The following are instructions on how to receive faxes using the vFax system.


Note: The Office of Information Systems recommends using email instead of fax whenever possible due to the improved quality of the delivered message, security, speed, the ability to verify delivery with a read receipt, and the ability to verify and troubleshoot any issues.


Types of Fax Boxes on vFax


With vFax, there are two types of fax boxes used at the university:


  • Personal - Each employee set up on the University's Unified Communications System with a phone extension has a personal fax box.  Any faxes sent received to the personal box will get delivered to the employee it belongs to via email.

  • Department - Many departments that had traditional fax machines were converted to vFax as the analog fax lines were being retired by the service provider.  Department fax boxes utilize a shared email box to send and receive faxes and are therefore accessible by any of the employees the department requests be added.


How to receive a personal fax

You can receive personal fax by doing the following:

  1. Take note of your phone extension, the 4-digit number next to your name on your desk phone.  Example:  "Jason Salmans (1016)" ... in this example, 1016 is the extension.  Note: If the phone does not have a name next to the number and instead says a department or job position title, then the extension likely does not have fax service as there is currently no one assigned to the extension.

  2. Your fax extension is "0" followed by your phone extension.  So the fax extension for the example above is 01016.

  3. Have the remote party that will be sending the fax do the following when dialing (without stopping until the steps are complete):
    1. Dial 479-964-0583
    2. Insert several "pauses" or "delays".  On many fax machines, this is usually the "#" button
    3. Dial the fax extension from above

    The entire dialed string should appear something like 4799640583##01016

  4. The remote fax machine should dial and connect.  From its perspective, the vFax system on our side acts just like a standard receiving fax machine

  5. If the fax is received without a line disconnect or errors, the fax is then automatically converted into an email attachment and sent to your ATU email.  Alternatively, your faxes should also be able to be viewed at https://vfax.atu.edu



How to receive a department fax

Department fax boxes work a little differently and utilize a shared email box.  Shared email boxes provide:

  • Continuity of service in case one or more users are unavailable

  • A shared work environment so everyone can see which messages have been received and which have already been taken care of


In addition, a standard outside telephone number is provided for that box so that no fax extensions need to be dialed.


A few things to note about shared email boxes:

  • You must be granted permission to send and view received emails. To do this, please have your department head request adding you through the Campus Support Center.

  • After you've been added/granted permission, a shared email box will appear as another account folder in your Outlook or Office365 mail view.  It will be below your existing Inbox/Account but as a separate box, not a subfolder.  It may take up to a day to appear after you've been added.

  • Once it appears in your Outlook/Office365, we recommend you right-click on the Inbox in it and choose "Add to Favorites" so that it will appear in the quick favorites at the top, making it easier to see when a new email arrives.

  • Any changes made, such as reading, moving, or deleting will be reflected in everyone else's view in that shared email box.  This allows emails to be organized, marked off, or deleted as they're taken care of so that work is not repeated unnecessarily by others in the department.


To receive a departmental fax:

  1. Take note of your department's advertised fax number and communicate it to the remote party.

  2. They may enter that number as they would any other fax.  No fax extensions or delays are required.

  3. If the fax is received without a line disconnect or errors, the fax is then automatically converted into an email attachment and sent to the department's shared email box.