Deploy Office for Mac 2011

You can use one of the following methods to deploy Office for Mac 2011 to users' computers.

• Apple Remote Desktop

• NetBoot image

• File server

Prepare a user's computer for installation of Office for Mac 2011

1. Turn off virus protection software, and quit any applications that are running.

2. (Optional) Remove all previous versions of Office by creating a script that moves the following folders into the Trash:

   • /Applications/Microsoft Office <version#>/Users/username/Library/Preferences/Microsoft/Office <version#>/Microsoft Office <version#> settings.plist

   Note

   You can install Office for Mac 2011 side-by-side with a previous version of Office. However, if you want your users to use only Office for Mac 2011, remove the previous versions.

Install Office 2011 by using Apple Remote Desktop

1. We recommend that you write an AppleScript script to perform the steps for preparing the users' computers at the beginning of the installation process. For more information, see Prepare a user's computer for installation of Office for Mac 2011.

   If you do not use a script to perform all the steps that are required to prepare users' computers, you will need to provide instructions for users to prepare their own computers immediately before Office for Mac 2011 is installed.

2. Copy Office Installer to a writable volume.

3. Set up Apple Remote Desktop to deploy Office for Mac 2011 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 Office for Mac 2011, 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.

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

   This step 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 you choose, runs the installer with no visible window or user interaction required, and then erases the installer files on completion.

5. After the installation finishes, restart the client computers.

For an introduction to Apple Remote Desktop, see Apple Remote Desktop 3 on the Apple Web site (www.apple.com/remotedesktop). For detailed information, see the Apple Remote Desktop Administrator's Guide documentation available for download from the Resources page in the same area of the Apple Web site.

Install from a NetBoot image

To install from a NetBoot image, include the installation image as part of the NetBoot image. Office for Mac 2011 is then automatically made available to users when they start or restart their computers. For more information about creating a NetBoot image, see your server documentation.

Install from a file server

1. If you want to deploy Office for Mac 2011 from a file server, copy the disk image (.dmg) to the shared location on the file server. You can then ask users to copy the .dmg from the shared location and install Office on their local computers.

2. Copy the .dmg file to a shared location on the network.

3. We recommend that you write an AppleScript to perform the steps for preparing the users' computers before deploying the installation image.

   If you do not use a script to perform all the steps that are required to prepare users' computers, you will need to provide instructions for users to prepare their own computers immediately before Office for Mac 2011 is installed.

4. Users should drag the .dmg file from the shared location to their desktops, open it, and then follow the Office Installer instructions.

   Important

   Installation under a volume license does not require that you enter a Product ID.

5. At the end of the installation process, users can apply all available service and security releases and updates to the installation image by running Microsoft AutoUpdate for Mac.

   Users also can run AutoUpdate at any time by opening any Office application, and then on the Help menu, clicking Check for Updates. The other option is to download updates from the Downloads page of the Microsoft Web site (www.microsoft.com/mac).