[JRV]

BES 4.0.1.14 for Exchange. Using Exchange 2003 SP1 with Intelligent Mail Filter & Outlook 2003 SP1 clients. IMF and client side spam filter are the current versions.

When I wirelessly activate a BlackBerry from BES, several encrypted e-mail messages from (where ?? is a 2-digit number between 01 and 08) arrive in the user's mailbox. All are placed in the Junk E-mail folder by IMF, which means (based on our IMF settings) that IMF is assigning them an SCL of 3 or 4.

The messages all begin with "This message is used to carry data between the BlackBerry Handheld and an associated server. Please do not delete, move or respond to this message - it will be processed by the server," so I gather it's IT Policies or Service Books or something destined for the BlackBerry.

Once the BB is activated, I don't see the messages in the Inbox or Junk E-mail folder any more, but examining the logs, I can see they continue to be received, so after activation, they evidently then have an SCL <3.

We're whitelisting etp??.etp.na.blackberry.net to work around it, but not satisfied with that solution as RIM could change it without notice.

Anyone else seeing this?

[DoomBringer]

http://www.blackberryforums.com/showthread.php?t=4803
The search button rulez.

Basically, the desktop manager's redirector bit is set up wrong and installed a few bad service books on the device.
This issue has come up enough that it should get a FAQ entry, and maybe a sticky. Mods! Do your magic!

[JRV]

Thanks for your reply. I used the Search button. The thread you reference is inapplicable. Again:

I am using BES.

I did not mention the Desktop Redirectory, but I am NOT using the Desktop Redirector.

The messages are being flagged by IMF as being spam.

So...again...is anyone else seeing this, and are there any other domains/addresses that I need to whitelist?

[greywolfe]

Those emails are part of the activation process, if they are blocked wireless activation will fail.

[jibi]

Originally Posted by greywolfe

Those emails are part of the activation process, if they are blocked wireless activation will fail.

what he said. whitelisting something like that should be fine and proper. if a legit email is being blocked by IMF or any other spam filter, then you should address why its being blocked. considering their IP's for these servers (206.51.26.101-206.51.26.108 ) are not listed by ANY RBL/SBL/XBL, then i do not see your issue in circumventing your own spam filter's flaw by whitelisting the IP/hosts. welcome to the world of using a Microsoft solution for a spam problem...

[greywolfe]

Basically you need to make sure that any emails to or from the blackberry.net domain and/or emails that have an epp.dat attachment are left alone by the mail server.

[JRV]

Gotcha. Agreed: Activations will fail if the messages are blocked. Makes sense. Certainly has here.

Please let me try again:

1. Has anyone else running BES for Exchange 4.0 SP1 + Hotfix 1 against an Exchange Server with IMF and the current IMF database seen IMF assign an SCL >2 to these messages?

2. Absent RIM and Microsoft collaboration on improvements to IMF's server-side database *or* RIM's activation messages to avoid false positives without relying on whitelisting, provisions for which are not even (natively) provided by IMF, are there any other BES domains and/or addresses that need to be whitelisted?

[blackberryABC]

With over 3 years or bb admining, Ive only seen activation from *.blackberry.net iirc. Once that is on your whitelist you should be fine.

[JRV]

Dunno if anyone from RIM support reads this board, but RIM absolutely needs to document this, IMHO, for 2 reasons:

1. BES newbies like me have no way of knowing RIM uses e-mail messages to activate the BBs. I burned a bunch of expensive time trying to get activation to work before discovering the messages in my Junk E-mail folder. Someone who gets more spam than I do might never have even noticed them in the clutter.

2. To let us know exactly what addresses to whitelist. That's not just a convenience: Documenting the addresses gives us assurance that they aren't going to arbitrarily change the addresses they use. Or if they specify that it's "subject to change without notice", it at least puts us on notice to watch for it.

To jibi: False positives are a fact of life with any spam filter, MS or no. But that's quite beside the point. Obviously, I'm much less concerned about spam that might originate from network@etp??.etp.na.blackberry.net than trying to get BES to work. And to work reliably for the foreseeable future. Fortunately, the population of BES users is so small as to make it unlikely anyone would spoof a network@etp??.etp.na.blackberry.net sender address in order to bypass spam filters. (Although it would be a great tactic for anyone spamming BB add-ons!)