Checklist: Mobile/wireless deployment issues |
 |
By Jack Vaughan and Peter Bochner
03 Oct 2005 | SearchDomino.com |
|
|
Wireless application integration has pitfalls, but they
can be avoided. Knowing what to expect ahead of time will help a wireless roll-out
go smoothly. This checklist provides a step-by-step approach that will help
you sidestep the potential problems, while highlighting the best practices for a successful
deployment.
For more in-depth information, see SearchDomino.com's Wireless
Integration Development Learning Guide.
Coming soon: You may download a printer-friendly version of this Quick Checklist.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Quick
Checklist: Deploying wireless apps |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
Review business requirements for wireless deployment:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
Project scope is always a concern. You will have to
make early decisions about how widely your wireless application should be
deployed, how many users will be covered, and how deep that coverage should
be. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sales force access to information, reduced
data input or similar objectives should be articulated at the outset. When
user wish lists expand, IT costs can go up. If business benefits are not
enumerated or of corporate management does not sign off on them, the development
manager may take the fall. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Evaluate device options: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Corporate standards for portable devices are probably
not in place in your organization. If you can dictate which wireless devices
are used in your organization, your path to development will be quite different
than if you have to support any device that an end user comes up with. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Factors to consider in any case include availability of
device, screen size, device memory and operating system employed. Do the devices adequately
display corporate content without requiring application overhaul? |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Consider integration issues: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Which changes (if any) will the wireless application
platform you choose necessitate being made to your existing messaging software infrastructure?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sometimes the benefits of a mobile solution may outweigh
maintaining the status quo; other times, such a swap-out may not be worth
the labor-intensive effort. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Clearly, decisions you make when considering
business requirements or evaluating device options can significantly influence
your approach to the critical integration analysis. Even with asynchronous
approaches, the frequency and breadth of syncs to end users depends on your
ability to use infrastructure bandwidth. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Develop for scalability, manageability: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Most Domino shops are larger operations, so their wireless
deployments will be larger too. Still, start small. Don't give out PDAs
company-wide until you've done a pilot among a close group of users. Some
applications may run slower on mobile devices. Administrators may need to
keep applications trim so that page loads and transmission times will be
acceptable. In addition, wireless devices may cause increases in network
traffic. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Linking a wireless device to a desktop
environment is fine for smaller enterprises, but a larger operation will
probably want to connect mobile devices to a database server. The main advantages
to connecting to the server are management and security. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Bake-in security: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Security falls into two categories: over the air and
on the device. Administrators will have to manage the network's wireless
security features. Password authentication can be made mandatory. Local
encryption of all data, if desired, can also be enforced through IT policy.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Administrators may also want to enforce
access rights, which can be as fine-grained as permission for an individual
user to execute a specific business process, synchronization or message
defined in the mobile application. An admin needs to be able to lock or
delete information from a lost or stolen device, then restore the information
if need be. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
For more in-depth information, see SearchDomino.com's Wireless
Integration Development Learning Guide.
|
|
|
|
