An extension is an internal phone line for a person or a place, such as 101 for reception.
Colleagues dial it directly, and you can send calls to it from menus, ring groups and phone numbers.
There's no phone system in a cupboard behind any of it: the
hosted business phone system runs in the cloud.
Owners and admins manage extensions in Admin → Settings → Settings → People & Phones → Extensions.
What every extension includes
- Its own direct phone number, bought and assigned automatically when you create the extension. It's the caller ID for the extension's 911 calls.
- A voicemail box with transcripts. See Voicemail.
- Call handling settings: forwarding, follow-me, Do not disturb, ring time and call waiting.
- An emergency address status. See Emergency calling.
The direct number isn't set to ring the extension automatically. To give someone a direct-dial number that customers can call, route it to their extension in Phone numbers.
Create an extension
Choose a number
In Extension number, enter 2 to 6 digits, such as 101 or 2001.
Label it
In Label (optional), enter the person's name or the place, such as Front Desk. Labels show in the Team roster, the dialer and call routing, so make them clear.
Add it
Select Add extension.
Assign a person and apply
Assign someone to it (below), then select Apply Configuration.
| Error | Fix |
|---|---|
| "Extension number must be 2-6 digits" | Use digits only, 2 to 6 of them. |
| "Extension … already exists" | Choose a different number. |
Plan your numbers
Use a unique number for every extension, ring group, queue, auto attendant, announcement and paging group, for example 100s for people, 500s for ring groups, 700s for menus and 800s for queues. Don't use 600, 911 or 933, which have special meanings on your phone system.
The extensions list
Each extension's row shows at a glance:
- how many devices it has
- its emergency caller ID number, or a warning if none is assigned
- outbound blocked, if its emergency address isn't confirmed yet
- a DND badge when Do not disturb is on
- an arrow and a destination when calls are being forwarded
Select a row to expand it and see all its settings.
Assign a person
In the expanded extension, choose someone in User (web phone), or Unassigned.
- The person's browser phone uses this extension. It's added to the extension automatically, as Web phone, the first time they open Phone.
- A person's voicemail inbox shows this extension's mailbox.
- Select Apply Configuration after assigning, so calls to the extension ring their browser phone.
Only people who've joined your workspace appear in the list. Invite them first.
Call handling settings
Expand an extension to change how its calls are handled:
| Setting | What it does | View |
|---|---|---|
| Forward if no answer → | Where unanswered calls go instead of voicemail | Easy |
| Follow-me (also ring my cell) → | Also rings a mobile number after the extension's phones | Easy |
| Forward ALL calls → | Sends every call somewhere else, without ringing the extension | Easy |
| Do Not Disturb | On — calls go to voicemail or Off. The person can also dial *78 and *79. Takes effect immediately. | Easy |
| Ring time before voicemail | How long the extension's phones ring, from 5 to 120 seconds. Leave it blank for the standard ring time. | Advanced |
| Call waiting | On — a 2nd call rings through, or Off — busy on a 2nd call. On by default. | Advanced |
The forwarding settings are explained in Forwarding, follow-me & Do not disturb. Voicemail options are under Voicemail settings. See Voicemail.
Most of these are call-routing changes. Select Apply Configuration to make them live.
Devices
All the devices on an extension ring at the same time, and whichever one answers takes the call.
The browser phone
Every person with an assigned extension has the browser phone, with nothing to set up. See The browser phone.
Desk phones and softphone apps
intSignal enables desk phones and third-party softphone apps for your workspace. Contact intSignal before you set one up, so your workspace is ready for it.
Once enabled, add each device to its extension:
Add the device
In the expanded extension, select + Add device. Enter a Device label, such as Dana's desk phone, and choose a Type: soft, desk or mobile. The type is only a label to help you recognize the device.
Copy the sign-in details
Select Add device. You'll see the device's username, password and domain. Copy the password now. It isn't shown again.
Enter them in the device
Enter the username, password and domain in the phone's or app's account settings.
Apply and test
Select Apply Configuration. Then dial *43 from the device for an echo test.
Each device needs a label that isn't already used on that extension ("A device named … already exists on this extension"). If you lose a device's password, remove the device and add it again to get new sign-in details.
Shared phones
A shared phone is a handset that isn't tied to a person, such as in a lobby, a meeting room or a warehouse. In the Advanced view, open People & Phones → Shared phones: "Handsets not tied to a person — a lobby, conference room, or warehouse phone. No user account, no voicemail; still gets a number + E911."
- Enter the Number, such as
150, and the Location, such as Warehouse. - Choose the Device type: Softphone, Desk phone or Mobile.
- Select Add shared phone.
This creates the extension and its device in one step, and shows the sign-in details once. Copy them straight away. The list shows E911 ✓ or E911 not set for each shared phone.
Shared phones:
- have no voicemail,
- can be members of ring groups and call queues,
- need a validated emergency address before they can call out. Contact intSignal to validate a shared phone's address and enable calling.
Delete an extension
Select delete on the extension and confirm "Delete extension … and all its devices?".
Before you delete, update anything that sends calls to it: phone numbers, ring groups, queues, menus and forwarding. The Visual Flow builder shows broken connections in red.
The extension's direct number is released 10 days after you delete it. If you need to keep that number, contact intSignal before then.
Troubleshooting
| Problem | What to check |
|---|---|
| A person's browser phone says no extension is assigned | Assign them in User (web phone). |
| Calls to a new extension don't ring | Select Apply Configuration. |
| An extension shows outbound blocked | Its emergency address isn't confirmed. See Emergency calling. |
| A desk phone won't sign in | Check the username, password and domain were entered exactly, and that intSignal has enabled desk phones for your workspace. |