• Article

Deploying Communicator for Mac

Office for Mac 2011 will reach end of support on October 10, 2017. To stay supported, you will need to upgrade. For more information, see these resources.

 

Applies to: Office for Mac 2011

Topic Last Modified: 2016-12-16

To deploy Communicator for Mac 2011, use one of the following options:

  • Install by using Apple Remote Desktop  Communicator uses the Apple Installer for installation. The Apple Installer makes the installation process more efficient because the data that Communicator installs is in the .pkg format. Communicator Installer is compatible with Apple Remote Desktop and the installation applications are AppleScript ready.

  • Install from a software distribution point  You can download the installation image to a central location, such as the network file server. Then users can drag the installation image to their computers and install Communicator.

To establish a standard set of preferences for users, you can customize the preferences for Communicator. For example, you can customize the preferences for setting a range of ports for audio/video sessions in the preference file and deploy the file to your client computers. For more information about managed preferences in Communicator for Mac 2011, see Communicator for Mac 2011 managed preferences.

Note

To deploy Communicator for Mac 2011 updates, download the updates from Microsoft AutoUpdate on one computer. To do this, open Communicator, click the Help menu and click Check for Updates. Before you close Microsoft AutoUpdate and the installer, find the <number> Communicator Installer.mpkg in the Users/<Username>/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/ folder. Copy the updates file to another folder and then deploy it to user computers.

Before users install, make sure that they have the following information to successfully set up Communicator.

  • Corporate account information, which includes the company e-mail address, domain name, user name or e-mail name, and password.

  • For automatic configuration of network settings, a Domain Name System server (DNS SRV) resource record. With automatic configuration enabled, the client automatically queries for a DNS SRV resource record. The client either connects directly or is redirected to the correct Office Communications Server. For instructions about how to create a DNS SRV resource record for the Office Communications Server deployment and more information about automatic configuration, see the Office Communications Server 2007 documentation.

  • For manual configuration of network settings, the IP address or fully qualified domain name of the Office Communications Server and instructions on whether they should use Transport Connection Protocol (TCP) or Transport Layer Security (TLS).

Install by using Apple Remote Desktop

  1. Copy the installer to a writable volume.

  2. Set up Apple Remote Desktop to deploy Communicator to users' computers.

    As an added security measure, we strongly recommend that you lock the screens of the client computers before you deploy. If you use Apple Remote Desktop 3 or later to deploy Communicator, you can choose the options that lock the screens during installation.

    You may want to instruct users to leave their computers on overnight so that you can schedule the distribution during non-working hours.

  3. Select one or more computers in the Apple Remote Desktop window, and then click Install. Click Add Add button to add the package to install, and then click Install.

    This installs new software automatically and without user intervention by remotely installing installer packages (.pkg or .mpkg files) to one or more remote clients. Apple Remote Desktop installs the package to the computers that you choose, runs the installer with no visible window or user interaction required, and then erases the installer files on completion.

Install from a software distribution point

Perform the following steps to install Communicator from a central location.

Step 1: Install from the central file location to client computers

  1. Save the installer package file to the central network location for file sharing. Set the user permissions for the network file share to allow authorized users to access the shared folder.

    For more information about how to set permissions, see your server documentation. Users can then install Communicator on their computers by performing the following steps.

  2. Double-click the installer file on the central file sharing location.

  3. Follow the instructions on the screen.

Important

Users should perform the following procedure only if the connection to the Office Communications Server is not automatically configured after users run the installer. Users should either have the IP address or name of the server.

Step 2: Manually configure the connection to the Office Communications Server

  1. On the Communicator menu, click Preferences, and then click Account.

  2. Under My Network Settings, click Manually configure settings.

  3. Type the IP address or the fully qualified domain name of the Office Communications Server.

  4. Click TCP or TLS, and then click OK.