Issues
- My calls are not going to voicemail when they should — the phone just keeps ringing or callers get disconnected.
- Callers tell me they can never leave a voicemail.
- I'm not getting any voicemail messages even though people say they left one.
- I don't get a notification when someone leaves me a voicemail.
- How do I set up or change my voicemail greeting in Teams?
- How do I record a custom voicemail greeting on a Mac / on Windows?
- My voicemail greeting is blank or callers hear silence before the beep.
- Where do I find and play my voicemail messages in Teams?
- How do I set how many seconds a call rings before it goes to voicemail?
- My missed calls don't produce a voicemail at all.
Environment
This article covers voicemail problems on your own individual Teams Calling line — the voicemail box tied to your personal Bowdoin phone number. Most voicemail settings are controlled by you in Teams and can be corrected without contacting IT.
- Desktop app: macOS (Sequoia 15.x, Tahoe 26.x or newer) and Windows 11
- Mobile app: iOS and Android
- Applies to: Individual Teams Calling lines (your personal number and voicemail box)
- Not covered here: Shared lines, delegated/boss-admin lines, department numbers, and auto-attendant or call queue voicemail. Those are managed centrally — for problems with a shared line, department number, or auto-attendant greeting, contact the Service Desk. For calling setup problems such as a missing dial pad or license errors, see Troubleshoot Teams Calling Sign-In and Connection Issues in the Related Articles section.
Resolution
Calls are not going to voicemail when they should
If callers can't reach your voicemail — the line rings endlessly, drops, or never offers to leave a message — one of the settings below is usually the cause. Work through them in order.
- Confirm voicemail is set as the action for unanswered calls. In Teams, go to Settings > Calls. Under Call answering rules, make sure Calls ring me is selected and that If unanswered is set to Voicemail. If If unanswered is set to Do nothing, the call will keep ringing and never reach voicemail — change it to Voicemail.
- Check your ring duration. In the same If unanswered area, review the Ring for this many seconds before redirecting value. If it is set very high, callers may give up before voicemail ever picks up. A value of 20–30 seconds is typical.
- Check call forwarding. Still under Settings > Calls, confirm Forward my calls is not pointing somewhere unexpected (for example, to another person or to a phone number that has no voicemail). If you want unanswered calls to reach your voicemail, use Calls ring me with If unanswered > Voicemail rather than call forwarding.
- Make sure your voicemail box is set up. A voicemail box that has never been initialized may reject callers. Follow Set up or change your voicemail greeting below to initialize it, then test again.
Simultaneous ring or delegation in use? If you have Teams set to also ring another person or device, the call is only sent to voicemail after all ring targets go unanswered. Long or overlapping ring settings can make it seem like voicemail is broken. Simplify your call answering rules and test with a single ring target.
To test: from another phone (or ask a colleague), call your Bowdoin number and let it ring without answering. It should redirect to your greeting and allow a message to be left.
Not receiving voicemail messages or notifications
If callers say they left a message but you don't see it, or you never get notified:
- Check the Voicemail tab. In Teams, go to Calls in the left sidebar and select Voicemail (or the History / Voicemail view). Messages and their transcriptions appear here.
- Confirm Teams is running and signed in. Voicemail is delivered to your Teams account, so you can retrieve it from any signed-in device. If Teams is signed out everywhere, retrieve messages by signing back in.
- Check your notification settings. Go to Settings > Notifications and activity and confirm calling and voicemail notifications are enabled. On the mobile app, also confirm Teams has notification permission at the operating-system level.
- Check email for voicemail messages. Voicemail messages are also delivered to your Bowdoin mailbox as an email with the audio attached. Search your inbox (including Junk/Clutter) for messages from the voicemail system.
Note: Voicemail transcription accuracy varies with audio quality and accent. A garbled transcript does not mean the recording is bad — play the attached audio to hear the full message.
Set up or change your voicemail greeting
You can record a personal greeting or use the automated system greeting.
- In Teams, go to Settings > Calls.
- Under Voicemail, select Configure voicemail.
- Choose Record a greeting to record your own message, then follow the prompts to record, review, and save. To use a text-to-speech or default greeting instead, choose the corresponding option and enter your greeting text.
- Optionally set your Call answer rules here (for example, whether callers can leave a message, be transferred, or hear only your greeting).
Recording tips (macOS and Windows 11):
- Recording uses your active microphone. Confirm the correct microphone is selected under Settings > Devices before recording.
- Record in a quiet space and pause briefly after clicking record before you begin speaking, so the start of your greeting isn't clipped.
Greeting is blank or callers hear silence? Re-record the greeting with the correct microphone selected under Settings > Devices. If the greeting still records as silent after switching microphones, contact the Service Desk.
Additional Help
If you need further assistance, you have several options:
- Bowdoin Bot: Chat with Bowdoin Bot directly from any KB page for instant answers.
- Phone: Call the Bowdoin College Service Desk at (207) 725-3030.
- In person: Visit the Tech Hub in Smith Union during business hours.
- Submit a ticket: Request assistance through the Service Catalog.