Fax

Fax

Nova PBX handles fax over T.38 on the same numbers as voice. A number placed in fax answer mode answers every inbound call as a fax, converts it to PDF, and files it in your fax inbox. On Pro and Ultra plans you can also send outbound faxes by uploading a PDF.

Inbound fax is included on every Nova plan. Outbound fax requires Pro or Ultra.

Putting a number in fax mode

A Nova number is either a voice line or a fax line — not both at once. A fax machine and a person cannot share the same DID, because the answer behaviour differs from the first second of the call.

1. Navigate to Account → Phone Numbers and open the number.
2. On the Routing tab, set Answer as to Fax line.
3. Choose where received faxes go:
   • Email — a PDF copy is emailed to the addresses you list.
   • Mailbox — the fax is filed to the extension’s mailbox.
   • ATA — the call is handed to a physical fax machine registered to an extension.
4. Add one or more fax-to-email recipients if you chose Email.
5. Save.

A copy of every received fax always appears in the in-app fax inbox, whichever delivery option you pick. The email and mailbox copies are in addition to it, not instead of it.

Note

Switching a number to fax mode rewrites its inbound route. Any IVR, ring group, or queue that number previously pointed at is no longer reached from that number — check your call flow before switching a main line.

The fax inbox

Navigate to Nova PBX → Analytics → Fax.

Each row shows the direction, the far-end number, the Nova number the fax arrived on or went out from, the page count, a status badge, and the time. Unread inbound faxes show in bold, and the sidebar carries an unread count.

Working the list:

• All / Unread / Inbound / Sent pills filter the view.
• Click a row to open the detail panel.

The detail panel shows the full record, the file name and page count, and Open PDF / Download buttons. The PDF opens in a new tab on a signed link that expires after about an hour — reopen the panel for a fresh one. Opening an unread inbound fax marks it read.

Caution

Faxes are documents, not call recordings — a received fax routinely carries a signed contract, a medical form, or banking details. Anyone who can reach this page sees every fax in the organisation. Grant the Manage fax permission deliberately.

Sending a fax

Available on Pro and Ultra. On Core the send action is visible but disabled, with an upgrade prompt.

1. Navigate to Nova PBX → Analytics → Fax and click Send fax.
2. Pick the From number. Only fax-enabled numbers you hold a fax-send grant on appear here.
3. Enter the destination fax number.
4. Attach a PDF. PDF is the only accepted format, and the file must be 20 MB or smaller.
5. Send.

The fax is queued and transmitted in the background. It will show Queued, then Sending, then Sent — and a long fax to a slow or busy machine can legitimately sit in those states for several minutes, occasionally up to twenty. That is normal T.38 behaviour, not a stuck job.

If transmission fails, the row shows Failed with the reason. Outbound faxes are attempted once and are not retried automatically — resend from the inbox.

Partial means some pages went through and some did not; the page counter shows how many of the total were delivered.

Permissions

What	Controlled by
Reaching the Fax page and the org-wide inbox	The Manage fax org permission
Seeing the page at all	An active Nova subscription
Sending	The Outbound Fax plan entitlement (Pro / Ultra) and a fax-send grant on the specific number
Which numbers appear in From	Per-number fax grants under Account → Phone Numbers → Access

Troubleshooting

A fax was sent to my number but nothing arrived. Confirm the number’s Answer as is set to Fax line. A number in voice mode answers with your normal call flow and the sending machine gets no fax tone.

Received faxes are blank or missing pages. This is almost always line quality between the sending machine and the carrier. Ask the sender to retry; if it repeats from several senders, open a ticket with the number and the timestamps.

Sending fails immediately. Check the destination number is a fax line, and that the PDF is a real PDF under 20 MB. A PDF exported with an unusual encoder occasionally fails conversion — re-export it as a standard PDF and retry.

I can see the Fax page but the From list is empty. You have the Manage fax permission but no fax-send grant on any number. An account owner grants that per number under Account → Phone Numbers.