Microsoft Office Communicator Mobile Product Support Guide
Introduction
Installation
ISSUE: Installation Prerequisites cause problems when not addressed.
In addition to the software and hardware requirements specified in the Microsoft Office Communicator Mobile 2007 Planning and Deployment Guide, the following are installation pre-requisites for the Communicator Mobile client:
§ You must not install Communicator Mobile on a storage card.
§ The folder to which you download the Communicator Mobile Windows Installer package (.msi) must not be encrypted.
§ Communicator Mobile must not already be installed on the mobile device. Remove previous installations of Communicator Mobile before you reinstall or install a new release.
§ Ensure that there is sufficient space on the mobile device to which you are trying to install. The Communicator Mobile installation for devices running Windows Mobile 5.0 requires approximately 7 MB of space. The Communicator Mobile installation for devices running Windows Mobile 2003 SE (Second Edition) requires approximately 3.4 MB of space.
ISSUE: ActiveSync Add/Remove Programs options do not remove Communicator Mobile installer file from the desktop computer.
When you use ActiveSync Add/Remove Programs and click Remove, Communicator Mobile is removed from the device, but the installer file is not removed from the desktop computer that was used to install Communicator Mobile. In order to remove the installer file from the desktop computer, you also have to remove the program using Add or Remove Programs in Control Panel.
If you remove Communicator Mobile from the device, but do not remove the installer file from the desktop computer, the next time you run the installer, you will be prompted to uninstall.
ISSUE: When Communicator Mobile is installed to a storage card on a Pocket PC, there are problems with the Pocket PC Today screen add-in.
We do not support installation of Communicator Mobile to a storage card. However, ActiveSync, when used with a Pocket PC running Windows Mobile 2003 SE, displays the option to install to a storage card. When you install Communicator Mobile to a storage card, the Today screen add-in disappears or displays incorrectly and cannot be used. Install Communicator Mobile to device memory instead.
Sign-in and Sign-out
ISSUE: The sign-in process takes a long time.
If you have 200 or more contacts on your Contacts list, the Communicator Mobile sign-in process can take longer. Having a large number of contacts on your Contacts list can also cause Communicator Mobile to stop responding altogether. If Communicator Mobile has stopped responding, delete contacts by using Office Communicator 2005, and then restart your mobile device before you try to sign in again.
ISSUE: Communicator Mobile is unresponsive after a phone call.
After a phone call, Communicator Mobile may not immediately respond. This is due to the automatic sign-in behavior of Communicator Mobile, where it tries to sign in immediately after the phone call ends (attempting to reconnect synchronously with the GPRS data reconnection). While Communicator Mobile reconnects, it seems unresponsive or is slow to respond.
ISSUE: On some Cingular 2125 smartphone devices, pressing END (call) button disconnects the GPRS data connection.
When you make or receive a call on a Windows Mobile powered device, the GPRS connection is put on hold. However, on some Cingular 2125 smartphone devices, when you press the END (call) button, the GPRS connection is disconnected. Communicator Mobile relies on the GPRS connection and is, therefore, signed out when GPRS is disconnected. If Communicator Mobile is configured to automatically sign in, Communicator Mobile will retry signin five times, beginning 15 seconds after it is initially disconnected.
If you do not want to disconnect GPRS with the END (call) button, you can set the value of the following registry key to 1:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Comm\ConnMgr\Providers\{7C4B7A38-5FF7-4bc1-80F6-5DA7870BB1AA}\Connections\(GPRS connection name)\AlwaysOn
Conversations
ISSUE: Communicator Mobile supports a limited number of emoticons.
Communicator Mobile does not support the full spectrum of emoticons. Only the following emoticons are supported by Communicator Mobile:
:) Smiley
:( Sad smiley
:o Surprised smiley
:d Open-mouthed smiley
:p Smile with tongue out
;) Winking smile
Emoticons that are not supported appear as text.
ISSUE: “Failed to establish session” error message displays
A message delivery error “Failed to establish session” sometimes displays when you reply to an incoming instant message (IM). The error message displays when the user tries to send a message before Communicator Mobile has successfully established a session with the server.
This behavior is occasionally observed on high latency networks such as GPRS. When the session has been established, a “talking bubble” icon is displayed next to the participant name or list in the conversation window.
ISSUE: Messages cannot be sent or received while ActiveSync is actively synching mail.
When you try to send a message while ActiveSync is actively synching mail, you receive a non-delivery error message. If another user tries to send you a message while your device is synching mail, the other user will receive a non-delivery error message. The reason is because ActiveSync takes up too much bandwidth. The synch process normally lasts for only a few seconds. After ActiveSync is done synching, you can resend messages.
ISSUE: Message toasts are not displayed
Communicator Mobile toasts are not displayed when they are received at the same time that a toast for another program (for example, e-mail or SMS) is actively displayed. This is to ensure that active notifications from other applications are not overwritten by Communicator Mobile’s toasts.
If there is an active toast from another application currently being displayed, the Communicator Mobile toast is added to the Notifications tray at the top of the Today screen. For example:
In order to view a toast that has been sent to the Notifications tray, you have to tap the Notifications tray on the Today screen. Any toasts that are queued in the Notifications tray when you sign out of or exit Communicator Mobile are discarded.
ISSUE: IMs fail when both users send messages to each other at the same time
When two Communicator Mobile users send messages to each other at the same time, both receive a toast for the session. If the users both accept the incoming message and try to use the conversation window to send more messages, a message delivery error: “Unable to Establish Session” displays.
At the SIP protocol level, each Communicator Mobile client receives a 487 Request Terminated message and the INVITE is cancelled.
In order to send messages to each other, the users must end the conversation and then start a new conversation, as described in the Communicator Mobile Help topics or Microsoft Office Communicator Mobile Getting Started Guide.
ISSUE: Problems removing Communicator Mobile using ActiveSync Add/Remove Programs on a Windows Server 2003 computer
When you use ActiveSync on a Windows Server 2003 computer to install Communicator Mobile on a smartphone running Windows Mobile 5.0, future attempts to remove Communicator Mobile using ActiveSync’s Add/Remove programs will not succeed on the first attempt. It will, however, succeed if you re-run ActiveSync Add/Remove Programs. You can also remove Communicator Mobile by using the device’s Remove Programs feature as well as by using the Windows Installer file (.msi).
ISSUE: Toast for incoming conversation stops displaying when you press the HOME key on a smartphone
If you press the HOME key when you receive a toast for an incoming conversation, the toast stops displaying and can no longer be accessed. You can check the Current Conversations list in your Contacts list to see if the conversation was automatically accepted by Communicator Mobile. If the toast was for an incoming IM conversation, the message is automatically accepted on the most active Communicator endpoint at the time.
Presence and Contacts
ISSUE: Presence status is not displayed for some or all contacts
Presence status for contacts can be unavailable if you have a very large contact list or if your device is low on memory. Exit programs that you are not currently using, or delete some contacts in order to optimize your Contacts list. Communicator Mobile does not explicitly define any limit to the number of contacts on your Contacts list; however, on some devices, Communicator Mobile is unable to display presence status because of memory limitations.
Device Interaction
ISSUE: Battery life is impacted by Communicator Mobile usage.
While it is not possible to accurately predict battery life and consumption because these vary across devices, there have been observations of battery life reduction of between 25% to 39% when Communicator Mobile is constantly signed in over the GPRS data connection. Enabling Communicator Mobile’s "Automatically log in" option may lead to reduced battery life and higher data usage.