911 & E911 Services on SkySwitch - Set up, Management & Testing

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IntroductionSERVICE LOCATION AVAILABILITY: SkySwitch 911 & E911 emergency responder services are available to support users located within the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. Canadian addresses use a different method of validation and does not verify street number or address.ReachUC Mobility App Note: Any user that dials 911 from the mobile app will be connected via GSM using the caller’s mobile provider.This article covers setup, management, and testing for 911 and E911 Services with SkySwitch.For callers on the SkySwitch network dialing 9-1-1 from a successfully registered device with an Emergency Caller ID assigned other than ten zeros (0000000000), the caller can expect one of the following events to occur:1. Telephone numbers submitted with validated address location information qualify the call as an E911 call and will be routed to the closest 911 operator in a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). There may be multiple PSAPs within the same exchange, or one PSAP may cover multiple exchanges. The territories or Emergency Service Zone covered by a single PSAP is based on the dispatch and response arrangements by fire, police, and medical services for a particular area.2. Telephone numbers submitted without address location information will be routed to a ‘National Emergency Services Call Center’ 911 operator who will:a) Request the address location of the caller and route the call to the nearest PSAP.b) If the call is dropped or hung up, the national emergency call relay center will try to contact the caller or contact the DID service provider to determine the location of the caller to route or notify the nearest PSAP of the emergency.3. If ten zeros (0000000000) are located in the ‘E911 Caller ID’ field, the call will play fast busy, or the ‘Emergency Caller ID’ field within a SIP TRUNK Domain has ten zeros (0000000000) the call will play fast busy.WARNING: Unregistered 9-1-1 CallIn cases where a 911 Caller ID number is configured for a User in the PBX portal without a valid address location registered in the E911 location database, the RESELLER will be charged $150.00 per call for 9-1-1 dialed calls routed to the ‘National Emergency Services Call Center.' This is also referred to as an ‘Unregistered 9-1-1 Call’.WARNING: 3rd Party 9-1-1 Provider DatabasesIt’s important to understand our 911 provider’s database operates separately from any other 911 service provider’s databases. Meaning, if you are in the process of Porting-In an active TN to SkySwitch’s network from another service provider with E911 enabled, until you register address location to that specific TN in SkySwitch’s 911 provider’s database, the TN is considered unregistered and any 9-1-1 dialed calls will be routed to the ‘National Emergency Services Call Center' at a charge of $150.00.WARNING: Inbound calls transferred by PBX users to 911 are permitted. We cannot block transfers to 911. If a call is transferred to 911 and the ANI is not registered it will incur an ‘Unregistered 9-1-1 Call’ fee. We highly advise you to inform your end customers not to transfer callers to 9-1-1. It's best to train or advise your end customer if ever asked to transfer a call to 9-1-1, to ask the caller to hang up and dial 911 directly. The calling party's carrier is best able to respond with timely emergency location-based services. Please contact 'Billcenter@skyswitch.com', we will ask our 911 provider for a concessionary 'Unregistered' credit.Note: You can not assign E911 address information to a toll-free number.  E911 addresses can only be assigned to valid NPA-NXX DID's.Assigning and Managing 911 Caller InformationThe assignment and management of 911 information for a TN are accomplished through two SkySwitch portals within the reseller's dashboard. This is a two-step process, and both must be completed.1) The Telco Phone Numbers Portal is used for: The assignment or disconnection of E911 Address Location Information to a respective TN. Setup of E911 notifications, Custom Callback number, and or the setup of a three-way or bridge notification number. Canadian addresses are validated through a Canadian service and it's important to note that only City, Province, and ZIP Code are validated. Please be very cautious when entering Street names and numbers for Canadian addresses, as this information is NOT validated.2) The Manage PBX Portal is used for: The assignment or removal of E911 or ECID (Emergency Caller Identification) at the User level.The assignment or removal of E911 ECID at the device level within a given User.The assignment or removal of E911 ECID at the Domain level for 'Registration Based SIP Trunks'Telco Phone Numbers Portal - Assigning E911 Location and Notification InformationAdding E911 Location InformationFrom within your Telco Phone Numbers portal, there are two possible workflows a reseller can take for assigning emergency location and notification information to a specific DID.  1) The purchase process of new DID - Step 52) From within the reseller's DID inventory by clicking on the ‘+ or 911 icon' of a designated DID to view the E911 location form data fields.  The E911 form data fields are identical for either process which reside within two tabs: 'Emergency Record' and 'Notifications' Emergency Record Tab:  In the 'Emergency Record' tab the reseller is prompted to complete the required address location fields and optional 'Override Callback Number' in the Emergency Record tab. The 'Override Callback Number' is a selectable ECID number that can be sent to the PSAP during an E911 call instead of the primary registered E911 DID.  The process of using the Override Callback Number as the ECID is discussed in the Notifications section below.Emergency Record FieldsName - The name to appear on the PSAP operator’s screen.Street Number - The house, street, or building number. Numeric part only.Street Name - The primary road or street name in the address.Location - More precise information about the location. Ex.: Suite 200, Floor 2.Country - A drop-down list where you can select the country name.State - A drop-down list where you can select the state name.City - The name of the city or township.Example: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago.Zip Code - The ZIP Code or Postal Code.Latitude and Longitude - These Geolocation fields are optional, and should be used in the event the entered address cannot be validated. The entered Latitude and Longitude coordinates will be used in conjunction with your entered civic address in the event of an emergency at that location. Geolocation information cannot be validated.Override Callback Number - If this field is populated, this is the number (ECID) that will appear on the PSAP operator’s screen as the number that should be called back.
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Note: All E911 location information requires accurate location data in order for our 911 service provider to valid and successfully assign location information to a DID.Validating E911 Emergency Record InformationOnce the required Emergency Record information is added; the user is required to click on the Validate button. This will send the information to our E911 provider to validate the address in their Master Street Address Guide for proper routing to the local PSAP.Upon successful validation, the user will receive one or more 'Success' confirmation message. Submitting Unverifiable E911 Location InformationIf the civic address entered cannot be validated, you will see an error message, as seen below.  When a civic address cannot be validated normally, there are two ways you may proceed to submit an unverifiable address.If you are confident the physical address information entered is correct, select the 'Manual Provisioning Request' tab and submit the civic address within this tab. Once submitted, a SkySwitch staff member will coordinate with our 911 provider and will validate the address manually, as seen below. This request can take 1-2 days to complete. Add the Geolocational Latitude and Longitude coordinates that will be used in addition to the civic address information. Please be sure these coordinates are accurate as they cannot be validated. Once the information is entered, click the 'Submit Address with Geolocation' button, as seen below.  Important Note: Geolocation coordinates cannot be validated, please exercise extreme care when entering coordinates. Providing incorrect values can result in emergency responders not finding the correct location in the event of an emergency.To find the Geolocation Latitude and Longitude coordinates of a location, we recommend using a service such as Google Maps and following the steps below.Open Google Maps on your device. Enter the location address, or select and hold to drop a pin on the map of the location you want the coordinates for.  Once a pin is placed on the location, scroll down the page to find the coordinates, as seen below.Setting up E911 Notifications with SkySwitchAs a result of Kari's Law, enterprises operating Multi-Line Telephone Services (MLTS) are required to provide notifications to designated on-site security personnel. This is a Federal Regulatory Law requirement effective February 20, 2020.The SkySwitch platform enables the reseller to fulfill their notification obligations through the following capabilities and functions at the end customer level as follows.Once a 9-1-1 call is initiated through the SkySwitch network, a 911 call notification can be sent to an email or SMS addresses. One or more addresses can be added. Once a 9-1-1 call is initiated through the SkySwitch network, we can initiate a three-way between the 9-1-1 dialer, PSAP and designated third party. You can choose to Unmute/Mute the added third party.The Override Custom Callback can be selected as the E911 CID at the location level for emergency responders to use as a callback number.Callback & Notification Record FieldsDescription - Optional descriptive information for the notification. This is for your internal reference only within the Telco Phone Numbers portal.  (e.g. Front Desk, Security Desk, Bob's desk, etc.)Notification Emails - The Email or SMS address that is sent a notification when a 911 call is made. To receive notifications via SMS, you must be subscribed to an email-to-text service with your telephone service provider. The SMS address uses a format that includes a 10-digit number followed by the service provider.Example: 1234567890@txt.att.netNotification Display - This is viewable only when there is an entry in the 'Override Callback Number' field in the Emergency Record tab. This controls the Caller ID that will be presented in 'Notification Emails' recipients and to the bridged party (see Bridge Settings). The default value is the original E911 number of records assigned to the location information.Bridge Settings - 'Enable Bridge' - This toggle switch controls whether to enable bridging the 911 call to a designated 1+ ten-digit phone number or not.  If 'Enable Bridge' is enabled, the 'Listen Only' toggle switch and the 'Number to Bridge' field will be shown.Listen Only - This toggle switch controls audio control for the person bridged into the active E911 call.  The options are 'Listen Only' or the off default setting of 'Two-way' audio. Number to Bridge - This designated 1+ ten-digit number to be called to reach the bridge party.Finalizing your Emergency Record and Notifications information settingsOnce the user finishes entering the record data, they must click the 'Apply' button to finalize and save the settings.  Once the TN is successfully applied, the user will receive a confirmation message stating the TN was successfully updated. This will be confirmed by a checkmark next to the newly added TN.Deleting E911 Location InformationThe removal of 911 address information is completed through a similar process; Within your inventory, locate the TN through a search, and click on the ‘+ or 911 icon’. Once the user interface opens, you should see a checkmark and a broken link icon next to the TN.Select the ‘Broken Link’ icon and hit ‘Confirm’ to delete the location and notification information assigned to the TN. Once completed you will see a successful message and the ‘Check Mark’ will be removed indicating E911 address information is not assigned to the TN.Manage PBX Portal – Assigning and removing E911 Caller ID on a UserImportant: Editing, assigning or removing ‘E911 Caller ID’ or ‘Emergency Caller ID’ information can only be accomplished with PBX Reseller Level login credentials. Contact your system administrator for access credentials if needed.In managing and assigning ‘E911 Caller ID’ to any User, you must be aware of a systemic inheritance at the User level from the ‘Emergency Caller ID’ field within Domain Settings.Any newly created users within a Domain automatically inherit the same digit information contained in the ‘Emergency Caller ID’ field within the Domain.When creating a new Domain, if you have not decided on the actual TN to be used for E911 at the Domain level, we recommend temporarily setting the ‘Emergency Caller ID’ field to ten zeros (0000000000).The assignment of E911 Caller ID to Users within a Domain is completed by editing the ‘911 Caller ID’ field in the User’s Profile.Note: The Inbound DID or TFN assigned to a User (Caller ID) is completely independent of outbound 911 services or 911 call routing (911 Caller ID).Caution: Changing the ‘Emergency Caller ID’ data after a domain is created will not change any existing User’s ‘E911 Caller ID’ data. Only newly created users will inherit the current ‘Emergency Caller ID’ data.Passthrough 911 Caller IDIf your customer wants to pass through their 911 caller ID number, you can set it to [*] under the Domain > Edit Settings > Defaults > 911 Caller IDManage PBX Portal – Assigning and removing E911 Caller ID on a Device at the User levelWarning: Setting the ECID on the device level or phone will override the ECID on the user when 911 is dialed from the device.  The ECID set on the device should be a validated and registered 911 ECID.  Important: Editing, assigning or removing ‘E911 Caller ID’ or ‘Emergency Caller ID’ information can only be accomplished with PBX Reseller Level login credentials. Contact your system administrator for access credentials if needed.The assignment of E911 Caller ID to a device within a User is completed by editing the ‘911 Caller ID’ field in the device edit settings.  This is located in the edit device settings within the 'Phones' tab of the User’s Profile.9-3-3 Dialing - Testing of E911There are no charges incurred for 933 dialing. By dialing 9-3-3 from a registered device or softphone, your call will be routed to SkySwitch’s 911 provider’s test system which will confirm the TN E911 Caller ID, address location assigned to the TN, and if two-way audio is available on the call.After dialing 9-3-3, you can expect to hear the following for a successfully provisioned E911 TN:a) Welcome to the 911-enabled automated test system – “Your account is in live mode.”b) Your subscriber identifier is: the recording will play “The Ten-digits Identified in the ‘911 Caller ID’ field of the user or device the call is placed from.”c) You Location is: “Currently provisioned “d) The location coverage will be: “Enhanced 911.”   Note: If you have emergency notifications setup, you will hear the assigned bridged CID announced (referred to as Security Desk) and the audio settings for the bridged caller (Two-way audio or Listen only mode).e) Your address is: ie, 1234 Street Name, Town Name, ST, ZipCodef) After the tone, please record a brief message, the recorded message will be played back to you afterward. {User Records Message after tone} & {Message Played Back} “Thank you. Good Bye”.When testing 9-3-3 for an UNPROVISIONED TN, you will hear the location stated as “Unknown” and the location coverage stated as “Emergency Call Center.”Dialing 9-1-1 – Live TestingAll standard call charges apply. If you or your customer wants to make a ‘LIVE’ test call, ensure you have a properly registered address associated with your phone number (DID) so the call will route to the Local PSAP at a charge of $0.99 per call. Please announce to the answering center representative this is a test call and ask them to confirm the address location information presented to them. Two-way audio should be confirmed during the call.In cases where a 911 Caller ID number is configured for an end-user in the PBX portal without having an address registered in the E911 location database, then RESELLER will be charged $150 per call for 911 dialed calls routed the ‘National Emergency Services Call Center.'WARNING: Blocking 9-1-1Having ten zeros in the ‘E911 Caller ID’ field is the only way to block 9-1-1 dialing by a User. If User access is through a SIP Trunk, the ‘Emergency Caller ID’ field must have ten zeros (0000000000) to block 9-1-1 dialing by a SIP Trunk User.When 911 is dialed using ten zeros, the call will end on a Fast Busy Signal. However, when 933 is dialed using ten zeros, the call will play a "Location Unknown" message, similar to when calling out using an unprovisioned address.CAUTION:Make sure you test E911 configuration by dialing 9-3-3 before performing any live testing.Recommended Best PracticesThe recommended best practices for setting up and assigning E911 to a User(s) or a SIP Trunk route on SkySwitch’s platform are as follows:How to setup up a PORT-IN DID pending a Local Number Portability (LNP) Order or Temporary DIDRequest the LNP team to add the PORT-IN DID to your reseller inventory. Follow the instructions for adding E911 address information in the section labeled: 'Telco Phone Numbers Portal - Assigning E911 Location Information'.Warning: If you requested a TN to be loaded for adding E911 address only, do NOT route the TN. TN's should only be routed to a User or Device. Routing an unassigned TN will cause calls to fail if dialed by an On-Net user.Once you have confirmed the PORT-IN number has been successfully added to our E911 provider's database, follow the instructions in ‘Assigning and Managing 911 Caller Information’ At that time, you can use the final PORT-IN number in the E911 Caller ID.By using this method you can assign a temporary or transfer DID to a user and still use the end users PORT-IN DID for their E911 Caller ID. After the port completes, the final step will be to replace the temporary DID in the Caller ID field since your already setup the User’s E911 Caller ID and tested 911.Caution: Always test E911 by dialing 933 after you add or make changes to a Users ‘E911 Caller ID’ field.Setup of E911 on a SIP Trunk RouteWARNING: Incorrect setup of E911 Caller ID may incur 'Unregistered' 911 call fees. Follow the instructions below for properly setting up E911 services on SkySwitch SIP Trunks.
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WARNING: Inbound calls transferred by PBX users to 911 are permitted. We cannot block transfers to 911. If a call is transferred to 911 and the ANI is not registered it will incur an ‘Unregistered 9-1-1 Call’ fee. We highly advise you to inform your end customers not to transfer callers to 9-1-1. It’s best to train or advise your end customer if every asked to transfer a call to 9-1-1, to ask the caller to hang up and dial 911 directly. The calling party’s carrier is best able to respond with timely emergency location-based services. WARNING: 3rd Party 9-1-1 Provider Databases. It’s important to understand our 911 provider’s database operates separately from any other 911 service provider’s databases. Meaning, if you are in the process of Porting-In an active TN to SkySwitch’s network from another service provider with E911 enabled until you register address location to that specific TN in SkySwitch’s 911 provider’s database, the TN is considered unregistered and any 9-1-1 dialed calls will be routed to the ‘National Emergency Services Call Center’ at a charge of $150.00.
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WARNING: Blocking 9-1-1Having ten zeros in the ‘E911 Caller ID’ field is the only way to block 9-1-1 dialing by a User. If User access for 911 dialing is through a SIP Trunk, the ‘Emergency Caller ID’ field must have ten zeros (0000000000) to block 9-1-1 dialing by a SIP Trunk User.When 911 is dialed using ten zeros, the call will end on a Fast Busy Signal. However, when 933 is dialed, the call will play a "Location Unknown" message, similar to when calling out using an unprovisioned address.Setting up E911 Service on a SIP TrunkFollow the instructions above for 'Telco Phone Numbers Portal - Assigning E911 Location Information'. You must register a TN and E911 address in the Telco Phone Numbers portal first.Add the assigned E911 TN based on your SIP Trunk Setup:Registration Based SIP Trunks use the Domain's E911 Caller ID. If a reseller wishes to block E911 they must set the Domain's E911 to 0000000000.Optional - For Registration Based SIP Trunks, E911 can also be set at the User Device-level in NMS. If E911 is set at the User Device-level the Domain's E911 Caller ID will not be used. You must make this request through a support ticket for assistance in assigning E911 at the User Device level.IP Authorization SIP Trunks use the E911 Caller ID that the SIP Trunk sends. Add the assigned E911 TN to the customer premise-based PBX per the manufacturer guide. If a reseller wishes to block E911 they must send 0000000000 from their PBX or block it inside their PBX.Unregistered SIP Trunks can have the Domain's E911 Caller ID set thru a support ticket.Caution: Always test E911 by dialing 933 after you add or make changes to a Users or PBX ‘E911 Caller ID’.Assignment of a new construction or the temporary address locationIt is common to receive an error within the Telco Phone Numbers portal when trying to add address location information for a new construction site or temporary address; in this case, we must add the E911 address information manually with our 911 provider. SkySwitch will open a Support Ticket with our 911 provider to have the address information manually loaded and validated. Geocodes are required in these cases. Geocode are longitude and latitude coordinates. You can identify or notate the geocodes from google maps, an automobile navigation system, or a mobile phone while at the physical location. Learn more about locating Coordinates here.Please complete the 'SkySwitch E911 Manual Submission Form‘ this will send the required information to our support staff for processing.Once the address has been added successfully, we will update you thru your Support Ticket. This can take up to 24 hours. Do not make any ‘Live Test’ calls until we notify you an address location is assigned to the TN.BYOT CustomersE911 Services are not supported for BYOT numbers, and the '+' button will not appear for BYOT numbers within the Telco Phone Numbers portal.Questions If you have any additional questions or require additional training in setting up E911, please call 1-747-777-8102 or email Support@SkySwitch.com with your request.