IP Phone System Overview
McCombs provides a Voice-Over-IP (VoIP) phone system and voicemail to many faculty and staff. You'll know you are using this system if you have a Cisco IP phone such as the one pictured above.
If you're new to having an IP phone, or if you've had one for a while and have been wondering what all of those buttons do, you may want to check out Cisco's interactive IP phone guide. This will give you a rundown of the phone and most of its parts. If you're interested in how to use some of the phone's features, such as forwarding calls, putting people on hold, or diverting incoming calls immediately to voicemail, take a look at the Cisco IP Phone Quick Card. Finally, for an exhaustive look at the phone and its capabilities, read the Cisco IP Phone User Guide.
How to Get Help
IP phones are managed by the McCombs Service Desk. If you need to change the number on a phone, have a new voicemail box put on it because it will be used by a different person, you need to move the phone to another room, or if something simply isn't working, you can contact the Service Desk by submitting a request through the Computer Services Help Request Form.
Voicemail
Setting up Voicemail
Press the Messages button on your phone. You will be prompted for your initial PIN, which is 12345. Once you've logged in, prompts will guide you through setting up a new PIN for accessing your voicemail, your spoken name, and a greeting that callers will hear if your phone is busy or you do not answer.
Checking Your Voicemail
If you are at the phone, simply press the Messages button on your phone, and you will automatically be directed to voicemail. You will then be asked for your PIN to continue.
You can also access your voicemail using any phone when you are away from your desk. To do so, simply place a call to (512) 232-6989. Press the * key, and you will be prompted for your ID. Enter the 5-digit extension of your office phone and press #. Finally, enter your voicemail PIN followed by #.
Alternate Greetings
You may wish to set some alternate greetings for your phone. These allows you to present callers with a different message if it is outside of your normal business hours, if you are on vacation, or for a varying number of other reasons without overwriting your original message. You can change between these greetings at any time.
Directories
The Directories button on your phone will provide you with a menu that allows you to see the name and/or number for any calls you missed, calls you received, and calls you have placed. It also allows you to access the Corporate Directory, which you can use to search for someone's number by their first or last name. Additionally, you can access your Personal Address Book on any phone from here.
If you wish to delete the history of calls (missed, placed, and received), simply press the Clear softkey at the bottom of your phone's screen.
Changing Ring Tones
Your phone has a large number of ring tones already installed. If you have multiple lines on your phone, you can set a different ring for each line.
To view your current ring tones or to change them, press the Settings button on your phone. Scroll down to Ring Type using the arrow keys on the phone, then press the Select softkey. You will see a list containing your default ring tone and the ring tone set on each of your phone lines. Any changes to the default ring tone will change all lines you have configured on your phone to that ring. To change the default ring tone, simply highlight Default Ring using the arrow keys on the phone and then press the Select softkey. You will be presented with a list of tones that you can scroll through with the arrow keys on the phone. Press the Play softkey to hear what the highlighted ring tone will sound like. Once you've found one you like, make sure it is highlighted, then press the Select softkey followed by the OK softkey.
Accessing the User Configuration Page
You can customize some phone options yourself by visiting the Cisco Unified CM User Options page. Here, simply log in with your Cisco username (The same as your McCombs username) and your Cisco password (The default is 12345). The first time you log into this page, you will be notified that your password needs to be changed. Simply enter a new password in the Password and Confirm Password boxes, then click Save.
All of the available settings can be changed through the User Options menu at the upper left part of the page.
Changing Your Password
If you would like to change your password, simply select User Settings under the User Options menu. Enter the current password and your new password twice under the Browser Password heading on this page.
You can also set your Phone PIN on this page. This PIN is used for accessing certain services such as your Personal Address Book from a phone.
Device Options
To change any settings related to your phone, select Device under the User Options menu. You will be taken to a page that contains some administrative information for your phone and a row of buttons at the top.
Speed Dials and Abbreviated Dials
The bottom four buttons on the right side of your phone can be set up as speed dial buttons. Additionally, you can specify abbreviated dials for your phone, which allow you to store additional selected telephone numbers on your phone for quick and easy dialing.
To set up or change your speed dials and abbreviated dials, click on the Speed Dials button.
For speed dials, fill in a Number (exactly as it would be dialed) and Label for each one you wish to add. The ASCII Label field will fill in automatically, and does not need to be changed.
For abbreviated dials, again fill in the Number and Label fields for each one you wish to add. To dial an abbreviated number from your phone, simply enter the number of the row in which you entered the number you wish to dial on the keypad, and then press the AbbrDial softkey on your phone.
Press the Save button at the top or bottom of the page when you are done.
Forwarding Calls
If you wish to forward calls to a different number, click on the Line Settings button. All calls are, by default, sent to voicemail if you are not available. However, on this page you can calls to forward to another number based on a variety of criteria, such as if the phone is busy or you do not answer. Additionally, you can forward all calls to your number to another number, such as your cell phone or home phone number.
To forward calls, simply place a check in the box next to the setting you wish to enable, then select the This Number box and enter the number to forward to.
Press the Save button at the top or bottom of the page when you are done.
Personal Address Book
You can create and store your own personal address book that is accessible from any phone by going to Personal Address Book under the User Options menu. To add an entry to your address book, click the Add New button here, then enter the details for the contact. When you are done, press the Save button at the top or bottom of the page. You can continue to add new entries by clicking Add New after you have saved an entry.
To access your Personal Address Book from a phone, push the Directories button on the phone. Scroll down to Personal Directory using the arrow keys on the phone, then press the Select softkey. Enter your User ID (the same as your McCombs username) and the PIN you set in Changing Your Password, then press the Submit softkey. Highlight Personal Address book with the phone's arrow keys, press the Select softkey, and you'll now be able to search through your personal address book for any entries you have added.
Other Available Features
Conferencing
You can create a conference between three or more people. First, make sure you are on a call with one party that you wish to have in the conference, then press the Confrn softkey on your phone (You may need to press the More softkey to see this). The party you are talking to will be put on hold, and you will be given a new dialtone. Now, call the number of the second party you wish to add to the conference. When you press the Confrn softkey again, the first party will be brought into your call to the second party.
Call Park
Call park allows you to place a call into a hold state that can then be continued from another phone, even if that phone does not have your number on it. To park a call, simply press the Park softkey on your phone. The person on the other end will be put on hold, and your phone will give you a message that says "Call park At <number>." Simply dial this number from another phone, and your call will be resumed from that phone.
Immediate Divert
If you have an incoming call and want to immediately divert the caller to voicemail to free up your phone line, simply press the iDivert softkey on your phone. The user will be taken directly to your voicemail box. This option will only appear when a call is incoming to your number.
Hold Music
The McCombs phone system has hold music that callers hear when put on hold. McCombs faculty and staff cannot customize the music for their phone calls.