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Microsoft Office Deployment (macOS)

What

Use FileWave to deploy Microsoft 365 apps and Office for Mac to managed macOS devices. In practice, that means installing Office for Mac with FileWave by pushing the current Office PKG, related configuration, and supporting settings to the right device groups instead of installing Office by hand on each Mac.

When/Why

This is the normal path when a lab, classroom, shared fleet, or staff Mac group needs Office installed consistently. It also gives you a repeatable workflow for rolling out replacement packages, updates, or Office preferences later without starting from scratch.

Before you start

  • Review Microsoft's current Deployment guide for Office for Mac and deployment options before building the Fileset.
  • Choose the installer package that matches your environment. Microsoft provides the Office suite installer, individual app installers, LTSC/volume-license options, and an Office installer package without Teams.
  • Confirm activation requirements. Microsoft 365 for Mac requires the user to have an assigned license and sign in with a work or school account. Volume-license/LTSC activation is handled differently.
  • Decide how updates should be handled. Office for Mac uses Microsoft AutoUpdate, but you can also deploy update packages with your software distribution process. Avoid configuring two update workflows that fight each other.
  • Do not modify the Office app bundles before or after deployment. Use configuration profiles or preference scripts for supported settings instead.

How

  1. Download the current Office for Mac installer package from Microsoft's Office CDN or your Microsoft volume-license source.
  2. Create a FileWave Fileset for the Office installer package.
  3. If needed, create separate Filesets, profiles, or user-context scripts for Office preferences, Microsoft AutoUpdate settings, or other supporting configuration.
  4. Assign the Fileset to a small macOS test group first.
  5. Verify that Office installs, launches, activates as expected, and follows the update behavior you intended.
  6. Expand the deployment to the broader device group after the test group is clean.

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