Moving from Unity Connection to Webex Calling voicemail
Verified 2026-09-25 · 54 sources · tier 2–6
Voicemail is built directly into the Webex Calling offer rather than delivered through a separate voicemail product 52. Webex Calling cannot integrate with a premises-based voicemail system such as Unity Connection or Unity Connection Express 31.
Architecture and platform differences
Cisco provides no native way to migrate existing Unity Connection voicemail messages or greetings into the Webex Calling native voicemail service 30. Cisco states that some of its third-party partners' migration tools can migrate some Unity Connection voicemail data, but Cisco does not name the tools or specify which data can be moved 32.
For architectures retaining Unity Connection, the Webex Calling Dedicated Instance add-on includes Cisco Unity Connection alongside Unified CM, Expressway, and optional IM and Presence, SME, and Emergency Responder (Americas only) 15. In Dedicated Instance, Unity Connection is installed during service activation and sized according to the Knowledge Worker count provided for each region 14. Customers may distribute users across Dedicated Instance and Webex Calling, but calling features are not harmonised between the two platforms 16.
In the field, during one university's transition to Webex Calling, users were informed that existing voicemails would not transfer and were advised to preserve any required messages prior to cutover 22. Field reports suggest that migrated users in that deployment had to manually set a new voicemail PIN in User Hub, re-record greetings, and re-enable voicemail-to-email directly in User Hub 23.
Location configuration and voice portals
To enable voicemail at a Webex Calling location, the administrator must configure the voicemail pilot number, also referred to by Cisco as the voice portal number 27. Cisco's migration design guidance instructs administrators to provision 1 DID for the voicemail number at each Webex Calling location 49.
Each Webex Calling location receives its own voice portal, which is assigned a phone number and extension from that location 54. The extension is typically the last 4 digits of the voice portal number 54. Each location's voice portal also has an administrator passcode configured in Control Hub that is available only to administrators 38.
Users access the Webex Calling voice portal by calling from their own number and entering their PIN, or from any phone by pressing * and entering their mailbox number and passcode 53. Cisco implementation guidance specifies acceptance tests to verify that mailboxes are correctly assigned, reachable internally and remotely, able to record, retrieve, and manage messages, and able to deliver notifications 4.
Mailbox settings and group features
Webex Calling supports shared voicemail and fax mailboxes designated as voicemail groups 39. Cisco migration design documentation lists specific use cases for voicemail groups:
- Department or workgroup mailboxes 51
- Voicemail destinations for auto attendants or hunt groups 51
- Call queue overflow targets 51
- Users requiring only a voicemail box 51
For user mailboxes, the internal storage option imposes a 10-minute limit on single messages and a total capacity of 100 minutes per mailbox 28. If fax messaging is enabled, voicemail and fax share an aggregate storage limit of 100 minutes of voice messages or 1,000 pages of fax 50.
Administrators can configure routing behaviors, notifications, and delivery modes for individual mailboxes:
- Separate toggles govern sending calls to voicemail when the line is busy or when unanswered after a designated number of rings 5.
- A destination number can be specified to route callers who press 0 while in the mailbox 47.
- A per-user toggle controls receipt of new message notifications 29.
- An "email a copy" setting delivers a copy of each voicemail recording to a specified email address while preserving the message in the internal mailbox 17.
- An "external mailbox" option forwards all voice messages directly to a designated email address, preventing access from desk phones, the Webex App, or User Hub 18.
Greetings and auto attendant assets
Uploaded custom user voicemail greetings must be formatted as .wav files, 8 kHz, 8-bit mono, CCITT u-law, and must not exceed 2 MB 25. Uploading a new greeting file or recording a new greeting replaces the previous greeting 24.
Cisco's Unified CM to Webex Calling migration tool can ingest auto attendants using a Unity Call Handler .zip file created with the CallHandlerDataDump tool 1. The migration tool identifies an error condition where greetings cannot be found in Webex Calling, which it marks as not migratable 2. CallHandlerDataDump itself is not supported by TAC and lists supported Unity Connection versions 7.x to 11.x (version 1.0.11, last updated 2020-10-12) 6.
For data extraction, COBRAS (Cisco Unified Backup and Restore Application Suite) covers backup, restore, and migration for Unity Connection 7.x through 15, and is TAC supported on supported Connection releases 10. COBRAS message backups across all Connection releases store recordings inside ZIP files containing EML messages, allowing WAV attachments to be extracted using an email client 8. For Unity Connection 8 and later, the COBRAS Data Viewer can extract voice names and custom greetings as WAV files 7. Additionally, field reports suggest a community NodeJS tool uses CUPI to extract Unity Connection call handler greetings and uploads them via the Webex audio API at the organisation or location level 21.
Transcription
Voicemail transcription is enabled or disabled per location in Control Hub under Management > Locations 44. For transcription delivery, the user must have the internal mailbox configured, "email a copy" enabled, and reside in a location where transcription is activated 46.
Transcriptions are presented in the body of an email accompanied by the recording as a .WAV attachment, and can also be viewed within the Webex App 41. Voicemail transcription supports English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish; however, Japanese is excluded in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia region 43. Voicemails that are composed and sent, replied to, or forwarded directly from the Webex Calling voice portal are not transcribed 45.
PIN management and security rules
An organisation default voicemail passcode is configured in Control Hub under Services > Calling > Service Settings in the Voicemail Passcode section 12. Cisco describes this default passcode as assigned to new users added to the organisation 11. A user assigned the default passcode must reset it on their device or in the application prior to accessing voicemail 13. End users can also reset their voicemail PIN directly in User Hub under Settings > Calling > Voicemail > Reset voicemail PIN 48.
PIN configuration must comply with system rules:
- Length must be between 6 and 30 digits 35.
- PINs cannot contain repeated patterns, 4 or more identical digits consecutively, or 4 or more ascending or descending digits 37.
- PINs must not contain the user's phone number or extension forwards or backwards, match the current PIN reversed, or match any of the preceding 10 PINs 34.
- Administrators can optionally enforce an interval of 1 to 7 days between passcode changes and an expiry duration of 15 to 180 days 33.
See also
See also CUCM to Webex Calling migration. See also Unity Connection networking.
Applicability
Applies to: Cisco Webex Calling, Cisco Webex Calling Dedicated Instance, Cisco Webex Calling migration tool, and Cisco Unity Connection. Deployments: on-premises, multi-tenant, and dedicated instance. Sources checked 2026-09-25. Voicemail transcription supports Japanese across supported regions, except in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia region where Japanese is not supported 43. COBRAS supports Unity Connection 7.x through 15 10, while CallHandlerDataDump lists support for Unity Connection 7.x to 11.x 6. Extraction of custom greetings and voice names via COBRAS Data Viewer applies to Unity Connection 8 and later 7.
What remains uncertain
Voicemail call flows during Unified CM and Webex Calling coexistence, including forwarding to Unity Connection for unmigrated users and Webex Calling voicemail for migrated users, are not covered by the sources below.
The identity of third-party partner tools that migrate Unity Connection messages or greetings into Webex Calling, as well as the specific voicemail data they migrate, are not covered by the sources below.
Voicemail sections of the Cisco transitioning Unified CM to Webex Calling deployment guide PDF are not covered by the sources below.
Default passcode behavior for users provisioned before the default is set and any bulk voicemail PIN reset path are not covered by the sources below.
Webex Calling unified messaging integrations (such as the Unified Messaging with Google Workspace App Hub listing) as a replacement for Unity Connection single inbox are not covered by the sources below.
Whether external-mailbox voicemails can be transcribed is not covered by the sources below.
Webex Calling people API endpoints for uploading busy and no-answer greetings, including scopes and format rules, are not covered by the sources below.
Procedures for migrating an on-premises Unity Connection deployment into Dedicated Instance Unity Connection (using COBRAS or other utilities) are not covered by the sources below.
See also
Related to
- Planning a Unified CM upgrade — Alternative path: keep the on-premises Unified CM and Unity Connection pair instead of moving voicemail to Webex Calling
- Unity Connection networking — Unity Connection side of the estate; relevant when Unity Connection stays for unmigrated users or moves into Dedicated Instance
Referenced by
- Unity Connection networking — Networked Unity Connection estates (distribution lists; cross-server features; directory replication) must be accounted for when moving voicemail to Webex; this packet does not cover the migration.
Sources
- 1Cisco's Unified CM to Webex Calling migration tool takes auto attendant input as a Unity Call Handler .zip file, built with the CallHandlerDataDump tool.Migrate devices and features from Unified CM to Webex Calling · optional upload step for Auto-Attendant · Checked 2026-09-25
- 2The migration tool's auto attendant error list includes 'The greetings file cannot be found in WxC', marked as not migratable.Migrate devices and features from Unified CM to Webex Calling · Auto-Attendant error list · Checked 2026-09-25
- 3Auto attendant greeting audio probably has to exist in Webex Calling before the migration tool runs, because the tool reports a missing greetings file as a failure rather than carrying the audio across.inferredMigrate devices and features from Unified CM to Webex Calling · Auto-Attendant error list and AutoAttendantBulk.csv 'Business Hours Announcement Name' field · Checked 2026-09-25
- 4Cisco's migration implementation guidance says acceptance tests should verify that mailboxes are correctly assigned, accessible from inside the organisation and remotely, that messages can be recorded, retrieved and managed, and that notifications are delivered.Implement the migration from Unified CM to Webex Calling · acceptance testing section, 'Voicemail operation' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 5Webex Calling voicemail has separate settings to send calls to voicemail when the user's line is busy and when unanswered after a set number of rings.Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · call routing settings, 'Send calls to voicemail during a busy line' and 'Send calls to voicemail when unanswered' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 6CallHandlerDataDump is marked as not TAC supported and lists Unity Connection 7.x to 11.x as its supported versions (version 1.0.11, last updated 2020-10-12).Call Handler Data Dump (download page) · page header and requirements notes · Checked 2026-09-25
- 7The COBRAS Data Viewer can extract voice names and custom recorded greetings as WAV files from backups of Unity Connection 8 and later.COBRAS Data Viewer · version history entry 1.0.26 (4/5/2010) · Checked 2026-09-25
- 8COBRAS message backups from any Unity Connection version store messages as ZIP files of EML messages, from which the voice message WAV attachments can be retrieved with an email reader.COBRAS Data Viewer · section on opening message backups · Checked 2026-09-25
- 9COBRAS can keep Unity Connection data restorable only into Unity Connection; it offers no Webex Calling import target, so it can archive mailboxes and greetings but cannot move them into Webex Calling.inferredCOBRAS (download page) · supported versions list · Checked 2026-09-25
- 10COBRAS (Cisco Unified Backup and Restore Application Suite) handles backup, restore and migration for Unity Connection 7.x through 15, and is TAC supported on supported Connection versions.COBRAS (download page) · overview and supported versions · Checked 2026-09-25
- 11Cisco describes the Webex Calling default voicemail passcode as assigned to new users added to the organisation.Configure a default voicemail passcode for all new users · article introduction · Checked 2026-09-25
- 12The Webex Calling organisation default voicemail passcode is set in Control Hub under Services > Calling > Service Settings, Voicemail Passcode section.Configure a default voicemail passcode for all new users · procedure steps · Checked 2026-09-25
- 13A user given the Webex Calling default voicemail passcode must reset it on their device or in the app before they can access their voicemail.Configure a default voicemail passcode for all new users · article introduction · Checked 2026-09-25
- 14In Dedicated Instance, Unity Connection is installed during service activation and sized by the Knowledge Worker count given for each region.Introduction to Dedicated Instance · Unity Connection paragraph · Checked 2026-09-25
- 15The Webex Calling Dedicated Instance add-on includes Cisco Unity Connection, along with Unified CM, Expressway and optional IM and Presence, SME and (Americas only) Emergency Responder.Introduction to Dedicated Instance · list of included applications · Checked 2026-09-25
- 16Customers can distribute users across Dedicated Instance and Webex Calling, but calling features are not harmonised between the two platforms.Introduction to Dedicated Instance · section relating Dedicated Instance to Webex Calling · Checked 2026-09-25
- 17A Webex Calling user's voicemail can be set to email a copy of every voicemail recording to a specified address while messages stay in the internal mailbox.Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · Additional settings section, 'Email a copy of the voicemail message' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 18With the Webex Calling 'Use external mailbox' option, all voice messages are sent to a specified email address and users cannot access them from their phone, the Webex App or User Hub.Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · message storage section, 'Use external mailbox' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 19Cisco's user voicemail article says voicemails sent to an external mailbox are not transcribed.disputedConfigure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · message storage section, 'Use external mailbox' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 20Greeting WAV files extracted from Unity Connection must be checked against, and if needed converted to, Webex Calling's 8 kHz 8-bit mono u-law 2 MB format before upload; the sources do not show that Unity Connection's stored format already matches.inferredConfigure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · greeting settings section, custom greeting upload note, read with ciscounitytools-cobras-data-viewer version 1.0.26 entry · Checked 2026-09-25
- 21A community NodeJS tool downloads Unity Connection call handler greetings through CUPI and uploads them to Webex through the Webex audio API, at organisation or location level.field reportunity-to-webex-audio-importer: NodeJS application to download greetings from Unity Connections and upload to Webex · README description · Checked 2026-09-25
- 22In one university's move to Webex Calling, users were told current voicemails would not transfer and to save any messages they wanted to keep before cutover.field reportCisco Webex Migration to Cloud Environment · voicemail section · Checked 2026-09-25
- 23In the same university migration, migrated users had to set a new voicemail PIN in User Hub, re-record greetings, and re-enable voicemail-to-email manually in User Hub.field reportCisco Webex Migration to Cloud Environment · voicemail section, PIN, greetings and voicemail-to-email paragraphs · Checked 2026-09-25
- 24Recording a new Webex Calling voicemail greeting or uploading a new file replaces the previous greeting.Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · greeting settings section · Checked 2026-09-25
- 25A custom Webex Calling user voicemail greeting upload must be a .wav file, 8 kHz, 8-bit mono, CCITT u-law, at most 2 MB.Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · greeting settings section, custom greeting upload note · Checked 2026-09-25
- 26Organisations that need to keep Unity Connection while moving to Webex cloud calling should look at Dedicated Instance, where Unity Connection serves Dedicated Instance users; it does not become voicemail for multi-tenant Webex Calling users.inferredIntroduction to Dedicated Instance · included applications list and section relating Dedicated Instance to Webex Calling, read with cisco-help-4yz2zd 'Cisco integrations' section · Checked 2026-09-25
- 27To enable voicemail at a Webex Calling location, the administrator must set the voicemail pilot number, which Cisco also calls the voice portal number.Implement the migration from Unified CM to Webex Calling · section 'Configure locations' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 28The Webex Calling internal mailbox has a single-message limit of 10 minutes and a total mailbox limit of 100 minutes.Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · message storage section, 'Use internal mailbox' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 29Webex Calling voicemail has a per-user toggle to receive notification of new voice messages.Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · Notifications section · Checked 2026-09-25
- 30Cisco provides no native way to migrate existing Unity Connection voicemail messages or greetings into Webex Calling's native voicemail service.Prepare to migrate from Unified CM to Webex Calling · section 'Cisco integrations: Unity Connection UCCX UCCE' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 31Webex Calling cannot integrate with a premises-based voicemail system such as Unity Connection or Unity Connection Express.Prepare to migrate from Unified CM to Webex Calling · section 'Cisco integrations: Unity Connection UCCX UCCE' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 32Cisco states that some of its third-party partners' migration tools can migrate some Unity Connection voicemail data; it does not name the tools or say which data.Prepare to migrate from Unified CM to Webex Calling · section 'Cisco integrations: Unity Connection UCCX UCCE' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 33Webex Calling administrators can optionally set a minimum of 1 to 7 days between voicemail passcode changes and a passcode expiry of 15 to 180 days.Configure a default voicemail passcode for all new users · optional passcode settings · Checked 2026-09-25
- 34A Webex Calling voicemail PIN may not contain the user's phone number or extension forwards or backwards, be the current PIN reversed, or match any of the last 10 PINs.Set or reset your voicemail PIN · PIN requirements list · Checked 2026-09-25
- 35A Webex Calling voicemail PIN must be 6 to 30 digits.Configure a default voicemail passcode for all new users · passcode requirements list · Checked 2026-09-25
- 36Plan for every migrated user to set a new Webex Calling voicemail PIN: no Cisco source reviewed describes importing Unity Connection PINs, and the documented Webex Calling paths are a default passcode that must be reset or a user or admin reset.inferredConfigure a default voicemail passcode for all new users · article introduction (reset requirement), read with cisco-help-4yz2zd section 'Cisco integrations: Unity Connection UCCX UCCE' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 37Webex Calling voicemail PINs may not contain repeated patterns, the same digit four or more times in a row, or four or more ascending or descending digits.Configure a default voicemail passcode for all new users · passcode requirements list · Checked 2026-09-25
- 38Each Webex Calling location's voice portal has an administrator passcode set in Control Hub and available only to administrators.Configure voice portals for Webex Calling in Control Hub · step 'Voice Portal Admin Passcode' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 40Cisco lists the migration tool's scope as auto attendants, devices, configured lines, device layout, virtual lines, call queues, hunt groups, call park and user calling data (call forwarding and call monitoring); voicemail mailboxes are not on that list.Migrate devices and features from Unified CM to Webex Calling · migration scope overview · Checked 2026-09-25
- 41Webex Calling transcriptions arrive as an email with the transcription in the body and the voicemail as a .WAV attachment, and can also be viewed in the Webex App.Voicemail transcription for Webex Calling · delivery description · Checked 2026-09-25
- 42Cisco's voicemail transcription article says that if 'Email a copy of message' or 'Use external mailbox' is enabled for a user or voicemail group, the transcription is sent to the email address.disputedVoicemail transcription for Webex Calling · requirements section, email delivery sentence · Checked 2026-09-25
- 43Webex Calling voicemail transcription supports English, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Spanish, but Japanese is not supported in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia region.Voicemail transcription for Webex Calling · supported languages section · Checked 2026-09-25
- 44Webex Calling voicemail transcription is turned on or off per location in Control Hub under Management > Locations.Voicemail transcription for Webex Calling · section on enabling transcription for a location · Checked 2026-09-25
- 45Voicemails forwarded, replied to or composed and sent from the Webex Calling voice portal are not transcribed.Voicemail transcription for Webex Calling · limitations section · Checked 2026-09-25
- 46Cisco's user voicemail article says that for a user to receive voicemail transcriptions, the location must have transcription enabled and the user must have both 'email a copy' and the internal mailbox selected.Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · message storage and transcription note · Checked 2026-09-25
- 47Webex Calling voicemail lets an administrator set a number to which callers are transferred when they press 0 in the mailbox.Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · Additional settings section, transfer on 0 · Checked 2026-09-25
- 48A Webex Calling user can reset their own voicemail PIN in User Hub under Settings > Calling > Voicemail > Reset voicemail PIN.Set or reset your voicemail PIN · User Hub procedure · Checked 2026-09-25
- 49Cisco's migration design guidance says to provision one DID for the voicemail number at each Webex Calling location.Design to migrate from Unified CM to Webex Calling · Table 1 'Information to capture for each location' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 50When fax messaging is enabled, Webex Calling voicemail and fax share storage of 100 minutes of voicemail or 1000 pages of fax.Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user · Fax Messaging section · Checked 2026-09-25
- 51Cisco's migration design guidance lists voicemail group use cases as a department or workgroup mailbox, a voicemail option for an auto attendant or hunt group, call queue overflow, and users who only need a voicemail box.Design to migrate from Unified CM to Webex Calling · section 'Features', Voicemail Group entry · Checked 2026-09-25
- 52Voicemail is built into the Webex Calling offer rather than supplied by a separate voicemail product.Prepare to migrate from Unified CM to Webex Calling · section 'Cisco integrations: Unity Connection UCCX UCCE' · Checked 2026-09-25
- 53Users reach Webex Calling voicemail by calling the voice portal from their own number and entering their PIN, or from any phone by pressing * and entering their mailbox number and passcode.Configure voice portals for Webex Calling in Control Hub · section on user and administrator access to the voice portal · Checked 2026-09-25
- 54Each Webex Calling location has its own voice portal, assigned a phone number and extension from that location, and the extension is typically the last four digits of the voice portal number.Configure voice portals for Webex Calling in Control Hub · voice portal configuration steps · Checked 2026-09-25
Documents
Configure a default voicemail passcode for all new users
Configure and manage voicemail settings for a Webex Calling user
Configure voice portals for Webex Calling in Control Hub
Design to migrate from Unified CM to Webex Calling
Implement the migration from Unified CM to Webex Calling
Introduction to Dedicated Instance
Migrate devices and features from Unified CM to Webex Calling
Prepare to migrate from Unified CM to Webex Calling
Set or reset your voicemail PIN
Voicemail transcription for Webex Calling
Call Handler Data Dump (download page)
COBRAS (download page)
COBRAS Data Viewer
Cisco Webex Migration to Cloud Environment
unity-to-webex-audio-importer: NodeJS application to download greetings from Unity Connections and upload to Webex
Cite this page
APA
WarmTransfer. (2026, September 25). Moving from Unity Connection to Webex Calling voicemail. WarmTransfer. https://warmtransfer.net/knowledge/unity-connection-to-webex-voicemail
BibTeX
@misc{warmtransfer-unity-connection-to-webex-voicemail,
title = {Moving from Unity Connection to Webex Calling voicemail},
author = {{WarmTransfer}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://warmtransfer.net/knowledge/unity-connection-to-webex-voicemail},
note = {Verified 2026-09-25}
}