BlackBerry Storm: How to Removing IT Policy

From Blackberry Insight

WARNING!
Follow these instructions only if you know what you are doing.
These instructions can actually downgrade certain BlackBerry’s abilities (i.e. permanent loss of support for Bluetooth keyboards) if your BlackBerry actually does not already have an IT policy installed. These instructions are meant as a last resort to regain BlackBerry capabilities, in the event your BlackBerry is encumbered by a restrictive leftover IT policy after removal from a BES. (i.e. eBay purchased BlackBerry)

Removing IT Policy.

This is a How-To for removing IT policy from your BB. In essence, what this does is apply a blank IT policy to the device. The blank IT policy does, unfortunatly, leave some IT policy firewalls in place, however. For instance “keystroke injection” is set by default to “deny” on most IT policies. This blank policy won’t give back “allow” for this feature. This becomes a problem if you desire to use a Bluetooth keyboard. You’ll be unable to use the keyboard. If a way is found to get this back then I’ll edit this post accordingly. A quick check to see if your BB is under IT policy can be done by going to Options/Security on your Device. If you see any references to IT Policy whatsoever, then you have a potentially restrictive IT Policy that can be removed.

The Disclaimer/Intended Use.

This guide is intended for use by people that own their own Blackberry, and for whatever reason, have inherited a company’s IT policy on their device. Really, there are two scenarios where this guide is useful. You bought a Blackberry on eBay and are unable to make changes to the settings or install Third Party Applications. You have a Blackberry that was previously connected to a company’s BES and, for whatever reason, you no longer intend to connect to that BES.
Important: If you’re still connected to a company BES, and simply want to install the latest and greatest third party application I would not recommend this approach. Talk to your BES administrators and ask them to grant you the appropriate rights. There are two problems in using this guide to bypass your company’s security policy. First, whenever you reconnect to the company server, your security settings will revert back to how they were. Second, and perhaps more importantly, you run the risk of getting fired.

Procedure:

  1. Ensure the Blackberry Desktop Manager is installed using Blackberry Internet Service, and not Blackberry Enterprise Server. If you are unsure, it would probably be a good idea to uninstall the Desktop Manager and start again. If you don’t have the CD that came with your Blackberry, the Software can be downloaded here.
  2. Download the file policy.bin and save it in your Blackberry installation directory (C:\Program Files\Research In Motion\BlackBerry).
  3. Wipe your Blackberry, creating a backup if necessary. Select Options/Security/Wipe on the Device. If this option is unavailable, you may have to install the latest software on your Blackberry. You need to Download and install the latest OS for your device. Connect your device, open the Desktop Manager, select Application Loader, and follow the prompts.
  4. Close the Desktop Manager if it is open.
  5. Step 5
* From the Windows XP Start Menu select Run…, and at the prompt type regedit. In the tree on the left hand side, navigate to:
* HKEY_Current_Users\Software\Research In Motion\BlackBerry\PolicyManager
* Right-Click the Policy Manager Folder and select New/String Value. Name the value Path. Now, Double-Click the Path Subkey and set Value Data to:
* C:\Program Files\Research In Motion\BlackBerry\policy.bin
6. Open the Desktop Manager.

7. Connect the Device. Verification


Once complete, the Options/Security screen on your Blackberry should not contain references to an IT Policy, you should now be able to change all settings (including password prompts), and install Third Party Applications.

How To View your BlackBerry Storm Signal in Decibels

To view your BlackBerry Storm signal in decibels instead of bars using this secret code.
1. Flip the phone into Landscape Mode.
2. From the Home screen, press and hold the !?123 button to enable numlock.
3. Press Menu and select Show Keyboard.
4. Type ! , ” “
Your signal will now be displayed as a number in decibels. To switch it back to bars, simply repeat these steps

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