Earlier there was a rumor spreading rampant that legacy BlackBerry devices could not be supported on the same platform as BlackBerry 10. That platform being the BlackBerry Enterprise Server 10. Jeff Holleran, the Senior Director for Enterprise Product Management at RIM, has written up a nice blog post giving further insight into BES 10:What is BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10?BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 represents a consolidation of our enterprise mobility management (EMM) product portfolio, which includes our mobile device management (MDM), security, infrastructure, and app management products. It will prepare your organization for the future of mobile diversity, as well as integrate with your existing BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) deployment. From a single unified web-based console, BES 10 will manage the following devices:BlackBerry 7 OS and prior smartphonesBlackBerry 10 devicesBlackBerry PlayBook tabletsiOS and Androidâ„¢ smartphones and tabletsBES 10 will be the ultimate management solution for all BlackBerry platform devices, as well as iOS and Android devices. BES 10 will launch with the first BlackBerry 10 devices in Q1 of calendar year 2013.RIM remains committed to our enterprise customers by providing advanced, innovative, and flexible options for a straight-forward migration to BlackBerry 10 smartphones, as well as cross-platform management of your mobile device deployment.What will the components and requirements be for BES 10?BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 will be a complete solution that includes several components to manage multiple smartphones and tablets. Management occurs through a single, unified web-based administration console that will provide one place to manage all of the devices listed above.In addition to the unified management console, the components of BES 10 will initially include current products already in market:BlackBerry® Device Service (BDS) â€" supporting BlackBerry PlayBook tablets and BlackBerry 10 smartphones when they launch in Q1 2013 through the use of Microsoft ActiveSync for email and PIM synchronizationUniversal Device Service (UDS) â€" providing Enterprise Mobility Management functions for iOS and Android devicesIntegration with existing BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) 5.0.3 and aboveDuring 2013 we will consolidate the multiple names that we have in our portfolio today into one single product name. The terms “BlackBerry Mobile Fusionâ€, “BlackBerry Device Service†and “Universal Device Service†will be phased out in favor of BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10.What about servers? Will multiple physical deployments be required?With the initial launch of BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10, BES 5+ will require its own server, while BlackBerry Device Service and Universal Device Service can reside on separate servers or be combined on the same physical or virtual server. Should you opt to work with virtual servers, we fully support this type of deployment. Today, BlackBerry Mobile Fusion operates in a similar fashion, with BES 5+ requiring one server, and both BDS and UDS able to be deployed on a single server or on separate servers.The future of BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10The roadmap for BES 10 includes an upgrade currently scheduled for BlackBerry World in May 2013. This upgrade will consolidate BDS and UDS into a single component, and will allow for BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 and existing BlackBerry Enterprise Servers (BES 5.0.3+) to run on the same physical server; both seamlessly managed using a single fully featured management console. Additionally, with BES 10 there will no longer be a requirement to have the server connected to the same Local Area Network as the mail server. These developments will centralize mobility management into a single point and provide flexibility, convenience, and added functionality.We are excited to share more about BES 10 through this autumn. Stay tuned for further details on pricing, the path forward from a current BES 5 deployment, and details on IT policies and management configurations. BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 will launch with the first BlackBerry 10 devices in early 2013.Jeff explains further some BES 10 FAQs, which can be read directly on the post at Inside BlackBerry Business Blog here.
Friday, August 31, 2012
RIM Details BlackBerry Enterprise Service (BES) 10 (August,2012)