I have a customer that has several Special Mailboxes for people who don't have a physical phone. Dial-by-Name doesn't work correctly for them. Here is the error message I see.
[May 27 11:35:29] WARNING[21340]: app_directory.c:338 play_mailbox_owner: Can't find extension '365' in context 'local-extensions-WR'. Did you pass the wrong context to Directory?
Looks like Special Mailboxes are in feature_extensions-{tenant} instead of local-extensions-{tenant}. Any way to make them work with dial by name?
That was going to be my work
That was going to be my work around if it couldn't be done with special mailboxes. I just didn't want to see all of those extensions with no registered phone. Excellent point about the other user features. And, I didn't know about hidefromdir.
Thanks!
you could create a full-blown extension despite not having a physical phone. That would give them the ability to take advantage of other user portal features (call blocking, findme-followme,etc). Not having a phone would just speed the process of arriving at voicemail.
Special mailboxes are not even in feature_extensions until you map a feature code to them. I think the intension of a special mailbox is to have a place you deliver general messages to like at the end of a hunt list when no one answers. Or when you press a digit in a queue or IVR to leave a message instead of waiting. I add hidefromdir=yes on all my special mailboxes just to keep them out of the dial by name directory.