Password safe for PC and BlackBerry

Are you also drowning in 50+ passwords, PINs, accounts etc. that need to be remembered somehow? More and more websites and applications need to know with whom they are dealing, i.e. require you to login with a safe and unique user/password combinatino. I used to have them in Outlook notes, in encrypted Excel tables, on paper notes and other strange locations. During the 2010 christmas vacation, I decided to clean-up the mess and started using a password safe.

My requirements:

• Safe
• Open source (not necessarily free - but that came along with open source)
• Ability to use on multiple PCs and the BlackBerry (synchronization)
• Ability to import and export the password database using a variety of formats

Solution: Keepass and Keepass BB
I'm pretty happy with the solution I found, so here is the step-by-step instruction for setting up a password safe incl. BB synchronization:

1. Install keepass V2 on your PC : http://keepass.info/

2. Install keepass BB V2 on your Blackberry (I choose the "over the air" OTA install): http://keepass.info/ . Leave the configuration settings at the default values, i.e. do not use "external file mode" for the databse.

3. Create a new password database on your PC. Select a path to store the resulting .kdbx file. Assign a master password for this database. Create a few entries.

4. Install the keepass V2 add-in for the BlackBerry Desktop Manager in order to automate the synchronization: http://f5bbutils.fairview5.com/keepassbb2/ . I followed the installation instructions and installed the add-in by downloading and double-clicking the .msi-file. As part of the installation process, the application needs to be configured as a synchronization plugin for the BB Desktop Manager (BBDM).

5. Now you are ready for the synchronization of your password database from the PC to the BlackBerry: in the BBDM-Synchronize menu, check the option to "Run add-in actions". I left the other checkboxes empty since my email etc. is not synchronized via BBDM. Then click on the Synchronize button next to the checkboxes. The add-in will ask for your keepass master password so that it can access the password database. It will then transfer the entries from your PC to your BB.




BBDM synchronization settings



Getting started: first steps with the BlackBerry

OK - before we can really explore the subtle details and relationships between social media, real-time web and mobile, I have to get the stuff working. In this and the next few posts, I will describe my experiences during the setup. Let's start with something tangible - my new Blackberry Bold 9700:

First problem: in order to get a photo of the Blackberry into this blog, I have to have the copyright. So I cannot simply copy any photo from RIM, Amazon or others. So consider the photo above as a placeholder while Amazon processes my registration to the partner program that will allow me to easily create lins including pictures and latest price - and potentially earn some money.

BTW: I used the Sharp Organizer in the late 90's. Please note the plug for a phone cable, that allowed the internal modem to dial for my email. That was as mobile as you could get back then.

Edit: the confirmation of the Amazon partner program registration only took an hour - so here is the completely legal picture of the BlackBerry 9700 Bold:


I got that from my company with BES, i.e. I receive the company email that I usually get via Outlook. Although I'm quite receptive for gadgets of any kind, I wasn't so keen on a Blackberry (or an iPhone) until recently. That was when I traveled from Germany to France on a regular basis, without a working UMTS connection on my laptop and with too much time waiting on airports and in taxis.

The best thing about the Blackberry so far is that it simply worked right from the beginning. All my contacts, emails, calendar entries and notes from Outlook were there. "Synchronization" is not an issue anymore, it is just in synch - thanks to BES. And it also worked in France - although I'm still looking for a way to control cost e.g. by looking at an online invoice or by calling some service number from Vodafone.

My first steps with the Blackberry involved reading the PDF manual and some tutorials and forum posts on Crackberry.com. So after a few days of enjoying a stable, working Blackberry, I decided to look into apps that could improve life / work performance even more. I ended up selecting and installing the following apps:
 

Keepass BB	Password safe incl. synchronization with PC. Refer to my blog on Keepass.
KlickTel	Information service (phone numbers etc.)
DB Railnavigator	Travel planning for German rail Deutsche Bundesbahn
HRS Hotelportal	Hotel reservation system
Poynt	Location based services (restaurants, cinemas, companies, maps, weather)
The weather network	Global weather – current and forecast
Viigo	All sorts of mobile stuff (news&RSS, weather, podcasts, location based search, shopping, social networks, travel...)
Lufthansa	Travel planning for Lufthansa flights

I will keep this list updated.

Best regards,
Jens

P.S.: I understand that RIM just released the BlackBerry 9780 as the latest model of the Bold series. This seems to replace the 9700 and has some improvements. So if you are really into shopping for this thing, you might want to look for the 9780
BlackBerry 9780 Bold Unlocked Smartphone with 5 MP Camera, Bluetooth, 3G, Wi-Fi, and MicroSd Slot --International Version with no Warranty (charcoal)