Using Sfax

UIS is providing Sfax as a web-based alternative method to send and receive faxes.  The use of Sfax is meant primarily to benefit clinics and other departments that are experiencing disruptions to their workflows due to problems with analog fax lines. This article gives information on how to use Sfax.

UIS is providing Sfx as a web-based alternative method to send and receive faxes.  The use of Sfax is meant primarily to benefit clinics and other departments that are experiencing disruptions to their workflows due to problems with analog fax lines.

Gaining Access

1. Submit a sFax help request if you’d like your department/area to be able to access Sfax. Currently, our primary goal is to use Sfax for clinics and other areas that are having their business processes negatively impacted by current issues with our analog fax lines.

2. To gain access to send faxes, ask your clinic director/office manager to submit an sFax help request to UIS.

3. To gain access to receive faxes, ask your clinic director/office manager to grant you access to the Box folders where incoming faxes are being stored.

Important Sfax Dos and Don’ts

1. Don’t use a scanner to email scanned documents containing PHI to yourself for upload to Sfax.

2. Don’t scan documents containing PHI to an unencrypted thumb drive for upload to Sfax.

3. Don’t copy files to a non-Pacific-owned computer for upload to Sfax.

4. Don’t advertise the Sfax fax number (the one beginning with 855) as the official fax line for your clinic or department.

5. Double-check the phone number you have entered before sending a fax to ensure it will be sent to the correct fax machine.

6. To reduce the possibility of a fax being sent to the wrong number, utilize contacts in the address book whenever possible.

7. Don’t use Sfax as a replacement for the Epic Ochin RightFax system.

Logging In

1. Go to https://app.sfaxme.com/

2. Click the “Login via Single Sign On” link.

3. Enter your PUNetID@pacificu.edu email address (e.g. rodr1234@pacificu.edu or a123456b@pacificu.edu) and click “Login”

4. Enter your PUNet ID and password on the Pacific University Single Sign On page if necessary.

5. Authenticate with Duo is necessary.

6. You should now be on the Sfax main page. If you encountered an error, see the next section.

Dealing With Login Error Messages

"Unexpected Error"

If you get an “Unexpected error” (see screenshot below):

1. Hold down the shift key on your keyboard and click the refresh button in your web browser (top left). 

2. If you get the same error, shift-refresh again. 

3. You may have to do this up to 5 times before you get past this error and into the sFax user interface.

"Server Error"

If you get a “sever error” (see screenshot below):

1. Go back to the first username and password prompt on the app.sfaxme.com login page.

2. Enter your PUNetID@pacificu.edu email address as username and any text as password.

3. You will see a message saying that you have to log in with Single Sign On.

4. Click the "Log in with Single Sign On" link and try signing in again.

5. Repeat if necessary.

Sending a Fax

1. Go to your Sfax main page (the page you see after logging in).

2. Click the green “Compose Fax” button in the top left.

3. For the Outgoing number pull-down menu, make sure the fax line you are intending to send from has been selected.

4. Under Recipients, either:

   1. Check next to the checkbox(es) of the address book entries you want to send to.

   2. And/or, type a 9-digit fax number in the text box (the one that reads “Search contacts or Enter fax number”) and click the “+Add” button.

5. Under Files, either:

   1. Choose “Add from library” to choose a document that is already stored in your library. 

   2. And/or click “Upload document” and choose a file that is accessible in your computer (e.g. on your computer’s hard drive, on an encrypted thumb drive, or on a secure network share accessible from your computer).

      1. See Sfax’s list of files types you can upload.

      2. Sfax won’t accept file names with any of the following characters in them: @ $ % & \ / : * ? " ' < > | ~ ` # ^ + = { } [ ] ; !

6. In the “Cover page” section, click on the cover page that matches with the fax line you are sending from.

7. Optional: Enter information in Subject, Reference and Remarks. This information will show on the cover page for the fax.

   1. Do not enter any PHI in these fields.

8. If you are not yet ready to send, you can click “Save” in the top right and come back to this fax later in the “Drafts” section of the fax line you had selected.

   1. Viewing in Drafts is a good way to preview what a fax will look like.

9. To send, click “Send” in the top right.

10. Once a document has been sent, while the system is attempting to send the Fax you can see it in the “Outbox” folder for that fax line (in the left on the Sfax main page).

11. If the document fails, it will go briefly into the Failed folder, and then will be put in the Failed subfolder in Box and will be removed from Sfax.

12. If the document succeeds, it will go briefly into the Sent folder, and then will be put in the Sent subfolder in Box and will be removed from Sfax.

Receiving a Fax

• Each Sfax fax line has a unique toll-free number starting with 855. You can see the number for each fax line you have access to when you log into Sfax.

• Some Pacific University fax numbers (503-352-XXXX) may be forwarded to the corresponding sFax line so that faxes sent to the Pacific fax line are delivered to Sfax. This allows you to give someone the 503-352-XXXX number but receive it in Sfax. Ask your clinic director or department head if your Pacific fax number has been forwarded.

• Each Sfax line has a corresponding folder in Box. Faxes sent to that fax line are delivered into a subfolder with “Incoming” in the name. These received faxes will not be stored in Sfax, and you will not receive a notification from Sfax when a new fax has been received. Thus, to see new faxes you must go to that fax folder. Contact your clinic director or department head if you don’t have access to the Box folder.

• To receive an email notification when a new fax arrives, do the following:

  • Log into the Box web interface (pacificu.box.com).

  • Find the “Incoming” folder for the fax line you want to receive notifications about.

  • Click on that folder to open it.

  • Click the three dots in the top right and click on “Settings.”

  • Scroll down to the bottom of the page to the “Email and Notifications” section.

  • Choose “Override default settings for this folder.”

  • Check the checkbox for “Uploads.”

  • Click “Save Changes” in the upper right.

• We recommend each group work out a system to note when faxes have been viewed and acted upon, so that there is no confusion about which faxes still need to be read and dealt with.  You could delete faxes from the Box folder once they have been acted upon, or you could create a subfolder for “read” faxes, or even subfolders for each person who may take faxes to deal with them.

  • Do not move faxes containing PHI into a Box folder that is not labelled as “[Pacific HIPAA].”

Adding to Contacts

1. In the Sfax web interface, click on the person’s head icon in the top left.

2. Click the green “Create contact” button in the top left.

3. Enter the fax number in the first line.

4. In the “Type” pulldown, choose whether this should be “My contact” (visible only to you) or a “Shared contact” (visible to all Pacific University Sfax users).

5. You can enter a First Name and Last Name (if this is a person) or an Organization (if this is a group) or both. This is how the contact will show up when choosing it.

6. All other fields (Position, Mobile, Phone, Website and Description) are optional.

7. Click Next.

8. If you have groups (which are essentially subfolders for contacts) you can select the contact to go into these by checking the checkbox(es).

   1. You also have the option to create a new group by clicking on the icon in the bottom left of the dialog box (with people’s heads and plus symbol).

   2. If creating shared contacts, it is suggested that you create a group specifically for contacts that members of your clinic or department will use. This will reduce the clutter for other departments and reduce the possibility of a fax being sent to the wrong contact.

9. Click Save.

Adding to the Library

1. In the Sfax web interface, click on the filing cabinet icon in the top left.

2. Click the green “Upload document” button in the top left.

3. Click “Choose File” to select a document from your computer. (The “Drag and Drop” option is not currently working.)

4. In the pulldown menu, choose whether to “Save to My documents” (will be visible only to you) or a “Save to Shared documents” (will be visible to all Pacific University Sfax users)

   1. Warning: Do not upload any documents containing PHI to your library or the shared library.

5. Click Next.

6. If you have subfolders you can select these by checking the checkbox(es).

   1. You also have the option to create a new subfolder by clicking on the icon in the bottom left of the dialog box (with people’s heads and plus symbol).

   2. If uploading shared documents, it is suggested that you create a group specifically for files that members of your clinic or department will use. This will reduce the clutter for other departments.

7. Click Save.

See Also

Sfax Service Catalog entry

Sfax Training Video

Questions?

Contact Support