Client is an older attorney who must have purchased this phone system when he graduated law school. He's attached to it (actually, he's attached to his money and doesn't want to buy anything new).

Problem: Frequent dropped calls. TelCo has been on site to "test", and of course they found no problems. They tell the client it must be their phone system, but the tech didn't have a laptop, so he couldn't access it ( :confused: )

My idea, to determine whether the system or the TelCo is dropping the calls is to replace (hard-wire to the C.O. lines) one of the extensions with an ATT 4-line analog phone (as found at Office Depot, etc).

Question is: If the receptionist answers a call and places on hold (Partner system phone), will the person picking up the call on the 4-line analog phone be able to break the hold? It's a small office and they just yell back/forth...

:shrug:

No, picking up a phone ahead of the system will not release the hold on the ACS

Will the user be able to speak with the caller and will the system eventually disconnect/drop the hold after caller hangs up?

Best thing to do with intermittent problem is replace the processor and see if it continues. Give it a week and tell them if it keeps doing it you will put the old one back in and just charge for the time, or if it doesn't continue you bill them for the repair or the new processor.

Been there/done that. I'm not spending one minute on a creaky old system that the client is attempting to hold together with rubber bands and chewing gum. It never works out good for me.

All I'm attempting to do is narrow down the problem: Phone lines? Call ATT. System? Here's a proposal for something new.

Yeah there's a point you need to draw that line, but you have to be careful because if you just sell them something new and the problem persists then arguing with the telco and further going after the problem is going to be your problem and make you look bad.

Exactly. That's why I'm attempting to determine where the fault is before I make any recommendations as to new equipment. If the (temporary) 4-line phone doesn't drop calls, then we know the problem is with the system. If the 4-line phone behaves the same (drops calls), then we know the problem is with ATT.

Question: Will this proposed set-up function?

Not how you're proposing no. If you wanted to do it that way you'd need to install the 4 line phones at every phone location, or get a base station with cordlesses or something if it's a smaller place would be my suggestion if you're not going to switch the processor.

Just wondering - Have you checked the loop current? If it's below 18ma, I think the Partner will drop the call. At least that's what the old Merlin did.

OMG. :bang: I'm doing ONE phone as a TEST. If it works and solves the issue, I'll replace with a new phone at each location, and send the Partner to the phone museum.

No. The issue isn't consistent.

OMG. :rofl: . I think it's time to pass this off to someone with experience.

No, I want the receptionist to answer the system phone and yell across the hall to the paralegal (just as she does now) to pick up L1. Paralegal picks up L1 on the analog set and completes her call. That's it. The 4-line phone is independent of the system. Not looking for any system functionality whatsoever. They do not transfer nor use voicemail or paging.

And before you start throwing around the "inexperienced" BS, perhaps you should take a course in reading comprehension.

Are these POTS lines? Trouble on all lines? I would start at the NID during their off hours and make 20-30 test calls on each line.
Even if it's intermittent you have a good chance of finding the trouble with a bunch of test calls.
IME, if the trouble is on all the lines it's usually the system.

Yes, POTS lines. The issue is intermittent and, as typical, the client isn't able to single out a particular line, or all lines, even though I asked them to pay attention.

My concern is I spend a few hours testing the lines as you indicate, find no issue, hand the client an invoice and the problem continues. Did I mention the client is an attorney? :rolleyes:

The building is old (60's/70's) in an unimproved part of town, and the wiring is a nightmare...multiple junctions before reaching the clients closet. I'm suspecting it's a line issue, but since ATT already said "It ain't us", then the onus is on me to prove otherwise.

Well, just for S & G's, I'm going to try my above-referenced experiment. I'll let y'all know how it works out.

Did you check for bad connections at each cross connect point?

So, they're not going to use the system at all to any of its capabilities, so again, you aren't putting in a 50 dollar multi line set for the whole office for a week to test why? I mean you say you aren't going to do it the right way which would be to swap the processor and see if it continues but then you want to try to jerry rig it in a fashion that isn't practical and won't work well if at all. Basic isolation skills yet you seem to lack the comprehension of such. Good luck dude I wish I could BS customers .

Genius...where am I going to get a processor? Buy one at the ACS Partner store down the street? Then what? Find out the original processor is good and store the "new" processor on my shelf? Use it as a door-stop? How much time should I spend trouble-shooting each line and every connection on a system that's well past it's prime? Hours? My bill would be more than a new system. I need a quick/dirty way to test whether it is the lines or the system, got it? My solution, if it works, will do that.

Sheesh...

All connections are relatively new, as I moved the system to this location about six months ago. I will do a cursory check tomorrow when I'm installing the analog phone.

Not to sound like a butt but, If your gonna be working on Partners you should have a spare just for troubleshooting, no?
Invest in a refurb R 6.0

Even if you dont use it at your cheap lawyer customer, it might come in handy down the road...

I agree.

Danny, you have been given many options here and best of luck to you finding your customer's issue. To me, it sounds like a carrier issue, but IMO it will take some on-site time and sweat for you to know for sure.

Something I would recommend is getting all the facts together, ex, does this happen on all POTS lines and does it happen on all exts, the times it does happen where is the call originating from......SIP,..copper,...coax.

I guess, what I'm trying to say is that there is no black and white troubleshooting guide for your issue and it is going to require some on site hours from you to nail down where the exact problem is.

Yeah, you can replace the system, but if you don't find where the problem is first, you may end up looking like an amateur phone man when the customer still has problems after you replace their system

Just sayn, and good luck!
If we can be of any further assistance, please let us know.

Thanks,