Installation Issues - 2hrs on hold for tech assistance

[mnarcticcat]

I've got Cable Internet with a wireless router. Currently Charter is my VOIP service. Should I be able to just un plug Charters box and plug it into Ooma?

I'm trying to install the ooma hub in my basement like I had the charter voip. I'm tapping into the main phone line that supports the rest of my house. I do not need the Ooma hub for an answering machine, etc. I have a new Panasonic DECT 6.0 with 3 handsets that I use that does everything I need.

Can anyone provide me with any details. The Charter VOIP only used 2 of the 4 wires, the wierd thing is the colors of the charter wires are Dark Blue and Light Blue............. Standard phone wires are Red, Yellow, Green, & Black. Should I be supporting the ooma hub with a 4-wire phone line?

I'm scratching my head hear.....Please feel free to ask me any questions as I can not wait to get this thing working right so I can ditch Charter!!!!!

THanks....

[Soundjudgment]

You CAN ditch Charter at least for the phone service. I am pretty sure of it. But it might need more hookup than you are dealing with now,

First, as stated earlier, you do NOT need a four conductor wiring scheme for your phones. 2 Conductors is all that is necessary. That's it...period! The only reason extra phone-line conductors might come into play is if you have DSL phone service and need an extra run inside the house.

Second, worry not about what coloring-code Charter may be using for house wiring. The two Blue-wires are the same ones in a Cat5/6 jack as the familiar RED and GREEN wires in traditional analog phone-house wiring. So those two conductors all that is needed for phone service to work.

Next, decide if you are getting rid of Charter altogether. ARE THEY YOUR ONLY CURRENT Phone Service provider for the house?? If so, then when they leave, you will be on a totally dependent upon Ooma's service plan.

Is this alright for you? Are you comfortable with the fact that if your House power goes out from say during a storm... YOU WILL LOSE YOUR TELEPHONE SERVICE since Ooma will be completely tied to your Internet connection?? If you also have a working cellphone then that isn't much of a problem. If this is alright, then cut the cords! You are free from $$Charter$$ Phone-service forever. Just tell them you need the high-speed Internet and nothing further from them on your monthly bill.

Now the other idea is why do you need any House wiring for phones at all. You mentioned that you are planning on using a traditional wireless telephone. So does the RF signal of that Panasonic reach all the other phones? Then you are already set to go. No House wiring necessary, except of course if you are getting some form of High-speed Internet service connection from Charter itself.

But if you say, "But SJ... I want to babysit my Panasonics next to me in the Bedroom, Den, Kitchen..." ...etc. THEN the idea is that you want to take the TELEPHONE OUTPUT of the Ooma Hub box (not the WALL JACK>>> THIS IS IMPORTANT)... and feed it somehow into the back of the Panasonic. AGAIN: ---> You want the TEL output of the Ooma Box to feed into the Panasonic, regardless of where that wireless phone is to be located. If it is next to the Ooma box, then only a short phone cable is needed. if you have the Ooma in one location and the Panasonic to be in another room... then you use the HOUSE PHONE Wiring which is dead to the outside world, as a way to deliver the Ooma Phone-line signal up to the Panasonic Wirless phone. YOU DO NOT NEED THE included Ooma SCOUT BOX to do this step! Sure, you can decide you want to USE the Scout and plug that into the WALL port of the Ooma Hub, but that adds an extra layer of electrical and signal complexity which isn't necessary for your needs as described. It is up to you.

Now, Charter (or any High-Speed ISP) works with a modem they provide to you, or you buy at a store. THAT is your connectivity for the Ooma HUB and nothing else is actually needed for Ooma service. You can plug the Ooma Hub to the Internet Modem/Router with a Cat5/6 wire, and then plug your PC computer into the Ooma itself with another Cat5/6 wire. You don't need anything else.

But what if you say, "I want my PCs to be wireless, too!" Then that is another consideration. Does the Wireless Router come with Ethernet ports in the back of it for a computer to attach to?? Then use THAT Ethernet Port to connect to the Ooma Hub and you should be set. The PCs continue to work wirelessly with the Internet Router as they do now, and the Ooma Hub will be happy connected to your Wireless Router through a CAT5/6 Wire Port in the back of it.

The answer is there, you just have to strike gold with the best setup that you need and I bet you will be pleased with Ooma's performance. And hey, getting a new Phone Number (if you decide not to Port the old one over) is a great way to call your family, friends (and Banks which you will be saving that $30+ a month with) to tell them how you are a happy OoooOoooma client.

[mnarcticcat]

"Soundjudgment"....all I can say is WOW! You should be on Ooma's payroll.....seriously!

I've referenced many forums before but you hands down have offered so many solutions for my problem that I'm very confident that one of them should work.....

Thankyou VERY MUCH!

OOMA, thank this guy for my business!

[mnarcticcat]

"SJ", I tried everything you've stated.

Just to make the setup as easy as possible, I unhooked the main hub of my panasonic phone. Brought it downstairs and plugged the main phone wire directly out of the ooma hub named "phone", into the panasonic phone hub. Left the original setup with a cat5 from the modem to the router. Then added a cat5 from the routers eithernet port into the ooma hub and nothing is working. The light stays flashing red..... I switch the cat5 cables around from modem to home just to see if I had something backwards and nothing worked. Each scenerio I tried I let the red light flash for about 5 minutes before I stopped and assumed it was not working.

Any thoughts? Did I miss anything on my setup?

Thanks

[Soundjudgment]

If this is your wiring scheme:

Internet ---> Modem ---> Ethernet Router ---> Ooma Hub

Then is your Ethernet Router acting properly as a DHCP Server, and assigning a computer or other network device connected to the back of it (such as the Ooma Hub) its own IP Address? This is just as important as the proper wiring, because there would be no proper communication from the Ooma Hub to and from the Internet without this taking place. It should be for the most part... an automatic step that requires no intervention. But it is important to know just where the Ooma Hub is getting its network address and assignment from. You want the Ethernet Router to be the DHCP server for your Ooma Hub in this case, as it might be for any other PC computers connected to it.

As for the switching of the wires, there is no doubt that you want that Cat5/6 wire connected from the Router to go into the MODEM Port of the Ooma. In no way will things operate if you happen to feed that Router Cat 5/6 wire into the HOME Port of the Ooma Hub. That is reserved only for connecting a PC directly to the Ooma Hub, or connecting a Router DOWNSTREAM from the Ooma Hub as described in their manual.

Think of that HOME Port as only reserved for the HOME 'Computer' and you really don't need anything connected to that. The MODEM port is the way to go when reaching out to the Internet.

[jfung]

http://setup.ooma.com/ is down

[jfung]

This is what I get:

Your ooma Network is Disconnected(FUNG JANICE)
Internet: Connected
Ooma Core: Connecting, please wait...
Phone Line: No phone line detected, check the phone line is properly connected.
Ooma Services
Phone Setup: Your phone line is configured for the ooma network
Second Line: Enabled
Voice Mail: Enabled

my mac is 00:18:61:00:c9:05

[Bobby B]

Hi jfung, are you up and running now? The "No phone line detected" message means the ooma Hub is expecting an active phone line (e.g. from your landline or VoIP provider) to be plugged into the WALL port.

Thanks,
Bobby

This is what I get:

Your ooma Network is Disconnected(FUNG JANICE)
Internet: Connected
Ooma Core: Connecting, please wait...
Phone Line: No phone line detected, check the phone line is properly connected.
Ooma Services
Phone Setup: Your phone line is configured for the ooma network
Second Line: Enabled
Voice Mail: Enabled

my mac is 00:18:61:00:c9:05