What do the fax error messages mean?
Fax FAQs
Fax – short for facsimile - has come a long way since Alexander Bain created the electric printing telegraph or the magnafax telecopier by Xerox. Modern fax machines are often connected to a telephone line and use a paper copy when sending a fax. Fax machines scan documents, treating text and images as a single fixed graphic image and converting it into a bitmap. With SimplyCast’s Fax tool, you can send marketing campaigns without touching a fax machine.
When a bulk fax is sent unsuccessfully, the receiving machine provides an error code output to let the service understand the reason for failure. This error code, or error message, helps the bulk fax service decide if the number should be retried, delayed, or removed from the sending list. You'll find an Undelivered section within your reports that will provide information about why the message was not delivered, including the error code/message.
We've compiled a list of current transmission error codes that you may see during your fax campaigns, as well as a brief explanation for each to give you a better idea of its purpose. Keep in mind that SimplyCast only charges for successfully delivered pages and will remove any number that has been determined to be permanently unreachable.
| Connection failed | There was no receiver on the other end of the call to connect to. |
| Document generation error | There was an error while generating the document. This could be due to the file being deleted before sending. |
| Failed to train with any of the compatible modems | A remote fax machine was detected, but the sending and receiving modems could not establish communication. |
| Fax transmission not established | We could not detect a remote machine. This could be due to no fax machine on the receiving end or a lack of call clarity. |
| Log entry lost | The call started, but the log entry was lost / incomplete. In practice, this should be rare and may indicate a system problem. |
| No response after sending a page | The remote machine did not acknowledge receiving a page of the fax. Depending on its behavior, it may have printed the page and any preceding pages. |
| Received no response to DCS or TCF | The bulk fax service could not successfully determine the remote machine's capabilities. |
| The call dropped prematurely | The call dropped due to a non-fax transmission error. It is likely that the receiver hung up. |
| The HDLC carrier did not stop in a timely manner | The service initiated a fax transmission with the receiver, but a synchronization (timing) error could not be resolved. |
| Timed out waiting for initial communication | A call was established with the receiver and the bulk fax service attempted to establish a session, but there was no response from the receiving fax machine. This could be due to no machine on the receiving end or a lack of call clarity. |
| Timed out waiting for the first message | A call was established with the receiver, and the service attempted to establish a session, but the receiving fax machine did not respond. This could be due to the lack of a machine on the receiving end or call clarity. |
| Unexpected DCN while waiting for DCS or DIS | The remote machine unexpectedly sent a disconnect message when the service asked for the remote machine's fax capabilities. |
| Received bad response to DCS or training | An unexpected message was received when the bulk fax service asked for the remote machine's capabilities. |
| Invalid response after sending a page | After successfully sending a page, an unexpected message was received. Depending on the remote machine's behavior, it may have printed the sent page and any preceding pages. |
| Disconnected after permitted retries | The service attempted to send the same message multiple times unsuccessfully. This may be due to a call clarity issue. |
| Far end cannot receive at the resolution of the image | The remote machine does not support receiving faxes sent at the resolution that our service sends. |
| Received a DCN from remote after sending a page | After a page was sent successfully, the remote machine responded with a disconnect message. Depending on its behavior, it may have printed a paper copy of the sent page and any preceding pages. |
| Unexpected message received | Given the current context, the service received a message it did not expect. |
| Received other than DIS while waiting for DIS | The service expected to receive the remote machine's capabilities but received an unexpected message instead. |
| Unexpected DCN after EOM or MPS sequence | The remote machine disconnected unexpectedly after receiving a page of a multipage fax. Depending on its behavior, it may have printed a paper copy of the sent page and any preceding pages. |
| Document loading error. | The service attempted to generate the message to send, but a document was missing. |
| Invalid ECM response received from receiver | The service received an invalid error correction message from the remote machine. |
| Unexpected DCN after RR/RNR sequence | The remote machine disconnected unexpectedly after indicating it was not ready to initiate a session. |
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