient immediately after a completed port to Google Voice?  My number was successfully ported to GV this morning, and I can make outbound calls via OBI200 using this number, but my phone does not ring for incoming calls.  I have spent several hours trying to figure out what is wrong until I came upon this forum.  Are you saying I should just wait a couple of days to see if inbound calling gets enabled?  (FYI:  I am using an OBi 200 with preexisting GV number from another Google account on SP1.  I added the new ported number as SP2.  I do not have Callcentric, don't even know what that is).  Thanks for any help.

No, don't just wait. If you are forwarding through Callcentric to get caller ID names, as I am, then follow SteveInWA's suggestions above and it will work. If not, be sure the checkbox for forwarding to Google Chat is selected.

unsmiley

Quote from: BobHucker on March 02, 2016, 12:43:20 PM
Quote from: unsmiley on March 02, 2016, 12:24:14 PM
So are you saying to be patient immediately after a completed port to Google Voice?  My number was successfully ported to GV this morning, and I can make outbound calls via OBI200 using this number, but my phone does not ring for incoming calls.  I have spent several hours trying to figure out what is wrong until I came upon this forum.  Are you saying I should just wait a couple of days to see if inbound calling gets enabled?  (FYI:  I am using an OBi 200 with preexisting GV number from another Google account on SP1.  I added the new ported number as SP2.  I do not have Callcentric, don't even know what that is).  Thanks for any help.

No, don't just wait. If you are forwarding through Callcentric to get caller ID names, as I am, then follow SteveInWA's suggestions above and it will work. If not, be sure the checkbox for forwarding to Google Chat is selected.

I am not using CallCentric.  Just Google Voice and the OBi.  And the checkbox for forwarding to Google Chat is selected.

unsmiley

Also I should note that now my home phone doesn't ring with calls coming to either of my GV numbers (including the old one I had before the recent port).  Calls appear to go to voicemail, saying the "google voice subscriber is not available."

unsmiley

Got it working -- There was a hidden on/off switch for the ringer on the phone that I didn't see!!!  ;D

SteveInWA

Quote from: unsmiley on March 02, 2016, 03:12:25 PM
Got it working -- There was a hidden on/off switch for the ringer on the phone that I didn't see!!!  ;D


CookinNow

#13
Unsmiley - Me Too! I checked the phone connected to my OBI and the ringer was off. Turned it on and it rings. I just configured this today so there was no wait time. Just a duh moment. Thanks for posting the solution.