Good day Folks,
I’m running a freePBX server for a lodge; my client would like if the guest call from his/her internal extension after certain hours to the reception switchboard, the calls should be forwarded to a external number.
Kind regards
Lots of ways to do this. FindMe/Follow Me time conditions? Change the reception extension to a misc app/destination which goes to a time condition.
FMFM would be the simplest. since routing calls based on time conditions from inside the system is a challenge unless you are using a loopback trunk.
Routing calls from the outside is dead simple. This, however, takes some gymnastics to get it working from the internal side. Setting up a custom extension and follow it up with some miscellaneous app-style options would work too.
Start with setting up a custom extension that points to a time-condition (I think you can do that through the GUI) and have the time-condition route the call.
There are four “entry points” for this kind of stuff, and you may end up using one or more of them - they are custom destination, custom extension, and the two “Miscellaneous whatever” options.
Thanks for your reply.
Under findMe/followMe and Advanced tab of the extension, I only see at the bottom Destination with no answer were can I select Time Conditions that I preconfigured with misc destination as external number.
But the extension will have to ring before forwarding to external number which I don’t want.
FMFM would just always work - if no one answers the phone, it goes to the external number (if so configured). This is a separate and different (yet common) way of handling your issue. It does not, in fact, use the Time Condition. You could also use a Call Forward option to set the phone with the press of a button, as well as setting FMFM and use a button that sets the DND.
An adjunct to that would be to write a cron-capable program that would toggle DND on the extension and have the FMFM set to answer the call. This would work with your Time-based requirements, although it isn’t a Time Condition. You can programmatically set the DND using the ASTDB or ‘rasterisk’ commands to set and clear the DND for the extension.
The other options are just that - other options. I doubt that there’s anything that looks like a “click the box and magically it works” option for this, since it is unusual and outside the scope of what most people do. From external calls - yeah, it happens all the time. Internally, not so much, Because of that, you are going to have to get creative. Start with the “Custom *” and “Misc *” options on the GUI and see if you can put together a custom extension that gets you into the time condition code.
I agree with @cynjut that having Follow Me always enabled is a robust solution. On my own system, it’s set so that if I don’t answer the desk phone within 5 seconds, it starts calling my mobile but the desk phone continues to ring. The mobile call setup time is about 5 seconds, so if the desk phone is answered within about 10 seconds the mobile doesn’t ring. If it takes longer, the mobile will show a missed call, but IMO that’s only a minor nuisance.
The advantage here is that if the owner is walking the property or otherwise away from his desk, he can still get the call.
However, if you want it to be strictly time based, you could either link Follow Me to a Calendar with recurring events, or set up:
- Change front desk extension to a different number.
- Set up a Ring Group that rings both the front desk and the owner’s mobile.
- Set up a Time Condition that routes to the front desk when open and to the ring group when closed.
- Set up a Misc Application with the original front desk number (that the guest dials), pointing to the Time Condition.
- Optional. Set up a button on the front desk phone to monitor open/closed, which can be pressed to override the time condition.
Thanks folks I will try all!
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