A major outage of the ooma service began today (April 13th) at approximately 11AM (pacific time). This outage affected all ooma customers and was triggered by Internet connectivity issues at our upstream service provider. While we do not have all the details around the problems that affected the Internet connection at this time, we do know that these problems were not isolated to ooma, but did effectively cut off the ooma service from the outside world.
Between 2PM and 3PM, Internet connectivity was slowly being restored to our service. However, the flood of ooma Hubs coming back online created an immense amount of load on our provisioning systems. We rushed to add capacity to the system, but the nature of the network outage had interfered with the system’s ability to recover by itself. Beginning at 2:30PM, we began throttling Hubs from connecting to our servers. This allowed the system to settle down and work through the backlog of requests. As the systems stabilized, we slowly began opening up blocks of users to connect to the ooma service.
As of 5PM, most service has been fully restored. Some Hubs may not recover automatically in an expedient manner – if your ooma service is still down, please reboot your ooma Hub. Unplug power from the back of the device, wait one minute and then plug the power back in. The ooma Hub may need to download a software update, but it should go into service shortly thereafter.
Rest assured that we are taking this outage very seriously. Discussions have already started on how to make the service resilient to a similar event in the future. ooma currently has one data center located in west coast. We have planned to light up a second data center in the midwest or east coast this year, and this outage has served as a stark reminder for us to get moving on that. This has also served as a good opportunity for us to re-evaluate our contingency and business continuity plans.
We know that phone service is critical function that everyone relies on. We apologize for the outage this afternoon and thank you for your patience as we work through some growing pains.
Update: Please refer to our latest post to read about how we plan to mitigate and handle outages in the future.
For fans of GrandCentral, the launch of Google Voice last week was a long time in the making. We at ooma were excited to see what GrandCentral had evolved into and we were not disappointed. GrandCentral brought a new world of intelligence and connectivity to the phones you use and Google Voice takes it to the next level. Their feature list is impressive.
Although we differ in our approach, ooma has always shared the same vision of bringing better services, enhanced productivity and a more fluid experience to voice communication. Hopefully this is evident in our product and the features we offer as part of ooma Premier.
So what does Google Voice have to do with ooma anyway? For starters, it is important to understand Google Voice doesn’t provide phone service – it works over the phone service you already have. Whether it is your home phone, cell phone, work phone or all three, Google Voice still needs to reach you at a phone. That’s where we come in. What better phone service to use at home than a free one?
Now given that Google Voice already does so much, how does one make it better? For one, we make it a whole lot more convenient to use. With ooma Premier’s Google Voice Extensions, we can automatically show your Google Voice caller-ID when you make a call, no need to use the web site or call into Google Voice just to do that. You can also check your Google Voice messages with a touch of a button, just like using an answering machine. And with ooma, you don’t need to pick up your phone to hear who is calling. We’ll play the announcement and message over the speaker for you – pick up the phone only if you really want to answer. Finally, if you don’t want to go through the hassle of switching to yet another new phone number, use your existing ooma number (or port your number to ooma) and we’ll forward it to Google Voice. Your friends and family will be none the wiser! You’ll still be able to answer calls at home thanks to the Instant Second Line.
So there’s a sneak peek at what’s coming to ooma Premier. Have an idea that you’d like to share about how ooma and Google Voice can work better together? Chime in below!
Last week, ooma released two new features that update the way users make phone calls with the ooma system.
10-Digit Dialing
ooma has enabled 10-digit dialing for all ooma users. This feature allows you to dial any domestic phone number without having to enter a “1″ before the area code and number, just like on a cell phone.
To call (650) 555-1234, you can now dial 6505551234 instead of 16505551234. 10-digit dialing will allow you to easily return missed calls logged on your home phone.
With 10-digit dialing enabled, you’ll still be able to dial 7-digit phone numbers for local calls (if allowed in your area). However, you may notice an extra 4-5 second delay before the call is placed. You can avoid this delay by pressing # after you finish dialing or by disabling 10-digit dialing in the ooma Lounge.
ooma Connect Tone
You can now configure the ooma Connect Tone. The ooma Connect Tone is the friendly chime a caller hears when a call is connected through the ooma. You can select a different tone or disable the feature altogether.
Click below to download and listen to the different ooma connect tones:
Classic
Harmonic
Galactic
Acoustic
To configure these two features, please visit the system preferences page in the ooma Lounge.
We just got back from CES 2009 in Las Vegas. The event was fantastic! Thanks to everyone who visited our CES booth in the Grandy Lobby this year. It was great having the opportunity to chat and exchange ideas with all the CES attendees that stopped by. Check out some of the snaps below from the show!
We’re pleased to announce that we’re launching three new beta features to keep unwanted callers out of your life. That’ll be one less thing for you to worry about this holiday season. Keep reading to learn more about how ooma can keep the peace in your home!
Anonymous Call Blocking 
Fed up with anonymous calls? Force callers to expose their identity with Anonymous Call Blocking. In order to reach you, callers will need to show their caller-ID – this way you’ll always know who is calling. With ooma, you have the option of blocking anonymous calls completely, or sending them straight to voicemail.
Personal Blacklist 
ooma can now be your personal bouncer. Review your call logs in the Lounge. For anyone who doesn’t make the cut, add them to your blacklist. They’ll get diverted next time they call. You have the option to block them completely or send them straight to voicemail. For a limited time, all ooma users can take advantage of our sneak preview of this feature!
Community Blacklist
Harness the power of the ooma community to block unwanted callers. Think of it as Survivor for telemarketers. As other ooma users vote callers “off the island” by adding them to their blacklist, we’re there to tally up the votes. Combined with our sophisticated algorithms for detecting phone spamming patterns and, with ooma Premier, you’ll get access to the mother of all blacklists.
ooma was recently featured on Fortune’s “Disruptors: The Power of New Ideas” online section. Check out links to the article and video.
ooma was just recently featured on BuyTV! Check out our own Tami Bhaumik explaining the benefits of the ooma system.
We’re pleased to announce the immediate availability of two new beta features for the ooma system!
Multi-Ring
Constantly on the go? With ooma Premier’s Multi-Ring feature, you can configure your ooma number to simultaneously ring or forward to your mobile phone or any phone number you choose. Whether at home or on the road, you’ll never need to miss a call. Combine Multi-Ring with Personal Numbers and create the ultimate communication hub for your whole family!
Call Logs
We’ve beefed up ooma Core so everyone can enjoy the convenience of checking their calling history in the ooma Lounge. You’ll quickly be able to find the incoming and outgoing calls you are looking for with super-handy sorting and filtering controls.
Have an idea for a killer feature you’d like to see on ooma? We’d love to hear from you! Please share your thoughts by commenting below!
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