Jamf Pro - Installing and updating Microsoft Office

Office 2019, Office 2021, and O365 for Mac are all available for installation and updating via Jamf Pro. The default for DEP-imaged machines is still 2019, but you are free to install or upgrade to 2021 with the instructions below.

Licensing and versions for 2019, 2021, and O365

Microsoft's application versions for 2019, 2021, and O365 are the same from 16.53 and up. The only difference is how you license them.

For 2019, install "Microsoft_Office_2019_VL_Serializer.pkg" along with the applications (either before or after).

For 2021, install Microsoft_Office_LTSC_2021_VL_Serializer.pkg along with the applications (either before or after).

For O365, users simply need to log in. This can be done with out without any serializers. If no serializer is applied, users will be required to log in to use any of the applications. If a serializer is applied, logging in will upgrade users to the latest O365 features.

Deploying the latest Office with EUC's custom triggers.

You can install the entire Office suite in one step by calling one of these custom triggers:

euc-install-office-2019
or
euc-install-office-2021

You can do this either manually on a computer from Terminal by entering `sudo jamf policy -event euc-install-office-2021` or execute it via Jamf policy by entering that same command into "Execute Command" field under the "File and Processes" payload.

If you want only individual applications rather than the entire suite, you can call the following custom triggers. Note that these will install only the application, not the license or Microsoft AutoUpdate. See the next section for the additional packages you will need to install for those components.

euc-install-excel-2019
euc-install-onenote-2019
euc-install-outlook-2019
euc-install-powerpoint-2019
euc-install-word-2019

Since the same application versions are used for Office 2019, Office 2021, and O365, you can use these same custom triggers to install Office 2021; you just need to apply the appropriate serializer package as detailed below

Deploying Office with custom policies

If you'd like to install Office with your own policies, you need to install the application packages, AutoUpdate, and if you are deploying 2019 or 2021 then you will need the appropriate serializer package.

• Microsoft_AutoUpdate_4.5.18110402_Updater.pkg
• Microsoft_Excel_16.53.21091200.pkg
• Microsoft_OneNote_16.53.21091200.pkg
• Microsoft_Outlook_16.53.21091200.pkg
• Microsoft_PowerPoint_16.53.21091200.pkg
• Microsoft_Word_16.53.21091200.pkg
• Install the serializer for the version you want:
  • Microsoft_Office_2019_VL_Serializer.pkg for Office 2019
  • Microsoft_Office_LTSC_2021_VL_Serializer.pkg for Office 2021

The version numbers here are examples, and the latest as of 10/18/2021. New versions of Office are released periodically. It's best to install the latest version that you see available.

Follow the steps in the below link for software deployment for more details on setting up policies to deploy packages.

Deploying updates

If you want to just deploy the latest updates, you can deploy just the individual application packages listed above. Alternatively, you can execute the custom trigger euc-patch to update any outdated packages of Office 2016, 2019, 2021, or O365. For details on using the euc-patch trigger, see Jamf Pro - EUC managed third-party patching

If you need assistance creating policies for the installation packages please contact the Endpoint Management team at euc-help@mit.edu.

Related articles

See Jamf Pro - Software Deployment for more information on how to create deployment policies.
See Jamf Pro - EUC managed third-party patching for information on deploying new updates as they are released.
See Jamf Pro - Installing and patching third-party software for more information on using EUC's custom triggers for patching and installing.