Blog Have you Heard about Lotus Traveler?
A new feature that comes with the Domino 8.0.1 server is Lotus Traveler. Finally - we are providing a built-in mobile solution for devices other than the Blackberry!
Traveler provides basic wireless mobile replication for Lotus Domino email/PIM data and runs directly on the Domino server as a server task (or on a separate server that has access to the mail files)! This provides real-time replication of email (including attachments), calendar, contacts, personal journal and to-do access on mobile devices. It communicates on SSL with 128-bit encryption and (wait for it) even integrates with Domino administration and policies!
Also, using optional WECM (the product formerly known as Lotus Mobile Connect), you can optionally secure your mobile connection even more over a wide variety of networks.
Lotus Traveler supports Windows Mobile 5 and 6 (Professional and Smartphone) and is included in the Domino 8.0.1 release (there is a separate install component).
To install - you can download a CAB file to the device via web site, Active Sync via cradle attachment/etc or via memory card. There is even an option for administrator-configured response file (bootstrap.nts). The installer puts files in the \Program Files\Lotus Traveler directory, adds shortcuts, then launches and walks the user through the registration wizard. So, yes, out of the box, the end-user must know their Domino server name (and LMC gateway if WECM is used). But…with a configured response file, those fields can be pre-filled!
Once installation is complete, Traveler is minimized to the application bar and the client automatically starts whenever the mobile device is reset.
From an end-user standpoint, using it is pretty simple. Truncated messages have a special icon, synchronization runs in the background, and I can set filters, alarms, which components I want to synchronize, etc. Word of warning though — even though your mail folders show up on the device, only Inbox and Drafts are synchronized by default - to get others, you have to select them in the Manage Folders areas.
Administratively, there are a few things you should be aware of before installing Lotus Traveler:
- Authentication uses the same mechanisms used by the Domino web server - so the http password must be filled in for the end-user.
- Directory Assistance can be used for more advanced authentication
- Databases MUST grant Manager access to the Lotus Traveler server (easier if the Lotus Traveler server is part of LocalDomainServers
- Policies are only supported for those users whose mail file is on a Domino 8.0.1 or later server
- Configuration data is synchronized between the device and the user’s mail file - it’s stored as a Notes profile within the database
- Use "Tell traveler showstats" on the Domino server command line to see statistics about Traveler
