Receptionist temporarily at another location - forwarding calls?

[Rishi]

We have one receptionist that handles all operator calls for four of our locations. She is going to temporarily be at another location for about a month and we'd like to forward all calls that would normally go to her line to this other line (a basic Mitel 5320 IP phone).

This would include any calls to our main numbers, as well as any time someone presses 0 to get the operator or any call no answer routing we may have.

Is this process as straightforward as setting up forwarding on the main line to address all scenarios, or is it more detailed than that?

Thanks.

[acejavelin]

It could be that simple if the calls just ring directly to the extension, but we would need to know how those calls ring in... If they ring a hunt group then it gets much more complicated, perhaps using DEE would be easier?

[Rishi]

Calling the main number triggers an application with digit translation. Pressing 0 rings a hunt group, but that one extension is the only member. I assume I can add the new extension to this hunt group and that should work?

I haven't used DEE before, but I can look into it if you think this is still the way to go.

Thanks.

[acejavelin]

Dynamic Extension Express will likely give you exactly what you need with minimal changes in programming since Hunt Group calls cannot be forward but can be twinned.

[Tech Electronics]

acejavelin,

Hunt Group calls don't follow DEE, but they do follow forwarding.

Thanks,

TE

[acejavelin]

acejavelin,

Hunt Group calls don't follow DEE, but they do follow forwarding.

Thanks,

TE

Wow... your right. I really thought it was the other way around.

Now I am wondering why we used to send calls to the receptionist extension, then use a System Forward Path to immediately forward to a hunt group so the receptionist could still forward the main number. My mind is getting foggy, I don't work on these things as much as I used to since I switched companies a few months ago and my new position is about 75% working on our hosted Broadworks platform...

[Rishi]

So should I add the new extension to this hunt group, or should I just set up forwarding on the main line to the other number?

[DND ON]

... Now I am wondering why we used to send calls to the receptionist extension, then use a System Forward Path to immediately forward to a hunt group so the receptionist could still forward the main number.  ...

Because that allows you to manually forward those calls anywhere, including off-site, which you can't do with hunt group calls.

[DND ON]

So should I add the new extension to this hunt group, or should I just set up forwarding on the main line to the other number?

I would just add the other phone to the existing hunt group.

[Rishi]

So I tried this today. I tried to add the NJ phone as an IP/Digital Off-Node Device in the NY system, but that didn't seem to work. NJ reported that it rang, but they couldn't answer.

I set up a phone here in NY with forwarding and added that phone to the Hunt Group, and that seemed to work though.