Test Remote Office emulation

This article helps to analyze whether Remote Office can be used on your phone system by emulation or not.

Requirements

To test the Remote Office emulation you will need:

• The TAPI Test Tool EPhone.exe
  Available for download at: https://www.estos.de/fileadmin/Download/Support-Tool/Test-Tools/EPhone.zip
• A system telephone on the telephone system
• Two external phone numbers

You need the following participants:

• Workstation telephone (participant A)
• A mobile phone as a simulation of the Remote Office agent (participant B)
• An external subscriber who is to be called via Remote Office (participant C)

Thus, the following procedure is to be simulated under realistic environmental conditions (i.e. with external call partners in each case):

• Participant A establishes a connection to participant B.
• Participant B accepts the call, the connection is established.
• Participant A triggers another dial to participant C and simultaneously switches the first call using:
  
  • Direct blind transfer (participant A to C), or

  • Consultation transfer (participant A with C) immediately after call acceptance.

You cannot use any other extensions of the telephone system for the test!

Test Remote Office emulation

Start TAPI Test Tool

On the system where the TAPI driver of the PBX is installed, start the EPhone.exe. Under Device, select the line of the phone that is to be used for the test and then click Start Session.

Example Screenshot session in TAPI Test Tool

You now need the first external phone number. This is the so-called Remote Office number, i.e. the number at which you can be reached outside your office (e.g. your mobile phone number).

The second external number as the destination number corresponds to the participant you want to call via Remote Office. This participant should be presented with your company phone number including extension.

Testing call forwarding

Open the Call forwarding list using Forward. Now use the Add button to add call forwarding. In the Fwd to field, enter the Remote Office phone number with any outside line to be dialed.

Example screenshot Call forwarding – Call forwarding...

It is important to set the Call forwarding Type to Unconditional. Leave the remaining fields unchanged. 

Example screenshot Forward...

Confirm the input by the Forward button.

Example Screenshot Call forwarding – Type and Destination

The driver must have accepted the call forwarding and displayed it accordingly in the list. Exit the dialog by clicking OK.

The signaled call forwarding number must be correctly formatted in the UCServer location for Remote Office to be activated.

End line monitoring with End Session to start it again with Start Session.

Open the Call forwarding list again using Forward. The same entry must be visible again.

Remove the call forwarding set by Remove.

If the Call forwarding list is now empty again, the first requirement for using Remote Office is met.

Dialing with on-hook

Open the TAPI Test Tool EPhone.exe again. Enter in the field Phone #: the Remote Office phone number with if necessary outside line access and click afterwards on Make Call.

Example screenshot Make Call

Check that the phone you are using starts dialing in hands-free mode and that the correct company phone number is presented on your mobile phone (Remote Office number/phone). If the desired company phone number is not presented, check the configuration of the telephone system. Answer the call on the Remote Office telephone.

Example screenshot Call Connected

The Transfer button should have been activated now. Click Transfer.

Complete test 

Depending on the phone system, two options can now be checked:

• Arranging a consultation call and subsequent transfer
• Arranging a blind transfer

Arranging a consultation call and subsequent transfer

Enter the destination number and set the checkbox at Consultation Transfer. Then click OK.

Example screenshot Consultation Transfer

The phone will now put the first call to the Remote Office phone on hold and set up a consultation call to the target party. As soon as this call rings with the destination participant, the consultation call can be transferred with the call on hold.

Check that the correct company phone number with extension is displayed for the destination participant. As soon as the dialog shows Ringback (Proceeding for some SIP trunks), click Transfer.

If Transfer is greyed out, then the TAPI driver does not offer a transfer of the two participants in the office.

Example screenshot Complete a Consultation Transfer

When both calls have been correctly connected, the company phone will be idle again and the Remote Office phone will talk to the destination participant. When the call transfer has worked and the above points have been tested successfully, the Remote Office emulation can be used for this phone system.

Transfer with BlindTransfer

Enter the destination number and remove the checkbox from Consultation Transfer. Then click OK.

Example screenshot No Consultation Transfer

If the telephone system supports this operation cleanly, the call disappears from EPhone.exe and the call between the company telephone and the Remote Office telephone is transferred to the destination number. Any error that may occur is displayed in EPhone.exe in the status line at the bottom. Check whether the correct company phone number with extension is displayed for the destination participant. It is possible that the system call number is displayed here instead of the extension number. If the described functionality is given by BlindTransfer and the above points have also been tested, Remote Office can be used for this telephone system.