As the second phase of Office Productivity Initiatives, the telephone service for faculty and staff is transitioning from current Cisco IPT and traditional PABX to Microsoft Teams Voice. Being a unified platform, Microsoft Teams provides all communication needs like chatting, voice/video conference as well as phone call (for eligible full-time staff). In addition, Teams is fully integrated with Microsoft 365 services with file collaboration capability. Information Technology Services (ITS) targets to complete this transition by mid-2024. To ensure a smooth and successful transition, ITS will approach departments individually to schedule the migration and provide training on the use of Teams Voice.
Please find below a summary of planned service end date of our current legacy phone systems which are having difficulty in renewing maintenance:
| System Type | Affected phone prefix(es) | Locations | Planned end-date |
| Cisco IPT | 3917-, 3910-, | Main Campus, Centennial Campus, Sassoon Campus | July 2024 |
| Traditional PABX | 2857-, 2859-, 2241-, 2219- | Main campus | July 2024 |
| Traditional PABX | 2299- | Kadoorie Biological Sciences Building | December 2023 |
| Traditional PABX | 39212- | Kennedy Town Centre | December 2023 |
| Traditional PABX | 281682- | Kennedy Town Centre | December 2023 |
All phone numbers with non-“391-XXXXX” number range will be assigned to new phone number prefix. ITS will try our best to keep user’s phone extension (last 2 to 4 digits in the phone number) in each batch of phone migration to Teams (as in previous migration exercise to the Cisco IPT). Having said that, there may be rare occasions that we could not keep the phone extensions.
The move is a part of HKU’s Digital Transformation to move towards a unified productivity platform, Microsoft Teams, incorporating phone capability on computers and mobile devices. This enables agile phone service allowing users receive phone call out of office space. Teams App on works with most built-in cameras/microphones on most devices, departments may also purchase any preferred headsets that work with your devices.
ITS has tested some headsets certified with Teams Voice, however, the use of tested headset models is not necessary. Teams App can be installed on most computer and mobile devices, the use of it on personal device is entirely a personal preference. Since all the current phone sets in use are not compatible with Teams Voice, departments are recommended to carefully examine the need of physical phone sets in adopting this new service. There are some phone models tested by ITS available for departments to acquire through us.
What would be the changes to the new phone system?
- With Microsoft Teams Voice, the standard phone provisioning is based on Teams App, meaning that users make or receive phone calls through computer or mobile device with Microsoft Teams App.
- Under the current funding model, the University Central will cover the phone licensing on using Microsoft Teams Voice for eligible staff members and phone service in common area with legitimate need.
- Phone numbers are not associated with a device but associated with a HKU account. This means that you can make/receive call from any device with Teams App regardless of location. Please note that change in account password/status will trigger re-registration of Teams App or devices linked to your account.
In addition to the callee’s phone number or extension, you can search or call by name like email if the callee is migrated to use Teams Voice. During the transition period, calling to Cisco extension should use extension number or full phone number instead of name to ensure you can reach the callee by phone call.
- Voicemail, call forwarding and conferencing are standard features. Voicemails will be delivered to your mail account inbox, and they will also be available on the Teams App when your mailbox has been moved to Microsoft 365.
For usage/feature reference, please refer to the “User guide for Teams Voice” for details. For any question on the above, please feel free to contact our Mr. Kei Lee at keilee02@hku.hk (39178729) or Mr. Steven Man at manwk@hku.hk (39176230).
Regards,
Information Technology Services
Jul 2023