So you have decided to offer Pocket PCs or Handheld PCs in your enterprise and you want to put corporate data on them? This article describes a list of applications and their features for synchronizing data. Also there are tips for enterprise administrators who are defining what users are allowed to synchronize on their devices.

Synchronization issues in the Enterprise

Corporations need to decide how data on Pocket PCs or Handheld PCs will be used Will the data on the device pertain to users only, the corporation and users, or the corporation only? In all cases, the enterprise needs to issue policies and guidelines explaining how the devices are to be used to store data. There are special circumstances for corporate and user data when on the same device. The catch-22 is how to make sure that the corporate data stays in the corporation and that the user data stays with the user. The administrator or the user may be required to back up both. Please keep these issues in mind when considering synchronization options listed below. Also keep in mind that the security of the data on the device can be addressed via some synchronization clients as well.

What's available out of the box

With each Handheld PC, Pocket PC and Pocket PC 2002, Microsoft includes ActiveSync to synchronize with your desktop. The latest version is ActiveSync 3.5, which is required for the Pocket PC 2002. Administrators need to pay attention to the prerequisites for using ActiveSync 3.5, because Windows 95, Windows NT, and Outlook 97 are not supported. So if you are using these versions, ActiveSync 3.5 generally works with them, but it is not guaranteed.

The model that ActiveSync offers is to synchronize Outlook data with your desktop. It does not support the central server level of synchronization that larger corporations want. Server-based synchronization will be covered later in the article. ActiveSync supports synchronization of Contacts, Tasks, one Calendar, and (in Pocket PC 2002) Inbox with folder support in the same Personal Folders file. Folders for Calendar, Contacts and Tasks are not supported. ActiveSync also supports rules to limit synchronization of data to selected categories. The concept that ActiveSync uses is that all data in the categories is synchronized to and from the device; other data is synchronized to the desktop but not back to the device if data is changed. ActiveSync requires the same category to be selected at the second partnership as well. So this option is not effective to make sure that only selected data is synchronized. Further, ActiveSync is limited to two desktop partnerships for synchronization.

Intellisync: more flexibility

Puma (www.pumatech.com) offers a program called Intellisync. Intellisync requires ActiveSync to be installed and a partnership established with the desktop PC. But that's where the synchronization ends. Intellisync works in place of ActiveSync to sync Calendar, Contacts and Tasks with your desktop. Intellisync supports Outlook, Schedule, Exchange, Act!, Lotus Organizer, Lotus Notes, Novell Groupwise, and SalesLogix. Please visit their Web site for an updated list of the versions of desktop software supported. Their approach is to allow the user to create specific rules for synchronization of data such as the ability to limit selected groups of Contacts, Appointments or Tasks. Further, it allows you to specify what the default response should be when there is a conflict; for example, you can choose whether to take the information from the Pocket PC or the desktop PC, or to prompt the user in the event. The advantage to Intellisync is that it allows the user to implement different rules or even different PIMs (Personal Information Managers) at home and work. Also, Puma offers Enterprise Intellisync to allow administrators additional control over what is synchronized from a centralized console.