Deploy volume activation of Office 2010

 

Applies to: Office 2010

Topic Last Modified: 2012-11-29

Banner stating end of support date for Office 2010 with link to more info

You can use various methods to deploy Office Activation Technologies, depending on the requirements of your organization. Before you read this article, we recommend that you read Volume activation overview for Office 2010 and Plan volume activation of Office 2010. For additional planning resources, see “Evaluate Client Connectivity” in Volume Activation Planning Guide (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=183041).

Important

This information applies to volume-licensed editions of Office 2010. It does not apply to Office Professional Plus for Office 365, which is licensed through subscription.
Office 2010 is supported on Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012.

In this article:

  • Prepare and configure the Office 2010 client

  • Prepare and configure the KMS host

  • Configure DNS

  • Deploy Visio 2010

Prepare and configure the Office 2010 client

You must decide whether each computer in your organization is to be activated by using Key Management Service (KMS) or Multiple Activation Key (MAK). The product key that is installed on the computer indicates whether Microsoft Office 2010 is to activate through KMS or MAK. This section describes how to enter the product key.

Important

If you deploy an image or create a virtual machine (VM), you must rearm the installation of Office 2010 before you capture the image or create the VM. For information about capturing an image, see Configure Office 2010 for capturing an image. For more information about rearming an Office 2010 installation, see Rearm the Office 2010 installation later in this article.

KMS clients

In the 2007 Microsoft Office system and previous versions of Microsoft Office, you had to enter a product key when you deployed Office. If you use Key Management Service (KMS), you do not have to do this for Office 2010 because all volume license editions of Office 2010 have a KMS client key preinstalled.

Important

By default, Microsoft Visio 2010 is preinstalled with the Microsoft Visio Premium 2010 KMS client key, which enables all the features that are available for Visio Premium 2010. If your license agreement with Microsoft is for Visio Standard 2010 or Visio Professional 2010, you must enter the appropriate KMS client key as described in Deploy Visio 2010 later in this article.

Only one key must be installed and activated on the Office 2010 KMS host to activate all volume license editions of Office 2010 KMS clients. If the Office 2010 KMS host is installed and configured, KMS activation occurs transparently to the user when an Office 2010 client is first installed.

For additional configuration options, such as how to specify the KMS host name on the KMS client, see Tools to configure client computers in Office 2010.

MAK clients

If you use Multiple Activation Key (MAK), you must enter the MAK key by using one of the following supported methods:

  • Before you deploy Office 2010

    • Office Customization Tool (OCT)

    • Config.xml file

  • After you deploy Office 2010

    • Volume Activation Management Tool (VAMT) 2.0

    • The Backstage view

    • The ospp.vbs script

Important

Because different products require different MAK keys, you should first verify that the MAK key for the product is correct.

Office Customization Tool (OCT)

To enter a MAK by using the OCT, follow these steps:

  1. In the Type a valid 25-character volume license key with no spaces field, enter the MAK key (five sets of five numbers or characters), and then press ENTER.

  2. After making any other necessary changes in the OCT, save the .msp file.

Note

When you use a MAK key in the OCT, you can activate Office 2010 at the same time that you install the MAK key by setting the AUTO_ACTIVATE property value to 1. For more information, see Licensing and user interface in Office Customization Tool in Office 2010

Remember that you do not have to enter a product key in the OCT if you are using KMS activation. For more information about the OCT, see Office Customization Tool in Office 2010.

Config.xml file

To enter a MAK by using the Config.xml file, follow these steps:

  1. Add the following line to the Config.xml file:

    <PIDKEY Value="AAAAABBBBBCCCCCDDDDDEEEEE" />

    Where AAAAABBBBBCCCCCDDDDDEEEEE is the 25-character product key.

  2. To apply the settings in Config.xml, at a command prompt, type the following command, and then press ENTER:

    Setup.exe /config <path of Config.xml file>

Note

You can activate Office 2010 at the same time that you install the MAK key by setting the AUTO_ACTIVATE property value to 1. For more information, see Setting element in Config.xml file in Office 2010

You do not have to enter the MAK key in the Config.xml file if you are using KMS activation. For more information about how to use the Config.xml file, see Config.xml file in Office 2010.

Volume Activation Management Tool

If you have to change the product key on Office 2010 clients after installation, we recommend that you use Volume Activation Management Tool (VAMT) 2.0. For more information, see the Help file in VAMT 2.0 (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=183042). Follow these steps:

  1. Add the computer to the VAMT 2.0 view.

  2. Under Product Keys, add a MAK key.

  3. Right-click the computer name and then select Install Product Key.

The Backstage view

This method lets you change the product key on one computer at a time. If you want to change multiple computers, follow these steps:

  1. Open an Office 2010 application.

  2. Click the File tab.

  3. Click Help.

  4. Click Change Product Key and enter the product key.

Note

An administrator can create a registry key that allows a standard user (a user who is not an administrator) to apply a MAK key and activate an Office 2010 application. This means that a standard user can switch a KMS client to MAK activation, manually activate a computer, and, if it is necessary, replace an existing MAK with a new MAK key. By default, all volume license editions of Office 2010 disable this behavior. To enable this behavior, add the following line to the Config.xml file:
<Setting Id="USEROPERATIONS" Value="1" />
Or, you can set the following registry key to enable or disable standard user (a user who is not an administrator) activation:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\OfficeSoftwareProtectionPlatform]

Enable Standard User Activation: "UserOperations"=dword:00000001
Disable Standard User Activation: "UserOperations"=dword:00000000 (Office 2010 volume license products default setting)

The ospp.vbs script

For information about how to enter a product key by using the ospp.vbs script, see Tools to configure client computers in Office 2010.

Rearm the Office 2010 installation

There is a 25-day grace period from the time of installation of KMS clients before notifications to activate are displayed to the user. If you want to deploy an image, you must rearm your Office 2010 installation before you capture the image. If you do not rearm, users see notification dialog boxes at the time that the image is deployed, instead of 25-days after deployment. The 25-day grace period gives ample time for a KMS host to be found and activation to succeed. If activation is successful, users do not see notifications to activate.

Rearming is important for these reasons:

  • The grace timer is reset to 30 days of grace.

  • The grace timer is frozen.

  • The client machine ID (CMID) is reset.

    • The KMS host uses the CMID to determine the number of unique clients.

    • To check the CMID, use the command ospp.vbs /dcmid.

Rearm is also recommended for MAK deployment. If you are deploying Office 2010 that is configured for MAK activation, and you do not remotely activate for end-users through VAMT 2.0 or ospp.vbs, users see an activation dialog box the first time that an Office 2010 application starts. The activation dialog box is slightly different 25 days after installation. Also, users might immediately see a red title bar if Office 2010 was not rearmed before image capture.

To rearm your Office 2010 installation

  1. Make sure all Office 2010 applications are closed.

  2. Open an elevated command prompt.

  3. Go to %installdir%\%Program Files%\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\OfficeSoftwareProtectionPlatform. If you installed the 32-bit edition of Office 2010 on a 64-bit operating system, %Program Files% is the Program Files (x86) folder.

  4. Run ospprearm.exe. If you see a message that states success, you are ready for image capture.

    Important

    Do not open an Office application, ospp.vbs, or anything related to Office 2010. Doing so starts the grace timer.

  5. Capture the image or save the VM. For more information about how to capture the image, see Configure Office 2010 for a hard disk image.

Prepare and configure the KMS host

This section contains information about how to prepare and configure the Office 2010 KMS host to enable Office 2010 clients to activate through KMS.

Important

At minimum, membership in the Administrators group of the KMS host server is required to prepare and configure the KMS host.

Set up and activate the KMS host

Only the following operating systems can serve as the Office 2010 KMS host:

Important

The KMS host key for Office 2010 is not specific to a particular operating system. It can be used on any of the operating systems that were mentioned earlier. This includes both 32-bit and 64-bit editions.

The following operating systems are not supported as the Office 2010 KMS host:

  • Windows Vista or with any service packs

  • Windows Server 2008 or with any service packs

For more information, see Volume Activation 2.0 for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=151726).

Co-hosting with a Windows KMS host

If you currently have a Windows KMS host running on an operating system that supports an Office KMS host, we recommend that you use the same computer that you use for your Office KMS host. You must still run the steps in the following sections to install and activate an Office 2010 KMS host key. For more information, see Plan volume activation of Office 2010.

To activate an Office 2010 KMS host on Windows Server 2003

  1. To set up an Office 2010 KMS host on Windows Server 2003, install Key Management Service (KMS). Although the minimum required version to set up a KMS host is KMS 1.1, we highly recommend that you install KMS 1.2, which recognizes virtual computers as part of the activation count.

    To install KMS 1.2, follow the instructions in Microsoft Knowledge Base article 968915: An update is available that installs Key Management Service (KMS) 1.2 for Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2 (SP2) and for later versions of Windows Server 2003 (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=183046).

    Important

    For KMS 1.2, Windows Server 2003 must have at least SP2 installed.

  2. Download and run KeyManagementServiceHost.exe, see Microsoft Office 2010 KMS Host License Pack (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=169244).

  3. When prompted, enter your KMS host key.

  4. When prompted, continue with the activation. If your KMS host does not have an Internet connection, see To activate a KMS host by telephone later in this article.

  5. If you have a firewall enabled, open TCP port 1688, which is the default port number.

To activate an Office 2010 KMS host on Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2

  1. On the Microsoft Office 2010 KMS Host License Pack (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=169244) Web site, download and then run KeyManagementServiceHost.exe.

  2. When prompted, enter your KMS host key.

  3. When prompted, continue with the activation. If your KMS host does not have an Internet connection, see To activate a KMS host by telephone later in this article.

  4. If you have a firewall enabled, follow these steps to enable KMS through the firewall:

    1. In Control Panel, open Windows Firewall.

    2. Click the Allow a program through Windows Firewall link.

    3. Click the Change Settings button.

    4. Select the Key Management Service check box, and then click OK.

Note

When you enable the firewall on a KMS host, the default TCP communications port number is 1688.

Activating a KMS host by telephone

If your KMS host does not have an Internet connection, you can activate the KMS host by telephone.

To activate a KMS host by telephone

  1. Run the following command under C:\Windows\system32. The result is the installation ID for Office 2010. You will type this installation ID number into the telephone in Step 3.

    • cscript slmgr.vbs /dti bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864

      Note

      The bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864 value is the Office 2010 activation ID. Paste this value exactly as shown. We recommend pasting this number into Notepad, and then breaking up the number into six groups of six numbers.

  2. Run slui.exe 4, and then call the telephone number displayed.

    Note

    Ignore the displayed installation ID. This is for Windows.

  3. At each prompt, enter a group of six numbers. This is the installation ID for Office 2010 that you obtained in Step 1.

  4. When you hear the response, write down the numbers.

  5. Run cscript slmgr.vbs /atp xxxxxxxxxxxx bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864, where xxxxxxxxxxxx is the confirmation ID that you receive by telephone (there should be 48 numbers).

    Note

    The bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864 value is the Office 2010 activation ID. Therefore, paste this value exactly as shown.

  6. You should see a message that the confirmation ID was successfully deposited.

Sppsvc state stopped error

Because the KMS host service automatically stops, you might encounter the following error when you run KeyManagementServiceHost.exe.

Error: The Software Protection Platform service is not running: sppsvc State: Stopped

If you receive this error, perform the following:

  1. At the command prompt, type the following command, and then press ENTER:

    net start sppsvc

  2. Re-run KeyManagementServiceHost.exe.

Alternately, you can perform the following:

  1. Right-click My Computer and select Manage.

  2. Under Services and Applications, select Software Protection Service.

  3. Click Start, and then OK to start the service.

  4. Re-run KeyManagementServiceHost.exe.

Manually install the Office 2010 KMS host key and activate

KeyManagementServiceHost.exe installs the Office 2010 KMS host license files on your KMS host. KeyManagementServiceHost.exe also prompts you for an Office 2010 KMS host key and tries to activate the KMS host. If you did not enter the Office 2010 KMS host key correctly, run KeyManagementServiceHost.exe again.

The slmgr.vbs script

If you want to manually enter the Office 2010 KMS host key and activate it, use the slmgr.vbs script. For more information, see Configure the Office KMS host later in this article. Open an elevated command prompt, and then run the following commands:

slmgr.vbs /ipk <Office 2010 KMS host key>

slmgr.vbs /ato <Office 2010 activation ID>

The Office 2010 activation ID is bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864.

Configure the Office 2010 KMS host

The Software License Manager (slmgr.vbs) script is used to configure and retrieve volume activation information for the Office 2010 KMS host, and the Windows host. For more information about this script, see “KMS Activation” in Windows Volume Activation Deployment Guide (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=183043).

The script can be run locally on the target computer or remotely from another computer. If a standard user runs slmgr.vbs, some license data might be missing or incorrect, and many operations are prohibited.

The slmgr.vbs script can use wscript.exe or cscript.exe, and administrators can specify which script engine to use. If no script engine is specified, slmgr.vbs runs by using the default script engine, wscript.exe. The cscript.exe script engine is recommended.

The Software Licensing Service must be restarted for any changes to take effect. To restart the Software Licensing Service, use the Microsoft Management Console (MMC) Services snap-in or run the following command:

net stop sppsvc && net start sppsvc

The slmgr.vbs script requires at least one parameter. If the script is run that has no parameters, it displays Help information. The following table lists slmgr.vbs command-line options, and a description of each. Most of the parameters in the table configure the KMS host. However, the parameters /sai and /sri are passed to KMS clients after they make contact with the host. The general syntax of slmgr.vbs is as follows (assuming cscript.exe is the script engine that you are using):

cscript slmgr.vbs /parameter

cscript slmgr.vbs [ComputerName] [User] [Password] [Option]

ComputerName   Name of remote computer. If a computer name is not passed, a local computer is used.

User   Account with required permission on remote computer.

Password   Password for the account. If a user account and password are not passed, current credentials are used.

Option   Options are shown in the following table.

Option Description

/ipk [ProductKey]

Installs the product key for Windows (default) or other application identified by the product key.

/ato [ActivationID]

Activates the KMS host for Windows (default), or the application that is identified when its Activation ID is provided. The Office 2010 Activation ID is bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864.

/dti [ActivationID]

Displays the Installation ID that is used for telephone activation of the KMS host for Windows (default) or the application that is identified when its Activation ID is provided. The Office 2010 Activation ID is bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864. You enter the Installation ID into the telephone to receive the Confirmation ID, which is used for activating the KMS host by using the /atp parameter.

/atp [ConfirmationID][ActivationID]

After the Confirmation ID is received, activates the KMS host for Windows (default) or the application that is identified when its Activation ID is provided. The Office 2010 Activation ID is bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864.

/dlv [ActivationID]

Displays detailed license information for Windows (default), or the application that is identified when its Activation ID is provided. The Office 2010 Activation ID is bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864.

/dli [ActivationID]

Displays license information for Windows (default), or the application that is identified when its Activation ID is provided. The Office 2010 Activation ID is bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864.

/upk [ActivationID]

Uninstalls the product key for Windows (default) or the application that is identified when its Activation ID is provided. The Office 2010 Activation ID is bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864.

Warning

If you intend to uninstall the product key for Office 2010, for example, and forget to enter the Activation ID, all installed product keys are uninstalled. This includes the product key for Windows.

/sprt [PortNumber]

Sets the TCP communications port on a KMS host. It replaces PortNumber with the TCP port number to use. The default setting is 1688.

/cdns

Disables automatic DNS publishing by a KMS host.

/sdns

Enables automatic DNS publishing by the KMS host.

/cpri

Lowers the priority of KMS host processes.

/sai [ActivationInterval]

Changes how often a KMS client attempts to activate itself when it cannot find a KMS host. It replaces ActivationInterval with a value expressed in minutes. The default setting is 120.

/sri [RenewalInterval]

Changes how often a KMS client attempts to renew its activation by contacting a KMS host. It replaces RenewalInterval with a value expressed in minutes. The default setting is 10080 (7 days). This setting overrides the local KMS client settings.

Verify successful activation of the Office KMS host

To verify that the Office 2010 KMS host key is successfully installed and activated, use the slmgr.vbs script. Open an elevated command prompt on the KMS host, type the following command, and then press ENTER:

cscript slmgr.vbs /dlv all

To view information only for Office 2010, specify the Activation ID after the /dlv parameter:

cscript slmgr.vbs /dlv bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864

The output should resemble the following:

Name: Microsoft Office 2010, KMSHost edition
Description: Microsoft Office 2010 KMS, VOLUME_KMS channel
Activation ID: bfe7a195-4f8f-4f0b-a622-cf13c7d16864
Application ID: 59a52881-a989-479d-af46-f275c6370663
Extended PID: 55041-00096-199-000004-03-1033-7600.0000-3632009
Installation ID: 008585014214769124199722184000850026888810090785321136
Processor Certificate URL: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=88342
Machine Certificate URL: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=88343
Use License URL: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=88345
Product Key Certificate URL: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkID=88344
Partial Product Key: RP3HH
License Status: Licensed
Remaining Windows rearm count: 1
Trusted time: 12/29/2009 1:45:54 PM

Key Management Service is enabled on this computer
    Current count: 0
    Listening on Port: 1688
    DNS publishing enabled
    KMS priority: Normal

Key Management Service cumulative requests received from clients
    Total requests received: 0
    Failed requests received: 0
    Requests with License Status Unlicensed: 0
    Requests with License Status Licensed: 0
    Requests with License Status Initial grace period: 0
    Requests with License Status License expired or Hardware out of tolerance: 0

    Requests with License Status Non-genuine grace period: 0
    Requests with License Status Notification: 0

If the output shows “License Status: Licensed,” the Office 2010 KMS host key is successfully installed and activated.

After KMS clients send requests for activation, the current count is incremented. The current count must be 5 or larger before KMS clients are activated. The maximum current count is double the activation threshold, or 10. Administrators can also check the KMS log that is in the Applications and Services Logs folder for event ID 12290, the ID for KMS-related activity. The KMS log records activation requests from KMS clients. Each event displays the name of the computer and the time stamp of each activation request.

Configure DNS

KMS hosts automatically publish their existence by creating service (SRV) resource records (RRs) on the DNS server. If there is only one KMS host and dynamic update, no action is required for the KMS host to create the SRV RR that publishes the KMS service location.

If there is more than one KMS host, only the first KMS host can create an SRV RR. Subsequent KMS hosts cannot change or update SRV RRs unless the default permissions on the DNS server are changed.

Changing the default permissions on the DNS server requires administrative rights in the domain, and the KMS hosts must all belong to the same Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) domain. Create a global security group in AD DS for your KMS hosts. Add each KMS host to the new security group, and set the permissions on the DNS server to enable updates by members of the newly created security group.

For more information about how to configure DNS for the KMS host, see “Understanding KMS” in Customer Hosted Volume Activation Guide (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=187539).

Deploy Visio 2010

By default, Visio 2010 is preinstalled with the Visio Premium 2010 KMS client key, which enables all the features that are available for Visio Premium 2010. If you are licensed to use Visio Standard 2010 or Visio Professional 2010, you must install the appropriate KMS client key. Different features or applications are available, depending on the kind of key that is installed. This makes it easier for you to upgrade or downgrade without having to deploy a different product edition.

If you already deployed Visio 2010, you can remotely install the new KMS client key by using either of the following options:

  • The ospp.vbs script   For more information about ospp.vbs, see Tools to configure client computers in Office 2010.

  • VAMT 2.0   This lets you see which products are installed in each computer. If you see installations of Visio Premium 2010 in VAMT 2.0, you can remotely install the Visio Professional 2010 or the Visio Standard 2010 KMS client key.

You must restart Visio 2010 for the new KMS client key to be recognized and the appropriate features enabled.

You can install the new KMS client key from a network share by entering the key in the Office Customization Tool (OCT). In the OCT, in the navigation pane, click Licensing and user interface, and then enter the KMS key in the Enter another product key text box. Complete any customizations that you want to make and then save the Setup customization .msp file in the Updates folder for an initial installation.

For more information about using the OCT, see Customize Setup before installing Office 2010 and Office Customization Tool in Office 2010.

If your license agreement with Microsoft is for Visio Standard 2010 or Visio Professional 2010, enter the appropriate KMS client key shown in the following table.

Visio edition KMS client key

Visio Standard 2010

767HD-QGMWX-8QTDB-9G3R2-KHFGJ

Visio Professional 2010

7MCW8-VRQVK-G677T-PDJCM-Q8TCP

Visio Premium 2010

D9DWC-HPYVV-JGF4P-BTWQB-WX8BJ

For more information about activating your volume license edition of Visio 2010, see Volume License editions of Visio 2010 install Premium edition by default (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=207805).

For information about how to plan your Visio Professional 2010 installation, see Plan customizations and options for Visio 2010.