Administration Guide

Assigning BlackBerry devices to users

Activation passwords

The BlackBerry Enterprise Server activates a BlackBerry device over the wireless network using the wireless activation authentication protocol and an activation password that is specific to the user account associated with the BlackBerry device.

Item

Description

length of the activation password

Typical activation passwords are four to eight characters long. Activation

 

passwords are limited to the following character lengths:

 

• BlackBerry device: 31 characters

 

• BlackBerry Administration Service : 20 characters

 

• KeyGenPassword field that stores the password in the BlackBerry

 

Configuration Database: 50 characters

 

 

character support

Activation passwords can include any type of character

 

 

security

Wireless activation is designed so that short activation passwords do not

 

compromise the security of the protocol.

 

You must distribute the activation password to the authenticated user securely.

 

If the user receives the activation password, but does not activate the

 

BlackBerry device on the BlackBerry Enterprise Server, a potentially malicious

 

user who can access the activation password can connect another BlackBerry

 

device to the BlackBerry Enterprise Server and assume the identity of the

 

intended user.

 

When a user activates a BlackBerry device on the BlackBerry Enterprise Server,

 

the activation password becomes inactive and a potentially malicious user

 

cannot reuse it to activate another BlackBerry device.

 

If a user receives an activation password, you cannot generate a new activation

 

password for the user until the activation password expires. An activation

 

password expires after 48 hours by default. You can configure an activation to

 

password expire earlier than the default value of 48 hours.

 

 

expiry time

An activation password is no longer valid if any of the following events occur:

 

• the user does not activate the BlackBerry device on the BlackBerry

 

Enterprise Server before the default value of 48 hours elapses

 

• the user types the activation password incorrectly five consecutive times

 

• the BlackBerry Enterprise Server activates a BlackBerry device using the

 

activation password

 

 

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Blackberry SWD-20120924140022907 manual Activation passwords, Intended user, Expiry time