Dial Tone Transfer

A user who is not able to make external calls to any or some external numbers, can be transferred to dial tone by a user who is able to make external calls. This feature is supported for IP Office 5.0+.

1.	The restricted user wanting to make the external call, dials the unrestricted user and requests dial tone.

2.	The unrestricted user initiates a transfer and dials the prefix for an ARS form configured to provide secondary dial tone.

•	The prefix is a short code set up to access the required ARS form. While this can be a system short code, using a user or user rights short code will allow control over who can provide dial tone transfer for restricted users.

4.	The restricted user now hears the secondary dial tone and is now able to make an external call.

•	The restricted user is now able to make calls as permitted by the short codes in the ARS form.

The ARS form being used can still contain short codes that restrict the dialing that can be attempted after the restricted user hears secondary dial tone. Other ARS features can also be used such as alternate routing or time profiles to provide out of hours routing. The ARS form timers are run from when the unrestricted caller dials the ARS form. They are not reset when the restricted user is transferred to the ARS form.

Multiple prefixes and ARS forms can be used if required to create more complex scenarios. For example, one where the unrestricted user can transfer the restricted users to an ARS forms that allows international calls or to an ARS form that only allows national dialing.

The example below is a simple configuration that allows the unrestricted user to use 8 as a transfer destination that provides secondary dial tone.

1.	Create an ARS Form for Secondary Dial Tone The ARS form needs to be created before short codes can be added to route callers to it.

•	Select either System Tone (this matches locale specific normal dial tone) or Network Tone (this matches locale specific secondary dial tone). For some locales both tones are the same.

•	Enter short codes that will take any digits dialed by the restricted user and process them for external dialing to an IP Office outgoing line group. For this example we will allow any digits dialed to be presented to the first trunk seized in outgoing line group 0.

Code	N
Telephone Number	N
Feature	Dial
Line Group ID	0

•	Other short codes can be used to allow or bar the dialing of specific numbers or types of numbers.

•	Configure the rest of the ARS form as required. For full details on ARS form configuration see ARS.

2.	Create a Short Code for Dial Tone Transfer For this example we will allow the prefix 8 to be used to access an ARS form created above.

•	In the user short codes of the unrestricted user, create a short code that invokes the ARS form created above. For example:

Code	8
Telephone Number
Feature	Dial
Line Group ID	51 Dial Tone Trans

•	It is important that the short code does not pass any digits to the ARS form. Once the ARS form receives any digits, it starts short code matching and ends secondary dial tone.

3.	The unrestricted user is now able to provide secondary dial tone to other users by on request by pressing Transfer, dialing 8 and then pressing Transfer again.

If the restricted user enters an account or authorization code while calling the unrestricted user to request dial tone, that value is not carried forward with their external call once they have been provided with secondary dial tone.

If the unrestricted user enters an account or authorization code while dialing the ARS form, that value remains associated with the call made by the restricted user.

If the ARS form short code used to route the restricted users call requires an account or authorization code, the value already entered is used, otherwise the restricted user is prompted to enter a value.

The restricted user's outgoing call log will include the call to the unrestricted user and the outgoing external call they subsequently make. The outgoing external call record will include the prefix dialed by the unrestricted user to access the ARS form.

The unrestricted users call log will include just an incoming call from the restricted user.

Within the IP Office SMDR output, the calls by the restricted user are included. The call by the unrestricted user is not included.