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Setting Up and Using Jabber on Your Cell Phone

The Cisco Jabber mobile app lets district full-time employees with an assigned phone number make and receive calls on their cell phone using their district phone number. The person you call sees an FHDA number, not your personal cell number. This feature was added at the request of faculty who needed to contact students from a cell phone without revealing their personal number.

Before you install — request configuration first

Your district number has to be configured on the phone system for mobile use before the app will work. Installing the app before that provisioning is finished often means having to delete and reinstall it, so submit the request first.

Submit an ETS Request for Help at helpdesk.fhda.edu, sign in with your MyPortal ID and password, and ask that your district assigned phone number be configured for use with the Cisco Jabber mobile app. Include:

  1. Your cell phone number
  2. Your cellular provider — for example AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile
  3. The operating system of your phone — iOS or Android

Note: The mobile app and the desktop soft phone are two separate requests. Check with your manager about which one was requested for you.

Before you commit — things to know

  • Cell phone minutes and data charges apply when you use the app.
  • The app does not work on Windows phones.
  • With so many phone models, carriers and operating system versions in circulation, there is no guarantee the app will work on your particular device.
  • ETS support for this app is limited, because ETS does not support personally owned cell phones.
  • Android exists in many versions and variants, so some features may not behave as documented.
  • Call quality depends on the quality of your cell service. Weak coverage can also affect how many times the phone rings before the call goes to voicemail.
  • For some carriers, the mobile app does not work everywhere — in certain locations the cellular equipment is incompatible with Cisco Jabber. On Wi-Fi it should work reliably.
  • Because calls carry a Foothill–De Anza caller ID, the app should be used primarily for business purposes.
  • The mobile app supports one phone number only.

Install the app

The Cisco Jabber mobile app is a free download from the App Store (iOS) or Google Play (Android). Install it the way you normally install apps on your phone.

First-time sign in

Short version

  1. Launch the app and follow the prompts.
  2. For the first login, enter your User ID as [email protected].
  3. Enter your MyPortal password and sign in.
  4. If you get a Failure to discover network services error, turn Wi-Fi off on your phone and relaunch the app.
  5. If you get a Certificate Not Valid message, this is normal on iPhones — select Accept.
  6. Tap the handset icon at the bottom of the screen, then Keypad at the top, to make a call.

Step by step

  1. Launch the app. Work through the first few introductory screens, making your personal selections.
  2. When a certificate or terms screen appears, select Accept.
  3. Swipe left through the remaining introduction screens.
  4. Select Get Started Now, then OK on the following screen.
  5. Type [email protected] and select Continue.
  6. Type your MyPortal password and select Sign In.
  7. If another certificate screen appears, select Accept — this is normal on iOS.
  8. Select OK, then NEXT, then DONE through the closing screens.

You'll land on your contacts — the same contacts set up for your desk phone.

Subsequent sign-ins

After the first login you may only need to provide your CWID without @fhda.edu. Auto Login is on by default, so the app should sign you in automatically when you launch it. If you deliberately sign out, you'll be prompted to sign in again.

Making a call

The app must be running for calls to work.

By number

  1. Tap the telephone handset icon at the bottom of the screen.
  2. Tap Keypad at the top of the screen.
  3. Enter the number, then tap the green handset icon.

From contacts

  1. Select the person in your contacts list.
  2. Tap the handset icon at the top right.
  3. Select which of their numbers to call.

Answering a call

The app must be active to receive calls.

  • Tap the green Accept button to take the call.
  • Tap the red Decline button to send the caller to your district voicemail box.

Set a distinct ring tone

Giving Jabber its own ringtone lets you tell a work call from a personal call before you answer.

  1. Tap the icon with your initials at the top left of the screen.
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Select Sounds.
  4. Select Ringtone and make your selection.

Signing out

Quitting the app does not sign you out. To sign out completely:

  1. Tap the icon with your initials at the top left.
  2. The first time you open preferences, select Next, then DONE.
  3. Select Sign Out.

Single Number Reach as an alternative

If what you actually want is for your work calls to reach you on your cell phone — rather than to place outbound calls showing your district number — Single Number Reach may suit you better and requires no app. You set it up yourself in the Cisco Self Care Portal. See Cisco Self Care Portal.

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