Switchfast Blog: The Future of IT
Free Version of BlackBerry Enterprise Server Coming Soon
Tuesday, February 16, 2010 by Michael Holley
Great news for the SMB market: Research In Motion (RIM), the
company that manufactures the popular BlackBerry, has announced
that it will offer a free version of its BlackBerry Enterprise
Software (BES) beginning in March.
The BES software is essential for BlackBerry users that want to
sync their smartphones with a Microsoft Exchange Server and get
updates to their email, calendars, and contacts in close to
real-time. While this service is considered essential for users to
get the most from their devices, RIM has always charged licensing
fees for the software on a per user basis. For many customers,
those fees have been a barrier to entry.
RIM's free version of BES will offer the core functionality,
including all basic security features, at no cost. Businesses will
only need to cover the cost of the installation and setup itself,
making the entire process significantly cheaper than before. The
free version will be compatible with Microsoft Exchange 2003, 2007,
and the forthcoming 2010. Some advanced features will be scaled
down, such as customized security policies, monitoring, or
exceptionally high availability, but for most small to mid-sized
businesses who would benefit from this free version of BES, those
features won't be necessary.
We'll be keeping up with this situation as it develops, so if
you want more information, contact us!
Best,
Michael Holley
Switchfast Technologies
Chicago IT Support
& Consulting
Rochester IT Support
& Consulting
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