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Deployment options for Office for Mac 2011

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: 2015-03-09

There are two general approaches for deploying Office for Mac 2011: network share or managed deployments by using tools, such as Apple Remote Desktop.

Note

You cannot deploy retail versions of Office across an organization from a central location. To deploy Office for Mac 2011 centrally, your organization must have a volume license. For more information about volume licensing, see How to buy Office for Mac 2011 through Volume Licensing.

Network share Managed deployments with Apple Remote Desktop

Description

Load the installation image on a file server. Users install Office on their computers by dragging the .mpkg file from the file server to their computers, and then opening it.

Description

Use Apple Remote Desktop to distribute the .mpkg file onto users' computers. Office for Mac 2011 uses the Apple Installer technology for installation. This makes the installation process more efficient because the data that Office installs is in the .mpkg format. Office Installer is compatible with Apple Remote Desktop, and the installation programs are AppleScript ready.

Advantages

  • Easier for smaller IT departments to implement.

  • Network share and network access are the only infrastructure requirements.

  • Flexibility — allows users to initiate the installation on an as-needed basis.

Advantages

  • Applications are deployed to thousands of workstations in a short period of time. Managed deployment systems can first push the installation bits to the targeted workstations over a specified period of time (such as one week), which helps distribute the load to the network and allows for a quick deployment once the installation bits are on the targeted workstations.

  • Makes network bandwidth management easier.

  • Centralizes control, monitoring, reporting, and issue resolution of deployment.

  • Reduces the need for sending Help Desk personnel to workstations for troubleshooting.

Limitations

  • Difficult to control and monitor who installs Office.

  • Difficult to manage installation times by end users and consequent effects on network infrastructure.

Limitations

  • Requires supporting infrastructure.

  • Requires expertise to manage the change and configuration management software.

Recommendations

Using network file and folder sharing for installing Office 2011 can be a good alternative for smaller organizations that lack supporting infrastructure, such as Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS), or available technical knowledge, such as scripting.

Recommendations

  • Use managed deployment systems when applications are deployed to thousands of workstations in a short period of time.

  • Plan, test, and validate before rolling out to production.

  • Roll out in a phased manner, especially for unattended installs. The most common issues occur when people create/configure an unattended install experience that is not valid.

  • Schedule deployments for minimum network utilization times, such as evenings and weekends.

For detailed information about how to create an installation image and customize preferences, see Deploying Office for Mac 2011.