SimpleFax ATA Order Process

This guide provides a walkthrough of the order process for the SIP.US SimpleFax ATA faxing solution. By following these steps, you will be able to place a new order for a fax ATA and avoid common mistakes to ensure faster deployment of active fax service.

IMPORTANT: This guide is based off the expectation that you have already ordered voice services with SIP.US, as fax service is not offered as a standalone service.

Fax Line Assessment

1. Once you have decided to utilize SIP.US SimpleFax, you need to take the appropriate course of action based upon which telephone number (TN) you intend to use with the service:

• Do you intend to purchase a new fax line directly from SIP.US to use with SimpleFax?
  
  
  • ONLY include fax service on your initial order if purchasing new fax numbers through SIP.US.
  • You may proceed with the SimpleFax order and select a new fax line that is already configured for fax service and ready for assignment to an ATA. SIP.US will configure the ATA device and ship it to you, ready for deployment.
    
    
• Do you intend to port an existing fax line with another carrier into SIP.US for fax service?
  
  
  • Do NOT include fax services on your initial voice services order, because this will be done in a separate order to facilitate the porting process.
  • Initiate a fax port request prior to placing the SimpleFax order. Once this preliminary step has been completed, you may proceed with the SimpleFax order and you will see the option to choose the porting fax line on the order.
  • For the port request, if you are porting a fax number that will be used with a SimpleFax ATA, please submit only one number per request and check the box for “this number will be used with a fax device”. This helps the Number Porting team provide you with a better porting experience.

NOTE: Do NOT place a SimpleFax order with a temporary DID if you are already porting a fax number in that you intend to use long term. The Audiocodes ATA will need to be reprovisioned, which we cannot guarantee on demand, and it will impact service.

• Do you already have a fax line, such as efax, with SIP.US and intend to convert the service for use with a SimpleFax ATA device?
  
  
  • The efax number should already be available to choose in the order. If you intend to move a number that has already been assigned to an ATA, the assigned number will need to be removed from the server configuration for the existing ATA. Then you will be able to place the order and choose that line from the existing number options. Do NOT use a placeholder DID for the SimpleFax order.
    
    
• Do you have an existing voice line which you intend to convert to a fax line?
  
  
  • Submit a support request to the Billing team for an internal port from the voice carrier to the fax carrier. No formal port request is required. A porting fee may apply.

Initiating a SimpleFax Order

2. Log in to the SIP.US customer portal and navigate to the Fax tab. There are options for Fax-To-Email and SimpleFax Secure FAX ATA. You will choose the SimpleFax option: “Order Fax Device”.

3. A form will load, requesting shipping details and number assignment for the device.

• Fill out the shipping information for where you want to receive the ATA delivery. It does not have to match the location on the account. Choose the most convenient/secure delivery address.
  
  NOTE: SIP.US cannot ship to PO boxes.
  
  
• Choose an existing fax number on your account via the dropdown next to “Use this number” and check the box.
• Choose a new fax number for assignment and configuration to the Simplefax ATA via the options below “Select a state and area code to choose a number”.
  
  

NOTE: There is an option to add an email address on the “Review Order” page which will associate the email address with the fax number for notifications and email copies of faxes. This can be changed later at any time in the customer portal under SIP Trunking > Telephone Numbers.

4. Review and submit the order. Once the order has successfully processed, our system will generate an order number and create a support request detailing the number you selected for configuration to the ATA and the shipping address you provided. Once the order has shipped, the ticket will be updated again with a postal tracking number.

5. Once you have received the SimpleFax ATA, follow the instructions provided in the box to configure the device with your fax machine.

Instructions: When you receive the adapter, please plug the RJ-45 Ethernet data cable into the WAN port of the SimpleFAX adapter and into your data network (switch/router), then plug the phone cable into the PHONE 1 port of the SimpleFAX ATA and connect to the line-in RJ-11 phone jack on your FAX machine. Please do not plug anything into the LAN/PC port or the PHONE 2 port of the SimpleFAX adapter.

IMPORTANT: If you are porting the Fax number from your existing Fax machine, please wait until you receive notification that the number port has completed before connecting the adapter.

6. Place test faxes to and from the machine to ensure everything is working. If you experience technical issues, please ensure you have addressed the following common issues and then open a request with our Support team at support@sip.us to review the device configuration. 

Common SimpleFAX™ ATA Issues:

• Network access is plugged into the ATA's LAN port instead of the ATA's WAN port.
• The ATA does not have Internet access.
• The user is not dialing a 10-digit NANP telephone number.
• The user is attempting to dial an international telephone number.
• The ATA has not been assigned an IP address from the network's DHCP server.
• The ATA's DHCP-assigned IP address has already been assigned to another device.