VMware Workspace ONE Community
NickPatelNickPa
Contributor
Contributor

iOS 13, ActiveSync, Outlook for iOS

iOS 13 and ActiveSync is really broken with numerous syncing issues. Has anyone come up with a method to use the Outlook for iOS app and SEG? The SEG sees the app as unmanaged and blocks it. Really looking for a way to get this to work, and it's hard to believe it hasn't been resolved after all this time.

We tried Boxer in the past but wasn't too happy with the results from our testing.
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SeanMortimer
Contributor
Contributor

Hi Nick,
What issues are you seeing with iOS 13?
Are you using the native mail app currently?

We are seeing meeting invites being resent to users are one user accepts them - this is the biggest issue we are seeing.
Caching on the device shows duplicate emails, even though they don't exist within Outlook client.
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mcmoser79
Contributor
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Sean,

We have the same issue with the meeting invites being resent once a user sends a response since iOS 13.X. We are able to reproduce it as well using a scenario. We are using the native client.
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Boe_K
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

Nick if you find a way to get it to work with the SEG without having to white list every device I would love to know. While I've been happy with Boxer I would love to offer this as another option so I can continue to move users away from Apple Mail as I've never been impressed by it and iOS 13 has turned it into a sh** show at this point.
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SeanMortimer
Contributor
Contributor

Nick / Boe,

Have you had any success with VMware Workspace One support, with regards to this issue?
Or even with Microsoft or Apple?

May I ask what version of Microsoft Exchange are you both running?

Thanks,
Sean
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NickPatelNickPa
Contributor
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Hello, I've gone quite far with this and have even talked to the expert on Outlook for iOS here at Microsoft Ignite. Here is what I've done so far:


Opened up tickets with Apple, Microsoft, and VMWare.


Both Microsoft and VMWare are stating that it's purely an Apple issue as ActiveSync is responding back properly but the client is not, confirmed with logs using Wireshark and decrypting the traffic.


Apple Enterprise Support responded with the following:


' Thanks for reaching out to AppleCare Enterprise Support Engineering for assistance. I understand you're experiencing several performance difficulties with iOS 13 devices interacting with your Exchange infrastructure. I have received the following list of issue symptoms relevant to your environment:


1. When forwarding and replying to emails, it is truncating the email


2. When emails are marked read or reply to emails, the message isn't successfully marked as read


3. Intermittently the Mail app will not actually download new messages that are on the Exchange server, but show that everything is up to date.


At this point, I can confirm that Apple is tracking behaviors related to each of these issues, and is working to address each in a future update (or updates). I can't provide ETAs on patch releases or similar, as long standing Apple policy prevents discussion of unreleased software.'


I've confirmed with multiple people at Microsoft (including here at Ignite) that Outlook for iOS will not work due to changes in architecture. I'm still diving into it but it looks like we'll have to use MAM with Intune and possibly create a separate ActiveSync URL that's locked down to the EXO IP address range. The Microsoft expert who wrote the following article told me to read over it: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/Exchange/clients/outlook-for-ios-and-android/use-hybrid-modern-auth...


I do still have some questions regarding the article like the ActiveSync URL configuration if we were try and run it in parallel as he suggested, and if we can enable HMA with 2010 servers if our live mailboxes are all on our 2016 CU 14 servers.


I guess at this point, it's up to Apple to fix or we start looking at other clients, or possibly replacing AirWatch with Intune which Microsoft is pushing.

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Boe_K
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

Sean I have not, when I asked about getting Outlook to detect correctly by the SEG as a managed app I got a pretty generic BS answer. I honestly believe MS and VMware could make this happen but it would rely on MS being willing to work with MDM's like VMware which I don't see happening. Like Nick pointed out they are pushing Intune hard even though its still so far behind what others can already do.

Hopefully some day they will play ball and add in the code needed so that MDM's can detect and manage the app in the mean time when users complain about Apple Mail on iOS 13 I'll just keep offering them Boxer as an alternative cause so far the users that have switched over love it.
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DonMonteith
Contributor
Contributor

I'm having another weird issue. Hopefully someone else has seen this. We use PIV-D derived credentials for Boxer, but ever since moving to iOS13, Boxer can't access the PIV-D keystore. Enter the keystore PIN and it just won't accept it at all.  Anybody seen this?
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mcmoser79
Contributor
Contributor

Sean,

FYI,

Issues with the meetings being resent was corrected for. Seems if you are using URL Transformation on the SEG / UAG, it would cause it to loop in certain conditions. SEG 2.14 is corrected. UAG should be corrected in then next release 3.9.

https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-Workspace-ONE-UEM/services/rn/VMware-Secure-Email-Gateway.html#kno...

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SebastianGomezS
Contributor
Contributor

Nick P. Thanks for the detailed post.  Have you guys experienced any improvement with the latest releases?  I know the truncated forward issue was fixed. 

Do you guys ever experience the issue where emails are stuck in the Outbox?  Users only realize its there because they switch folders and see it.
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NickPatelNickPa
Contributor
Contributor

Sebastian,
     iOS 13.3 and 13.3.1 has resolved most of our issues. The only issue that remains is sometimes a refresh issue. Going into a folder or switching folders usually updates it immediately. If it's constantly getting stuck in the Outbox, that suggests a connectivity issue to the mail servers in my opinion.
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SebastianGomezS
Contributor
Contributor

Thanks NIck.  Are you guys still on Exchange 2010?  Are you using the iOS native mail app?

We were doing a lot better but now we are noticing the read/unread issue and everything is up to date.   

Could you check with some of your users?  In our case our users were just numb to the issue and it wasn't until we had someone New join and we starting asking users again that we realized the issue was still present.

Thanks!
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admin
Immortal
Immortal

Sebastian,

     We are using Exchange 2016 CU15. Our users are pretty vocal and I have not heard any complaints about the read/unread issue, though I know it was problematic before 13.3. Have you verified the users that are complaining are on at least 13.3? We had someone complain and they were on 13.1.3 not 13.3.

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