Two Fax Devices on the Same Line

I hook up my computer on the same phone line as the fax machine. The PC will only fax out; no receiving. But the funniest thing is it looks like my fax has been forwarded back to my fax machine. The intended recipient of my fax never receives them; instead my fax machine prints them out. My current PC is running Window XP. My Windows 2000 computer does not have this problem.



Unfortunately, sharing two fax devices on the same line can cause confusion. It sounds like this is what is happening here. I think the fax machine is misinterpreting the PC's outgoing fax as an incoming fax for you.

You need to turn off the fax machine or disable answer mode when sending with the PC. Another option would be to put the fax machine on a different line, if you have one. Why this is happening with XP and not 2000 is anyone's guess.

You could also consider making the move to a fax-to-email service.

Do you have a question about faxing? Send me your fax question.