Troubleshooting: Issues with Zendesk Talk

Issues with your connection and environment cause performance problems when you use web-based software such as Zendesk Talk. System or network issues might not appear during regular ticketing but become more obvious with a telephony connection. This article lists steps to help you fix these issues.

Before you begin, ask these questions and rule out common issues:

Was Talk working previously and did it just stop working? Check whether your company's IT team recently changed your network or laptop, or installed new software or add-ons.

Is the issue affecting other agents or just you? If the issue affects only you, check your local settings and network. If you and other agents have issues, check with your IT and networking teams first, especially if you use a company‑managed laptop.

Can agents who use unified agent status take calls? If you use unified agent status, make sure agents have appropriate Talk permissions and check the live dashboard to confirm agents appear online for Talk calls.

This article includes topics for these common Talk issues:

Talk isn't working

Voice quality

Dropped calls

EC# error

Call status issues

Talk isn't working

Talk problems usually relate to your network. In office setups, network teams often block some ports or IP addresses. Ask your network team to confirm that all Talk network requirements are met. For more information, see Talk network requirements.

Perform these additional checks:

Check the Zendesk and Twilio status pages for any outages

Check the Agent leg quality issues report in Explore to identify call quality issues on your team and with specific agents

Voice quality issues

Use these checks to fix call quality:

Ask your IT team whether your Talk traffic goes through a VPN. If it does, make sure Talk traffic doesn't go through your company network. Your IT department can split-tunnel this traffic or remove the Zendesk IP addresses from the VPN.

Note: Talk doesn't work with MPLS or VPN due to a background service called GLL. This service selects the best network path for the call. If you use a VPN or MPLS, the system doesn't receive the true location of your agents and cannot route the call efficiently. This can lead to latency and other call quality issues.

Run the Twilio network test to confirm ports are open, speed is adequate, and you connect to the right endpoint. For guidance on how to use these results, see How do I use the Twilio network test to troubleshoot Talk agent calls?

Connect your computer to your router with an Ethernet cable. Wi‑Fi works, but Ethernet is more stable because other wireless devices can interfere with the signal.

Try a different web browser to rule out a browser issue

Connect your headset to the computer with a 3.5 mm cable instead of Bluetooth. A USB connection is also better than Bluetooth. Other wireless devices and signals can degrade audio. To rule out the headset as the cause, use your computer speakers and make a test call.

If you use a gaming headset, deactivate its audio driver software. It isn't supported and can cause issues with Talk. Sometimes browsers, such as Chrome, don't synchronize fast enough in this situation.

Make sure your internet connection is stable. If your web browser passes the Twilio test and you still have issues, your connection might be unstable. You might drop network packets or have a connection that slows down at times. Your IT or network team can run software over time to measure stability. Do this yourself only if you feel comfortable and your company's IT department allows it.

To see how stable your internet connection is:

If you are at home, reboot your router

Run a ping test for 10 to 15 minutes, especially when you have problems. Check for stability and packet loss. See the image below for a short example of the test results.

In addition to www.zendesk.com, test the Twilio client endpoints with a ping test:
chunderw-vpc-gll.twilio.com
chunderw-gll.twilio.com
chunderw-vpc-gll-yoursubdomain.twilio.com
Use one of the following values for the region: au1, br1, de1, ie1, jp1, sg1, us1.

Make sure the ping time in ms is adequate and stays consistent. In most cases, you want zero packet loss. If you see as much as 1% packet loss in 15 minutes, this might affect your connection. Talk with your IT department or contact your internet service provider for help.

Dropped calls

If calls drop after two minutes, check with your admin. You may use a trial account. Talk trial accounts limit calls to two minutes. If calls drop every time you call one of your numbers and you use an IVR setup, create a custom greeting. Without a greeting in the right IVR menu locations, the system hangs up. If you already have a greeting, a corrupt audio file can cause the same behavior. Re-record the audio file and upload it again to rule this out.

EC# error

See the example of an <EC#> error below:

EC# errors often come from your network or router configuration. They indicate that Talk doesn't have an adequate network connection. This can occur anywhere on the network, but it often results from local network limits or from a computer that doesn't meet the minimum requirements to make the connection. Review the Talk network requirements. Ensure all ports are open. Also review the steps above. If you still experience EC# errors, Contact Zendesk Customer Support with a screenshot of your firewall and router settings that shows these open ports.

For more information on what to include in a ticket about Talk, see How can I share example calls for troubleshooting a Talk issue?

Call status issues

If you refresh your page, your agent status might change to unavailable in Talk. An agent needs to manually reset their Talk agent state to become available. Don't refresh your browser page when you want to receive calls.

If you cannot determine the cause of your quality issues and your issue is specific to call routing, see Why are phone calls not routing to agents?