BES, Sametime, Java and Your Windows Upgrades

Warning, danger ahead, read only if you like Java, BES, Domino and Mobile Sametime clients.

I got tagged to resolve a Sametime clients using BES error which popped up after a recent NOS update to Windows 2008. BES works fine, but Sametime clients on blackberries couldn't login.

Naturally open up the BES manager and it shows MDS is not started, BB_IM is not started either. Go check the Windows Services, shows 3 services not starting, shows 1067 error when you try to start them.

Not much out there on this while searching.

I figured DNS issues or router issues.
Wrong. IP checks out fine and both ways.

Stconfig.nsf missing the BES IP address?
Wrong. It's still there.

BES had an update last week and I figured, well it doesn't work now....
Wrong. Oh, the update went fine, but ST on a BB still not working.

RIM released updated ST clients 2.1.18(and 2.1.21 for BB Curve). Maybe...
Wrong. They work fine and install properly if you follow my document I wrote previously. If you don't have it ask me for it.(will post it after I update it with new info)

Login bad? LDAP information missing?
Wrong.

Disk Space? temp file corruption?
Wrong, all fine and cleared.

Domino maybe? Updated Domino to 8.5 HF3 which shows 8.5 211 afterwards(don't ask see the chart on this technote).
Wrong. Oh and you can install the HF3 OVER HF1 or HF2, contrary to the wording in Fix Central.

Java Update? Check Java, type java -version at a command prompt.
DING! DING! DING! We have a winner! No java version is shown, as an error is shown.
HMMMMMM

Went to java.com, checked had latest one and it did.
Checked Path statement....no Java path.HMMMMMM
Added c:\program files\java\jre6\bin to path. Nope no change.

Now I am wondering what else is wrong. Almost ready to give up then remembered previous problem from another BES upgrade. So I reinstalled BES upgrade to 4.1.6.5 just in case. Rebooted, still no luck.

Figured if Java didn't install correctly, maybe a fresh install will do. Found the download page and reinstalled it.

Miracle of miracles. Did Windows 2008 make a mess of this? Did the Java Updater get stuck or crash? Who knows.

The owner almost immediately Sametime's me from his cell phone! No better feeling than that one. Another happy customer. Wait till he gets the Connection client I sent him. Trying to seed his usage for a Connections project. :-)

So the moral of this story is think like a flawed machine to fix one.