Optional voice mail feature:
Group/broadcast mailboxes

(Not available on ESI C-Plus, IVX S-Class, or IVX C-Class)

Important:

This is a special, optional feature not explained in the tutorial. Be sure to get your group mailbox number from the System Administrator.

Any user can use the Quick Groups™ feature to send a message to any combination of users (up to 65) without having to create specific group mailboxes. No programming is required to initiate Quick Groups. Group mailboxes are used if the members of the group rarely change or if members want to be able to easily leave messages for one another, etc.

Introduction to group mailboxes

Group mailboxes let you broadcast a “master” message to all members of a pre-defined group of users (or guest mailboxes). When you record a master message in the group mailbox, the ESI phone system instantly copies it into the mailbox of each member who has recorded a personal greeting.

Note:

A member can only delete or save his copy of a group message; the group mailbox will retain a saved group message until deleted by every member of the group.

The master message remains in the group mailbox until all members have saved their copies or deleted them from their mailboxes.

Warning:

If you delete the master message from the group mailbox, all remaining copies will automatically be deleted from the members’ mailboxes.

Example:

You have left a group message reminding everyone in the group of a meeting for Friday. The following Monday, if the message is still in the group mailbox (indicating that at least one of the persons hasn’t deleted the message), you can delete it from the group mailbox — which will delete it from the mailbox of each member who hasn’t yet heard and deleted the message from his/her mailbox.

You may give the group mailbox number and password to others to allow them, too, to record master messages. Setting “0” (zero) as the password eliminates the password requirement.

Introduction to the broadcast mailbox

For easily contacting all system users, the ESI phone system’s broadcast mailbox automatically consists of all station mailboxes (not guest mailboxes) with personal greetings recorded.

Leaving a group message

Call the mailbox number and enter the appropriate password (if required).

Deleting a group message from the group mailbox

Enter group mailbox programming by pressing VOICE MAIL ∗ and then entering the group mailbox number. You will hear any previously recorded group messages not yet deleted by all members of the group. Delete a message by pressing 7. Exit by hanging up.

Programming a group mailbox

Press PROGRAM ∗ and then enter the group mailbox number. You will be prompted to record the mailbox greeting, change the password or edit the list of members. Exit by hanging up. For frequent access to leave group messages, program a group mailbox number as a programmable feature key. (See “Programmable feature keys.”)

Virtual Mailbox Key

To help monitor that all messages have been picked up, you can program a programmable feature key on any ESI Feature Phone as a Virtual Mailbox Key for the group mailbox. When new messages exist, the key will blink rapidly; press it to connect automatically to the mailbox. Program the programmable feature key with VOICE MAIL ∗ followed by the mailbox number (see “Programmable feature keys.”).