One of the most well known errors that you will encounter while using a BlackBerry smartphone is an app or jvm related error. Blackberry error 102 or jvm error 102 basically points to an error in a .cod file of an application or process that is running.  When the BlackBerry starts up it runs a check on all of the software files installed on the BlackBerry and if it notices a corruption or a problem with one of the files it will throw a blackberry error 102 or jvm error 102.

How do you resolve this issue?

Sadly the usual answer to this is that unless the BlackBerry tells you in the error message or you know what application files has become corrupt there really is no way to “Resolve” or “Fix” the issue. If you call BlackBerry Technical support they will usually gather logs from your phone and will review the logs to see what’s causing the error.  Many times when the BlackBerry receives an error 102 or a jvm error 102 it means that you will have to complete a couple of workarounds in order to overcome the error.

Option 1: Try taking the battery out for 30 seconds and then replacing it.  If this does not work make sure that you have the most up to date device software installed on the BlackBerry.  These update often have many fixes and updates to prevent errors such as the Blackberry error 102 or jvm 102 error.  If you have the most updated software and you still have the error you will need to do the next option.

Option 2:  Unfortunately if the above option did not work you will have to reload the BlackBerry OS back on the phone.  This can be achieved either through the BlackBerry Desktop Software or through the BlackBerry Apploader.  In my experience with this type of error and the process of reloading the BlackBerry OS it is much easier and more effective to use the AppLoader to reload your BlackBerry OS.   You can learn how to do that here – How to Reload BlackBerry OS with AppLoader.

At this point in time these are the only 2 workarounds that will work to get rid of this error.  So what I would suggest you take away from this is to make sure you are making backups of your BlackBerry on a regular basis this will prevent you from losing all of your information should you have to resort to reloading your operating system.

BlackBerry Smartphones are basically known for having 2 main types of errors. They consist of app errors and jvm errors. App errors have different codes to give BlackBerry developers and technical support agents a general idea of what has caused the error and how to fix it. BlackBerry app errors also range in seriousness from an annoying pop up when accessing a certain app that will go away when the “Close” or “OK” button is pressed all the way to causing your BlackBerry to crash and go into a state of never ending startup loop.

So How Can you Fix an App Error?

The truth is that regardless of how many types of app errors there are there are basically 3 ways to fix a BlackBerry app error and I will go through them below.

1. Erase the Offending Application

It’s no secret that an app error is caused by an application on the BlackBerry that has either malfunctioned, become corrupt, or is incompatible with the device or device operating system it is on. If you notice that whenever you use a certain app you receive an app error whether it be contacts, calendar, memos or a 3rd party app then simply deleting this app from the BlackBerry will resolve this issue. This type of app error is usually just an annoyance and does not normally cripple your BlackBerry.

2. Hard Reset the BlackBerry

App errors can sometimes cause your BlackBerry to freeze or overload the memory which can cause your BlackBerry to become unresponsive or extremely slow. When this happens the easiest way to resolve this BlackBerry app error is to simply take the battery out of the back of the BlackBerry waiting for 1 full minute and then replacing the battery. Once the BlackBerry starts up your memory will be refreshed and any temporary corruption that was causing your BlackBerry to freeze should be taken care of. This is a bit more crippling however usually easy to fix.

3. Clean Reload the Operating System on BlackBerry

Sometimes BlackBerry app error’s can bring corruption to the operating system that the BlackBerry runs off of. These types of errors are not as common but still affect quite a few people, especially those with a ton of apps on their BlackBerry’s. When these app errors happen it often causes the BlackBerry to crash and restart constantly. If second step above does not resolve this issue then it will be necessary to reload the operating system onto the BlackBerry. Unfortunately when the app error becomes this bad 95% of the time you will not be able to do a backup and will not be able therefore to recover any of the information on the BlackBerry.

App errors can be a real pain in the butt and can devastate your information. I highly recommend doing weekly or daily backups, and making sure that before you download any applications to your BlackBerry make sure the vendor if not on App World is trust worthy and that the application you’re downloading is meant for the BlackBerry you have.

One of the most common issues when dealing with the web based BlackBerry Enterprise Server (5.0-5.0.3) is dealing with the BlackBerry Administration Service not loading and getting that dreadful “Page Cannot be Displayed”.  There are many reasons why this can occur but in this tutorial I will be going through how to fix the error: “Keystore was tampered with, or password was incorrect” (found in the BBAS-AS logs).

IMPORTANT!: First and foremost you will have to make sure that you are logged on to the server under the account that you installed the BES software with.  For example if you signed in as “BBAccount” to install the BES then you would log in as this account to follow this tutorial.  The easiest way to find what account you installed the BES with is to look at “Log On As” column under the services.

Generating New Web.Keystore Password

1. Stop the BlackBerry Administration Services (BAS-AS and NCC)

2. Navigate to C:\Program Files\Research In Motion\BlackBerry Enterprise Server\BAS\bin and rename the web.keystore file to web.keystore.old

3. Get into the Registry and take a full back-up of the Regsitry.  This is very important as messing around with the registry can do a lot of damage to your server.

4. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Research In Motion\BlackBerry Enterprise Server\Administration Service\KeyStorePass

5. If no value exists for the “Keystore Password” areas then add a random password there

6. Open a command prompt(if running WIN2008 choose run as admin) and type in the following command:

” webGenKey.bat “C:\Program Files\Java\JavaPath\” “C:\Program Files\Research In Motion\BlackBerry Enterprise Server\BAS” NewKeyStorePassword FQDN_of_BAS_or_BAS_Pool_Name”

So as an example on a 64 bit system that installs java under the default settings this command would look something like this:

” webGenKey.bat “C:\Program Files (x86)\Java\jre1.6.0_18\” “C:\Program Files (x86)\Research In Motion\BlackBerry Enterprise Server\BAS” My New Keystore Password fqdn.of.bas.or.bas.pool.name.com (the fqdn or bas pool can be found in the BlackBerry Server Configuration)”

7.  Once run this command will generate a new web.keystore file in the directory that we renamed the original. Verify that the new one is here.

8. Then go into the BlackBerry Server Configuration utility and click on the tab that states Adminitration Service – webKeystore.

9. Type in the old password as the password you entered into the command earlier.  Then type the new password as a new password that you will create right now.

10.  Click “Apply” and it should give you a message saying that it was successful.  This will update the registry keystore password to match the password used in the command.

11. Start your BlackBerry Administration Services and then wait for the BAS-AS process in your task manager to get up to 480,000+.  Then launch the BAS, if this tutorial was done correctly and there are no other underlying issues your BAS should launch without a hitch and you will be good to go.

This tutorial is for all of you who have tried to push a software package through the BES and received this error: “The application version: {version number}  is not parse-able. The accepted version format is XXX.YYY.YYY.YYY where X and Y are numeric characters”.  This error is a known issue with the BlackBerry Enterprise server 5.0.3 as per Research In Motions release notes and should be fixed in an upcoming BES server upgrade or release.  At this point in time however in order to fix this issue and get your software application uploaded to the BES you will have to change the version number of the software.

Change Application Version Number

1. Locate the zipped folder containing the .alx and .cod files and extract them.

2. Right Click on the .alx file and choose to open the file.

3. Choose the option to open the program using Notepad.

4. Within the notepad you will notice a version number that should look exactly the same as the one you’re receiving in the BAS in the error.

5. Change this version number to a format of XXX.YYY.YYY.YYY and keep in mind that only the X values are necessary.  A few of the excepted examples would be: “5.0″, “5.0.0.0″,”1.434.34.2″ etc.

6. Save the changes to the file, making sure that the filetype is set to all files and the .alx extension is still part of the name.

7. Re-zip the two files and then go into the BAS and attempt to re-attach or add your app.  If you have changed the version to a supported format your app will now be accepted and you can add it to your software configuration.

That’s it this workaround has worked for me every time I have tested it.  If this does not work for you or you have any questions simply leave a comment below and I will get back to you.

In a previous article/tutorial I discussed the basics of the BlackBerry Enterprise process and gave you a number of ways you could activate a BlackBerry on the BES server. This article/tutorial can be accessed here BlackBerry Enterprise Activation Guide. In this tutorial I want to take you through some of the most common issues that you will run into when trying to activate a BlackBerry on a BES server as well as give you tips for resolving these issues so that you can successfully activate your BlackBerry Device.

ETP Messages Don’t Reach Inbox

As mentioned in the above article when a BlackBerry attempts to activate it sends what is called an ETP message to the users inbox.  If this message does not make it into the  users’ inbox then the BlackBerry will never activate.  The most common reasons for the ETP not making it into the inbox are:

- Spam Filter blocking message
– Rules on Inbox to filter messages
– BlackBerry Not Sending the Message
– Wrong email entered in activation screen
– Mail client not working properly

These issues can be resolved by checking the spam filters, adding blackberry.net to your whitelist, checking for filters on the inbox, or verifying that the email has been typed correctly. The last issue of the BlackBerry not sending the ETP out will be addressed in the next paragraph.

BlackBerry Not Sending ETP

This does not happen very often but occasionally you will see this happen. If you have gone through checking all of the above and still are not receiving the ETP in the inbox then you will want to determine if the BlackBerry is even sending out the ETP message. To do this simply try activating to a Hotmail, Gmail or other form of personal email address to see if the ETP makes it into that inbox. If so then the trouble is definitely with the mail environment. If you are not receiving the ETP messages then the problem may lie with the actual BlackBerry. To resolve this issue do a security wipe on the device and then try to reactivate.

ETP Does not get Picked Up from Inbox

If an activation goes through flawlessly you should never even see the ETP in the inbox as the BES will grab and delete it fairly quickly. However if you notice that the ETP is not being picked up and the Activation is hanging then you could have some issues, most likely being:

-No BES services on the BlackBerry.
-Appropriate Permissions are not present
-Email was tampered with (by user or Spam service)

In this case you will have a few things to verify and check. The first and foremost are services on the BlackBerry this is a very common issue. With domino and GroupWise the permissions isn’t as big of a deal but with Exchange permissions are crucial. One small permissions that isn’t set right could break everything, so verify that all of your permissions are set correctly as per BlackBerry’s KB02276. Finally make sure that the email has not been moved, edited, opened or the title modified by a spam filter this can cause the BES not to recognize the ETP message.

ETP is Picked Up but Activation does not Start

This issue is less common but it is common enough to mention it. Sometimes what will happen is that the ETP will be sent and picked up however the activation screen on the BlackBerry will get stuck at “verifying encryption” or “waiting for services”. This is usually caused with the sending of the IT policy and can usually be taken care of by restarting the BlackBerry Policy and BlackBerry Synchronization services on the BES server. Ensure that you are also getting a good network signal. It should be between 70 and 90 DBM to be most effective.

Slow Sync stops or hangs

This is another fairly common issue and is usually one of the biggest pains to take care of, not because its hard but because its time consuming. This issue can happen for a few reasons them being:

- Inconsistent network signal
- Synchronization service is stuck
- Server resources are low or Server is really bogged down.

If this issue is caused by the first or the second point above then the resolutions are simple, get to a better coverage area or restart the BlackBerry Synchronization service on the BES. If it happens to be the last point above then you will have to go into the BAS or on the Device itself and temporarily disable the contact and/or calendar synchronization to take up less server resources thus making your activation go much quicker.

Once the Activation is complete then you will be able to go back in to wherever you changed the settings for the wireless synchronization and you will be able to enable that and your contacts and calendar entries will begin to sync over.

Note- If you are running Exchange you can place the user on a static mailbox agent which dedicates special resources to the user. This will allow the activation to go a whole lot quicker. Do not keep them on this agent however as it will take a toll on your BES server.

These are the most common failure points for BlackBerry Enterprise Activations that I have run into. There are obviously many more factors and variables however if after completing this article and your activation not being successful you will have to give BlackBerry a call.

NOTE: Just a few notes to remember when it comes to activating BlackBerrys

-Wireless Sync of contacts and calendars can take up to a few hours depending on server resources and number of entries.

-If after enabling the wireless sync nothing happens after about 10 min, simply go into the calendar or contacts, press the menu button, go to Options and then type RSET. This will clear the address book or calendar off the device and reload it from the server.

As time goes on a greater majority of companies are deciding to upgrade to Exchange 2010.  This of course offers many updates and upgrades to mail functionality however, also brings a few more challenges, or additions to the “to do” list if it is to be used in conjunction with a BlackBerry Enterprise Server.  This guide will go through the requirements and the configurations as if you are setting up a new BES from scratch that will be working with Exchange 2010.  Should you already have the BES then just skip to the parts that apply to you.

Create a specific BES Administrator Service Account

When using Exchange it is imperative that you create an Active Directory account that is dedicated solely to the BlackBerry Enterprise Server.  This is known as a “Service Account” and is usually defaulted in any of RIM’s documentation and “BESAdmin”.  The reason for this is because the BESAdmin account will need specific permissions directly related to the BES, Exchange, and SQL database that the administrator account will not be set up for.  Trust me when I say having a BESAdmin account will make your life 100% easier.

Assign Permissions for BESAdmin Account

When working with an Exchange Environment it is also crucial to give your BES service account the appropriate permissions.  Giving this account more or less permissions than what is stated in the BlackBerry documentation will only result in a BES that does not function or install properly.  In order to set the permissions you will need to follow the document – KB02276

*Note – If you are using Exchange 2010 you will need to configure a Throttling Policy as Exchange by default limits the number of concurrent connections to it to about 20.  This is not good if your BES has over 20 users as it will block all users trying to connect to the exchange over 20.

You will also have to enter in a few more added permissions that come along with some added functionality on the 2010 version of Exchange.  This information is listed step by step in the following article from the BlackBerry Help website – KB22601.  This article does have a lot of steps in them but make sure you read it very carefully and that you do exactly what it says, this will set up the overall permissions and prerequisites needed for the Exchange 2010.

Install Latest MAPI/CDO client from Microsoft

The way that BES communicates to your Exchange is through the use of a MAPI connections for email and messages and CDO for calendaring.  This client is available for free from the microsoft website here – MAPI/CDO Client.  The MAPI/CDO client takes very little time to install after which it is not required to but I personally recommend rebooting the BES server.

Install your SQL Locally or Remotely

By default the BES software comes with SQL 2005 Express which will be installed locally to the BES server if you don’t already have another SQL server available.  If you have a full version of SQL or you want the SQL on another box take the time now to install it on another box and then enter in the permissions as stated in the section above from KB02276.

Install the BES software package

You are now ready to install the BlackBerry Enterprise Server software.   The installation once done will ask for a reboot, again reboot the server and once it comes back up you will go through a configuration portion where you will need to enter in all of your environmental Information.  Once this has been done you will start the services and your BES will be successfully installed and configured.

*Important Points to Note*
1. Whenever doing any kind of work on the BES server ie. Installs, Upgrades, Updates etc always, always use the “BESAdmin” account.

2. Java is auto installed with the BES software, it is currently Java 6 Update 18, any higher and this could break the BlackBerry Administration Service.

If any of you has tried to log into App World, bought a new PlayBook or a new BlackBerry 7 device you will have undoubtedly noticed that your BlackBerry will prompt you for a “BlackBerry ID”.  This of course has caused a lot of confusion for many of the BlackBerry users around the globe as there wasn’t and still isn’t all that much documentation or information on what exactly a BlackBerry ID is.  In this tutorial I will be explaining to you the basics of what the BlackBerry ID is and how to create your very own BlackBerry ID so that you can use BlackBerry services on your phone or tablet.

What is a BlackBerry ID?

A BlackBerry ID is actually just a master username and password that you will use to access all of the different services on the BlackBerry.  This comes from the thought that instead of having a bunch of different usernames and passwords for the different services, which would ultimately be a disaster. RIM decided to make all of their services use a single secure username and password called a “BlackBerry ID”.

Do I need a BlackBerry ID?

The answer to this is Yes and No.  If you have an older device (prior to OS7) and do not use BlackBerry services like App World then you will not be prompted for a BlackBerry ID.  However if you have a PlayBook, an OS 7 device or want to access services like BlackBerry App World then yes you will need to get a BlackBerry ID.  In fact upon setup of your new BlackBerry PlayBook or Smartphone you will not be able to complete it without having a BlackBerry ID.

Creating a BlackBerry ID

There are 2 main ways to create yourself a BlackBerry ID.  The first is to click on the “create BlackBerry ID” option when prompted for it on the Smartphone or Tablet.  The Second and often easiest way (recommended) is to go to www.blackberry.com/blackberryid.  This will bring you to a BlackBerry website where you will be able to create your BB ID.  This is the easy part, just follow the steps below:

Step 1:  Click on the “Register for BlackBerry ID” button

Step 2:  Accept the license agreement

Step3:  Enter your information in the form and then Click Save

Once you have clicked the “Save” button if there are any errors you will be told about them and told to correct and re save.  If everything was entered correctly you will get a confirmation window stating your BlackBerry ID was created and you will be sent a confirmation email that you will have to access to confirm that you own the email used for the BlackBerry ID.

If you are in need of more information all you have to do is check out the BlackBerry ID website

One of the most common errors that you will see on a BlackBerry smartphone is an app or jvm error, both of which deals with a java type error.  App error 523 or JVM 523 is a common issue dealing with a hiccup in the java processes of the BlackBerry. When errors like this occur it can be for many reasons including incompatible apps, app crashes, exceptions thrown by currently running apps, and over-the-air updates done to the OS or different applications.  These can be anywhere from a constant pain in the butt to a devastating error that will cause you to lose all of your data.

So how do you fix this error?

Well the bad news is that most of the time there is no “Fix” for it unless you know what is causing the specific error to come up.  This can be done by keeping on eye on the apps you use or open when the error happens or other events that happen on the BlackBerry that will display this error.  If you call BlackBerry Tech support they will gather logs from your phone and will review it to see what’s causing the error but most of the time the only things that can be done are a couple of work arounds.

Word-Around 1: This is the easiest of the two and the one that you hope fixes this error for good or at least long enough for  you to get a backup done to save all of your information on the BlackBerry.

Work-Around 2:  Should the hard reset (previous step) fail and you are unable to access the BlackBerry,  you will unfortunately have to reload the BlackBerry OS back on the phone.  This can be done either through the BlackBerry Desktop Software or through the BlackBerry Apploader.  In my experience with this error and reloading the BlackBerry OS it is much more effective and simpler to use the AppLoader to reload your software.   You can learn how to do that here – How to Reload BlackBerry OS with AppLoader.

At this point in time these are the only 2 workarounds that will work to resolve this issue.  So what I would suggest you take away from this is to make sure you are making backups of your BlackBerry on a regular basis and that you stick to downloading only apps that are meant for your BlackBerry.

One of the most useful tools that is included with full BlackBerry Enterprise Server and BlackBerry Enterprise Server Express for Exchange only is the static mailbox agent. When something goes wrong with a user or multiple users on the BlackBerry Enterprise Server trying to drill down to the cause of the issue can become very time consuming and frustrating especially if your BlackBerry Enterprise Server houses a lot of users.

All interactions on the BES that deal with things like messaging, calendaring and contact syncs are handled by a messaging agent. The number of messaging agents on the BES will depend on the number of users you have on the BES. A static mailbox agent is a messaging agent that is assigned to an individual or small group of affected users which allows them to have their own resources and allows the BES to create logs for the specific user or users.

In placing a user or users on a static mailbox agent you are greatly narrowing down the amount of information you will be going through to determine the root cause of the problem for the user or group of users. Once you have determined the issue and resolved it you will then be able to switch the user back over to the normal mailbox agent so that those extra server resources are no longer being used.

In order to assign a user or users to a static mailbox agent you can follow the process below based on the version of your BlackBerry Enterprise Server.

Version 4.1
1. Open the BlackBerry Manager
2. Click on the “All Users” tab and then right click the user that is affected.
3. Select the “Edit Properties” at the top of the menu
4. Click the “Advanced” option in the list on the left
5. Change the “Enable Static Mailbox Agent” to “True”
6. Set Mailbox Agent ID to a value between 200 and 399
7. Click the “Apply” Button to save the changes.

Version 5.0

1. Open the BlackBerry Administration Service.
2. Click on “Manage Users”
3. Click on the users Display Name
4. Click the Component Information tab on users’ profile
5. Click Edit user at the bottom of the page.
6. Turn on static mailbox agent should be set to YES.
7. Enter a number between 200 and 399 for Mailbox Agent ID
8. Click Save all.

Today we’re going to be talking about the JVM error 545 and how to fix this error to bring your BlackBerry back to life and make it usable again. For the most part JVM errors are in my opinion some of the worst errors because they tend to cripple your device to the point where you are unable to use it anymore.

Basically JVM error 545 means that the Java Virtual Machine that works to run java based software and apps (which is what the BlackBerry Smartphones use) has encountered and issue with one of the applications that it tried to run or work with. This can sometimes be just a small hiccup or can be a serious crash depending on what type of problem the Java Virtual Machine encountered.

These issues can be caused by things like corrupted applications, poor programming, incompatible apps or function calls from the application and other application based problem.

There are basically 2 possible Resolutions that will should help to resolve the JVM error 545 and restore your device to normal working condition again. These possible Resolutions are listed below.

Resolution 1: Preform a hard reset of the BlackBerry Device. In order to preform a hard reset simply make sure that the BlackBerry Device is on and then pull the battery out of the back of the BlackBerry. Wait a total of about 30 sec and then replace the battery and wait for the main screen to come back up on the BlackBerry. With any hope the error will be gone and you will back to normal.

If after doing a hard reset of the BlackBerry the screen comes up again with JVM error 545 then you will have to move on to the next resolution.

Resolution 2: The second resolution to this issue is basically a brute force method and requires that you completely reload the BlackBerry Device Software or upgrade it to the newest verison. In either instance your current BlackBerry will be completely wiped of all information and data and a new fresh operating system will be installed on the device. Want a step by step guide on how to do this? Click here - How to Clean Reload your BlackBerry Device Software.

Note - It is important that if you continue to get this error once you have all your data back on the device and all your applications installed,  that you keep track of when this error occurs and how often it occurs to determine which application is causing this issue.  If you notice a pattern you may have to call BlackBerry Technical Support and have them take a look at why this JVM error 545 continues to happen.