There are many services for Internet faxing. Some of them are free while others cost money. Most Internet fax servers do not need any hardware or software to be installed on a computer. Some Internet fax servers include the conversion of a received fax into e-mail. Incoming faxes from special numbers are scanned and sent directly to an e-mail address.

Internet fax servers help to reduce waste of money on fax paper and toner. Most DSL and cable modems are not suitable for sending a fax over the Internet. The advantages of Internet fax servers are that no fax machines, ink or paper is required. Multiple faxes can be sent and received at the same time, so good deal of time is saved. How fast the faxes go from one computer to another entirely depends upon the Internet service provider, Internet congestion, number of ports the server has, and other factors.

Internet faxing is simple. Usually a user just needs to sign up with an Internet fax service provider. Next step is to open an e-mail program and address the fax number with the service the user is using. Example: 123456789@faxserver.com (Desired fax number + the name of fax service). Type a fax message and add attachments. The Internet fax server provider then turns the attachment into a fax and transfers it to fax machine. The last step is to click SEND.

Internet fax servers deliver faxes electronically, not on paper. So faxes can be stored just like any other file on a computer. Internet fax servers enable fax retrieving from anywhere with a click of a mouse. The disadvantage of Internet faxing is that the Internet fax service provider is also a recipient of user's faxes, so the service provider should be trustworthy.