QUESTION Piaf as a T38 fax machine????

[edisoninfo]

I have a client whom signed up for a hosted VoIP without consulting anyone. Unbeknownst to them, the provider cut over their gazillion old fashion analog phone lines at midnight last night. This morning they had nada, nothing, zilch. After helping them get a few phones online so they could at least get a phone call, they asked about their 3 fax machines!! Yeah right! The provider wants them to use Cisco SPA112 units which is fine but nobody within driving distance has any. Over night air will not get here until at best Thursday. They can not survive that long without faxes they say.

Is there any way I can fire up a Piaf box and use it to pull in the faxes from the provider and email them to someone? I have not messed with this enough to know if this will work in a pinch?

 

[briankelly63]

can the provider forward a few DID's to something like Vitelity's vfax? Set up a vfax number and just take the faxs from there..

OR just have the clients send faxs directly to the vfax number! Can be up and running in a couple of min.

 

[steven]

Incredible Fax might be an option, but it may take a little more tinkering then you want to do to get working properly. Unfortunately, faxing with a physical fax machine over VoIP is very unreliable in my experience, so even if you do get the ATAs you're probably looking at an even bigger headache. Sounds like Brian's solution above might be your best bet.

 

[edisoninfo]

can the provider forward a few DID's to something like Vitelity's vfax? Set up a vfax number and just take the faxs from there..

OR just have the clients send faxs directly to the vfax number! Can be up and running in a couple of min.

The provider offers vFax themselves but says it takes a couple of days to activate. I have that in the works but was trying to find a solution until then.

 

[randy7376]

edisoninfo

If you have an Obi202 that you could use, that might work. I've done some limited testing with faxing and the Obi202 and have had a very high success rate (not a failed fax) with faxes. This actually surprised me! The last time I tested (with a PAP2T), it worked about 30% of the time properly.

 

[LesD]

The quality of the trunks is still a limiting factor. Receiving faxes on my Anveo trunk, which claims to be T38 compatible, works fine while on other trunks I have it is a waste of time - and that is using Hylafax and not a physical fax machine.

 

[briankelly63]

The provider offers vFax themselves but says it takes a couple of days to activate. I have that in the works but was trying to find a solution until then.

If you don't have another alternative then I'd do the Vitelity solution which can be up and running immediately

 

[LesD]

If you don't have another alternative then I'd do the Vitelity solution which can be up and running immediately

That still needs the provider to play ball and route the old fax numbers there. From the evidence to date, I suspect that may take even longer - unless you give out new numbers to irate customers

 

[atsak]

edisoninfo

If you have an Obi202 that you could use, that might work. I've done some limited testing with faxing and the Obi202 and have had a very high success rate (not a failed fax) with faxes. This actually surprised me! The last time I tested (with a PAP2T), it worked about 30% of the time properly.

Yes I can tell you the 202 works MUCH better than the PAP2T, with or without T38 (the PAP2T did not have T38 support, but the OBi even works better than the new Cisco 112 or whatever it is and the SPA series).