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l008com · Apr 1, 2011, 03:33 PM

What is out there right now for good server-based contact servers that integrate with Address Book, iPhones and iPads?

The most obvious solution is MobileMe. Besides that...

I know you can use Gmail's contact list with Macs, but it seems very buggy. You have to set it up as an exchange server on the iDevices. And on the Mac, it has it's own mysterious, custom google syncing. This hasn't worked very well.

You can also run an address book server (CardDAV) on OS X Server. Are there any other services that run CardDAV servers? It appears google doesn't offer this yet. I searched around and found nothing. What are people doing for server based contacts these days?

turtle777 · Apr 1, 2011, 03:45 PM

I use MobileMe, but might switch to Lion (Server) when it comes out.

-t

l008com · Apr 1, 2011, 03:48 PM

Lion server does look good, I've seen the seeds. But What about "cloud" based solutions?

mduell · Apr 5, 2011, 06:21 PM

Exchange

besson3c · Apr 5, 2011, 08:26 PM

Have you looked at these?

CardDAV Servers

l008com · Apr 5, 2011, 08:27 PM

We're not looking for software, we're looking for a service.
And I had found that site already and saw this big blank page: CardDAV Service Providers

besson3c · Apr 5, 2011, 08:35 PM

Yeah, I suspect the problem with CardDAV is the same as CalDAV and various groupware products - nobody wants to compete with Exchange.

Let us know if you find anything!

mduell · Apr 5, 2011, 10:43 PM

Originally Posted by l008com

We're not looking for software, we're looking for a service.

Good; running your own Exchange is insane.

l008com · Apr 5, 2011, 10:45 PM

We'd run a Mac server long before taking the crazy step of running an exchange server. Lion Server actually looks pretty solid too, much better than Snow Leopard. BUT, we're not interested in a server, we're interested in a service. Really google seems to be the only option, hopefully they implement CardDAV. Soon.

l008com · Apr 5, 2011, 10:46 PM

Although I don't think it's going to be my problem, this customer was apparently not happy with my inability to find a solution (as none exist) that they might be switching to someone else. Oh well.

besson3c · Apr 6, 2011, 01:29 AM

I think it's smart to not suggest any OS X Server stuff at this point, unless you plan to run their servers and make a profit off of them.

l008com · Apr 6, 2011, 01:31 AM

I absolutely wouldn't do it RIGHT now, I'd wait for 10.7. That said, they don't strike me as the kind of people that want to deal with typical server headaches. They want easy seamless. Right now, in my opinion, mobileme is as close as they can get.

besson3c · Apr 6, 2011, 01:36 AM

Originally Posted by l008com

I absolutely wouldn't do it RIGHT now, I'd wait for 10.7. That said, they don't strike me as the kind of people that want to deal with typical server headaches. They want easy seamless. Right now, in my opinion, mobileme is as close as they can get.

I was thinking more along the lines of rackable hardware that can be hosted anywhere, which is lacking.

mduell · Apr 7, 2011, 04:09 PM

I suspect, like the previous 3 releases, the enthusiasm for Lion server will fade once it hits the market and reality sinks in.

besson3c · Apr 7, 2011, 04:29 PM

Not to sound intentionally snarky, but what reason is there for any enthusiasm?

It was bad enough that it was so hard to find a plethora of hosting providers offering XServes that will run OS X, and rightfully so, it makes zero sense to pay for dedicated hardware for a dedicated server when a Linux VPS can be had for $20/month. I suspect the core audience of XServe users were a small number that needed some Mac-only server product such as Final Cut Pro Server, Mac IT people that wanted to reduce their costs by consolidating their skill sets/supported platforms around OS X, or users not savvy enough to setup a Linux VPS. Within this group, they probably had to consist of users who were comfortable with running their own servers in-house (or were comfortable with whatever Mac hosts were in existence) and weren't tantalized by some cloud service as a replacement for this need. Moreover, these ongoing costs of running your own servers in your own machine room would need to be justified to warrant an upgrade rather than a migration to something else.

With the killing off of the XServe, this group not only has to justify running their own servers, but now they have to justify doing so on non-rackable hardware. I'm sure the Mac hosting providers have already gone to plan B with their business, and are bailing on Mac hosting (save the ones racking Minis, which is a niche sort of business model at best).

Lion Server can have all the pretty shininess to it in the world and be stable and bug free, but it makes no sense to run an important server outside a machine room, and therefore I don't see much to be excited about unless doing very small potato stuff is enough to warrant your excitement. Meh.

turtle777 · Apr 7, 2011, 05:13 PM

It's great for home users that wanted some of the server features, w/o having to invest in an expensive OS.

-t

besson3c · Apr 7, 2011, 05:22 PM

Originally Posted by turtle777

It's great for home users that wanted some of the server features, w/o having to invest in an expensive OS.

-t

True!

davlab · Apr 9, 2011, 10:27 PM

—it is Nova Media's iHub Basic. It is a full-blown CardDAV and CalDAV server for $30! Very easy to setup (20-30 minutes) and it will also sync to iDevices wirelessly. It essentially gives you the same iCal and Address Book server that Snow Leopard Server provides. It works great with iCal and Address Book. Download a free 30-day trial version and try it out.

nova media |�iHub for Mac OS X |�Share contacts and calendars with Macs, iPhones, iPads, Android devices wirelessly and automatically

If you want a full featured integrated calendar/contact app, check out Chronos' SOHO Organizer 9. It was just recently released.

SOHO Organizer - Chronos

With these two products there is finally a replacement for Now Contact & Up to Date.

abs_dev · Jul 11, 2011, 01:47 AM

You might find "Address Book Server" from www.addressbookserver.com useful as well. It is unfortunate that this product is often confused with Apple's own offerings. However this project dates back to the 10.4 days, long before Apple included their own offering by the same name with OSX server.

Since July 2011 it is available for free and supposed synchronising contact and calendar events.

l008com · Jul 11, 2011, 01:52 AM

Since July 2011 eh? I see they have a long history of service

This topic is moot, I was the subcontractor for this job, and the end customer acted like everything was great, but then called the contractor and told them they didn't like me, something to the effect of I wasn't used to working in "high end" homes.

Because a few iPads and MacBooks function totally differently when they're in a large snobby house vs an apartment. :roll eyes: Oh well, you can't make everyone happy. They guy told me ahead of time, that this customer was very picky about the people they let in their home.

Waragainstsleep · Jul 11, 2011, 05:24 AM

For future reference:
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