Device Synchronization With SyncML

Now you are ready to synchronize with your mobile device. I’m not going to go into very specific details here because devices vary a lot; however, I will be using my Sony Ericsson as a template.

First, ensure that you can connect to the Internet. Load up your browser and go to Google or a Web page you know works that isn’t part of your service provider's "walled garden."

Next, you need to find some kind of menu option that covers SyncML. On my M600i, it was under Tools->Remote Sync. On my Nokia 6230, it is in Organizer->Sync. An example of a SyncML menu is shown in Figure 10.

Figure 10: SyncML menu on the M600i

First, I created a profile called "SyncML" as you can see from Figure 10. Then, I had to decide what I wanted to sync, and I chose Calendar/Tasks and Contacts. I could also choose Bookmarks, Email and Notes, but none of these were of interest to me.

Next, you have to create a profile. Pertinent bits of information you will need are:

• Server name: http://servername:8080/funambol/ds
• User name & password: the one you chose during setup (don’t forget the username is case-sensitive)
• Transport protocol: HTTP.

Figure 11: SyncML Profile Creation

Now for each of the items you would like to sync, you must specify the name of the database that they are stored on in the server. I had to select each item and choose the Edit Sync task. The sync type should be set to Synchronize and the following database names should be entered:

• Contacts: card
• Calendar/tasks: cal
• Notes (should you want them): note

Again, remember these are case-sensitive. Once you have completed the steps, save your settings and attempt your first synchronization. Your phone should connect to the Internet and then sync with the database. This may take some time on the first attempt as it will have a lot of data to receive. After this initial time, it should be much quicker as it will only send and receive the differences.

Figure 12: Sync Progress

Once this has completed, go back to the Funambol Administration Tool . Upon refreshing the devices, you will see that you have a new phone device that will have an ID of your phone's IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number.

TIP: If you would like to check what your phone's IMEI is, type *#06# into it, and it will be displayed.

Now, try adding an appointment on your phone, and then sync it with the database. After a couple of minutes and your appointment will "auto-magically" appear in Outlook.

And that is essentially it! We have now covered the basics of synching your devices, which should be enough to get you started with slightly more advanced things. You can even create your own connectors which enable you to sync any information source if you wish; the world is your oyster!

Tags: Funambol, open source, Sync ML,

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