FAQs: Direct Routing, Operator Connect, & Dynamic E911

Instead of relying on fixed location information (such as from a desk phone), dynamic location allows users with non-fixed VoIP Microsoft Teams clients to move freely around the enterprise while providing their most current location information to public safety at the time of the 911 call. 

All emergency locations are managed within the Microsoft Location Information Server (LIS). Users are added and assigned to physical locations including a civic address plus any other relevant location information such as floor, quadrant, suite, or room. In addition, Teams allows enterprises to specify network locations of WiFi access points and subnets. Microsoft has indicated that support for ethernet switches/server ports is pending.

The majority of Teams 911 calls will use the most current, dynamic location for call routing and display of the address to public safety. The static or pre-provisioned address will be used in the event that a dynamic location is not provided. 

At the time of a 911 call, the location of the WiFi access point or subnet that the user is currently connected to will be provided to Bandwidth (and, ultimately, public safety). This capability provides the most accurate caller location to first responders, setting the stage for faster emergency response. It also allows the enterprise to provide a dispatchable location as part of the nomadic VoIP requirements for RAY BAUM’s Act.

You must provision Emergency Addresses, which are the Civic Addresses, for a building or office. You can optionally assign Places, which are more specific in-building locations such as floor, quadrant, suite, or room number. Both Emergency Addresses and Places are provisioned either in the Teams Admin Center or via PowerShell. 

Bandwidth does not have access to your enterprise network, and can not map or identify network locations on your behalf. Emergency location information must be accurately provisioned by you within the Teams Admin Center or via PowerShell. 

Initial address validation is performed automatically within Teams by Azure Maps during setup of Emergency Addresses. If a match is found, the corresponding geo coordinates (latitude/longitude or X,Y) are automatically calculated. If a match is not found, Teams provides the ability to create an emergency address through manual entry or by using a pin-drop feature. 

At the time of a 911 call, Bandwidth performs real-time address analysis and verification to ensure the location information is consistent with industry-recognized standards for public safety. 

ELIN/ERL is a legacy technique with inherent limitations for 911 location management. Microsoft has moved beyond the ELIN approach through its implementation of dynamic E911 for Microsoft Teams Direct Routing and Operator Connect. While Microsoft has enabled an ELIN/ERL feature within Teams, Bandwidth does not support this capability. 

While the Trusted IP addresses of the enterprise are whitelisted within Teams, most work-at-home users are subject to occasional dynamic IP address changes by their ISP. Because of this, setting up the user’s home network as a Trusted IP address is not recommended.

Microsoft provides the ability for any remote employee to enter the address of their location directly into the Teams Client.  This does require the admin to enable the External Location in the Teams Tenant. If the Teams Client is permissioned to use Location Services from the operating system such as Windows or Mac OS then it is possible that a predetermined location will be present in the Teams Client, however this address needs to be validated by the end user for accuracy.

For any 911 call originating outside the corporate network, (i.e., calls from home, airports, coffee shops, etc.) the caller’s location is determined by Microsoft to be non-validated against a public address database. Due to this, any calls placed from remote locations will be sent to Bandwidth’s nationwide 24/7 Emergency Call Center (ECC) for call processing and manual transfer to the correct PSAP. This emergency call behavior is consistent with both 911 industry best practices and regulatory considerations.

Assuming that all emergency address, subnets, and WiFi access points have been correctly provisioned for all Network Sites, users can move seamlessly between all enterprise locations with Dynamic E911. If a user moves to a different Network Site in another state and attaches to the corporate network, the current location information will be provided to public safety during a 911 call.

Microsoft Teams provides three emergency Notification options. 

• Send Notifications only: a Teams chat message is sent to designated users or a group that contains more than one user. 
• Conferenced in and muted: the Notification recipient can join a 911 call-in-progress; the recipient can hear the 911 call but not participate. 
• Conferenced in and unmuted: the Notification recipient can join and participate in a 911 call-in-progress.