Maybe you have remote workers on a separate telephony system or a key customer that you want to be able to reach easily. You can associate an extension with their external phone number. You can then contact them using their extension just like you'd contact anybody else in your organization with an assigned extension. And when someone who's been assigned a virtual extension calls into your organization, their assigned internal extension and name appear on the caller ID.

Create a Virtual Extension

You can set up virtual extensions at the organization level or the location level. The organization level enables everyone across your organization to dial the same extension number to reach someone. The location level virtual extension can be dialed like any other extension assigned to the same location. Users in the same location only have to dial the extension, while users at other locations can reach the virtual extension by dialing the location routing prefix plus the extension.

Before you begin

There are two modes of operation for virtual extensions. The mode you choose applies to your entire organization. The default mode (Standard) will be used by the vast majority of customers. The steps presented here apply to the Standard mode. You can select the other available mode (Enhanced), but virtual extensions won't function properly unless your PSTN provider supports special network signaling extensions (edge case). For more information, see Change Your Virtual Extension Mode.

The number you associate with the extension must be a valid E.164 number.

1

From the customer view in https://admin.webex.com, go to Services > Call > Features > Virtual Extension, and then click Create Virtual Extension.

2

Choose one of the following options:

  • Manually Add—f you only have one or two extensions to add, choose this option and then indicate whether you want to assign the extension at the organization or location level. If you're adding the extension to a specific location, select the location. Fill in the First Name, Last Name, and Display Name* you'd like to display in directories and caller ID for incoming calls. Define the extension you want the person to be reached at and the E.164 telephone number. Then, click Save.

     

    The display name is a mandatory field of 1-60 Unicode characters. You can customize the display name in the preferred format for presentation such as a single word or multiple words for business main numbers or hunt groups. The first and last name fields are optional. The search function will be based on the display name in addition to the first and last name.

  • Bulk Add in CSV—If you have a lot of extensions to add, choose this option for convenience. Use the provided template to verify that your CSV file is properly formatted, making sure to fill in the required information, such as whether an extension is being assigned at the organization or location level. If you're assigning an extension at the location level, you must provide the location name. Enter the first and last name, display name, phone number, and the extension. Then, click Submit. Your Tasks list opens, giving you a status of your CSV import and indicating whether you've encountered any errors.

     

    The display name column is mandatory in the virtual-extension-template.csv and the first and last name columns are optional.