# Set up Group Voicemail for a Custom Group

When a team is made up of people from different departments rather than a single department or ring group, you can give them a shared mailbox by creating a custom group voicemail. Any message left in the box notifies every member you assign, so nothing slips through the cracks.

## Create the group voicemail

1. Sign in to the PBX (Private Branch Exchange, your phone system's admin console) web portal and go to **Call Features > Voicemail > Group Voicemail**.
2. Click **Add**.
3. On the **General** tab, fill in the basic details described below.

   | Setting | What to enter |
   | --- | --- |
   | Type | Choose **Custom**. |
   | Number | A virtual extension number callers dial to reach the group voicemail. |
   | Name | A label that helps you recognize the mailbox later. |
   | Mode | How incoming messages are handled (see the two options below). |
   | Group Voicemail to Email | Optional. Email addresses that should receive a copy of each message. |
   | Voicemail PIN Authentication | Turn PIN (Personal Identification Number) protection on or off for access to the mailbox. |
   | Voicemail Access PIN | When PIN authentication is on, the access code members must enter. |
   | Disallow Voicemail Messages | Optional. Stops callers from recording a message (see below). |
   | Play Date and Time | Optional. Announces when a message was received before playing it. |
   | Play Caller ID | Optional. Announces the caller's ID before playing the message. |
   | Play Message Duration | Optional. Announces how long a message is before playing it. |
   | Custom Prompt Language | Optional. Sets the language of the prompts callers hear (see below). |

   **Mode** determines where messages live and who can act on them:

   - **Shared by Members**: messages stay in the group mailbox and are shared by everyone. Any member can play, save, or delete them.
   - **Broadcast to Members**: messages are not kept in the group mailbox. Instead, the system copies and forwards each one to every member's personal mailbox.

   :::note
   You can enter up to five addresses in **Group Voicemail to Email**, separated by semicolons (`;`).
   :::

   When **Disallow Voicemail Messages** is enabled, the system plays the group voicemail greeting and then ends the call without recording anything.

   :::note
   The languages listed under **Custom Prompt Language** come from your configured system prompts (**PBX Settings > Voice Prompt > System Prompt**). If the mailbox has a [custom greeting](/pbx/administrator-guide/change-voicemail-greetings/#upload-voicemail-greetings__section_mqn_52b_t4b), that greeting plays instead and this language setting is ignored.
   :::

4. Optional: In the **Group Voicemail Greeting** section, pick the greeting callers hear before they leave a message.

   :::tip
   To build your own greeting, see [Record or Upload Voicemail Greetings](/pbx/administrator-guide/record-or-upload-voicemail-greetings/).
   :::

5. In the **Members** section, move the extensions or extension groups that should receive the group voicemail from the **Available** box to the **Selected** box.

   ![Members panel showing extensions moved into the Selected box for a group voicemail](/images/pbx/group-voicemail-member.png)

   :::note
   If you set both members and email addresses, the group voicemail is delivered to the selected members and the specified addresses.
   :::

6. Open the **Voicemail Announcement** tab to [set up call alerts](/pbx/administrator-guide/set-up-call-alerts-for-group-voicemail/) that ring chosen numbers whenever a new message arrives.

   :::caution
   Call alerts work only when **Mode** is set to **Shared by Members**. If you built this mailbox in **Broadcast to Members** mode, the Voicemail Announcement tab will not offer call alerts, so choose the mode carefully in step 3.
   :::

7. Click **Save**, then **Apply**.