Skype for Business Mobile: Cloud and On Premise

Microsoft finally released the mobile client for Windows 7 Phones, Androids, iPhones/iPADs, and the Symbian devices.  Finally, we can now use Lync anywhere and those of you out there that have enabled Enterprise Voice have a host of options from dialing out your PSTN connection from anywhere, to auto-joining conferences with a tap on your phone.

The clients have been an average experience for me to this point.  I use the iPhone and, like many, I was anticipating the release of the Lync client to be able to use on my iPAD and iPhone.  Conferencing is the biggest dissappointment to me.  Not being able to connect using the iPad to a conference to see whiteboarding and screen sharing is, to say the least, disappointing.  Especially on the iPad where you would expect a more rich experience.  However, it is classified as mobile and has the same limitations as the other mobile clients.

As for deployment, if you are using Lync online, it couldn't get any easier!  A CNAME change is required for the Lync mobile client to connect, point to online.lync.com. It's as simple as the push notifications provider you have to use anyway!  In discussion with Kevin Peters, MVP and MCM in Lync Voice and Enterprise Messaging, he didn't make any changes; with a single vanity domain, Lync mobile was able to connect with no problems.

Lync on premise is a bit of a different challenge however, there are some great resources out there for you to use.  Don't put your faith in the Microsoft Lync Mobile Deployment Guide - it does not have any of the gotchas in it at all!! 

Resources:

TechNet Deployment Guide

Jeff shertz has a great blow post you can use: http://blog.schertz.name/2011/12/deploying-the-lync-2010-mobility-service/

Jeff does an excellent job clearing up some of the confusion surrounding deployment.

Most notably, the challenge you will run into with certificates and their assignments, how to deploy internally and externally.  There are some good blogs to help with this process, and as always, advise with your partner before attempting to do it on your own.  On this one, there are a ton of catches.

Good luck and enjoy your mobile client!