I'm new to the BlackBerry environment and it has been very frustrating.

I'm trying to activate a BB 8830 but the screen just sits at the activating message. My BB Manager screen shows the device and the status is Running. I had to physically connect the BB to the BB server in order for the two to talk. It sure would be nice to do this over the air. I turned on OTA in the BB Server Configuration screen but had no luck.

How do I activate my 8830?

BlackBerry's documentation really stinks.

Welcome to the forums. Have you activated any other devices on the BES?
Is this device provisioned for BES access?

This is my first attempt at activating a device on the BES. I do not know what you mean by provisioning for BES access. Please advise.

The device has to be provisioned for BES access through your carrier. It shows your carrier as Nextel. I would start by calling them and verifying that it is provisioned for BES access.

Also, do you have any other devices to attempt an activation on?

We were supposed to be Nextel but went with Verizon. I will check with Verizon to see if these two 8830's are provisioned for BES access. I will post findings when I have more information.

Yes, I have two test devices to provision at this time. Once I get the hang of it there will be more.

I forgot you mentioned 8830s in the post. DUH!

Let us know your findings.

Also, do you know what version of BES you are running?

What mail platform (exchange, domino, groupwise)?

Mods, could you please move this to the BES Admin Corner, thanks!

Good question. Server Configuration shows 4.1.4.12 but Help>About shows 4.1.4.15.

I'm running in an Exchange 2000 AD environment.

Thanks for the info. Any luck with verizon??

Also, make sure your Blackberry services are running.

I spoke with Verizon tech support. They had me run diagnostics which showed no problems. They had me wipe the device clean but I am still unable to activate with BES. I am able to send PIN-PIN between the two 8830's. Verizon says I need to contact BB tech support for help on BES. Now I have to convince this company to pay for support.

Do you ever get the ETP.dat activation email?

No, I never receive any emails on the 8830 during the activation process.

Not on the device, in your mailbox. Check you inbox of any odd looking email, possibly in your trashcan too.

The only items in the Inbox for the user are two emails that contain the activation password and a test email I sent from BES. That's it.

Just for the sake of it, have you tried a wired activation?

I did plug the 8830 into the BES servers USB port. That is how I got BES to recognize the device. This seems foolish. I don't feel I should have to plug a device into the server each time I want to add one. I did try an activation while plugged into the BES server but got the same results.

You shouldn't have to. I Prefer wireless activations. I just was wondering if you had any success with a wired activation. Are all the blackberry services running?

All the BB services are running except BlackBerry Database Consistency Service; it is set to disabled.

I would love to know how to setup over-the-air installs. We used Treo's and GoodLink before BB and it worked great.

Update: I took the second 8830 that had never been connected before and added it to BES. I added the user then connected the 8830 to the server via USB cable. I then right-clicked on the user in BES and chose Assign Device from the list. The phone activated successfully.

I deleted the other problem user and re-added it using the same steps as above and it activated successfully.

Now I have to figure out why I can't send email from the devices.

Good to know you were able to get them activated. What happens when you send a message? Do you get a red X? If so, open the message and what does it say next to status?