Activesync via Bluetooth through to T68i using GPRS over VPN

[dumbhead]

I am currently trying to setup an Ipaq 3870 to remotely connect to the company network using a Bluetooth/GPRS enabled T68i.

I have successfully got the phone working as the Internet connection and can browse the web on the PDA. I have also successfully got the PDA to use checkpoint VPN client to connect to our firewall and can ping the host PC from the PDA. I can also ping the PDA from the host PC via both ip and name. I can setup IMAP4 email client on the PDA and successfully get and send email, contacts and calendar information.

It sounds good so far….. ;)

BUT, I cannot get the Ipaq to synchronise using the Activesync software. This is important because the manager who will be using this is not technically minded and will struggle to deal with a scenario whereby he has 2 separate inboxes/calendars/contacts, i.e:

1) Activesync when he docks his PDA to the charging cradle next to his office PC.
2) IMAP4 when he uses the GPRS remote connection.

When you tell Activesync to synchronise via the remote connection, it successfully invokes the Activesync session on the desktop PC and after a few seconds says that they are successfully connected. However on the PDA it just says connecting and never actually finishes a synchronisation.

I have opened up all the recommended ports on the firewall as per Microsoft’s knowledgebase article so I know this cannot be the issue.

I have tried numerous resources on the Web, tried calling Compaq and our firewall management company and have not had any ideas from them.

Has anyone managed to do this?

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated as the end user will be our managing director and I haven’t a clue what to try next. 8O


Cheers,


Iain

[don dre]

I asked the same question, more or less, not to long ago. The thread is under wireless.

[sweetpete]

Activesync in it's current version is not a very good method to sync data through wireless. It may work, but it is a rather "fat" method of doing things through a compartively "thin" pipe in GPRS.

If you want to look at a simple email solution for your manager so everything is always in his Inbox, check out Symmetry Pro (http://www.symmetrypro.com). They have a single user version through a desktop redirector and a server redirector version for multiple users. There is trials of both, though for the server redirector, you will probably need to go to http://www.infowave.com

The beauty of this system is that it's made for wireless. I've been using Symmetry Pro since it's release and I love it other than the fact that my desktop has to be logged on (if I could only get the budget for the server redirector approved :lol: )

[EricMCarson]

I believe this issue you run into with the checkpoint VPN being unable to hand back data to the PPC. I also have this issue when trying to connect my 3870 to retrieve corporate e-mail. I am able to establish the connection, but when it comes to downloading the e-mail, it just hangs.

[dumbhead]

Many thanks for the responses.

I know that there are several hoops you have to jump through even to get to where I am now. It just seems that the technology is immature at this time and the hype of wireless connectivity exceeds the grasp of it's functionality.

I will check out symmetry pro and see if this gives a good work around.

On a related note, there is a gaping hole in the market for a combined software solution that provides the GPRS connection to ISP plus VPN plus synchronisation. At the moment I have to use 3 different apps to even get to the point where email can be syncronised. :roll:

Not user friendly at all, It should just be a 1 click operation.