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RIM today announced support for Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007, which advances the functionality offered through the Microsoft Live Communications Server 2005. So what’s all the fuss about? Corporate customers running Microsoft OCS 2007 and a BES now have access to the BlackBerry Messenger. If you think that isn’t a big deal, well think again:

“Instant messaging and presence on the BlackBerry platform is improving our ability to find members of our mission critical teams that are often mobile, and bring them together quickly into live and interactive meetings, regardless of their locations,” said Gary Bellfield, Information and Communications Technology Manager at Tayside Fire and Rescue. “Mobile access is an essential component of our complete unified communications initiative, and we trust the BlackBerry solution to support our mobile instant messaging capabilities in a highly reliable, secure and intuitive way.”

Who knew that IM could help save lives? Support for Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 requires BlackBerry Enterprise Server 4.1.6 or higher, and handsets running BlackBerry OS 4.1 or higher. More information can be found at:

[www.blackberry.com]

(via RIM)

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RIM sent out emails last night informing IT Admins that BlackBerry Enterprise Server v4.1 Service Pack 6 Maintenance Release 1 for Microsoft Exchange is now available for download. Admins can head to [www.blackberry.com] to access the software update, documentation, and any additional information.

Unfortunately, at this moment, the SP6 maintenance release doesn’t actually appear on the server downloads page, but expect it to be up by the end of the day.

Looks like RIM made a boo boo and the SP6 maintenance release is actually for Lotus Domino, not Microsoft Exchange! Oops! Oh well, there is a live link for downloads, however. Go nuts, Admins!

Download BES 4.1 SP6 Maintenance Release 1 (Lotus Domino)

Thanks for the heads up, Alex! And the correction, Andy!

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Three new tools, the BlackBerry Synchronization Request Tool, the BlackBerry Time Zone Synchronization Tool, and the BlackBerry System Requirements Tool have been included in the latest BES Resource Kit. The BlackBerry User Administration Tool has only had its maximum number of moveable users cut down to 1,000, so no new features there. This release marks “the quickest turnaround for a BRK release following the BES release”, possibly showing that RIM is stepping up their software production. The last month or so has been pretty busy, what with CDKs, DMs, and OSes coming out at pretty regular intervals. One can only hope that it keeps up, eh?

Download the BlackBerry Enterprise Server Resource Kit 4.1 Service Pack 6

(via BlackBerry News)

(...)
Read the rest of BES Resource Kit 4.1 SP 6 released (261 words)

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Admins rejoice! The latest patch for the BlackBerry Enterprise Server is available for download. The device-side software made it out yesterday, and BIS was upgraded a couple of weeks ago, so the circle of upgrading is all completed. Big changes in this service pack include rich content e-mail, support for Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 and Lotus Sametime 8.0, and control RIM value-added applications. On top of that, reconciling permanent message deletion has been improved, and there are also some changes to the BlackBerry Configuration Database schema, the naming of collaboration clients, Mobile Data System conventions and related software. As for that PDF vulnerability, this patch should take care of everything A-O-K. Go ahead and download BES 4.1.6 here, or scope out the update notes here.

(via BerryReview)

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A security warning has been placed for BES 4.1 Service Pack 3 (4.1.3) through 4.1 Service Pack 5 (4.1.5) and BlackBerry Unite! earlier than 1.0 Service Pack 1 (1.0.1) bundle 36. The problem involves distilling PDF files in e-mail attachments on the server. Should a crafty hacker cook something up, the file could activate some code on the server once it was sent through the pipes tubes. Admins should make sure their software is as current as possible and disable PDF attachments until the issue is resolved. You can find out more about the BlackBerry Unite! vulnerability here and the BES vulnerability here.

(via Heise)

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This one nearly slipped under the WES radar, but not quite. SteelCloud, the BES-in-a-box that boasts a half-hour setup time, has announced that they’re preloading SteelWorks Mobile with Conceivium BES monitoring via MobileMonitor and Analyzer. The majority of BES admins I talked to at WES didn’t have a monitoring solution in place, so this is a pretty sweet deal to have it all bundled together with the initial set-up. There is talk that RIM will be including monitoring software with the next version (5.0) of the BlackBerry Enterprise Server, however… I wonder how much of a bite that will take out of potential BES monitoring customers…

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Neverfail, provider of disaster recovery services, and BoxTone, the big name in BES monitoring, have today announced a partnership. The key benefits seem to be geared towards common customers, but as time goes on, we’ll likely see new features linking the two closer together. They’ll both be at WES as well, so we’ll likely get a taste of how this team-up will benefit both products.

“The combination of Neverfail and BoxTone truly is a natural fit,” said Nick Harmer, VP of Channel and Sales Development for Neverfail. “As adoption of the BlackBerry Enterprise Solution continues to grow globally, more and more enterprises recognize the importance of a mobility platform and are looking for continuous availability across the extended BlackBerry environment. Neverfail looks forward to working with BoxTone to deliver comprehensive availability protection and a proactive management, monitoring and support solution for BlackBerry deployments.”

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After much ado, the latest BlackBerry Enterprise Server service pack is available, complete with free/busy lookup and monitoring tools. Rich e-mail viewing was cut from the feature list not too long ago, to the dejected sighs of suits everywhere. On top of that, the release seems to be only for Exchange and Domino, so MDS and Groupwise users will have to play the waiting game.

UPDATE: Heard from a little birdie that the rich text e-mail feature is actually in this service pack, just locked away. Even if you flipped the switch with an SQL command, the handhelds on your BES would need the corresponding handheld software to enjoy the long-awaited feature.

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Never one to be out-done, AT&T is now offering BlackBerry Professional Software as part of a series of new deals for small business owners. The software comes with the usual array of synchronization and security features, and has recently gotten a small price drop. $499 will buy you a 5-user license and $849 will snag you a 10-user license, up to a maximum of 30 users. You can hit up AT&T at 1-888-296-4561 or via their small business website to get started.

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The folks at Tech2 posted about a white paper published on BlackBerry security, namely what is lawfully interceptible, and how to avoid hacking. Part of the paper is based on a prototype trojan that could be delivered to a BlackBerry on BES and leave the company’s server unguarded. It was developed by an information security company, who released the information to RIM before taking it public. The trojan, called BBProxy, works by allowing a hacker to essentially piggyback on any connections made to BES. Once installed on a BlackBerry, the hacker can connect to it via computer and have complete access to everything the BlackBerry connects to. The article does include some simple steps administrators can take to prevent it from working, but fair warning: it is heavy on IT-speak. Earlier security reports acknowledged the threat of Trojans on BlackBerry, but we’ve yet to see an instance in the wild…

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Word just got out of a webinar showing off the newest BlackBerry Enterprise Server service pack, featuring all the good stuff we’ve been looking forward to in OS 4.5, such as full HTML e-mail viewing and remote e-mail lookup. Of course, this is all the same stuff we’ve been seeing since WES ‘07, but who knows, maybe this is signaling an impending release. Even then, we’ll still have to wait for the handheld software to follow up before we can start seeing all these new features. The webinar is taking place Feb 21st., from 12 PM - 1PM EST for the Exchange presentation, and Feb. 20th. at the same time for the Lotus Domino presentation.

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Another bit from the LegalTech show is a survey from BoxTone indicating that a “significant majority (65 percent) said the [BlackBerry] platform has transitioned from an individual productivity tool to a mission-critical service”, resulting in the implementation of IT administration and monitoring tools like BoxTone. Maybe it’s just because I’m in Ottawa, but the number one demorgraphic for BlackBerry always felt like govenment employees, but clearly the legal field has its own entrenched usership as well.

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The latest version of Zimbra, a piece of open-source e-mail server software recently bought by Yahoo!, now supports BlackBerry Enterprise Servers. Zimbra’s been rocking Windows Mobile, Palm, Symbian, and iPhone devices before version 5.0, but it’s bound to take awhile to develop something of that magnitude without any help from RIM. Of course all the talk about Microsoft acquiring Yahoo! seriously leaves Zimbra’s future in question. You can download a trial of the BlackBerry connector here, the mobile client here, and the server software here. Il poker in linea ? un gioco di carte.

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Once again Spain gets the goods. The BlackBerry Professional Software that was announced back in November is now available in Spain through Orange. The package is geared towards smaller businesses running on Exchange or Lotus Domino servers and dealing with fewer than 30 devices, and allows two-way synchronization of address books and calendars. If you want to try it out, RIM’s got BlackBerry Professional Express available for single users, which can then be expanded as you get more BlackBerrys to manage.

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RIM’s been attending the IBM Lotusphere convention, without having too much to show off. They’re touting the usual promises of native HTML e-mail viewing (soon, honest), on-device document editing and remote e-mail lookup, but nothing we haven’t heard before. There was one little bit about Lotus environments…

“New features for users running IBM Lotus Sametime® and Microsoft Live Communications Server will include improved address book integration, IM contact “click to call”, IM session “convert to call” and advanced emoticon support, allowing co-workers to collaborate and communicate more effectively using their BlackBerry smartphones.”

Any Lotus users in the house? Maybe this is old hat, but we don’t get too much word from that neck of the IT woods.

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Tracking e-mail through a BES is easy enough, but SMS text messaging from a BlackBerry has been a little trickier for admins. GWAVA has just released Retain, a clientless archiving system that aims to solve the issue. It installs on your BES in a half hour, and will keep track of all PIN and SMS messages, as well as phone logs. This sounds like a solid option for enterprises that want to be ready for audits and enforce their IT policy with an iron fist.

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Nexthaus has just announced SyncJe for BlackBerry, letting your handhelds sync up to Open-Xchange Server 5. Open-Xchange is an open source, web-based office client optimized for Linux, and works just dandy with Outlook. SyncJe aims to extend all of its handy office functions like calendars, contacts, e-mail, tasks and document sharing to your handheld. If you’re already set up with an Open-Xchange server, a 15-day trial of SyncJe for BlackBerry is available for download over the air at www.nexthaus.com/bb/syncjebb.jad. The full retail runs for a scant $39.95.

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The United Arab Emirates carrier Etisalat has busted out a new option for small enterprises looking to get a BlackBerry Enterprise Server. For anything under 20 people, Etisalat is offering a presumably carrier-hosted pay-per-user BES, and to promote the new offer, they’re giving away the first license for free. On top of that, they’re cutting regular BES costs by 50% until the end of the year. Hey, corporate folks deserve some holiday savings too.

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IT reference publisher, Packt, has recently released BlackBerry Enterprise Server for Microsoft Exchange, for all you budding BES admins out there. This volume goes over installation, user management, security, background information and more. If you’re working on a different platform, it’s worth your while to keep an eye on Packt for a Lotus or GroupWise reference soon. If BES adminning is your bag, you can pick this chunk of literature up over here.

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Josep has tipped us off to Mobile Device Manager by CA, which aims to automate mundane and repetitive tasks, such as locking and unlocking devices, and setting up IT policies. By attributing BlackBerry security profiles to particular roles in a company’s Microsoft Active Directory, a lot of the bare-bones administration can handle itself.

* Leverages BlackBerry Enterprise Server IT policies to deliver over-the-air (OTA) management from a web-based interface, including device lock/unlock and data wipe to prevent access to data on lost or stolen devices
* Automated role-based device security and configuration enforcement and lifecycle management leveraging Active Directory data
* Automatic disabling of devices upon employee termination
* Customizable workflow for approvals, escalations, event management, and support processes
* A Bulk Addition feature that enables administrators to quickly roll out large numbers of devices

Windows Mobile and Symbian versions of the software are also in the works.

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RIM announced today a new software bundle for small and medium businesses who are administrating up to 30 BlackBerrys on your existing e-mail server. Combined with BlackBerry Home Server, BlackBerry Unite!, and the full-blown BlackBerry Enterprise Server, RIM is setting up a nice sliding scale for all levels of enterprise users. The BlackBerry Professional Software will cost you $499 for every 5 users, which you can get for free if you buy 5 BlackBerrys before the end of November. More information over here.

* Small IT Footprint – Installs on the same server as the email system, saving customers the cost of additional hardware and operating system licenses.
* Support for the Leading Email Systems – Provides tight integration with Microsoft® Exchange or IBM® Lotus® Domino®, allowing a full complement of synchronized wireless services including access to email, calendar, contacts, notes and tasks.
* Simple Installation – A Pre-install Assistant utility performs a technical assessment of the environment and provides a recommended configuration making installation fast and easy with little or no requirement to determine configuration settings.
* Easy Management – Simplified BlackBerry Manager Interface is a one-stop location for most management tasks, and wizards and quick-links enable customers to easily change common functions such as adding or deleting a user. IT policies are also easy to set up with pre-defined IT policy templates.
* Advanced Security – Utilizes the same certified security architecture and encryption system of the BlackBerry® Enterprise Server, which is trusted and accredited by more organizations around the world than any other wireless solution.
* BlackBerry® MDS (Mobile Data System) Support – Provides customers with the ability to extend internal applications to mobile employees and use any of the thousands of third party applications developed for the BlackBerry platform.

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Zenprise has announced a partnership with Keynote in order to keep a closer eye on carrier network status. This fits in great with Zenprise’s established troubleshooting system, as monitoring stability is a big part of what they do. Keynote has a pretty robust system in place for gaging call quality and network status, and we’re sure the service being passed on to customers through Zenprise will be top notch. We talked with Zenprise not too long ago about what they do, so if you’re in the BlackBerry admin end of things, check it out.

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There are some unhappy seamen in the U.S. today, now that the Navy has locked down their BlackBerrys to some pretty rigorous standards. PIN-to-PIN messaging, GPS, the application loader and third-party program installations have all been restricted, and as usual users will have to cycle through alphanumeric passwords every 3 months. On top of that, after 5 unsuccessful log-ins the device gets locked down and local data erased. For extra security, BlackBerrys’ radio antennae will become deactivated whenever they’re hooked up to a desktop. To be fair, these aren’t incredibly tough standards to work with, especially for a military organization. It does, however, give corporate IT admins something to wave when their BlackBerry users complain about existing restrictions.

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Josep pointed us to a recent announcement from Double-Take, whose software offers failsafe security to BES servers. Their solution continually backs up your BES, ensuring data retention in the face of outages and other problems. These guys have worked on similar software for Exchange, SQL, and Lotus Notes servers, so they definitely know the drill when it comes to data security. If this sounds like something your enterprise could use, you can find more information over here.

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