Using SMS mode for auto sync (deprecated)f

You can set IBM Traveler to use SMS (Short Message Service) mode for auto sync, which can increase battery life. This topic applies to only IBM Verse for Android devices.

Note: (Deprecated) This feature is supported only for Verse Android 10.0.3 and earlier versions.

By default, IBM Traveler maintains a HTTP or HTTPS connection between a device and server that allows both to stay in sync with each other. Depending on several factors (such as network provider, Network Address Translation (NAT) timeouts, and device characteristics maintaining this connection can burden the battery of the device. Using SMS mode for auto sync can decrease the burden on the battery and increase the amount of time between battery recharges.

Attention: Do not perform these steps unless you know that you have an unlimited SMS plan. Otherwise this can result in an expensive phone bill.
To conserve battery life with SMS mode for auto sync on Android devices:
  1. On the device, go into the IBM Traveler settings and select Auto Sync.
  2. Enter the SMS email address information. This is usually your phone number, followed by the @ symbol, and then a carrier-specific domain, for example:
    • 9195555309@messaging.sprintpcs.com
    • 9195552143@txt.att.net
    For your specific SMS mail address format, contact your service provider.
  3. For Android devices:
    • Set SMS notifications to On.
  4. Click Done.

After following these steps, IBM Traveler stops maintaining a constant connection to the server. It also starts using SMS to notify the device of server-side changes. These SMS messages are received in silent mode by IBM Traveler on the device so that they do not interfere with your use of SMS messaging.

Setting the SMS message sender address

If your mobile devices are not receiving SMS messages sent by the IBM Traveler server, it may be because the mobile carrier for the device is ignoring the SMS message. By default, the email address set in the outgoing message FROM field is set to the same address as the TO field. Some carriers treat this as an invalid SMS email message. To make this work, tell the IBM Traveler server to use a different FROM address by setting an internal configuration value. The IBM Traveler server administrator must edit the NTS_SMS_SENDER_ADDRESS entry in the notes.ini file and add the new address.

Use a valid email address as the NTS_SMS_SENDER_ADDRESS value (not the example given previously). Save the file and restart the IBM Traveler server. This procedure is only required if you are having problems receiving SMS messages. On Android, the status when connected will be Connected to server via SMS.

SMS message contents

SMS messages only contain applications that need to be synced or security operations that need to be performed. There are no user names or contents (mail, calendar, contacts, journal or ToDos) contained in the message. SMS messages only trigger the device to perform a sync for the given applications or take the appropriate security actions, at which point the device receives the relevant sensitive information, such as user names and data contents.