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Distribute product updates for the 2007 Office system

Updated: April 14, 2011

Applies To: Office Resource Kit

This Office product will reach end of support on October 10, 2017. To stay supported, you will need to upgrade. For more information, see , Resources to help you upgrade your Office 2007 servers and clients.

 

Topic Last Modified: 2016-11-14

After a new release of Microsoft Office, Microsoft makes available a series of software updates that are designed to help improve application security, performance, and reliability.

Note

The 2007 Microsoft Office system includes Microsoft Office Project Professional 2007, Microsoft Office Project Standard 2007, and Microsoft Office Visio 2007.

In this article:

  • Windows Installer versions

  • Maintaining existing 2007 Office system installations

  • Using enterprise deployment tools to deploy updates

  • Choosing an update strategy

Microsoft releases the kinds of software updates shown in the following table.

Update Definition

Service pack

Tested, cumulative set of hotfixes, security updates, critical updates, and software updates. Service packs might also contain a limited number of customer-requested design changes or features. A service pack represents a new baseline version of the product.

Security update

Broadly released fix for a product-specific, security-related vulnerability. Security-related vulnerabilities are rated based on their severity, which is indicated in the Microsoft security bulletin as critical, important, moderate, or low.

General update

Broadly released fix for a specific problem addressing a very important issue that is not security-related.

Hotfix

A single, cumulative package made up of one or more files that address a problem in a product. Hotfixes address a specific customer situation and might not be distributed outside the customer organization.

Software updates are released as full-file updates that replace all files modified by an update. Because complete files are installed, full-file updates typically do not require access to the original Office installation source.

Note that service packs for Office products are available only as patches to the installed product; they are not integrated with the base Office system products.

For information about how Microsoft updates the products in the 2007 Office system, see Microsoft Knowledge Base article 949370: Information about how Microsoft updates the 2007 Office products (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=119649).

Windows Installer versions

Important

Patch deployment for the 2007 Office system requires Microsoft Windows Installer 3.1 for computers that are running Windows XP with Service Pack (SP) 2 or later and Windows Server 2003 with SP1 or later. If you do not have the required Windows Installer version, you might receive an error message similar to the following during installation: The installation of this package failed.
This issue might occur because certain versions of Windows Installer do not contain the functionality that is required for the update to be successful. To resolve this issue, download and install the Windows Installer 3.1 update. After you update Windows Installer, install the 2007 Office system system updates again.

For more information about this issue, see Microsoft Knowledge Base article 942101: You receive an error message when you try to apply any of the 2007 Office Service Pack 1 packages on a computer that is running Windows XP Service Pack 2 (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=108467).

For information about how to install Windows Installer 3.1 v2, see Microsoft Knowledge Base article 893803: Windows Installer 3.1 v2 (3.1.4000.2435) is available (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=88539).

Note that computers that are running Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 use Windows Installer 4.0. For more information about Windows Installer, see the following resources on the MSDN Web site:

Maintaining existing 2007 Office system installations

New deployment features in the 2007 Office system simplify the process of selecting an updating strategy. You distribute all updates directly to the client to ensure that your existing 2007 Office system system installations have the latest software updates.

Users can apply multiple full-file updates directly to client computers. For example, a user can apply a full-file security update, followed by a full-file critical update, and so on. Full-file updates completely replace all files affected by the update. For example, you can send the full-file update if a user's local installation source is corrupted and the user does not have access to a source on the network. Users can apply the update in most cases, even if they do not have access to the source.

Administrative rights are required to install the 2007 Office system and any subsequent product updates. This means users must also be administrators of their computers, or you must be able to grant administrative privileges to users to perform the installation. For more information, see Deploy the 2007 Office system to users who are not administrators.

Note

In Microsoft Office 2003, large organizations typically installed the product from an administrative installation point and installing from a local installation source was optional. In the 2007 Office system, the administrative installation option no longer exists, and the local installation source is required. Because you apply all updates directly to clients, the network source remains unchanged and client installations remain synchronized with the original source.

Distributing updates locally

Setup copies installation files to a hidden folder on the local computer when users install the 2007 Office system. Windows Installer uses this local installation source to install Office at first and to repair and update Office later. For more information about the local installation source, see Setup architecture overview for the 2007 Office system.

We recommend that you use a local update strategy in most cases, especially if you:

  • Distribute software updates to different groups of users or at different times.

  • Have network bandwidth limitations.

  • Support users who have limited or unreliable network access, for example, traveling users.

Because a local installation source is always available, offline users can perform any operation that requires accessing the source.

Supported baselines

The original release of the 2007 Office system represents the initial baseline of the product, and each successive service pack represents a new baseline.

Full-file updates are typically supported on the two most recent baselines. For example, you can deploy an update that is released after 2007 Office system Service Pack 2 (SP2) to users who have updated to Service Pack 1 (SP1).

Note

The previous baseline is supported for only 12 months after release of the latest service pack. For example, software updates are supported on SP1 for 12 months after 2007 Office system SP2 is released. After the 12-month period, full-file updates target only client computers that are updated with SP2. For more information about the Microsoft Support Lifecycle, see Microsoft Support Lifecycle policy (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=108468).

Using enterprise deployment tools to deploy updates

You can use any of the following methods to distribute software updates to users in your enterprise environment:

  • Microsoft Update

  • Windows Server Update Services

  • Microsoft Systems Management Server

  • Microsoft Self-Extractor files

  • Updates folder

    Note

    The Updates folder method is used only for deployment of software updates with an initial installation of 2007 Office system.

Microsoft Update

Microsoft Update allows users who connect directly to the Internet to manage their own computers and download the latest software updates. Users can set up an automatic schedule to periodically check for and retrieve updates. Users can also download Office updates from Office Update. However, we recommend that users use Microsoft Update, which provides a centralized and automated software update solution for many Microsoft products, including Windows and Microsoft Office. For more information about Microsoft Update, see Microsoft Update Home (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=15270\&clcid=0x409).

In an Active Directory managed environment, you can block users' access to Office updates on Office Online by using Group Policy. You can enable the Block updates from the Office Update Site from applying policy setting to prevent users from downloading client updates from the Office Update site on their own, yet still let users take advantage of the other resources on Office Online. If this policy is enabled, it also disables the Check for Updates menu and task pane items. This policy setting is available in the User Configuration\Administrative Templates\Microsoft Office 2007 system\Miscellaneous node in the Group Policy Object Editor Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap-in. This policy does not prevent users from searching the Microsoft Download Center for updates or from using the Microsoft Update site, which also provide Office software updates. For more information about Group Policy and how to configure Group Policy settings, see Group Policy overview (2007 Office system) and Enforce settings by using Group Policy in the 2007 Office system.

Windows Server Update Services

Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) is a free tool that can be used to deploy the latest Microsoft product updates within your corporate network. WSUS connects to Microsoft Update to retrieve the latest software updates and synchronizes the updates with your corporate WSUS server. You can configure an automatic or manual synchronization. The primary WSUS server can be used to update other WSUS servers on the network.

For information about WSUS, see Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 Overview (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=82773) and Step-by-Step Guide to Getting Started with Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=82774).

Microsoft Systems Management Server

Microsoft Systems Management Server (SMS) is a software distribution tool that is designed for medium- and large-sized organizations that manage many clients in a complex and quickly changing business environment. In addition to using SMS to first deploy Office, you can use it to distribute product updates to a mixture of Microsoft Windows clients.

When you use SMS to maintain Office, you can set a precise control over the deployment process. For example, you can use SMS to query client computers for software requirements before you install Office, and you can target the installation to computers that meet your criteria.

For more information about Systems Management Server, see Deploying the 2007 Microsoft Office System with Microsoft Systems Management Server 2003 R2 (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=78542\&clcid=0x409).

Microsoft Self-Extractor files

Microsoft Self-Extractor is used to combine software installation updates, patches, and hotfixes into self-extracting executable files called Microsoft Self-Extractor packages. Administrators can install these packages by double-clicking the .exe file or by running the .exe file at a command prompt. This deployment option is useful if you do not have SMS or WSUS.

When you run the .exe file to install a package at the command prompt, you can use a switch to specify package deployment and logging options.

Note

We recommend that you do not extract and run the .msp files from product patch .exe files. Incorrect application of the .msp files generates an error if the patch is not applicable to the product installed on the computer. Also, the product might not be completely updated until all of the required .msp files are applied. The package contains detection logic to determine exactly which patches are applicable and to install only the patches that are needed.
However, if the update is being applied with the initial installation of Office, we recommend that the .msp files be extracted to the Updates folder for installation with the Office product.
The Microsoft Office Hotfix Installer (Ohotfix.exe) used with previous versions of Office is not supported for 2007 Office system. The 2007 Office system uses a new Microsoft Self-Extractor technology that is incompatible with Ohotfix.

For information about how to use the Updates folder for updates deployed with initial installations, see Deploying software updates with the initial 2007 Office system installation.

The following sections provide information about using Microsoft Self extractor files:

  • Microsoft Self-Extractor command-line switches

  • Deploying all Microsoft Self-Extractor packages in a folder

  • Sample batch file

  • Sample script

Microsoft Self-Extractor command-line switches

To determine which switches are available for a package, use one of the following Help switches:

/?

/h

/help

The command-line switches supported by Microsoft Self-Extractor are shown in the following table.

Switch Description

/extract:[ path ]

Extracts the content of the package to the path folder. If a path is not specified, a Browse dialog box is displayed.

/log:[ path of log file ]

Enables verbose logging for the update installation. You must also include the file name in addition to the path information. The command does not create a new folder. Therefore, you must use an existing folder name. In addition to the file name specified, a separate log file is created for each .MSI file that you run.

/lang: lcid

Sets the user interface to the specified locale when multiple locales are available in the package.

/quiet

Runs the package in silent mode.

/passive

Runs the update without requiring user interaction.

/norestart

Prevents prompting the user when a restart of the computer is needed.

/forcerestart

Forces a restart of the computer when the update is completed.

/?

/h

help

Displays a help message.

For more information about the command-line switches, see Microsoft Knowledge Base article 912203: Description of the command-line switches that are supported by a software installation package, an update package, or a hotfix package that was created by using Microsoft Self-Extractor (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=108354).

Deploying all Microsoft Self-Extractor packages in a folder

This section provides examples of a batch file and a Visual Basic script that can be used to deploy all the Microsoft Self-Extractor packages contained in a folder. The batch file and script code is written so that if a single installation fails, succeeding installations are able to proceed. Note that both the batch file and the script are intended as examples and you might need to modify them for your specific scenarios. As mentioned previously, the Microsoft Office Hotfix Installer tool, Ohotfix.exe, is not supported for 2007 Office system updates.

Sample batch file

The following batch file first deletes an existing log file and then it installs all the Microsoft Self-Extractor files that are contained in the directory in which you have placed the batch file.

@echo off

del %temp%\oupdates.txt /q

for /f "delims=-; tokens=1,2,3,4,5" %%i in ('dir /b *kb*.exe') do echo %%j-%%i-%%k-%%l-%%m >> %temp%\oupdates.txt

for /f "delims=-; tokens=1,2,3,4,5" %%i in ('type %temp%\oupdates.txt') do %%j-%%i-%%k-%%l-%%m /log:%temp%\officeupdates.log /passive /norestart

Sample script

The following Visual Basic script provides functionality similar to the preceding batch file. This script installs all Microsoft Self-Extractor files that are contained in the folder in which you place the script. The code specifies that the Microsoft Self-Extractor packages be installed silently, and enables logging so that the log files are generated in the Windows temporary folder. These switches are not intended for executable (.exe) files other than Microsoft Self-Extractor files. Therefore, we recommend that you do not include other kinds of .exe files in the folder that contains the Self-Extractor files.

Dim wShell 'As WshShell

Dim fso 'As FileSystemObject

Dim f 'As File

Dim sLogName 'As String

Dim sPatchFolder 'As String

Dim sPatchCmd 'As String

Const kTempFolder = 2

On Error Resume Next

sPatchFolder = Replace(Wscript.ScriptFullName, Wscript.ScriptName, "")

Set fso = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")

Set wShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")

For Each f In fso.GetFolder(sPatchFolder).Files

If UCase(Right(f.Name, 4)) = ".EXE" Then

sLogName = fso.GetSpecialFolder(kTempFolder) & "\" & Left(f.Name, Len(f.Name) - 3) & "log"

sPatchCmd = f.Path & " /quiet /norestart /log:" & sLogName

wShell.Run sPatchCmd, 0, True

End If

Next

If you are deploying software updates after an initial installation of the 2007 Office system by using Microsoft Self-Extractor files, you can use a text editor, such as Notepad, to modify the Visual Basic script and batch file samples in this section to suit your specific requirements. Save the files after you complete customizations. You can then run the script or batch file to chain the installation of the new Microsoft Self-Extractor packages. In this case, the basic process would be as described in the following procedure, which uses SP2 for the 2007 Office system as an example. The information applies to other Office updates as well.

Deploy all the Microsoft Self-Extractor packages contained in a folder

  1. Download the software update file. For example, download the 2007 Microsoft Office Suite Service Pack 2 (SP2) (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=144524).

  2. Save the download .exe file (which is office2007sp2-kb953195-fullfile-en-us.exe in this example) to your hard disk drive in the same folder that contains the script or batch file that you are using to deploy the Microsoft Self-Extractor packages. For example, save the file to C:\Office2007SP2.

  3. Run the customized batch file or script (based on the samples in Deploying all Microsoft Self-Extractor packages in a folder) to install all the Microsoft Self-Extractor files that are contained in the C:\Office2007SP2 folder.

For information about how to use the Updates folder to incorporate the installation of updates with an initial installation of the 2007 Office system products, see Deploying software updates with the initial 2007 Office system installation.

Updates folder

If you are deploying an initial installation of the 2007 Office system and you also need to deploy 2007 Office system software updates, such as service packs or hotfixes, Setup can apply the updates as part of the initial installation process. If you are installing the 2007 Office system after 2007 Office system product updates have been released, we recommend that you store those product updates in the Updates folder. You can store the updates for any Office-related products that reside in the installation point in the Updates folder. Only one Setup customization .msp patch in the Updates folder is supported for each 2007 Office system product that you are installing. A Setup customization .msp patch is created with the Office Customization Tool (OCT).

If you are deploying multiple 2007 Office system products, such as Microsoft Office Enterprise 2007 and Microsoft Office Visio Professional 2007, you can include one customization .msp file for Office Enterprise 2007 and one customization .msp file for Office Visio Professional 2007 in the Updates folder. The product customization .msp files that you place in the Updates folder will be deployed first. Therefore, they must include any Setup customizations that cannot be changed after the installation, for example, the installation location.

During the initial installation, Setup checks the Updates folder for Setup customization files (.msp files) relevant to the 2007 Office system product being installed and applies only the Setup customization .msp files during the installation. Windows sort order is used to determine the order in which to install the first .msp file.

Setup identifies the customization .msp file that typically resides in the Updates folder during initial deployment. Setup detects customization patches at the beginning of the setup process and passes the patches directly to Microsoft Windows Installer as it installs the Windows Installer (MSI) files for the product. This ensures that the correct Option states and other settings specified by the administrator are established before applying the product patches. As a result, users receive the latest updates together with Office.

Important

The Updates folder can only be used to deploy software patches during an initial installation of 2007 Office system. If there is a combination of Setup customization .msp patches and product update patches, only the Setup customization patches are applied during the deployment phase, and the product update patches are applied after the installation is complete. As noted previously, the Setup customization .msp patches must be deployed first to ensure that modifications such as product key and quiet mode settings are applied.
You cannot use the Updates folder to deploy product updates after the initial installation of Office.

The following sections provide information about using the Updates folder:

  • Deploying software updates with an initial 2007 Office system installation

  • Testing and verifying the Windows Installer patch (.msp) files

  • Modifying the Config.xml file to specify an alternate location for updates

  • SetupUpdates Syntax

  • Modifying the SetupUpdates element in Config.xml

Deploying software updates with an initial 2007 Office system installation

Administrators can use the Updates folder to incorporate the installation of updates with an initial installation of the 2007 Office system products. Only Windows Installer patch files that are contained in this folder are installed with the initial installation. Therefore, you must extract these patches from the Microsoft Self-Extractor package. You can also use this method to install customization patches.

If you use the Office Customization Tool to create a customization patch, we recommend that you rename the customization patch file so that it is installed first. Setup.exe processes only one patch during installation; all other patches contained in the folder are chained at the end of the installation. You can rename the customization patch by adding a “1” at the beginning of the file name to ensure that it is processed first.

The following procedure uses SP2 for the 2007 Office system as an example, shows how to install the update package (office2007sp2-kb953195-fullfile-en-us.exe in this example), and highlights the steps that are required to populate the Updates folder with the update patches. The information applies to other Office updates as well.

Note

The following procedure pertains only to initial installations of 2007 Office system. For information about how to deploy software updates after an initial installation of the 2007 Office system by using Microsoft Self-Extractor files, see Deploying all Microsoft Self-Extractor packages in a folder.

Install software updates by using the Updates folder

  1. Copy the compressed 2007 Office system CD image to a network location. For information, see Create a network installation point for the 2007 Office system.

  2. Use the Office Customization Tool to make any necessary modifications to the installation. Save that customization patch (.msp file) to the Updates folder. As noted previously, ensure that the file name begins with “1.” For information about customizations, see Office Customization Tool in the 2007 Office system and Customize the 2007 Office system.

  3. To modify the Config.xml file, use the Config.xml file that is located in the root of the product folder for the product that you are installing. Use a text editor such as Notepad to modify the file. For example, you can specify installation options (such as the path of the network installation point, the product to install, and custom setup options) and specify the languages to install. For information, see Config.xml file in the 2007 Office system.

    When you complete the Config.xml customizations, save the Config.xml file. You can use the /config Setup command-line option to specify the location of the Config.xml file, as shown in the following example:

    \\ server \ share \setup.exe /config \\ server \ share \Enterprise.WW\config.xml

  4. Download the 2007 Microsoft Office Suite Service Pack 2 (SP2) (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=144524).

  5. To extract the .msp patches from the Microsoft Self-Extractor file (office2007sp2-kb953195-fullfile-en-us.exe in this example), run the .exe file with the /extract:[extract folder path] switch. For example, type the following at the command prompt:

    office2007sp2-kb953195-fullfile-en-us.exe /extract:” c:\ExtractFiles ”

    This command-line starts Setup to extract the .msp files. Prior to beginning the extraction process, the Microsoft Software License Terms is displayed. After the license terms is accepted, the files are extracted. The quotation marks do not need to be used with the path, but it does make it easier to read the command line. Using quotation marks also helps avoid problems with long file name paths that contain spaces.

  6. Copy the Windows Installer patch (.msp) files to the Updates folder.

  7. Repeat the process for any other 2007 Office system SP2 update packages or other updates that you want to install. The Windows Installer patch file names are unique. Therefore, there should be no risk of a file being accidentally overwritten, which might cause a problem with the installation. If the product is being deployed with additional language packs, the language pack service packs would be added to the Updates folder.

    After you complete the previous steps, you can deploy the product.

In some scenarios, users might not be able to install updates by using the Microsoft Self-Extractor file. A generic error message similar to the following might display: "The installation of this package failed." In such cases, users can use the following method to install the updates.

Install a specific software update by using the .msp file

  1. To extract the .msp patches from the Microsoft Self-Extractor file (Office2010-kbxxxxxxx-fullfile-x86-glb.exe in this example), run the .exe file with the /extract:[extract folder path] switch. For example, type the following at the command prompt:

    Office2010-kbxxxxxxx-fullfile-x86-glb.exe /extract: "c:\UpdatesToInstall"

  2. For each .msp file that is extracted in the c:\UpdatesToInstall folder, run the msiexec /update [update.msp] command. For example, type the following at the command prompt:

    msiexec.exe /update clview.msp /l*v "clview.log"

    After the .msp files are extracted, you can also double-click the .msp file to install the updates. However, double-clicking the .msp does not provide additional logging.

    Note that you can also install multiple .msp files at once by separating the file names by using a semicolon (;). For example, type the following at the command prompt:

    msiexec.exe /update clview.msp;access.msp /l*v "updates.log"

Important

If you have already installed the latest service pack for the 2007 Office system, but Microsoft Update still shows it as not being installed, see Apply service packs to applications in the 2007 Office system.

For information about SP2 for the 2007 Office system, see Knowledge Base article 953195: Description of 2007 Microsoft Office Suite Service Pack 2 (SP2) and of Microsoft Office Language Pack 2007 SP2” (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=144718). For information about uninstalling SP2, see Microsoft Service Pack Uninstall Tool for the 2007 Office suite.

Testing and verifying the Windows Installer patch (.msp) files

If you want to test updates and verify the list of .msp files before you copy them to the Updates folder on the 2007 Office system network installation point, you can first install updates on a test computer, use a Visual Basic script to extract the .msp files to a target folder, and then copy the .msp files from the target folder to the Updates folder. This method is further described in the following procedure.

Extract the .msp files from a test computer and copy them to the Updates folder

  1. Install all 2007 Office system applications on the test computer that will be installed on users’ computers.

  2. Run Microsoft Update to apply all needed 2007 Office system updates on the test computer.

  3. Verify that your applications are running as expected.

  4. Save the following Visual Basic script as “CollectUpdates.vbs,” and then run it to extract the update files installed on the test computer to a target folder. (The script uses %Temp%\Updates as the target folder, where %Temp% is the Windows temporary folder.)

    Dim oMsi,oFso,oWShell

    Dim Patches,SumInfo

    Dim patch,record,msp

    Dim qView

    Dim sTargetFolder,sMessage

    Const OFFICEID = "000-0000000FF1CE}"

    Const PRODUCTCODE_EMPTY = ""

    Const MACHINESID = ""

    Const MSIINSTALLCONTEXT_MACHINE = 4

    Const MSIPATCHSTATE_APPLIED = 1

    Const MSIOPENDATABASEMODE_PATCHFILE = 32

    Const PID_SUBJECT = 3 'Displayname

    Const PID_TEMPLATES = 7 'PatchTargets

    Set oMsi = CreateObject("WindowsInstaller.Installer")

    Set oFso = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")

    Set oWShell = CreateObject("Wscript.Shell")

    'Create the target folder

    sTargetFolder = oWShell.ExpandEnvironmentStrings("%TEMP%")&"\Updates"

    If Not oFso.FolderExists(sTargetFolder) Then oFso.CreateFolder sTargetFolder

    sMessage = "Patches are being copied to the %Temp%\Updates folder." & vbCrLf & "A Windows Explorer window will open after the script has run."

    oWShell.Popup sMessage,20,"Office Patch Collector"

    'Get all applied patches

    Set Patches = oMsi.PatchesEx(PRODUCTCODE_EMPTY,MACHINESID,MSIINSTALLCONTEXT_MACHINE,MSIPATCHSTATE_APPLIED)

    On Error Resume Next

    'Enum the patches

    For Each patch in Patches

       If Not Err = 0 Then Err.Clear

        'Connect to the patch file

        Set msp = oMsi.OpenDatabase(patch.PatchProperty("LocalPackage"),MSIOPENDATABASEMODE_PATCHFILE)

        Set SumInfo = msp.SummaryInformation

        If Err = 0 Then

            If InStr(SumInfo.Property(PID_TEMPLATES),OFFICEID)>0 Then

                'Get the original patch name

                Set qView = msp.OpenView("SELECT `Property`,`Value` FROM MsiPatchMetadata WHERE `Property`='StdPackageName'")

                qView.Execute : Set record = qView.Fetch()

                'Copy and rename the patch to the original file name

                oFso.CopyFile patch.PatchProperty("LocalPackage"),sTargetFolder&"\"&record.StringData(2),TRUE

            End If

        End If 'Err = 0

    Next 'patch

    oWShell.Run "explorer /e,"&chr(34)&sTargetFolder&chr(34)

  5. Verify that all of the needed .msp files are in the target folder (%Temp%\Updates).

  6. Copy all .msp files from %Temp%\Updates on the test computer to the Updates folder on the 2007 Office system network installation point.

Important

If you have already installed the latest service pack for the 2007 Office system, but Microsoft Update still shows it as not being installed, see Apply service packs to applications in the 2007 Office system.

Modifying the Config.xml file to specify an alternate location for updates

Administrators can direct Setup to look for updates in a folder other than the Updates folder by using the SetupUpdates element in the Config.xml file.

SetupUpdates Syntax

SetupUpdates in Config.xml uses the following syntax:

<SetupUpdates [CheckForSUpdates="Yes" | "No"] [SUpdateLocation="path-list"]/>

The SetupUpdates attributes are shown in the following table.

Attribute Description

CheckForSUpdates

Setup uses the path list in SUpdateLocation to find Setup customization files. The default value is Yes.

If the value is set to No, Setup does not search for Setup customization files by using the path list in SUpdateLocation.

SupdateLocation=" path-list "

Specifies a list of fully qualified paths to folders, separated by semicolons.

Setup looks in all the specified folders for Setup customization files that were created for the product that is being installed, and applies them in alphabetical order, by file name. If a Setup customization file is specified on the Setup command line, that file is applied first, followed by any files that were found in the folder that was specified by the SetupUpdates element.

Customization files are product-specific. Setup applies only those files that are relevant to the product being installed. However, if you store more than one customization file for the same product in the Updates folder, Setup applies all of the files to the user's configuration in alphabetical order.

Modifying the SetupUpdates element in Config.xml

Administrators can modify the SetupUpdates element in the Config.xml to specify an alternative location for updates.

To modify the SetupUpdates element in Config.xml

  1. Open the Config.xml file in a text editor tool, such as Notepad.

  2. Enter the options that you want to use for the SetupUpdates element, as shown in the following example syntax:

    <SetupUpdates [CheckForSUpdates="Yes"] [SUpdateLocation= path-list ] />

    In this case, path-list lists the fully qualified paths to folders, separated by semicolons.

  3. Save the Config.xml file in the same folder that contained this file before you edited it.

For more information about the SetupUpdates element of the Config.xml file, see “SetupUpdates” in Config.xml file in the 2007 Office system.

Choosing an update strategy

We recommend a software update solution according to the criteria shown in the following table.

Customer type Need Recommended solutions

Large enterprise

Advanced software update management

SMS

Updates folder (only for initial installations)

Note

If the customization is different for different groups of users, you might want to choose a different location for the .msp files.

Distribution of Microsoft Updates only

WSUS

Medium enterprise

Advanced software update management

SMS

Updates folder (only for initial installations)

Note

If the customization is different for different groups of users, you might want to choose a different location for the .msp files.

Distribution of Microsoft Updates only

WSUS

Small business

Distribution of Microsoft Updates in environments that have at least one Windows computer and one IT administrator

WSUS

All other scenarios

Microsoft Update

Microsoft Self-Extractor files

Updates folder (only for initial installations)

Note

The Updates folder is only applicable for .msp files.

Consumer

All scenarios

Microsoft Update