Good morning everyone, I am desktop computer technician with network experience that has just taken a new job managing a small office. Part of my new duties is maintaining a PBX phone system outfitted with a Toshiba Strata DK424. I have absolutely no phone experience whatsoever and this is easily the most daunting part of my job. I have started reading the manual but find it overwhelming largely due to the statement in the introduction "intended for qualified service technicians and systems programmers". This is a small office and will most likely not be providing any training for me. Where can I start to get a handle on this beast? Thanks for any information that you can provide.

I'd say that if nothing is broke, then you have got a pretty good handle on it. The DK424 is a rock solid system and as long as everything is rocking along, then just walk around the office patting yourself on the back and telling everyone what a good job you are doing.
Then, and only then, read the user guide and familiarize yourself with the terminology and all the features of the system. When a problem does arise, give it a go first. If you are unable to resolve it, then post with all the pertinent info and someone here will help you out.

If you can, add a second phone on your desk. You can then use your first and second phone to interact with each other.

Try simple programming first, like button programming and then try something like call fowarding.

This will let you get a handle on the key sequences required in programming.

The most common things you might have to change are:

• User Names
• Ringing-Immediate, Delay and No Ringing
• Call Fowarding-especially if you have Voice Mail

You probably have a handle on relocating phones, but just incase, take a look at the system:

• How does the dial tone get into the system
• How do the telephones sets connect to the system
• What different types of phones do you have- 10 btn, 20 btn...
• Is there Music-on-Hold
• Is there a Voice Mail system.
• Are there Analog Devices connected to the system (Fax, Modems, et cetera)
• Is there a paging system.

...and welcome to the industry!

Prof. Shadow - that's a great idea.

BobRobert - afraid there's been problems since I started since it is on the cusp of an office move. My learning curve has been painfully apparent.

Thanks for the tips Prof. I'll start with those. Just wish the manual weren't so incoherent for someone who has never had to deal with managing phones before.

Question : and you may not know the answer, you can mark it up as frustration, yet. . .

Why is the Office Voicemail referred to as the "Auto Attendant"?

Why is the user's voicemail referred to as the "DISA - Direct Inward System Access"?

Why did they hire the Rainman to write this manual?

Seriously, do these guys call the steering wheel on a car the "Circular Navigational Maneuvering Object"?

Users voicemail isn't referred to as DISA, DISA is the ability to call into your system , enter a code, and access dialtone(from your system) to make a call. Thats why we went to school to learn these systems

its not Auto attendant is the functionality that answers and directs incoming calls much like a live attendant might do

Voice mail is where you can record a message for a subscriber or group
its not they are two separate functions
perhaps "rainman"is the one complaining about not being able to understand and comprehend a manual written for trained telecom pros

Sorry for sounding like an ignorant fool, but I'm afraid I'm not as privileged with school knowledge.

Thanks for a quick response. Why would a person want to call into the system in order to enter a code so that they can access a dial-tone from your system and then make a call. What's the advantage of using the dialtone that you get from your system as opposed to just using whatever phone your using to dial into your system?

Maybe at the office there is a better long distance plan.

Thanks - that makes some technical sense, though I have to admit that having two service plans for your employees eludes me.

I feel you are getting off on a tangent - but a simple way to define DISA (direct inward system access) is you are at home and need to make a long distance call for work purposes. If set up correctly, you would dial a specific telephone number set up on the DK40i that the system would answer and give you a tone back, you enter a password and recieve internal dial tone, then dial a "9" and your long distance number. Long distance charges will be billed to the office and not your home phone. DISA is not recommended as toll fraud can occur.
Now back to your second post - you are looking at an office move. Is the whole office moving into new digs or are two people just swapping offices? If two people are just switching offices, then all you have to do is swap the 1 pair crossconnect wire at the MDF - no programming involved.

To me DISA is not used very often. I have used it for troubleshooting, such as dialing 9 to make outgoing calls, or dialing an extension, or entering a system code such as remotely setting call forwarding.

On newer systems a VOIP phone would work better then DISA, but as stated, you could have an employee at home that wants to make calls using the comapny phone lines. Dialing extensions directly is better handled by an auto attendant.

To me the other manual that is a must is the user guide. Lots of problems can be solved with that alone.

The biggest obstical is the terminology. I don't recall another phone system that refers to the primary intercom keys as the PDN. "Hunt Groups" also vary in fuctionality from one type of system to another. As mentioned, the Auto Attendant is one fuction of the voicemail system. One of it's fuctions is to allow callers to enter a menu selection r dial an extension.

Also be aware when asking for help that the voicemail system is not a Strata DK 424, but is either an internal or extenal device or PC.

I was formally trained on the new Toshiba Strata CTX system and had to learn Strata DK to service our old customers. It was an uphill battle but now I can get by as long as I have installation, programing, and users manuals.

@BobRobert - move has already been done. I was hired immediately after it was completed. Any move issues with the phone system seemed to have been ironed out as of now.

My main problem right now is new hires - setting up a new phone, creating a mailbox for the new phone.

We also have a "Hunt Group" that changes at night that I occasionally need to doctor to make sure inappropriate people aren't within the "Hunt Group"

Lastly, there is a Night Mode function which is in effect for 30 minutes from 5:30pm to 6:00pm when our office closes. Our receptionist leaves for the night and turns on the night mode to redirects all incoming calls directly to the "Hunt Group" for staff in the back. The problem is one of the extensions that should not be a member of the "Hunt Group" suddenly seems to be a part of it once Night mode is selected. I need to get him off. Other than that, I have to start learning the system. I can't count on the service consultant to be available all the time.

@newtecky - I downloaded the Strata DK Digital Telephone User Guide, is that the one you are referring to for the Strata DK424? Or this some other user guide I should be looking at? Our 20 button handsets are the Toshiba DKT2020-SD. The 10 button handsets are the DKT2010-SD. Our receptionist has a DDDSS2060.

PDN = Intercom - thanks, that's truly helpful. Concerning access the DISA, it refers to the [DN]. Is that also another button on the phone? If so, which one - if it's not one of the programmable flexibles.

Thanks so much for all your responses. I don't feel as daunted now.

I believe you mean "Ring Group" and not "Hunt Group". There's a difference. On a DK, a ring group is created using either secondary DNs or phantom DNs. The easiest way to remove the station from the ring group is to note what button on his phone flashes on the group call and then change the button.

The Digital telephone user guide is the correct on for the DKT2020 and the DKT 2010. for me is was helpfull in answering a lot of customer questions when I was learning the system. Of course you still need the programing guide to make any changes.

A hunt group in the system is a group the rolls over from one extension to another, if the 1st is busy for example. The voicemail ports for example would be in a hunt group. If one port is busy, the 2nd port would ring, ext. It would alway ring only one extension until it answers or call forwarding kicks in.

There are various way a call could ring a phone. In the case of line appearances, where the CO lines appear on the phones, you could changing the ringing of an extension using program 81 through 89, dependin on if it is immediate and which mode, Day, day 2 (if used) and Night.

DN means Directory Number which is the extension number. PDN is Primary directory number, which can be translated to Intercom. Then on a phone you can have Phantom DN's and Seconday DN's, as referenced above.

@phonemeister - you are correct - I did mean Ring Group. Sorry for the confusion. As my first point, specified - the terminology is sometimes elusive or functions very closely related to give me a bit of a brain freeze. I'll attempt to note the line that is ringing tonight.

Thanks much for the tip.

@newtecky - Great. Not only do I have the correct Digital Telephone user guide, but I have the programming guide as well. Kudos for me.

Progams 81~89 are the Ground/Loop Start/CO Line Station Ringing?

Yes, but this would assume you have lines appearing on each phone that corrispond to regular analog CO lines (POTS lines). If you had a T1 then this would not be how you control rining of the extensions. You would probabaly have a Phantom DN as Phonemeiseter mentioned. Prg 39 would get rid of the phantom and stop the ringing.

Program 39 - Flexible Button Assignments?

@phonemeister - Just checked with the user. Says that the buttons that light up are various. Indication of a Hunt Group in Night Mode?

Well, the first thing you need to do is figure out if the buttons that are lighting up when the affected phone is ringing are DN buttons or trunk line appearances. Use program 39 to find out. If the buttons are DNs, then use prog *71 to remove ringing. If they're line appearances, use prog 81 through 89.

Thanks - your helpful info allowed me to resolve the issue.