IVR

An IVR (short for Interactive Voice Response) will allow you to tell your callers what buttons they need to press to get to desired destinations.

To access the IVR/Auto-Attendant page, do the following:

i.e. customer.freevociepbx.com/maint
(replace customer with your system's actual subdomain)

Go to PBX > PBX Setup > IVR/Auto-Attendant.

IVR's/Auto-Attendant's are used to create voice prompted menus where the caller must enter an option. When creating menu options, you may use any digit combination or *, #, 'i' and 't' destinations. 'i' is used when the caller pushes an invalid option, and 't' is used when there has been no option entered by the caller. If those options aren't supplied, the default action is to replay the menu three times and then hang up, and the default 'i' is to say 'Invalid option, please try again' and replay the menu. After three invalid attempts, the line is hung up..

Add IVR

Configure the new IVR as needed. More detailed descriptions of the configuration is listed below.

Change Name

The name of your IVR as seen in your PBX

System Recording

Here you can choose from the drop down box which audio recording you would like to use for your IVR.

Scheduled Recordings

This feature allows you to use certain recordings for specific date ranges. To add more, you can use the 'Add Scheduled Recording' button.

Timeout

This is the amount of time in seconds that the IVR will wait after playing its message before it goes to the timeout destination.

VM Return to IVR

If checked, upon exiting voicemail, a caller will be returned to this IVR if they got a users voicemail.

Enable Direct Dial

This feature allows callers in the IVR to dial directly to an extension via its extension number.

Direct Dial Directory

This feature limits Direct Dial's capability to extensions in the selected directory via the drop down box. By default, all extensions are able to be reached via Direct Dial.

Loop Before t-dest

If checked, this feature will make the IVR play the recording again before going to the timeout destination.

Timeout Message

You can select another audio recording to be played when the caller is "timed out".

Loop Before i-dest

If checked, this feature will make the IVR play the recording again before going to the invalid menu option destination.

Invalid Message

You can select another audio recording to be played when the caller inputs an invalid menu option.

Repeat Loops

This feature defines how many times your IVR will loop, if used.

Configuring your IVR's Menu Options

An IVR's Menu Options is where you would define what inputs callers would press, and where those inputs would route the call.
For example, if you typed '1' in the Menu Option box, and choose the destination for that Menu Option to be a voicemail for extension 100. When a caller gets routed to your IVR, they will be able to press '1', and they will be connected over to extension 100's voicemail.

Two special Menu Options that you should always configure into your IVR's would be the timeout destination and invalid destination.
To setup your timeout destination, you would fill in the Menu Option with a lowercase t.
Then you would select where you want the call to go if it times out from your IVR.
To setup your invalid destination, you would fill in the Menu Option with a lowercase i.
Then you would select where you want the call to go if the caller inputs an invalid Menu Option.
Save the new IVR. (using S.A.C - Save, Apply, Continue)