Fresh on the heels of the launch of BlackBerry 10 and BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 comes an update for in-market BlackBerry OS customers looking to support the latest version of Microsoft Exchange in their businesses. We’re pleased to announce that BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0.4 Maintenance Release 2 is now available. Take a look at the top features in this update:

Support for Stand-Alone Microsoft Exchange 2013 (E15) and Microsoft Windows Server 2012

As promised in a previous Inside BlackBerry for Business blog post, BlackBerry remains committed to offering our customers compatibility with the latest Microsoft technologies. With the release of this BES update we are excited to announce support and certification of Microsoft Exchange Server 2013 as well as Microsoft Windows Server 2012. We’ll continue to update our compatibility matrix with the latest certifications to ensure that our customers keep getting the most from their BlackBerry technology.

At minimum, Messaging Application Programming Interface (MAPI) and Collaboration Data Object (CDO.DLL) 8.03.0.8309.000 or higher is required. Learn more in the BlackBerry Knowledge Base.

Enterprise Instant Messaging Support for Microsoft Lync 2013

We know that many organizations use Microsoft Lync instant messaging for collaboration and communication. With this update, we’re providing updated BlackBerry enterprise instant messaging to include support for Microsoft Lync 2013. We also intend to announce BlackBerry 10 support for Microsoft Office Communication Server 2007 R2, Microsoft Lync 2010, and Microsoft Lync 2013. BlackBerry will continue to ensure that our customers can instantly collaborate securely on a number of platforms.

If you’ve got a BlackBerry Enterprise Server, the good news is that there’s a simple upgrade path to the new BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10, which allows administrators to manage existing BlackBerry devices and new BlackBerry 10 devices, along with iOS and Android devices from one unified console. Get more information at www.blackberry.com/bes10.

To download the Maintenance Release update for BlackBerry Enterprise Server, head over to www.blackberry.com/go/serverdownloads

Have questions about the latest release? Share in the comments below.

Many businesses rely on desktop enterprise instant messaging so that employees can instantly chat with co-workers, collaborate in ad hoc groups, or even check their availability before calling them. With Enterprise Instant Messaging on BlackBerry smartphones, we’ve extended this benefit to those who are mobile, allowing seamless integration with the unified communications that many customers already have running within their businesses.

We’re pleased to announce that BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0.4 Maintenance Release 2 is now available. This server update extends support for Microsoft Lync 2013 to BlackBerry Enterprise IM. No new BlackBerry Enterprise IM client is required – the current client available on BlackBerry World for end users on BlackBerry OS 5.0-7.1 smartphones will now support Lync 2013.

BlackBerry Enterprise Instant Messaging Client: A Free and Secure Mobile App

Did you know that BlackBerry Enterprise IM Client is a free application for BlackBerry OS smartphones (versions 5.0 to 7.1) that are connected to BlackBerry Enterprise Server Version 5?

At the time of this update, BlackBerry Enterprise IM supports most popular messaging platforms, including:

• Microsoft Office Communications 2007 R2
• Microsoft Lync 2010
• Microsoft Lync 2013
• IBM Lotus Sametime
• Novell GroupWise Messenger

Enterprise Instant Messaging will be coming to BlackBerry 10 smartphones later this year.

Features and Benefits

BlackBerry Enterprise IM offers a number of features and benefits:

• Instantly collaborate, securely
• It integrates with native Email, Phone, and BlackBerry Mobile Voice System so that employees can instantly collaborate with individuals or groups.
• The combination of BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5 and BlackBerry Enterprise IM Client ensures that all communications are encrypted and kept confidential and private.
• Check presence
• Check the presence status of a co-worker, set your presence status manually, or let the BlackBerry Enterprise IM Client display your availability based on your calendar appointment or whether or not you’re on a phone call.
• Escalate a chat to a phone call
• Help put an end to long email threads by starting an IM chat with the email sender, or escalate a chat to a phone call with just a few taps.
• Contact Management
• Employees can manage their contacts with diverse functionality including search, view, add, and delete. You can also create contacts and group distribution lists on the fly.

BlackBerry Enterprise IM is available globally wherever BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5 is available. For more information including how to get it, visit www.blackberry.com/eim.

Already a BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 customer?

Learn more about installing this BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 upgrade to get Microsoft Lync 2013 support by browsing our knowledge base articles.

BlackBerry Enterprise IM Clients can be downloaded today at no charge today from BlackBerry World, but can only be used when a BlackBerry OS 5.0 to 7.1 smartphone is connected to BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.

Does your organization use enterprise instant messaging? How would extending capabilities to the mobile space improve your collaboration? Share in the comments below.