BESx Wireless Activation Worked!

[webmeister]

I was a bit surprised that this worked. My carrier is Bell Mobility, fwiw. I just wiped my 9800 Torch because it was the easiest way to get rid of some duplicate PIM info (Google and Desktop), and set an activation password in my BESx. I usually activate my BBs by using the cable-attached method, but just for the fun of it, I drilled down to Enterprise Activation in the settings, plugged in my email and the activation password and BOOM! it started activating. I wasn't connected to WiFi, either.

Very slick. Very cool. Now I know what you BES administrators feel like. Hmm, I wonder if I can set an IT policy for my wife's phone.

Thought I'd share....

/Eric
wannabe BES Admin ;-)

[titanjhb]

wireless activation is a cool thing in general! Especially if your a geek! I remember the first time I saw something about encryption keys I was hooked!

[crackhead007]

I do wireless activations almost daily. My users overseas have no choice. I don't have anyone over there I trust with access to the web console.

[webmeister]

It *is* a cool thing. I guess after a while it's likely to become very routine, but the engineering and thought that went into this platform is truly exemplified in the BES/x architecture. I mean, I can send encrypted emails to my wife and my brother (now on my BESx and with Rogers Wireless) w/o anyone intercepting and reading them. Not that this is a big issue, but in today's open book world of privacy, anything that keeps private communication truly private is very welcome. I can see why the governments of UAE and India got their knickers in a knot, and I am happy that RIM stuck to their guns and left their BES/x network as a broker for secure communications between customers' endpoints.

[frisco49ers]

What is the cost to set this up?

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[webmeister]

Pretty much zero. BESx is a free download and you can install it on top of an (also free and non-expiring) version of 32-bit Microsoft Exchange. 32-bit MS Exchange is a 180-day evaluation version, but does not expire and can continue to be used with full functionality as long as it's not in a production environment.

Post here: BlackBerry Enterprise Server Express / Integrated with MS Exchange 2007 | Breezy! Site

[Tiassa]

Originally Posted by webmaster

Pretty much zero. BESx is a free download and you can install it on top of an (also free and non-expiring) version of 32-bit Microsoft Exchange. 32-bit MS Exchange is a 180-day evaluation version, but does not expire and can continue to be used with full functionality as long as it's not in a production environment.

Post here: BlackBerry Enterprise Server Express / Integrated with MS Exchange 2007 | Breezy! Site

The catch is that you need to be running your own Mail server, either Exchanged, Groupwise, or Domino.

[webmeister]

Originally Posted by Tiassa

The catch is that you need to be running your own Mail server, either Exchanged, Groupwise, or Domino.

.....as I said.

[rearview]

I've also gotten it to work, but the blackbery must be on an enterprise data plan or "wireless activation" isn't an option on the device. (except I found one that had it once... a verizon Storm)

[silly_walk]

Originally Posted by webmaster

32-bit MS Exchange is a 180-day evaluation version, but does not expire and can continue to be used with full functionality as long as it's not in a production environment.

If you're using it to receive your email, it's already in a production environment. When they say 'production', they don't mean 'using it at Bombardier'. They mean, 'using it for real mail, not test mail only'.

[webmeister]

Originally Posted by silly_walk

If you're using it to receive your email, it's already in a production environment. When they say 'production', they don't mean 'using it at Bombardier'. They mean, 'using it for real mail, not test mail only'.

That's a stretch. Sure, I'll tell my wife that our little email server /BESx which supports our 2 BBs (and my brother's) is a production environment. Maybe she'll finally start paying for IT support.

[silly_walk]

Originally Posted by webmaster

That's a stretch. Sure, I'll tell my wife that our little email server /BESx which supports our 2 BBs (and my brother's) is a production environment. Maybe she'll finally start paying for IT support.

Not a stretch. A reality. You're advocating software piracy to run a BES.

[webmeister]

Originally Posted by silly_walk

Not a stretch. A reality. You're advocating software piracy to run a BES.

Lighten up. I'm not advocating software piracy. If you want to run your own teeny-weeny BESx with a lame 32-bit version of Exchange 2007 for your family it's not contravening any rules/laws/guidelines/policies or whatever. I'm sure that a) you've thoroughly read the EULA for Exchange 2007 and b) you know that BESx is free/gratis? Sheesh, if you read the install instructions for the 32-bit version of Exchange, they say that the only thing that expires after 180 days is support. the 32-bit lobotimized left-brain-only version of Exchange would croak and go on life support with more than a handful of users anyway.

So, if someone were to connect dots that were never there in the first place and reproduce this solution for a BUSINESS and MAKE MONEY OFF IT, then *that* would be wrong.

Go find another cross to burn.

[silly_walk]

Originally Posted by webmaster

Lighten up. I'm not advocating software piracy. If you want to run your own teeny-weeny BESx with a lame 32-bit version of Exchange 2007 for your family it's not contravening any rules/laws/guidelines/policies or whatever. I'm sure that a) you've thoroughly read the EULA for Exchange 2007 and b) you know that BESx is free/gratis? Sheesh, if you read the install instructions for the 32-bit version of Exchange, they say that the only thing that expires after 180 days is support. the 32-bit lobotimized left-brain-only version of Exchange would croak and go on life support with more than a handful of users anyway.

So, if someone were to connect dots that were never there in the first place and reproduce this solution for a BUSINESS and MAKE MONEY OFF IT, then *that* would be wrong.

Go find another cross to burn.

It's incredible how you attempt to rationilise software piracy by drawing attention away from the Exchange server and dumping on BESX, which is of course free. But Exchange isn't free. And the evaluation version isn't either. The number of bits don't matter. The 32-bit version was meant ONLY for evaluation, or to provide Exchange management tools on 32-bit installs. For example, you can only export to PST files using the 32-bit version of the ESM.

EULA:

EVALUATION USE RIGHTS AND LIMITATIONS. If you obtained the Evaluation Edition of the software, you may
install and use any number of copies of the software on your devices. You may use the Evaluation Edition of the
software, or the Enterprise Edition or Standard Edition of the software without entering the accompanying Product
Identification Number, only to demonstrate and internally evaluate it.

So, you come and open a thread about how great OTA activation is, and tell everyone that this setup you have going can be theirs also. No, that's not piracy. Sure it isn't.

[webmeister]

Well I'm "internally evaluating" it. Other people can "internally evaluate" it to. If they want to cross some imaginary line that only you can see with your jaded tunnel vision then it's their decision and I'm certainly not advocating piracy. I was trying to demonstrate something interesting and you decided to pi$$ on my cornflakes and play amateur lawyer. I'm not making a buck on this or taking any money out of anyone's pocket or even doing anything remotely illegal. In fact, I've been in a better position to recommend BES solutions and hardening of the security of said solution as a result of my evaluation of this product.

You are a small person with a big chip on your shoulder. I hope you feel better now that you've got it out of your system. You clearly beat subjects to death until either the other party cries "uncle" or decides to ignore you. Well, I'm not crying uncle, but I can certainly do the other thing.

The problem with continually grinding an axe is eventually there's nothing left. What used to be sharp is now dull.

<presses ignore button with finality>