Frequently asked questions about the BlackBerry

Frequently asked questions about the BlackBerry State Database

Summary
The BlackBerry State Database creates an instance for each BlackBerry handheld
user. It is the repository used by the BlackBerry Enterprise Server to store information about messages sent to and from BlackBerry handhelds.
When a message arrives at a BlackBerry handheld user’s Lotus Notes Inbox, the
BlackBerry Enterprise Server software detects that a new message has been received, and processes it. In doing so, it writes a new entry to the user’s BlackBerry State Database, establishing a correlation between the original message
in the user’s Inbox, and the same message on the user’s BlackBerry handheld.
BlackBerry State Databases are critical to the operation of the BlackBerry Enterprise Server. The information stored in these databases supports email functionality, such as forwarding, filing, reconciling, and replying to messages.
The BlackBerry State Database also enables Lotus Notes users to use the BlackBerry Desktop Manager for email reconciliation with a local replica (even while disconnected), provided that they have a local replica of both their mail file and the BlackBerry State Database.
Frequently asked questions
1. Where is the BlackBerry State Database located?
One BlackBerry State Database exists for each user. Each database is stored in the same folder on the server, in the \state subfolder in the main BES folder. As native Lotus Notes databases, the .nsf files are based on the BBSD.NTF
template in the Domino\Data folder. When a user is added to the BlackBerry Enterprise Server using the
BESAdmin application, a BlackBerry State Database is automatically created for the user. The name of the database file is a random number, and that name and path are written to the user’s Profile document in the
BlackBerryProfiles.nsf database. By opening the Profile document for a user, an administrator or the user can
click the BlackBerry State Database link to open the BlackBerry State Database.
2. What is stored in each BlackBerry State Database?
Each time the BlackBerry Enterprise Server encounters a message in the mail file that is a candidate for redirection,
an associated document is created in the BlackBerry State Database. These documents contain sufficient
information to correlate the original document in the mail file with the document that was sent to the handheld. This
correlation data is used by the BlackBerry Desktop Software for email reconciliation purposes, as well as by the
BlackBerry Enterprise Server, if the user forwards or replies-with-text to a message on the handheld. Correlation
data for filtered messages is also populated into this database to prevent its reprocessing.
The BlackBerry State Database also creates a special document for each user that contains a mapping of the Lotus
Notes Folder IDs and the Folder IDs on the handheld. If this database is replicated on the user’s local computer,
Frequently asked questions about the BlackBerry
State Database
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offline synchronization can occur, since the elements required for offline synchronization exist locally on the user’s
computer.
3. What access control list (ACL) rights are required on the BlackBerry State Database?
When the BlackBerry Enterprise Server creates the BlackBerry State Database, it sets a default ACL. The default
ACL is programmatically created based on the ACL settings of the BlackBerryProfiles.nsf database.
Additionally, the BlackBerry Enterprise Server sets the owner, or the user for whom this database is being created,
as a Person/ Manager so that the user can access the database for replication purposes. Normally, the default ACL
does not need to be changed.
4. How large is each BlackBerry State Database?
Upon creation, the initial database is just under 200 KB. As documents are added to the BlackBerry State Database,
it grows less than 100 bytes per document. Therefore, the size of each database is directly correlated to the mail
volume managed by the BlackBerry Enterprise Server. Even heavy mail users should find that their BlackBerry
State Database remains in the 1 to 15-MB range.
5. Should BlackBerry handheld users replicate their BlackBerry State Database locally?
The BlackBerry Desktop Manager supports email reconciliation with a local replica (even while disconnected), if
the user has a local replica of both the mail file and the BlackBerry State Database. This requires BlackBerry
Desktop Software version 2.1 Service Pack 2 or later.
To create a local replica of the BlackBerry State Database, open the BES\BlackBerryProfiles.nsf database on
the BlackBerry Enterprise Server. Open the account document, and click BlackBerry State Database. When the
database opens, on the File menu, select Replica > New Replica to create a local replica on your computer. You
should configure the replication of your BlackBerry State Database so that it replicates on the same frequency as
your mail file.
6. When I remove a user from the BlackBerry Enterprise Server, what happens to the BlackBerry State Database?
After 24 hours, the BlackBerry State Database is programmatically deleted. When a user is removed from the BlackBerry Enterprise Server, th is removes the link between the user’s BlackBerry State Database Profile document
and the BlackBerry State Database. If the user is re-added to the BlackBerry Enterprise Server, they will not be able
to forward or reply-with-text to any messages that were on their device prior to being removed from the server.
7. In the past, we removed users from the BlackBerry Enterprise Server and re-added them to resolve technical issues; is this procedure correct?
No. When a user is removed from the BlackBerry Enterprise Server, this removes the link between the user’s BlackBerry State Database Profile document and the BlackBerry State Database. A warning is displayed that must be confirmed before this action can proceed.