Applying Numerous Office 2011 Updates

[Millertime]

We use Microsoft Office as our productivity suite, and are having a hard time keeping the clients up to date with Microsoft Office hot fixes/security patches. Microsoft does not use cumulative updates, and requires you install all of the patches in order (So if a machine requires 6 updates, they must all be installed sequentially).

Is there a way I can create a single policy that will install all of these in a specific order? If not, can I string multiple policies together and distribute THAT to my source machines?

Thanks in advance! ~Bill

[mm2270 · Accepted solution]

Microsoft does not use cumulative updates, and requires you install all of the patches in order

I don't believe this is true as of Office 2008, and certainly with 2011. They issue cumulative updates in the form of their service pack patches. If you're going from a version of Office 2011 back when it was first released, you may need to install their Service Pack 1 first before applying a roll up update to get you current. Take a look here for a list of their updates-

http://www.microsoft.com/mac/downloads?pid=Mactopia_Office2011&fid=877700ED-3D03-4D46-A77B-5063D8F7D...

I wouldn't necessarily take what shows up in the MS Auto Update.app as what needs to be installed. Go from their downloads page.

[mm2270 · Accepted solution]

Microsoft does not use cumulative updates, and requires you install all of the patches in order

I don't believe this is true as of Office 2008, and certainly with 2011. They issue cumulative updates in the form of their service pack patches. If you're going from a version of Office 2011 back when it was first released, you may need to install their Service Pack 1 first before applying a roll up update to get you current. Take a look here for a list of their updates-

http://www.microsoft.com/mac/downloads?pid=Mactopia_Office2011&fid=877700ED-3D03-4D46-A77B-5063D8F7D...

I wouldn't necessarily take what shows up in the MS Auto Update.app as what needs to be installed. Go from their downloads page.

[talkingmoose · Accepted solution]

Mike is correct.

If you install Office 2011 14.0.0 then you only need to apply the 14.1.0 and 14.2.3 updates to install a fully patched version of the software.

If you are a volume license customer then download the 14.2.0 installer from VLSC and then apply the 14.2.3 update.

[Millertime]

Wow, well it sounds like it was pure ignorance on my part.

Thank you both for the awesome info!!

[ernstcs]

Yeah, I should probably get an update installer for 14.2.0, been patching up. However, I did run into an issue with the activation on my install with the last batch of updaters that are PKGs.

In our labs we have a fill user package for settings so that students didn't have to configure Office every time they logged into a lab machine, it just fired up and off you went. What normally happened after imaging was the first time an Office app was launched you'd see the activation icon on the dock for a second or two and then it vanished, it just worked. With the last batch of PKG style updaters that broke. Haven't sorted that out yet, or seen any mention of that on the list.

[alexjdale]

Yeah, if you install Office 2011 and then install an update afterwards without launching it and registering first, it will lose your volume license info and prompt for a license code. I have spoken to MS and reported this, but I think once they saw I had a workaround, they didn't seem too interested.

What I did was grab the license file from an Office 2011 installation and packaged it up. I install it after running the updates, and it's back to normal.

[talkingmoose]

Installing the 14.2.0 installer from VLSC + 14.2.3 updater (specifically) was suppose to address the issue of the missing license file. I haven't tested this yet.

[ernstcs]

Thanks for the information on that! I will be getting my hands on 14.2.0 this next week so I'll be able to test that as well and post results.

[jhalvorson]

I recall that installing the MS 14.2.0 pkg and then attempting to install any Office updater would fail because a file or folder was missing. The file is normally created once a user opens one of the Office apps.

There was a guy named "Hitch" at one of the JAMF conferences that mentioned if you create the folder during deployment or imaging, that would allow the Office updates to install. Does anyone know if this is still true and the path of the folder or file?

[charles_hitch]

@jhalvorson, that may have been me. That issue was fixed with the 14.2.2 package. I haven't tested 14.2.3 yet.

@Millertime, MS definitely does cumulative patches and service packs for Office 2011. You just have to install the latest SP before installing the latest patch.

I approach Office packaging two ways. First is the initial install, second is the updater. I use smart groups to determine which systems need the updater. For the initial base install package I don't use what comes from the MS VLSC because, well, MS is REALLY bad at packaging software for the Mac that has correct file permissions. So I do the following:

1. On a 100% clean system install Microsoft Office 2011 (base package)
   NOTE: I remove Communicator/Lync from installing here because I create separate packages for those

2. Install all Office updates

3. Run repair permissions
   NOTE: This is needed because the MS package hoses up standard directory permissions

4. Launch either Word, Excel, or PowerPoint as the local administrator

5. Select not to check for updates
6. Select not to participate in the Feedback program
7. Install Casper Suite and launch composer

8. Drag the following Directories/Files into the Composer window to create the package
   /Applications/Microsoft Office 2011
   /Applications/Remote Desktop Connection.app
   /Library/Automator
   /Library/Application Support/Microsoft
   /Library/Fonts/Microsoft
   /Library/Preferences/com.microsoft.office.licensing.plist
   /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist
   /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper
   Include ~/Library/Preferences/com.microsoft.autoupdate2.plist if you are going to manage this with Managed Preferences
   Include ~/Library/Preferences/com.microsoft.error_reporting.plist if you aren't going to manage this with managed preferences

9. Settings

Bundle Identifier: com.fakebusiness.microsoftoffice2011
Get Info String: Microsoft Office 2011
Version: 14.1.2
IF Major Version: 14
IF Minor Version: 1
Restart Action: No Restart
Authorization Action: Root Authorization

1. Build as DMG

Then based on what version is installed I push the standard MS updater package to that system using smart groups. I try to keep the base Office package up to date because it's not a lot of work to create the package and reduces imaging time.

I also agree with @mm2270, don't use the autoupdater, use the downloads page.

[talkingmoose]

3. Run repair permissions NOTE: This is needed because the MS package hoses up standard directory permissions

FYI, this was addressed in the 14.2.3 update as well. That's not to say it won't happen again in a future update but I believe this may be a permanent postflight process that we'll see going forward so that this shouldn't happen again.

[ernstcs]

Yeah, I started with the 14.2.0 install and patched direct to 14.2.3 and life is good again.