BlackBerry

The ability to instantly access and respond to corporate email is essential for mobile professionals. One solution is Research In Motion's (RIM's) BlackBerry wireless email solution. The Exchange Edition provides two-way wireless access to your Microsoft Exchange Server system (RIM expects to make a Lotus Notes edition available soon). The BlackBerry solution lets you use your existing email address to send and receive email from a RIM wireless handheld device over a third-party wireless network.

RIM's enterprise solution consists of BlackBerry Enterprise Server Software, BlackBerry Desktop Software, a handheld wireless device, and a docking cradle. The server software includes server files and extension files, which reside on a server that RIM refers to as the BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES). The desktop software resides on the user's desktop system and manages email, calendar, and contact-data synchronization. The desktop software includes a backup utility and a way to upload custom applications. The server software runs on Windows 2000 Server and Windows NT Server and supports Exchange Server 5.0 and later. BlackBerry Desktop Software supports Win2K, NT, and Windows 9x.

The Test Platform
To test the BlackBerry server software, I chose a server with a 333MHz Pentium II processor and 128MB of RAM; the system was running Win2K Advanced Server. To test the desktop software, I used a PC running Win2K Professional. My Exchange server, which had two 550MHz Pentium III processors and 128MB of RAM, ran Win2K AS and Exchange Server 5.5, Enterprise Edition (Exchange 5.5/E), with Service Pack 3 (SP3). Although RIM's BlackBerry solution can accommodate multiple mail servers and BES servers, RIM recommends no more than 500 users per BES.

The BES communicates with RIM's wireless-network infrastructure through a direct TCP/IP connection, and the user's private encryption keys reside in the user's message store and on the user's handheld device. Consequently, you might need to create a port in your firewall. The BES always initiates the TCP/IP connection and uses a three-way handshake to authenticate it. Some security experts would argue that any such firewall port creates a vulnerability, but I felt adequately reassured that BlackBerry's outbound port doesn't introduce a significant threat.

Preinstallation
Before installing the BlackBerry software, I created a new user, BlackBerryAdmin. To avoid any potential permissions issues, I made BlackBerryAdmin a member of the Domain Admins group. As the BlackBerry Enterprise Server Software Installation and Getting Started Guide instructed, I granted BlackBerryAdmin the right to log on as a service. I used Microsoft Exchange Administrator to assign the Exchange Server Service Account Admin. role to the BlackBerryAdmin account for both the site object and the site object's Configuration container.

The BES stores configuration information in an Exchange mailbox. I created a new mailbox and assigned the BlackBerryAdmin account to serve as the mailbox's Primary Windows NT Account. I created a Messaging API (MAPI) profile on the BES so that it could connect to the Exchange mailbox. I added Exchange Server to the profile and entered the name of the test Exchange server and the new mailbox. Then, I was ready to launch the BES setup utility.

Installing the BlackBerry Software
When I first launched the BlackBerry Enterprise Server Setup program and selected Install Products, I clicked Install Microsoft Exchange Extensions to install the BlackBerry extension files. The extension files expand Exchange Administrator by adding the BlackBerry Server service to the configuration container and adding a tab to each user's mailbox Properties page, as Figure 1 shows.

I launched the BES setup utility again and clicked Install BlackBerry Enterprise Server Files. I provided the MAPI profile name and a name for Exchange Server to use to identify the BES. Installing the server files took only a few minutes.

Next, I configured the BlackBerry Server service. From Exchange Administrator's Configuration container, I double-clicked the BlackBerry Servers configuration object, clicked Add Server, and entered information about the new BES. I also provided the Server Routing Protocol (SRP) Identifier and Authentication Key for the BES to use to establish the TCP/IP connection to the wireless network.

After configuring the BlackBerry configuration object, I started the BlackBerry Server service and set up a couple of Exchange user accounts. To add each user to the BES, I opened the user's Exchange mailbox and selected the BlackBerry tab. I clicked Add to Server and supplied the appropriate BES name and the PIN for the user's handheld in response to the prompt.

Finally, I loaded the desktop software. Within seconds, the installation program created shortcuts to the BlackBerry desktop management utilities. I attached a synchronization cradle to a communications port on my PC and cradled the handheld wireless device. When I opened the Desktop Manager, the software asked me to set the serial port settings, which I opted to let the software detect. The software then asked me to help generate an encryption key by moving my mouse. The setup utility detected that the handheld's OS wasn't current and offered to upload the latest version from the BlackBerry Desktop Software CD-ROM. I accepted, and the setup utility installed the new OS with SP2.

Using the Handhelds
I tested two RIM handheld devices. The RIM 957 Wireless Handheld is roughly the size of a Palm V and uses a rechargeable lithium ion cell. This device includes 5MB of flash memory for applications and email and provides a large (1 1/8" square) monochrome LCD display. The RIM 950 Wireless Handheld is the size of a pager and can function as one if you buy RIM's optional paging service. The RIM 950 provides 4MB of flash memory, has a much smaller screen than the RIM 957, and uses one AA alkaline battery. Both devices feature QWERTY keyboards and clicking thumbwheels that provide mouselike functionality. The handhelds include standard calendar, address book, alarm clock, calculator, task list, and memo pad applications. You can synchronize the task list, address book, and calendar entries with your Exchange mailbox data.

Both handheld models offer two screen configurations. The RIM 957 can display either 15 or 19 lines of text, each of which has room for approximately 35 proportional characters. The RIM 950 can display either 6 or 8 lines of about 29 characters. The backlit screens are readable under low-light conditions, but because the keys aren't backlit, the devices aren't as useable in the dark as they could be.

After I updated the BlackBerry Desktop Software, the software redirected my incoming email to the handheld (I could also access the email from my desktop). The BES continually monitored my message store and automatically uploaded my new messages to the handheld. Checking my corporate message store was as simple as removing the device from its holster and checking the screen. I didn't need to load an application or enter a URL to check my mail, and I didn't need to bother with a secondary email account. When I set the handheld's tone or vibrate option, the device instantly alerted me to incoming email.

Sending messages was equally convenient. I simply typed the message, clicked the thumbwheel, and chose Send Message. The small QWERTY keyboard is designed for your thumbs and is easy to use. I also liked the clicking thumbwheel, which let me quickly navigate the logically sequenced menus.

My messages traveled from the handheld through the wireless service to the BES. From there, the messages went to my mail store, which sent them on to their destinations. The message delivery speed was impressive. Regardless of whether I was sending or receiving, messages typically arrived within about 3 minutes, with most arriving within 60 seconds. This consistently rapid delivery is in part a function of the product's message handling. The mail redirector pushes only the first 2KB of a new message to the handheld. When a message exceeds 2KB, you can retrieve the remainder of the message in 2KB segments up to a maximum size of 32KB per message.

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