8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams: Questions and Answers
What is Voice for Teams?
8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams is a cloud-based PBX-to-PBX integration with the Microsoft Phone System, which creates a seamless, behind-the-scenes integration of the 8x8 phone service into Microsoft Teams.
So in essence, the 8x8 Voice for Teams service provides enterprise-grade telephony and global PSTN connectivity to customers who want to retain Microsoft Teams as their sole collaboration interface.
How do I obtain the 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams service?
For details about obtaining the 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams service, please contact your Customer Success Manager (CSM) or 8x8 Sales Manager. You can also reach us from here.
What are the requirements for the Voice for Teams service?
Microsoft
There are three different sets of Microsoft licensing (per user) which can be applied to use 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams:
- Microsoft 365 E5 License (Microsoft Phone System license included)
- OR: Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard, or Premium, and Teams Phone Standard (which includes Microsoft Phone System).
- OR: Microsoft 365 E1, E3, or A1/G1, A3/G3 license and Teams Phone Standard (which includes Microsoft Phone System).
8x8
- An 8x8 X Series account.
- One 8x8 X Series license (X1-X8) must be assigned to each user of Microsoft Teams.
- OR one 8x8 X Series Metered or X Series Pro license for migrated service accounts, assigned to each user of Microsoft Teams.
- In the 8x8 Admin Console, Microsoft Teams licenses must be applied to your account, with one license assigned and enabled to each user of 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams.
- Implementation services are required for all deployments of 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams.
- User email addresses must be identical in both their Microsoft and 8x8 user profiles.
Configuration
Setting up the service must be performed by one or more administrators who have access to admin functions of both Microsoft Teams and the 8x8 Admin Console.
Is 8x8 Contact Center supported?
Contact Center is supported, but requires use of the AGUI. The Microsoft Teams dialpad will display call activity of the associated 8x8 Work extension.
Also:
- Auto Answer:
- Persistent: Auto Answer is supported (since call on Teams is already answered). Be aware that Persistent mode will make the user look busy in Teams for the duration of Contact Center login.
- Non Persistent: Teams Auto Answer is not supported.
- Contact Center Directory will show 8x8 hookstate for Teams users (will not reflect internal teams status).
- Contact Center Chat to Teams Chat is not supported.
Can I use Work Desktop or Work Mobile with the service?
While it's possible to use the 8x8 Work Desktop and Work Mobile apps with Voice for Teams, it is generally not recommended. Calls made using these apps will not appear in the Microsoft Teams interface, and Teams to Teams calls will not appear in Work Desktop or Work Mobile unless those calls are initiated by dialing the Teams user's phone extension number.
In general, only Microsoft Teams browser, phone, and app endpoints should be used.
How is Microsoft Teams presence handled with 8x8?
The 8x8 Presence Sync app enables the integration of Microsoft Teams Presence status into your 8x8 applications, as well as on-call presence status of 8x8 Work users into your Teams applications.
Please see the installation guide for more information: 8x8 Presence Sync with Microsoft Teams.
Are 8x8 Work-specific functions like SMS and Meetings supported?
SMS:
Microsoft Teams itself does not natively support SMS. However, Teams users can access a number of 8x8 Work features from Microsoft Teams, including SMS/MMS messaging, using the 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams App.
Please see the following article for details and documentation links:
Meetings:
8x8 Meetings is currently not a supported feature of 8x8 Voice for Teams.
If needed, a service administrator can provide their users with access to 8x8 Work credentials so they can log into Work Desktop and Meetings. Keep in mind that this activity will not appear in Microsoft Teams.
Are 8x8 phone devices supported?
- Users can have an 8x8-supported phone device.
- For Teams to Teams calls, only MS Certified Devices will ring. Standard 8x8-provided devices will not ring unless the Teams to Teams calls are made by dialing the user's phone extension numbers.
Are there any limitations in capturing information in 8x8 Analytics?
In general, any call placed or received in Microsoft Teams that touches the 8x8 network will be captured and available in 8x8 Analytics.
Information that will not be captured in 8x8 Analytics includes:
- Calls placed between Microsoft Teams users
- Device Status / Call Quality information for Microsoft Teams endpoints
Do any limitations exist for business applications such as CRM integrations?
The following features are not available when using Microsoft Teams along with 8x8 and any supported CRM or other business application:
- Auto Answer on outbound calls is not possible.
- The Answer/Accept button from the 8x8 Maestro integrations works only with desk phones that are not on the Microsoft Teams network.
Can I transfer to a ring group or call queue using Microsoft Teams?
- Direct transfer to a call queue or ring group is supported.
- Consultative transfer is not supported.
If a Teams user calls another Teams user by dialing their 8x8 DID, is that call tracked and recorded by 8x8?
- No, those calls are not tracked or recorded by 8x8, because they never reach the 8x8 phone service. When dialing another Teams user's DID in Teams or clicking on their associated phone icon in Teams, Microsoft will directly route the call from one user to the other.
Is Microsoft Teams voicemail compatible with 8x8 voicemail?
In general, the service can be configured to use either 8x8 voicemail or Teams voicemail.
For optimal functionality of the Voice for Teams service, it's highly recommended that you use 8x8 voicemail. This option is configured by a service administrator in the 8x8 Voice for Teams admin portal.
Teams voicemail must be disabled to allow calls to route to 8x8 voicemail and allow for users who are part of 8x8 Ring Group/Call Queue to reject calls and have these calls advance.
Note that voicemail assignment can be overridden at the individual level in the Voice for Teams admin portal.
How do I retrieve and listen to voicemails?
When users have access to the 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams App within the Microsoft Teams client:
- Voicemail email delivery options can be configured in 8x8 user profile settings.
- Voicemails can be listened to and downloaded.
The availability of these options is dependent on:
- The installation of the 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams App into the Microsoft Teams service.
- User settings and policies applied by the 8x8 Admin Console service administrator.
Can calls using 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams be recorded?
- Any call that uses the 8x8 network can be recorded, such as Teams to or from the PSTN, or Teams to and from 8x8.
- Direct calls between Microsoft Teams users cannot be recorded.
Are there any limitations to extension dialing?
Although you can dial any 8x8 extension in Microsoft Teams, it’s important to note these limitations associated with extension dialing:
- Teams-to-Teams user calls will not be monitored, recorded or reported on by 8x8 even though they may look and feel like extension calls to a user.
- Consultative Transfer to Call Queue extensions is not supported.
- Consultative Transfer to Ring Group extensions is not supported.
Does 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams support call quality analytics?
- No. Because user endpoints (soft clients, or Microsoft Teams phones) are on the Microsoft Teams network, 8x8 cannot monitor the quality of those endpoints. However, Microsoft does provide some statistics on the quality of the Teams portion of the call.
Are Emergency Services supported with 8x8 Voice for Teams?
- Standard configurable address per user is provided by 8x8.
- Support for dynamic location is available, and requires the addition of 8x8 Nomadic 911 services to your 8x8 X Series service.
- The Nomadic 911 service configuration guide for Teams is located here: Nomadic 911: 8x8 Voice for Teams Configuration.
Is 8x8 Call Park supported?
- Teams users will not be able to leverage 8x8 Call Park.
Is overhead paging supported?
- Yes, overhead paging is supported.
Is speech analytics supported in 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams?
- Speech analytics is a feature available as part of 8x8’s Contact Center solution. Calls handled by 8x8 Contact Center can be recorded and analyzed via speech analytics.
Is Teams Islands Mode Supported?
Microsoft no longer supports Islands Mode for Direct Routing (such as 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams), so your Microsoft Teams tenant must be migrated to Teams Only mode to work with the 8x8 service. Please see the following article for details:
Additional Information
Voice for Teams (8x8 Direct Routing for Microsoft Teams) documentation can be found here: