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Setup |
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| Features |
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Billing |
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Support |
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| GENERAL |
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| What is Hosted PBX?? |
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| Hosted PBX from Pathway Communications is a converged communications solution that uses world-class technology and infrastructure to create a private branch exchange system for your office. Hosted PBX provides all the technology, features and benefits normally found in expensive PBX systems, at a much lower cost. Your company’s entire voice network is overseen by Pathway Communications, an ISO 9001 2000 certified service provider. We use the latest, most reliable, technology from world-class manufacturers and have implemented rigorous control processes to ensure you receive exceptional quality. |
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| How does Hosted PBX work?? |
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| When you use Hosted PBX, you dispense with the installation, management and maintenance of your internal phone system. All employees in your office are connected directly via your office broadband Internet connection, to a high-reliability, redundant, carrier grade phone switch hosted at Pathway’s Data Centre. Incoming calls are delivered to the Hosted PBX phone switches and then sent via your Internet connection to your location. With Hosted PBX, each extension is associated with an employee and extensions can be located anywhere that has a good quality Internet connection. This allows employees to work anywhere - in the office, at a branch office, on the road, or at home - and seamlessly receive business calls as if they were in a single office location. |
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| What are the benefits of Hosted PBX? |
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Hosted PBX is a feature-rich business phone service for organizations of every size – from small and mid-sized organizations to large enterprises. Based on leading edge VoIP technology, Hosted PBX provides all the advanced functions, features and benefits normally found in very large and expensive PBX systems - at a fraction of the cost. It also includes several new features which are simply not available in older PBX systems.
Hosted PBX is designed to address all your business communication needs in one integrated solution. The benefits of Hosted PBX are immediate and significant: |
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| What are the advantages of Hosted PBX over traditional PBX? |
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Hosted PBX is a major step ahead of traditional phone systems. Hosted PBX delivers all the benefits of a full-featured in-house system; yet it requires no support or maintenance. It is completely scalable, and reliable, allowing you to integrate your entire organization into one phone system, regardless of location. Click here to learn more about the advantages of Hosted PBX. |
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| Is Hosted PBX secure? |
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| Pathway takes the extra step to provide a safe and secure telephony network for your entire organization. Hosted PBX phones are protected with encrypted password authentication to prevent unauthorized users from exploiting your phone. IP protection ensures that every phone call is transmitted using IP packets that travel only to and from your network. Hosted PBX also uses UDP (User Datagram Protocol) protocol and ports that are not used by other applications, eliminating the possibility of opened ports attacking other applications in your network. |
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How reliable is Hosted PBX? |
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You can rest assure that Pathway provides reliable and quality service on all our products. Hosted PBX uses completely redundant equipment and Internet connections from tier-one suppliers to ensure constant uptime. Our data centres are equipped with UPS (uninterruptible power supplies) and power generators so even in the event of a power outage, our phone system is up and running.
For increased reliability, we highly recommend a Pathway Internet connection using fibre with QoS (Quality of Service) set on the router. QoS refers to the capability of a network to provide better throughput to selected network traffic. The use of QoS allows you to set priority for voice traffic on your network. This controls jitter and latency and improves loss characteristics. For more information on QoS for Hosted PBX, contact our Corporate Sales team. |
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What equipment and services do I need? |
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A good quality broadband Internet connection (we highly recommend a dedicated Pathway Internet connection) |
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VoIP phones |
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Available Ethernet cables/ports near each VoIP phone |
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Power adapter or PoE (power over Ethernet) switch depending on the type of phone you choose |
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UPS for the modem, router, phones, switch and other associated hardware |
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What are the major differences between IP phones and traditional PBX phones? |
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IP phones plug into your existing Local Area Network (LAN) using a standard Ethernet connection and use VoIP to transmit phone calls. Traditional PBX phones use standard phone cables to connect to the PBX system to transmit phone calls over separate analog or digital phone lines.
The advantage of using IP-based phones is that you are able to use your existing public, private, local area or wide area networks, provided the quality of the Internet connection is good. This creates a wider reach, forming a “Virtual Office” type setup which enables employees located at different geographical branches to reach each other as if they are working in the same office. IP phones also provide quicker access to common features, such as checking voicemail, customizing greetings and corporate phone books with just one-touch access of the pre-configured keys and soft-keys. Users no longer have to memorize phone codes to access everyday functions. You also do not require separate telephone cabling for the office, as the system uses your computer LAN wiring to route voice traffic.
Currently, traditional PBX phones are restricted to their internal telephone environment – via internal phones that are connected to the PBX system. One cannot create a “Virtual Office” with traditional PBX systems. Using owned IP PBXs, you need to purchase PBXs and hardware at each location and manage these on your own. |
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| What IP phones are offered with Hosted PBX? |
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Hosted PBX offers IP phones suitable for all business types from leading suppliers. Click here to learn more about our IP phones. |
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What type of Internet connection is required? |
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Since Hosted PBX uses VoIP to transmit voice signals, we highly recommend a business class Internet or private connection such as T1 or fibre, obtained from Pathway Communications. |
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| Can I transfer my current business number(s) to Hosted PBX? |
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Yes, you can transfer your current business number(s) to Hosted PBX, or you may also obtain new numbers for your business from Pathway. The Hosted PBX package includes a direct dial number for each phone. |
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Can I transfer my current toll-free number to Hosted PBX? |
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Yes, you can transfer your current toll-free number to Hosted PBX, or you may also obtain new toll-free numbers for your business from Pathway. |
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Where can I get more information about Hosted PBX? |
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Contact our Corporate Sales team to speak with one of our Corporate Account Managers. They will be happy to provide you with a free network assessment and determine the Hosted PBX plan most suitable for your business needs. Once you are satisfied with the plan, we will guide you through the signup process and will take care of the rest of the process for you! |
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| SETUP |
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How do I transfer my existing phone numbers to Hosted PBX? |
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You will need to complete a Letter of Authorization (LOA) form and fax it back to Pathway. This form will enable Pathway to transfer your existing numbers from your current provider to Pathway. Please DO NOT cancel your phone service with your current provider if you wish to keep your existing numbers. Pathway will act on your behalf to ensure all the necessary steps are taken to transfer your phone numbers to Hosted PBX. |
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How long does it take to set up Hosted PBX? |
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The setup and installation process may take four to six weeks. |
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FEATURES |
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What features are available with Hosted PBX? |
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Hosted PBX includes a host of useful features which are exclusive to Hosted PBX services. You get all the phone features offered by traditional PBX systems, plus many exciting new features at no additional charge. In addition, both the administrator and users have access to online portals that allow for quick and easy account management from any web browser. Click here to find out more. |
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What is the Front Desk/Operator Console? |
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The Front Desk/Operator Console allows you to improve the efficiency of your call activity and gain more control over live calls. This application is a great tool to help your receptionist handle calls and reach employees at their extensions. The user-friendly graphical interface provides a detailed view of incoming calls, parked calls and employee availability via such features as Available, On Call, Do Not Disturb, etc. The Operator Console allows your receptionist to monitor the status of all the employees (up to 50) located at the same site and gives her/him the ability to transfer calls, toggle between calls, direct voice messages and much more with the click of a mouse. The application runs on a PC in conjunction with the Internet and a Hosted PBX phone. |
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What is the Hosted PBX web portal and how can it be used to manage phone settings? |
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The Hosted PBX web portal is a web-based interface that allows administrators and users to manage their respective phone options. This web management tool allows Administrators to access and manage user extensions through a simple web-based interface. Users can access the Self Care Portal with their own personal login details and control their phone setup. Configurable options include caller ID, call forwarding, and more. No technical skills are required. Click here to see the list of customizable features in the Self-Care portal. |
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| How do I set up my Auto Attendant message? |
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| You may record your Auto Attendant message by phone or send us a professional greeting in wav. or mp3. format. Hosted PBX includes default music, but if you want to use your own music, send us the audio file and we will upload it for you. |
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| Can the “on hold music” be customized? |
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| Yes. You may send us the wav. file of the music or voice message you wish to use and we will upload it for you. Hosted PBX also comes with default music that you may use. If you provide us with your own music, you must ensure it is licensed and you have the right to use it for your company. |
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| How do I check my voicemail? |
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You can check your voicemail using the following three methods:
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By Email – A copy of the voicemail will be sent to your Inbox. Save the file onto your computer and open the file with a media player (e.g. Windows Media Player). |
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Web-portal – Log into the Self-Care Portal and click “Call Logs”. Click “Listen” under the Voice Mail column and save the file onto your computer. Open the file with a media player (e.g. Windows Media Player). |
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How do I change my voicemail message? |
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| Dial *77 from your phone, enter your password and listen to the options to record a new message. Please see the Hosted PBX User Guide provided to you for additional phone options. |
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Can I check my voicemail if I am away from the office? |
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Yes. To check your voicemail when you are away from the office, dial the Voicemail number as indicated on the voice portal map and listen to the options to check your voicemail. Please note that you will need to enter your Hosted PBX login code to access your options. Please see the Hosted PBX User Guide provided to you for more information. |
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How do I make a conference call? |
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Dial the number of the first person, press “Conference” on your phone and dial the number of the second person you wish to include in the conference. Please see the Hosted PBX User Guide for alternative methods. |
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| How many messages can I store in my voicemail inbox? |
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| Your voicemail inbox can store up to 20 new messages for 90 days, and 15 archived messages for 15 days. Please see the Hosted PBX User Guide for more information. |
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Can I forward my voicemail to my email? |
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| Yes. You can forward your voicemail to your email. The voicemail will be emailed to you in wav. format. Save the file on your computer and play it using a media player (e.g. Windows Media Player). |
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| Is Hosted PBX fax compatible? |
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| Hosted PBX will be fax compatible in the near future. |
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| BILLING |
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| When do I get billed? |
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| You will receive your initial invoice for all your one-time fees (e.g. setup fee and phones) after we process your contract. Your monthly fees will commence on the day that your Hosted PBX solution is set up and fully functional. |
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| How do I get billed? |
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You will receive your invoices via email. For billing inquiries, please feel free to contact our Accounting team. |
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| SUPPORT |
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| How do I contact technical support? |
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| Pathway’s friendly and knowledge technical support team is available 24 x 7. You can reach them via email or by phone. |
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