ActiveSync support for the Kolab Groupware Solution ready for testing

[Georg C. F. Greve]

[ http://kolabsys.com/index.php/resources/84-news2010-04-21 ]

ActiveSync support for the Kolab Groupware Solution ready for testing

Kolab Community integrating ActiveSync support into the Kolab Groupware 
Solution with support by Dutch charity NLnet.

Kolab is a proven personal information management solution enabling users and 
organisations to share emails, appointments, contacts and more in mixed client 
environments using an open storage format. Any email client speaking standard 
protocols can be served, but so far support for non-standard protocols like 
the product-specific Microsoft ActiveSync was underdeveloped.

Supported by a grant of the NLnet Foundation, Kolab Systems and Libertech are 
working to integrate the Kolab Groupware Solution with the Z-Push project, a 
Free Software ActiveSync implementation. All results will be released as Free 
Software in cooperation with the Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) which 
has accepted the project under its fiduciary programme. Last week the project 
reached its first milestone with the release of the 0.4 version, which is now 
available for testing.

“If organisations want to move towards open standards, they often still have 
plenty of existing hardware like mobile phones, that are limited to closed 
solutions like ActiveSync.", says Michiel Leenaars, strategy director at NLnet 
Foundation. “With support for Z-Push, Kolab can support those devices and thus 
provide a strong migration path towards open standards".

Coordinated by Kolab Systems, the development is driven by the initial 
developer of the connector, Alain Abbas of the French Free Software company 
Libertech. Alain Abbas comments: “We had 150 iPhone users of Kolab working 
productively on an earlier version of the connector for about a year, but some 
crucial components were missing and we lacked good configuration management. 
All of this is currently being resolved according to our development time 
line.”

“ActiveSync support has become more important with more devices supporting it 
as their preferred means of data synchronisation”, explains Georg Greve, CEO 
of Kolab Systems. “Kolab is unique in that it incorporates many of the best 
and proven Free Software technologies which have benefited from contributions 
originating around Kolab. So when considering how to resolve this issue, we 
chose the Kolab way: Work with an existing Free Software project that has the 
same aim, and help it reach its goal.”

Greve concludes: “Our thanks go to NLnet for their support and to the entire 
Kolab community that is now participating in the testing of Z-Push and the new 
connector.”

About Kolab Systems

Founded in Zürich in 2010, Kolab Systems AG provides support to the enterprise 
community involved with the Kolab Groupware Solution. The Kolab Groupware 
Solution is a cross-platform personal information management solution with 
strong security, privacy and a unique design allowing very large deployments 
and federated groupware deployments. Through its partners in the Kolab 
Enterprise Community, Kolab Systems provides users of the Kolab Groupware 
Solution with the right level of professional consulting, support and 
warranties to enable productivity and collaboration.

For more information, visit http://kolabsys.com.

About Libertech

Libertech is based in Vandoeuvre Les Nancy, France provide Free Software 
consultancy and solutions since 2000. Among other services, Libertech provides 
professional Kolab consultancy, deployment and development to a wide variety 
of customers.

For more information, visit http://www.libertech.fr/default.htm.

About NLnet Foundation

NLnet Foundation is a widely respected private charity fund supporting open 
standards and open source worldwide, and has over the years actively 
contributed to (internet) standards, open source projects and subsidiary or 
enabling activities such as the development of GPLv3. NLnet foundation is an 
independent organisation whose means came initially from interest on a very 
substantial own capital formed in 1997 by the sale of the first Dutch Internet 
Service Provider. Its private capital ensures an absolute independent 
position. The articles of association for the NLnet foundation state: "to 
promote the exchange of electronic information and all that is related or 
beneficial to that purpose". NLnet believes in open standards and open source. 
At the moment, dozens of projects and organizations are supported financially. 
Amongst them: research laboratory NLnet Labs, the Free Software Foundation 
FSF, Blink, KSplice and the Internet Society.

For more information, visit http://nlnet.nl.
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