Scheduled events

Scheduled event templates are used to alter mailbox behavior based on a schedule.

The auto attendant mailbox for the default location, 991, for example, uses a scheduled event template to override the active greeting and SDA menu. By default, it plays the night greeting (greeting 3) and uses the Night Menu Action SDA template, but the assigned scheduled event template, Day Schedule, overrides those settings during business hours so that it plays the day greeting (greeting 2) and uses the Day Menu Action SDA template instead. Other possible uses of scheduled event templates include: office closures, holidays, vacations, lunch hours, etc.

Whether you are editing an existing template or creating a new one (global or custom), the system will display a dialog similar to the one shown in the figure below. The main difference is in the text displayed in the title bar. The example below shows the dialog for creating a new global template.

To save your changes, click OK. If you are creating a new template, you will be prompted to enter a filename before the data is saved. If you are creating a custom template, the filename is created for you. Clicking Cancel will discard any changes not previously saved.

Schedule Settings

These settings collectively are used to determine when the template is and is not active.

Setting	Description
Start Date, End Date	The template can only be active on or after the Start Date, up through, but not after, the End Date. To make this template active regardless of the date, set both values to the same date (or select the Date Override option).
Start Time, End Time	For any day on which the template can be active, it will only be active during the time interval defined by these settings. Set the Start Time to the time of day you wish this template to start being used and set the End Time to the time of day you wish the mailbox to revert back to its default behavior.
Date Override	If enabled, the date values are ignored and are both automatically set to January 1, 1700.
Holiday Override	If enabled, this template will override any other template assigned to the mailbox whenever the date and time fall within the time window during which this template is active. Normally, the first active template in the list (on the mailbox's Scheduled Events property page) is the one that is used. However, if any template has Holiday Override enabled, then it will be used instead, even it is at the bottom of the list. If more than one template has Holiday Override enabled and both are active at the current time, the one listed first will be used.
Restrict To	Select which days of the week this template can be active. For any day not selected, the template will be inactive for the entire day, regardless of any other setting.

When Active Change

These are the mailbox settings from the Owner Settings property page that are overridden while the template is active. Not all of them apply to all mailbox types. For example, neither Extension, Use Call Blocking, Busy Greeting, RNA Greeting, nor Use Call Screening apply to system mailboxes (like 991) because you cannot transfer to a system mailbox's extension, ever. Consequently, they always use the call blocking greeting and always have call blocking enabled.

Setting	Description
SDA File	Select the SDA template to use when this template is active.
Extension	Enter the extension to use for transfers, MWI notifications, etc., while this template is active.
COS File	Select the class of service template to use when this template is active.
Use Call Blocking	Check this box to block transfers to the mailbox's extension while this template is active.
Call Blocking Greeting	Enter the greeting number to use for calls routed to the mailbox greeting due to call blocking.
Busy Greeting	Enter the greeting number to use for calls routed to the mailbox greeting due to a busy signal.
RNA Greeting	Enter the greeting number to use for calls routed to the mailbox greeting due to not being answered.
Use Call Screening	Check this box to enable call screening for any transfer that occurs while this template is active. Call screening is not available on SIP-enabled systems.

How It Works

A scheduled event is used to alter mailbox behavior based on a schedule. This could be as simple as changing the greeting or blocking transfers during a certain time period or as significant as changing the active SDA and COS templates.

Time Window

The time window determines when the template is active and when it is not. For any time that falls outside of the time window, the template is inactive and has no effect on the mailbox whatsoever. The only exception to the time window is the Template Disabled checkbox on the Schedule Events property page; if the template is marked as disabled, then it is considered inactive at all times on all days regardless of the time window settings for the template itself.

The flowchart below shows the basic decision tree used by the system, moving from left to right, and is discussed in more detail in the following sub-sections.

Date Range and Date Override

The time window for a scheduled event is a little complex than it is for the other template types, but that complexity allows for considerable flexibility. The first thing the system considers is whether the Date Override checkbox has been checked; if so, then it skips to the next step below. If Date Override is not checked, then the system checks if the current date is either before the Starting Date or after the Ending Date. If it is, then the template is considered inactive; otherwise, the system continues to the next step.

Days of Week and Holiday Override

If the date checks out, then the next step is to consider the Holiday Override option. If it is enabled, then it doesn't matter what day of the week it is and the system will continue to the final step, checking the time.

If Holiday Override is not enabled, then the system will check if the current date falls on a day of the week that has been selected in the template. If not, then the template is inactive; otherwise, the system continues to the next step.

Time Range

The final check is whether the current time is before the Starting Time or after the Ending Time. If it is, then the template is inactive. Otherwise, the template is active.

Note: If you assign more than one template to a mailbox and they have overlapping time windows (such that both would be considered active during a given time period), the one listed first will be the one that is used.

In searching for an active routing plan, the system moves from the top down, stopping at the first template that is considered active. One exception: if a template has the holiday override enabled, and is otherwise active, then that is the template that will be used, even if it is at the bottom of the list. If more than one active template has the holiday override enabled, the first one in the list has priority.

Start of Call

In this context, start of call is defined as either when a caller dials the extension from within the system (e.g., at the main greeting auto attendant or during some other mailbox's greeting) or when the caller selects an SDA action that has been defined to transfer to an extension. In either case, the first thing the system does is check for an active scheduled event. If one is found, its settings are temporarily applied to the mailbox. This is done even before it checks for a call routing plan.

A scheduled event cannot change the active call routing plan template, but if the active plan is defined to perform a transfer to the Office Extension, the scheduled event can alter the routing plan's behavior by changing the assigned COS template (which can change the transfer type), by enabling call screening, or by blocking transfers altogether. It can even temporarily change the Office Extension address so that transfers are directed to a different physical extension than the one assigned on the Owner Settings property page.

End of Call

In this context, end of call means right before the mailbox greeting is played. At this point, the system will again check for an active scheduled event and, if one is found, apply its settings. In this case, the scheduled event may temporarily change which greeting will be played and which SDA template will be used to interpret and handle any touch tone entries from the caller. A change of COS template may also affect whether the mailbox can take a voice (or fax) message and whether that message can be marked urgent or private.

Note: If the mailbox type is not standard, some settings may be irrelevant. System mailboxes, for example, cannot take messages, regardless of how the assigned COS template is configured. QA, distribution and guest mailboxes do not use scheduled event templates at all.

Why Use It

The purpose of a scheduled event template is to change the behavior of a mailbox during a certain period of time. This can be useful in any number of ways. Here are two examples.

Example 1: Automated Attendant

The primary use of scheduled events in the DV2000/DV4 is to provide a means to have a day greeting (and associated SDA menu) and a night greeting (and menu) for the main greetings automated attendant mailbox, and to have the system switch between the two automatically based on a schedule.

Consider mailbox 991, the automated attendant mailbox for the default location. By default, it is configured to play the night greeting (greeting 3) and use the Night Menu Action SDA template. However, the assigned scheduled event template, Day Schedule, overrides these settings during business hours so that it plays the day greeting (greeting 2) and uses the Day Menu Action SDA template instead. By default, business hours are defined as 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, in perpetuity (i.e., the Date Override option is enabled).

Example 2: Subscriber Mailbox

Another possible use of a scheduled event would be to automate a subscriber's mailbox so that it allows transfers during business hours but blocks them after hours (so that callers do not have to wait for a ring no answer condition before being able to leave a message). You can accomplish this by configuring the mailbox to have Call Blocking On enabled by default (on the Owner Settings property page) and use a scheduled event template to disable call blocking during business hours. And, as with the automated attendant example, you could even have it change which greeting is played. Call screening, too, is a feature that you might want on during the day but off after hours (assuming this is not a SIP system, which does not support call screening).

The caveat here is that the subscriber would have to be working relatively fixed, regular hours or the automatic call blocking might cause them to miss calls they would otherwise have answered.