How to Setup Enterprise Voice in Skype for Business Online (SFB – O365) – Part 2

Introduction:

In this part we are going to see how to enable cloud PBX and PSTN calling feature in Skype for business online. If you missed to read the part 1 in this series, then I would recommend to read that first to understand the requirement which will help you to plan accordingly.

Features covered:

In Cloud PBX, Skype for Business users can enjoy enterprise voice functionality with the many features. To find out all features that are available, you can visit this official page

Requirement:

• You need to be a global administrator in the tenant
• Users should have an appropriate license assigned. If not during the setup it will error out

How to setup Cloud PBX and PSTN Calling with Step-by-Step instruction:

• Login to Office 365 portal with tenant administrator
• Click on Skype for Business under Admin section
• It will open a dedicated tab to manage Skype for Business online
• Click on Voice option under the menu section
• You can see multiple tabs in the voice menu. Under phone number tab click + sign to add a new phone number to the pool
• If you would like to transfer your existing telephone numbers to Microsoft you can click port orders tab in the same window (Please do not worry as I will cover the steps later in this article). We will first see how to add new numbers now
• After you clicked + sign a New number window will open. Select the state and city in the drop down. Based on the license available in your account, you can see how many numbers you can acquire. Once you clicked on add button, it will list out available numbers in the same window. You can click on acquire numbers button (It will expire in 10 mins if you did not acquire it) If that is the case you need to start the process again. Also you reserve 10% more phone numbers than your available license. For instance, if you have 1000 license, you can have 1100 numbers in the reserve.
• Once you acquired the telephone numbers you can see all those numbers under Voice -> Phone numbers section.
• At this stage you cannot just assign the numbers to the users. It is because we need to add Emergency Locations for that telephone numbers. It is mandatory in US and other location. To know more about this emergency location and 911 (emergency calling) please visit here
• So go to Emergency Location tab under Voice menu. Click + sign and enter the required information over there. If you got a message that “We didn’t find the exact address you entered so it’s been modified” make sure the modified one is correct. If you have multiple offices then you need all of them there.
• After the above step is completed, the emergency address is listed under Emergency Location
• Now it’s time to assign the telephone number to the users. Click voice users tab under Voice menu. Select the Active users under the drop down menu or search the user who need the telephone numbers.
• In the result select the user, click assign number at the right side. New pop up will open and you need to select the respective city and apply the respective emergency address
• That’s it!! You have assigned a new telephone number to the user account.

Now they can use the Skype for Business desktop, android and iOS device application to dial any number (domestic or international) based on the plan that you subscribed and assigned to that user. Unified Messaging is inbuilt with this setup. So if any one leave a voice mail then the user will automatically receive to his mailbox.

As I mentioned before if you wanted to use the portability for you existing telephone numbers, that is if you want to port forward your existing telephone numbers from a different carrier (like ATT, BT, etc.) to Microsoft you can follow the below steps

How to use portability using Port a number to Microsoft Cloud PBX:

• Before you start this procedure please make sure you have the following information

• Under the Voice menu, click Port Orders. If you have less than 999 numbers then you can complete the steps all by yourself else you need to contact the support and they will guide you on how to proceed.
• Once you clicked on “I’m ready to create a port order” option you will get a wizard where you need to enter account info, numbers, transfer date, letter of authorization and submit the details.
• You can actually transfer all numbers that you have with the carrier or only some of them. So you have total control over there. You need to provide a working email address in the submit section. This is very important as you will be notified on each and every stage during the transfer.
• You will get notification once
  • Order Created
  • Order Approved
  • Transfer completed stage
• It is recommended to assign the number to the respective users once the transfer date is confirmed. This will ensure there are no disturbance in the service once the transfer is completed.

Great!! You have completed the Cloud PBX and PSTN setup for the Skype for Business users. In the next article we will see how to enable Dial-in Conference option for your users. Happy learning 🙂