Caller ID Between Sites

[Skirk505]

We recently setup our second site of what will be nine sites total, and we have encountered an interesting Caller ID issue.

We currently have everyone's 10 Digit DID number listed in our Exchange Global Address Book (pulled from Active Directory) and it is visible in the Call Manager.

Here is what is happening..

1) User, uses Call Manager to find a number, and currently sees both a 10 digit number (Pulled from the Exchange Address Book) and a 4 digit extension (Pulled from the ShoreTel Directory)

2) If the User selects the 4 digit extension, Caller ID displays correctly. (ex. "Sandy ####")

3) If the User selects the 10 Digit extension, Caller ID displays a different user’s information (ex. "Anna (###) ###-####" , and it seems that its always the same person, no matter who is calling who)


Does anyone have any suggestions on where it could getting the Caller ID from?

Again this is just when they call between sites, across our WAN.

[gberkemeyer]

Dump the 10-digit # from AD

If the user selects the 10-digit number, the ShoreTel system is sending the call out a trunk (either a local or remote trunk depending on whether the remote site is a local call or not) and then back in a trunk. The call is using two trunks.

The reason they are all seeing the same Caller-ID is because the inbound call is seeing the outbound Caller-ID of whatever trunk the call goes out.

We had 10-digit numbers setup in AD originally also, but had to remove them because of this problem of using two trunks.

It doesn't help that the ShoreTel system always shows the 10-digit number ahead of the user's extension either.

[OldPhoneGuy]

You can disable 10 digit numbers from AD by going into the individuals call manager, select Options > Configure ShoreTel System. Click the Outlook tab. Click More Options. Click the Import Configurator tab. Double click Address Books. Uncheck Global Address Lists, All Address Lists, and everything contained within All Address Lists. Click OK twice. Click More Options > Read Contacts now. That fixed the problem for us.

[gberkemeyer]

Good point. You can disable it from the user side. However, the reasons we did not do that were 1) We would have had to touch 330 computers at 11 sites, and 2) We also store mobile and home numbers in AD, and having those show up in CM was an unexpected benefit and a real time-saver for us. It just so happens that those numbers appear BELOW the etension number in CM, rather than ABOVE it as the 10-digit AD "Telephone Number" does.

Gary

[Skirk505]

I found the settings in Call Manager to remove the GAL from the and came to the same realization, we would have to touch all our machines after we complete our Shoretel migration.
I guess my main confusion was why the Caller ID being reported was incorrect when they use the 10 digit number. Like in my example is "Sandy" calls using the 4 Digit number it shows up on the other end as "Sandy". if she makes an outside call, it reports the correct Caller ID as well. But if she uses the 10 Digit number for another Shoretel users, it reports the Caller ID information for a completely different users will Name and all 10 Digit's. Also no matter who is calling who, if they use the 10 digit number it always shows the same user's Caller ID information, almost like it is just picking up the first person in the phone list Alphabetically.

But as a short term solution we will just have to make sure that everyone understand not to use the 10 Digit number for people on the Shoretel System. Then once we have all our office migrated over, hide the GAL from Call Manager.

[gberkemeyer]

As for the caller-id issue, let's assume that site B is the site where the problem is occuring. I suspect that site B has POTS(analog) lines for its trunks. This means that all outbound calls on each of those trunks will always give the same outbound caller-id regardless of which user dials out. I suspect also that it is a long distance call between site A and B.

If so, when an internal user dials the 10-digit number for someone at site B, the ShoreTel system sends the call out a trunk at site B. If the caller is at site A, the call first goes across the WAN and then out a trunk at site B. If the caller is at site B, the call just goes out the local trunk. When the call then comes back in a trunk at site B, it shows the outbound caller-id of site B, which is always the same.

Lastly, somewhere in your AD or in your contacts or a personal folder, there is a contact named "Anna" (as in your example) whose 10-digit number matches the caller-id that was sent out from site B's trunk.

[jstevens78239]

If you're still out there working around the 10-digit numbers showing up in call manager, we resolved it by putting only the four digit extension in the phone number field in AD for those users on our Shoretel system. Once the phone number field matches the Shoretel system directory, you only get the Shoretel directory show up in the Call Manager drop down. You still get GAL phone numbers for employees not in the Shoretel directory.

[jstevens78239]

Ie, if Anna McQueen is listed in AD phone number field as 1234 and in Shoretel as extension 1234, only the Shoretel entry shows up in the call manager drop down. But anyone else in the GAL with a unique entry (unique from the Shoretel directory), it shows up in the drop down. I put the full 10-digit phone number in Business 2 field in AD so people can still find it but it doesn't duplicate our call manager contacts and there is no unintentional outbound-and-inbound dialing between extensions.

[Jason Learmouth]

Nice work.

That's a great tip Jessica. What versions of ShoreTel have you verified this behaviour against?

If you're still out there working around the 10-digit numbers showing up in call manager, we resolved it by putting only the four digit extension in the phone number field in AD for those users on our Shoretel system. Once the phone number field matches the Shoretel system directory, you only get the Shoretel directory show up in the Call Manager drop down. You still get GAL phone numbers for employees not in the Shoretel directory.