Synchronica for Exchange Syncing

[Maynard123]

Has any tried the Synchronica Mobile Gateway to sync with Exchange/Outlook email, calendar, contacts. It is suppost to use Outlook Web Access to do this, which makes sense, but I haven't heard of anyone actually using it.

Thanks.

[spampy22]

I signed up a month ago and their trial was just activated today. If anyone needs corporate email without ypur company turning imsp on than this is it.



Has any tried the Synchronica Mobile Gateway to sync with Exchange/Outlook email, calendar, contacts. It is suppost to use Outlook Web Access to do this, which makes sense, but I haven't heard of anyone actually using it.

Thanks.

[lost]

I signed up a month ago and their trial was just activated today. If anyone needs corporate email without ypur company turning imsp on than this is it.


How much is it after the 60 day trial?

[jbaraga]

Is anyone else using it yet? I just signed up today, and I'm having some issues...

All of my Exchange Mail folders appear on my iPhone. I can send mail, and it will appear on my Exchange Server when I check it in Outlook, but for some reason it doesn't want to download messages into my mail folders. It says, "Checking for Mail" at the bottom of the screen, and it just keeps going, and going and going and going...but never pulls any messages in.

I sent their helpdesk an e-mail, but I'm not expecting to hear anything any time soon (the last time I sent them an e-mail, I don't think I ever got a response).

Thoughts? Suggestions?

[jbaraga]

How much is it after the 60 day trial?

I'm not sure. They seem to have pulled pricing off their website, but I remember seeing it up there only a few days ago.

If memory serves, they only sell the service in license bundles. The 5-license bundle was something like 1300 Euros, but I don't think there was any annual renewal fee.

HOWEVER...

The iPhone only gets IMAP e-mail. No contacts. No tasks. No calendars. I'd like to think that given the much more limited functionality, there may be some adjustment in price. Hopefully that's why they pulled the pricing from the web in order to offer separate pricing for the iPhone.

All my IT department has to do is flip the IMAP switch on our Exchange Server, and it renders this technology useless for me, but I can't seem to get them to do it yet (I think they were scared by the early iPhone security concerns). I could justify spending a few hundred bucks for this service (especially since there are a few of us at my office who have iPhones, and I'm sure they'd split it with me), but there's no way I'm shelling out $1500 just for e-mail.

[HarriedTraveler]

The solution works. It definitely gets around the IT department and their restrictions on IMAP. It only gets e-mail, but for the next 60 days, that's a good start. It seems to have issues with attachments (not sure what the problem is).

But at the moment the folks over at sychronica seem to have massively underestimated demand. The service is slow and spotty. They just sent out this email:

"Dear Mobile Gateway User,
We are currently experiencing a huge demand for access to the Mobile Gateway free trail and are in the process of expanding our servers to address this.

During this time you may experience occasional problems with sending and receiving email and accessing the trial website.

Our servers will be updated as quickly as possible and we will let you know as soon as this has been completed.

Many Thanks

The Synchronica Mobile Gateway team"


So better to wait a day or two before signing up as it does not seem to be functioning very reliably at the moment (I was only able to synch once all day!)

[synchronica]

The solution works. It definitely gets around the IT department and their restrictions on IMAP. It only gets e-mail, but for the next 60 days, that's a good start. It seems to have issues with attachments (not sure what the problem is).

But at the moment the folks over at sychronica seem to have massively underestimated demand. The service is slow and spotty. They just sent out this email:

"Dear Mobile Gateway User,
We are currently experiencing a huge demand for access to the Mobile Gateway free trail and are in the process of expanding our servers to address this.

During this time you may experience occasional problems with sending and receiving email and accessing the trial website.

Our servers will be updated as quickly as possible and we will let you know as soon as this has been completed.

Many Thanks

The Synchronica Mobile Gateway team"


So better to wait a day or two before signing up as it does not seem to be functioning very reliably at the moment (I was only able to synch once all day!)


The servers have been upgraded to a scalable UNIX system and should provide a decent service from now on.

[dschur]

The servers have been upgraded to a scalable UNIX system and should provide a decent service from now on.

It looks like it's time to scale them. Performance is really, really poor.

[synchronica]

If you refer to that it can take up to 10 minutes before Emails actually arrive in your in-box, that is a current setting of the system. Mobile Gateway needs to poll the Exchange mailboxes of a several thousand Exchange mailboxes - quite a task. Should not take much longer and our tests indicate that the 10 minute intervall is what most people get. There can be issues, however, with individual Exchange servers where there are connectivity problems from Mobile Gateway to the Exchange server, and of course there can be issues with the mobile connectivity of the iPhone - maybe this is an issue in your case?

[jbaraga]

If you refer to that it can take up to 10 minutes before Emails actually arrive in your in-box, that is a current setting of the system. Mobile Gateway needs to poll the Exchange mailboxes of a several thousand Exchange mailboxes - quite a task. Should not take much longer and our tests indicate that the 10 minute intervall is what most people get. There can be issues, however, with individual Exchange servers where there are connectivity problems from Mobile Gateway to the Exchange server, and of course there can be issues with the mobile connectivity of the iPhone - maybe this is an issue in your case?

I think it's good that your company is monitoring these forums, so I'll give you some feedback based on my experiences.

First, some kudos...

Your tech support has been very responsive. I expected to wait much longer for replies to my problems, but that hasn't been the case. When I have sent e-mails to your company explaining my problems, there haven't always been immediate solutions, but someone always lets me know that they're working on my problem. Given the fact that you're in the UK and there's a time difference, it's even more impressive.

If the solution worked properly, it would be a great answer for people like me who would rather find alternate methods for my work e-mail than nagging my IT department to enable IMAP support. If push came to shove, I could get it done, but I'd rather find my own solution.

Now the problems...

First of all, the connection is simply not reliable. Sometimes my iPhone won't connect to your server at all. Sometimes I get a weird "user name and password..." error. It has gotten to the point that I simply don't believe that my e-mail is current at any time, so I wind up checking my e-mail through Safari via Outlook Web Access...the very thing this solution was supposed to replace.

Second, my e-mail doesn't seem to sync at the 15 minute intervals I have set in my preferences. Often (but not always), it doesn't sync until I launch the e-mail application and open the Inbox. I can tolerate waiting 15 minutes before I know whether or not I have new e-mail, but I would prefer to be notified automatically at 15 minute intervals instead of having to always open the Inbox to be sure.

Third, the mail folders don't sync unless I open each one individually. I expected my 25 most current messages in each folder to load automatically, but it doesn't seem to happen that way. I have 32 folders, and I have to open each one individually and wait for the mail to load up into each. I guess I'm just surprised that all the folders don't sync together.

I realize this is a new application running on a brand new device, but when it comes to syncing e-mail, users like myself need to feel completely confident that it's doing the job accurately and reliably. Right now I don't feel that way. Trust me, if/when the technology works as it's supposed to, I will be an evangelist. If it doesn't I'll never even consider using it after the free trial expires.

Additionally, I'm very curious to see what the service will cost when the trial period is over. It doesn't sync contacts or tasks. It does e-mail, but unconventionally and not in real-time or using any push protocols. Even working properly and at full capacity, its functionality is very limited. I suspect that people who have taken the plunge and use their iPhones for work are a very small minority at their respective companies. If synchronica doesn't provide the option of individual users for their iPhone service (as opposed to a multi-license bundle like their other services), this iPhone offering will sink like a stone. I work for a company of ~185 people, and only two others have iPhones. Virtually everyone else with a mobile device uses Windows Mobile and syncs directly through Exchange. There's no chance in the world that we would have 5 people for this service, at least not in the foreseeable future.

I really want this technology to work, and once it does I really want to keep using it. My main hopes are that it becomes more reliable quickly, and that it's affordable enough that it makes sense. IMO, it's only a viable option if it meets both of those criteria.

[dschur]

If you refer to that it can take up to 10 minutes before Emails actually arrive in your in-box, that is a current setting of the system. Mobile Gateway needs to poll the Exchange mailboxes of a several thousand Exchange mailboxes - quite a task. Should not take much longer and our tests indicate that the 10 minute intervall is what most people get. There can be issues, however, with individual Exchange servers where there are connectivity problems from Mobile Gateway to the Exchange server, and of course there can be issues with the mobile connectivity of the iPhone - maybe this is an issue in your case?

No, actually I was referring to the fact that simple inbox retrieval and switching between email messages is unbearably slow (compared to an ISP IMAP account) both on the iPhone and if configuring sycml.biz in outlook. It is important to note that the test server (www.trymobilegateway.com (http://www.trymobilegateway.com)) was/is nowhere near as slow so the likely cause is the syncml.biz servers are overloaded/underprovisioned.

[jbaraga]

No, actually I was referring to the fact that simple inbox retrieval and switching between email messages is unbearably slow (compared to an ISP IMAP account) both on the iPhone and if configuring sycml.biz in outlook. It is important to note that the test server (www.trymobilegateway.com (http://www.trymobilegateway.com)) was/is nowhere near as slow so the likely cause is the syncml.biz servers are overloaded/underprovisioned.

It is now 8:34 AM, and my Inbox was last updated at 7:28 AM. My attempts to sync the iPhone have failed to pull in the new messages on my mail server that I'm looking at right now in my Outlook Inbox on my desktop PC.

That's not a huge deal when my iPhone is sitting on the dock right beneath my monitor on my desk at work, but if I were on the road and wasn't able to retrieve my new e-mail at the beginning of the day, I'd be right back where I started...logging into Oulook Web Access through Safari instead of using the e-mail application on the iPhone.

This seems to be pretty typical, and is in direct contradiction to the earlier claim:

"If you refer to that it can take up to 10 minutes before Emails actually arrive in your in-box, that is a current setting of the system. Mobile Gateway needs to poll the Exchange mailboxes of a several thousand Exchange mailboxes - quite a task. Should not take much longer and our tests indicate that the 10 minute intervall is what most people get."

Very frustrating.

[gnubix]

I'm am having similar issues.

-Today I have been trying yo sync for the past few hours with no luck. The "History" tab on SyncML shows that I am syncing, but no email is exchanged.

-Occaisionally the outgoing mail server malfunctions and I have to re-enter the outgoing server info into the settings on the iphone. It looks like the iphone assigns a specific port to the SyncML smtp server. Then, the SyncML server rejects the iphone using that specific port.

I want to re-iterate some of the comments made in previous posts. I applaud Synchronica for responding to an obvious need with a simple solution. The free trail is a great way to get feedack, like this, from early adopters like me. Hopefully you guys can address these issues quickly. If so, I will PROMISE you that each one of us will get at least 10 people to use your product. Just about everyone in my office wants to use the iphone, but exchange syncing is too important to do without.

Thanks and good luck...us corporate types are counting on you!

[jbaraga]

Here's a new one...

The four most current e-mails in my Inbox are all timestamped 12:24 PM, and they all have (No Sender) and (No Subject), and guess what...when I open each of them, I'm greeted with "This message has no content."

And yet here I sit staring at the Outlook Inbox on my desktop PC, and I see SIX e-mails (which I'm assuming include the four mystery e-mails on my iPhone) that I can't see in my iPhone Inbox. I can't seem to sync (I've been watching the "Checking for Mail" circle for a couple minutes now), and I'm afraid to delete the messages off my iPhone in case they get deleted off the server, too.

While I agree with knubix that there's a good market out there for a reliable corporate e-mail solution for the iPhone, I don't echo his guarantee about rounding up 10 others for the service. In my company of ~185, there are 2 other iPhones, and between them, I think only one has any appetite for this technology. Maybe when there are more iPhones in circulation, but I think it's still a little early for the average user.

[slarph]

I agree. I really WANT this to work, but as best I can tell, it is not there yet. Yesterday during the day, the service was perfect. I was getting emails every 15 minutes with no delay in delivery or in opening. I have not gotten an update to my email since midnight last night, and every time it trys to connect it either times out (I'm guessing thats what is happening), or is says "Loading 5 emails" and then times out, loading nothing. Basically, its inconsistant.

When I visit the website to configure the service, I get the same results. Sometimes I get in, sometimes it hangs. I realize you are getting SLAMMED with new demos, and I also understand that I am not paying for this service, so I get where I stand. But as I said, I really want this to be great, because it will help bot me and my firm's customers find enterprise success with this new device platform.

[slarph]

The four most current e-mails in my Inbox are all timestamped 12:24 PM, and they all have (No Sender) and (No Subject), and guess what...when I open each of them, I'm greeted with "This message has no content."


Yup, I had that two. Four messages. But no real email.

[jbaraga]

It's currently 2:30 PM, and my iPhone hasn't been able to sync/update my e-mail since 4:41 PM yesterday.

Very strange...

[dschur]

It's currently 2:30 PM, and my iPhone hasn't been able to sync/update my e-mail since 4:41 PM yesterday.

Very strange...

I am seeing the same. Perhaps Syncronica has cancelled or halted the beta. Too bad as it had a lot of promise.

[gtnator]

There is only a small window of opportunity for Synchrona to get this software to work and get users on board. I would think that because Blackberry devices all have Outlook Web Access (OWA) setup as an option (if your company does not use Blackberry/does not have a BB Enterprise license), Apple could eventually build something like this into the iPhone software. It's really quiet simple, as BB has mastered all things email, to use a software front end to access OWA in the backend.

Who knows what Apple will do....In the mean time, if one of these opportunistic companies builds reliable sofware around this...they can have the whole pie.

[mwelsh]

I noticed this morning the slowness, until around 9 and then...I logged into the https://www.syncml.biz/sync/user/faces/jsp/work-perspective.jsf site and it was much faster and responsive and I could finally load and go.

The push to phone option is still grayed out I assume this option is not available yet or during the trial, but the speed of sync to and fro is much more acceptable right now. 9.22am eastern.

I think if they boost the performance enough to get through the trial I will subscribe if it is reasonable. Figure around what the BB service costs are and my company would pay it. (US$30-45.00 per month with Verizon or T-Mobile)

Anything beyond that and my company will laugh at me and I get a black pop-tart again with a crappy keyboard.

[jbaraga]

I noticed this morning the slowness, until around 9 and then...I logged into the https://www.syncml.biz/sync/user/faces/jsp/work-perspective.jsf site and it was much faster and responsive and I could finally load and go.

The push to phone option is still grayed out I assume this option is not available yet or during the trial, but the speed of sync to and fro is much more acceptable right now. 9.22am eastern.

I think if they boost the performance enough to get through the trial I will subscribe if it is reasonable. Figure around what the BB service costs are and my company would pay it. (US$30-45.00 per month with Verizon or T-Mobile)

Anything beyond that and my company will laugh at me and I get a black pop-tart again with a crappy keyboard.

It's back up again for me, too, this morning.

I'm not familiar with what's included with Blackberry service, but the fact that this service does not offer contact, calendar and task syncing, nor does it offer push, makes it less valuable than services that do offer those features. IMO, $30-$45 per month would be way too high for a service like this. I'm only paying $20 per month for unlimited data, and I'd sooner check my e-mail through Safari via Outlook Web Access than pay double that just to check my e-mail through the iPhone's e-mail application. As it stands right now, the service just doesn't offer enough to justify a high monthly price tag.

[gtnator]

It's back up again for me, too, this morning.

I'm not familiar with what's included with Blackberry service, but the fact that this service does not offer contact, calendar and task syncing, nor does it offer push, makes it less valuable than services that do offer those features. IMO, $30-$45 per month would be way too high for a service like this. I'm only paying $20 per month for unlimited data, and I'd sooner check my e-mail through Safari via Outlook Web Access than pay double that just to check my e-mail through the iPhone's e-mail application. As it stands right now, the service just doesn't offer enough to justify a high monthly price tag.

I agree. With Blackberry, you pay anywhere from $20-45 per month but you get a lot. Email, contacts, calendar, meeting reminders,...everything with a great user interface. With Synchrona, I would hope they price this service more like MobiTV, something like $5/month. Otherwise in the $20+ range, there is more competition and many more options....(even the FREE OWA though a browser.

[heysatan]

I need my corporate e-mail. I ditched my blackberry for this iphone.... (not the smartest decision, but definitely the fun decision.)

I've been trying to use Synchronica for 4 days now on and off, and honestly, it's too slow to justify using. I had one brief period of speed, but besides that I guess I'll have to forward my corporate e-mail to a g-mail account until there is a true solution.

I assume that Synchronica has a good cdn, because there is no way they will be able to deliver a service like this with a couple of servers...

We just need an application on the iPhone that reads from Microsoft OWA directly. The middle ware thing is missing the point, although I applaud the effort if Apple doesn't come around.

Does anyone know how Visto is going to handle this differently? I signed up for their Beta too.

[heysatan]

honestly, it's working much better the last two days. I don't want to unfairly demonize them...

[dschur]

honestly, it's working much better the last two days. I don't want to unfairly demonize them...

It hasn't worked at all for me in the states all week - and I've tried every day and triple checked my settings.

[jbaraga]

honestly, it's working much better the last two days. I don't want to unfairly demonize them...

Agreed. The service has been working better over the last couple days than I've seen since the start of the trial.

[plasmo]

Is anyone familiar with mail2web's exchange outlook sync?
It is a free service, but was wondering if it (at least the calendar) would sync with the iphone...

[jbaraga]

Synchronica's service has been VERY reliable of late. Kudos to them for finally getting things sorted out.

The only real glitch I've been running into is when I try and move e-mails from the Inbox into a specific mail folder. More often than not, I get the following error message:

"Unable to Move Message

The message could not be moved to the mailbox [name of mailbox here]"

Any thoughts on what would be causing this? It doesn't happen with every message, but I'd say it happens no less than half the time.

[heysatan]

The service has been working much better at receiving emails. I haven't run into the unable to move folder problem, but I have had a few problems sending messages.

Sometimes, the server times out, other times, it sends 2 messages. I don't have a comprehensive list of why or how this happens, I just noticed that part of the service is a little spotty.

All together though, I am able to use the service like I did my blackberry. Now, when I pay for it, does the Synchronica message go away??

[adamzeit]

Hi there - just signed up for the Synchronica Free Trial - got it up and running in 5 minutes.

Quick question for the group....what benfits will Synchronica provide me on my iPhone compared to a direct IMAP connect to my Exchange server? The first one I noticed is that when I delete an email on the iPhone - it finally DOES delete back on Exchange too....yea!

Can you guys give me some other tips on my Synchronica is improved over 'plain' IMAP?

Much appreciated everyone.

[jbaraga]

Hi there - just signed up for the Synchronica Free Trial - got it up and running in 5 minutes.

Quick question for the group....what benfits will Synchronica provide me on my iPhone compared to a direct IMAP connect to my Exchange server? The first one I noticed is that when I delete an email on the iPhone - it finally DOES delete back on Exchange too....yea!

Can you guys give me some other tips on my Synchronica is improved over 'plain' IMAP?

Much appreciated everyone.

If you already have IMAP enabled on your Exchange Server, then you probably don't even need this service. It's a solution for people who use Exchange, but can't get their IT departments to enable IMAP.

Bottom line: after the free 60-day trial, using this service will essentially represent paying for something that you're already getting for free.

[adamzeit]

If you already have IMAP enabled on your Exchange Server, then you probably don't even need this service. It's a solution for people who use Exchange, but can't get their IT departments to enable IMAP.

Bottom line: after the free 60-day trial, using this service will essentially represent paying for something that you're already getting for free.


Well, for some reason my Hosted Exchange service (www.123together.com (http://www.123together.com)) has an issue when I delete an email on my iPhone (connected to server via IMAP), it only shows as 'read' on my Exchange server, and never gets deleted. Also, they send emails using their MX1 SMTP service, which do not wind up show up in my Sent folder on Exchange. These 2 items alone make Synchronia more convenient then IMAP (today anyway), but not worth more then $ 10 a month for now.

Honestly, I'm sort of keeping my fingers crosses for OTA Exchange support - or BlackBerry Connect support - on the iPhone before Christmas!

[gtnator]

Anyone have information on pricing after the free trial?

[abbyroad]

Bumping this thread to see if there are still any Synchronica users out there. I can't use ActiveSync :( Is Synchronica safe?