I set up a ring group for two ext to ring when someone hits a selector code on the partner mail. both phones ring fine but the trouble is that it keeps ringing, personal mailbox never answers.
any ideas on how I could fix that?

What mail box should answer? A personal MBox won't pickup on a group call.

i need the operators mailbox to answer if no one answers the call, she is in the ring group.

Partnermail R5 - I'm assuming that is Partnermail VS R5.

There is no capability to make a mailbox for a group (Ext. 71, 72, 73, or 74)

Calls transferred to a calling group ring until answered or abandoned.

You can cheat a little bit. Deliberatly misprogram the Transfer Return Extension setting for the voice mail ports (#306-XX-10). Set each port to return to themselves (which is the default setting, against what the manual telle you to do).

Now calls transferred to a calling group will ring for the number of rings in the "Transfer Return Rings" setting, then return to the voice mail port that sent them there.

The catch is that they don't send mode codes to the VM port, so it hiccups a moment, then says "Transferring to Operator" and sends it to Ext. 10.

Ext. 10 has Voice Mail coverage, so the call rings at Ext 10 (only) and covers to voice mail.

Or you could add a third extension to the group, loop it back into an unused line port, program the line to be a VMS cover line to extension 10 after a delay.

Either way will work, I have set them up both ways to acomplish what your trying to do.