| The BES is software that can be installed on your server or on a virtual server (a virtual server is located elsewhere that you access through the internet. Often these servers are not maintained by you but by a third-party service provider.)
Companies use BES for security and control. With over 450 IT policies that can be applied to the handhelds the companies can control sms, passwords, pin to pin, 3rd party apps and remote wipes.
Below is the technical data-flow for those of us who are geeks:
• New message arrives in the user's Exchange mailbox; which the BES is monitoring using MAPI (Messaging Application Programming Interface).
• The message is compressed to 2kb chunks and encrypted using 256-bit AES (Advanced Encryption Standard).
• BES makes a secure connection to RIM NOC (Network Operations Centre) over port 3101; the connection is an Outbound Initiated & Authenticated Bi-directional Connection. That means you always initiate the secure connection to RIM and an inbound connection is never accepted.
• At the front end of you encrypted message is your PIN in plain text so RIM knows where to direct the message. Essentially the NOC is a traffic cop.
• The message is sent to your handheld over the internet via either your wireless carrier or the Wi-Fi network.
• Once the message reaches the handheld only then is the encryption decrypted, as the only key to decrypt your messages is on the BES and your handheld.
Here's the RIM diagram of the full message flow:
This is a list of some of the controls available:
• Remote lock and password change;
• Push down software configurations;
• Wireless handheld firmware upgrades;
• PIM Sync (calendar, address book, tasks & memo pad);
• Full e-mail sync (sent/received, filed, deleted, follow-ups);
• Corporate communications tools - MS Office Communications Server, Lotus Sametime;
• Mobile Data Services;
• The BES does an entire consistent backup of your device; including fonts, messages, phone call logs, password keeper, and icon locations. So if you lose your device or need to wipe it, fear not! The SQL database on the BES will push all this data back to your handheld.
Here is an image of my BES console showing some of the many options available to the admin.
Will you benefit from it?
Yes if you have an enterprise grade mail server like Exchange, Domino or GroupWise and use a Blackberry.
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