Register a phone number in Bolna

Why this step exists

Cualify orchestrates the call (which playbook, which contact, which language) but the actual voice runtime lives in Bolna. Bolna needs an explicit list of phone numbers it's allowed to originate calls from — both for billing reconciliation against your carrier and as a guard against accidental dispatch from numbers you no longer own.

When you connect Exotel / Twilio / Plivo in Cualify, we register the credentials on Bolna's side too. Most of the time Bolna auto-discovers the numbers in that account. Occasionally it doesn't — and that's when this guide matters.

The auto-discovery path (happens 90% of the time)

1. Connect your provider in Cualify → /integrations/telephony
2. Sign in at platform.bolna.ai → My Numbers
3. Scroll to "Numbers owned with you from your connected telephony accounts"
4. Your purchased number should appear with a green "Active" badge

Done — Cualify can now dispatch through that number. Send a test call from any playbook to confirm.

The manual add path (when auto-discovery misses)

Bolna's number sync runs on a 5-minute heartbeat. If you just connected the provider, wait 5 minutes and refresh. If it's still not there:

1. In Bolna's My Numbers view, click "+ Add Phone Number"
2. Pick the provider: Exotel, Twilio, or Plivo
3. Enter the number in E.164 format:
   • India ExoPhone: +918012345678 (10 digits prefixed with +91)
   • US Twilio: +14155552671
   • UK Plivo: +447911123456
4. Save. The number appears in the "Manually added" section with the same Active badge.

Troubleshooting

Error: "Calling from_number doesn't exist for <provider>"

You dispatched a call from Cualify but Bolna doesn't recognise the FROM number. Either:

• The number isn't in My Numbers yet — follow the manual-add steps above
• The provider credential is wrong on Bolna's side — open Bolna → Providers → click your provider → confirm the SID / Auth Token / Subdomain match what you have in Cualify

Error: "Phone number is in use by another account"

Bolna only lets one workspace claim a number at a time. If you previously had this number on a different Bolna account, sign in there and remove it from My Numbers first. Then come back to your Cualify-linked Bolna account and add it.

Auto-discovery never picks up Exotel ExoPhones

Exotel's API doesn't expose all ExoPhones to Bolna automatically — only the ones with an "App ID" attached. See Setting up Exotel App Bazaar SIDs for the workaround.

What's next?

• Make your first test call
• DLT registration handoff (required for production India outbound)