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How to set up ActiveSynce in Axigen

Starting with Axigen 7.0, users can synchronize Email, Calendars and Contacts between their compatible mobile devices and their Axigen user account via ActiveSync.

The ActiveSync implementation built into the Axigen Mail Server is compatible (and based on) the standards used by the Microsoft (C) ActiveSync (R) technology on which it is based.

This is used to generate instant message delivery notifications to mobile devices through a proprietary protocol and technology that pushes messages to these mobile devices instead of pulling them (also known as scheduled account polling). Because the personal information and calendaring elements are treated as messages that are stored in a special format, they can also be pushed to the handsets thought the same protocol.

As a result Axigen is able to automatically apply changes and updates to the contacts or address book, calendar appointments and tasks. These changes are communicated over any type of TCP/IP networks (that support web-based – http traffic - 3G, GPRS, HSDPA, Wi-Fi, etc.) from the server to the handset and vice-versa.

IMPORTANT: To use Activesync in Axigen you will require a compatible Axigen Mail Server license with support for ActiveSync options.

You can enable the ActiveSync option on a per-account basis and it can be inherited as any other regular option, from either the domain level or through the means of an Account Class object. The number of accounts that have access to this feature is limited through the licensing information. The trial edition of the product allows ActiveSync access for up to 20 users. This is available only for the duration of the trial period (30 days).

To enable the ActiveSync option log in Webadmin as the "admin" user:

Enable the ActiveSync service via WebAdmin -> Services -> Mobility by checking the box related to the corresponding "Enable ActiveSync" option.

ActiveSync must also be enabled at the domain or account level:

To enable ActiveSync at domain level go to Domains & Accounts -> Manage Domains -> click "Edit" for the desired domain -> Account defaults -> Quotas and Restrictions -> Mobility section. This setting will enable ActiveSync for all the accounts that have inherited settings for this section.

To enable ActiveSync only for specific accounts go to Domains & Accounts -> Manage Accounts -> select the domain and click the "Edit" button for the desired account -> Quotas and Restrictions tab -> Restrictions -> Mobility section.

Here you have the following options:

The “Enable ActiveSync” checkbox activates the availability of this feature. The other sub-options specify which account content is accessible for the respective user via ActiveSync.

Email - access to email pushing through the ActiveSync protocol. This way the handset will be able to sync the local mailbox contents with the server-side mailbox and maintain their consistency.

Contact - access to the contact address book stored on the server and the possibility to sync the contacts stored on the handset with the ones stored on the server.

PIM - access to the contact calendar and task information stored on the server. Using this functionality, the user can update appointment and task completion levels (as well as create and delete objects) using the mobile device.

ActiveSync Special Licensing Notes

Because the ActiveSync features are activated on individual accounts and the setting can be enabled globally on an entire domain, using the "Account defaults" section, situations in which the number of allowed accounts and the number of ActiveSync accounts is different can occur.

If the number of user accounts that inherit the ActiveSync option, exceeds the number of allowed users defined by the ActiveSyncMailboxCount license parameter, the conflict is solved by allowing the first connecting users, up to the maximum limit allowed by the license, to use the feature and explicitly disabling the option for all of the other accounts that try to connect afterwards.

Below you can find an example in which the ActiveSync option is inherited from the domain level and the account number is greater than the ActiveSync license limitation. If you have 500 accounts in the respective account and only 200 ActiveSync mailboxes, the following will apply:

At first any accounts in the domain will be able to use ActiveSync.

Once 200 unique accounts have connected at least one time, this account list is retained by Axigen.

The 200 unique users will continue to have access to the ActiveSync feature unless otherwise specified by an administrator.

The 300 accounts that did not login before the ActiveSync was capped, will have their ActiveSync option disabled and the inheritance method set to “explicitly defined”.

To change (enable) the ActiveSync option for another user account you will have to disable one of the already active ones.