Technical information

TROUBLESHOOTING
161
This could be a compatibility issue with the sending fax machine and the fax modem's firmware. Try isolating the
problem to a specific fax machine, which may then require an upgrade of the modem's firmware.
Problem
Log files display time-out errors even though the full document was received at the remote site.
Solution
The fax modem will attempt to send the same page up to a total of three times. If the remote site has a thermal fax
machine, the portions of the page that were successfully received at the remote fax machine will appear, but unless
the remote fax machine responds with a positive acknowledgment, the local fax modem will reject the fax attempt up
to a total of three times. This condition could be caused by transmission errors, or firmware incompatibility between
the fax modem and the remote fax machine. It could also mean that the Unix serial port's software flow control is not
functioning correctly and data is being lost between the FIM software and the fax modem. The acknowledgments
from the remote fax machine received by the fax modem are not making it back to the fax software.
Problem
The received fax transmission speed is no greater than 4800bps.
Solution
The dial line may be contributing to a high degree of errors.
The transmitting fax machine may be limited to or manually configured to transmit at a rate lower than 9600 BPS.
Problem
Every call terminates with NO ANSWER.
Solution
Verify that you are calling a fax machine. Do your initial fax testing in the same room as the modem so you can hear
the call progress yourself. An answer of "Hello" usually means a human has picked up the line.
Verify that the proper dialing codes are used (e.g., some telephone systems require the prefix of 9 to reach an
outside line). To check, turn debug on, then view fax1 (or your default) to see what the dialed number is being
converted to.
Problem
A loud beep is heard about every two seconds on a fax call.
Solution
This is normal. Outgoing fax modems always emit a CNG tone about every two seconds to tell the recipient that the
caller is a fax machine and not a person. This can be disabled by adding the entry speaker-mode=off to the
Devices section of the $VSIFAX/lib/vsisrv.ini file.
Problem
Modem server keeps dying.
Solution
This problem could be due to serial port problems, serial port configuration issues, cable problems, unsupported
modem issues or other modem problems.
VSI-FAX only supports fax Class 2 or Fax Class 2.0 modems. Fax Class 1 modems are not supported.
VSI-FAX provides the vtalk utility for assisting in troubleshooting modem problems.
The vtalk utility is located in the $VSIFAX/lbin directory.
vtalk -c -v /dev/tty1A
After the port opens successfully you can enter modem AT commands