I had a client that was looking for an “active sync monitoring/reporting/blocking tool for BYOD email access in an Exchange environment” so I researched the following solutions:

Apple Mobile Device Management

As the massive growth of iOS devices continues to rise, more IT decision makers are implementing innovative Mobile Device Management (MDM) solutions to efficiently manage large-scale iOS deployments while improving user productivity across the board.

The MDM framework built into iOS gives MDM solutions the ability to wirelessly interact with iOS devices that are managed by organizations. Third-party vendors use this framework to build MDM servers that communicate seamlessly with iOS devices.

MDM gives IT departments the ability to securely enroll devices in an enterprise environment, configure and update settings, monitor compliance with corporate policies, and remotely wipe or lock managed devices. Using an MDM server gives organizations a simple way to get users up and running with access to company services regardless of who owns the device.

McAfee Enterprise Mobility Management

“McAfee Enterprise Mobility Management (McAfee EMM) enables businesses to empower their work force with mobile productivity in a secure, simplified, streamlined way.”

This service blocks, “Unauthorized, unsecured, and modified devices like jailbroken iPhones, and meet audit and reporting demands with enterprise-class reporting.”

Free MaaS360 ActiveSync Admin Tool

“Gain Visibility of Mobile Devices within Your Exchange ActiveSync Environment.” In the era of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), more users than ever are connecting to Exchange through ActiveSync without ITs knowledge. With the MaaS360 ActiveSync Admin Tool from Fiberlink, you can easily view all of the devices connecting to your Exchange servers through ActiveSync and remove old device associations with ease.

The MaaS360 ActiveSync Admin Tool lets you:

• Quickly identify the number ActiveSync device associations
• Export mailbox and device information for reporting and maintenance
• Remove orphaned ActiveSync devices in bulk
• Best of all, no PowerShell knowledge is required.

Air Watch Mobile Email Management

“Prevent access for blacklisted devices and operating systems with device” says Air Watch, “Block access for un-enrolled, non-compliant or compromised devices”

“Through Secure Gateway, companies can secure and manage their corporate email infrastructure by defining the business logic for connectivity. IT can allow or block both selected mobile users and approved devices and classes as well as create rule sets that require users to access mail using only approved Webmail clients and services.”

According to Air Watch you can, “Block unmanaged devices…Discover existing unmanaged devices…Block client, user, device model or OS…Exchange 2003/2007”

Air Watch is the largest provider of enterprise mobility management in the world. They specialize in Mobile Security, Mobile Device Management, and BYOD. They are used by companies like United Airlines, Lowe’s, Delta, US Army Corps of Engineers, NHS, and Skanska. This might be a good place to start looking.

Exchange Server 2010 Mobile Device Management

Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Service Pack 1 (SP1) and Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync offer many different features for both users and administrators. As an administrator, you can create allow lists, block lists, and quarantine lists specifying which mobile devices are allowed to access your Exchange mailboxes. A quarantine list lets you allow only a user’s assigned device to connect to the Exchange server.

Never miss a client’s call again when you carry along a simple, yet powerful USB battery device.

USB charging has been around for a while, but devices that both store and charge other mobile devices are just starting to come into their own. These USB battery packs are small, affordable, and can keep you from losing a call or the last level on Angry Birds. Almost any device that can power itself off of a USB port can use one of these devices. The one exception is the iPad, which requires a lot more watts, but there are even USB battery packs for that if you need it.

Think about it, you protect your PC with a UPC battery backup, why not your mobile phone, which is usually equal to or more important than your PC when it comes to the day-to-day operations of your business. How much would you be lost without power to your cell phone? Just keep it charged and keep a backup charged. Think business continuity and be prepared with a USB battery pack extender. It’s the right thing to do. It just makes sense for your business.

2011 is supposed to be ‘the year of the tablet’ and while growth has exploded since 2009 it hasn’t really affected web design, but all that may soon change.

In the same way ebook readers are changing the way books are produced, tablet PCs may change the way web site content is produced. For example, how would a web site be designed differently if it were meant to be touched instead of clicked? We already have separate domains and style sheets for mobile phones, why not for other mobile devices?

Web analytics are currently smart enough to detect browser types, but how will we detect tablet PCs. There are so many different types that we need a tablet comparison just to know what tablet runs what operating system for compatibility!

Maybe it won’t be a problem. Hopefully it will all work out, but as technology progresses, so must web design.