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How can I activate older Office versions (2016-2021) on Azure Virtual Machines for multiple users without upgrading to M365?

Pirmin-0456 20 Reputation points
2024-11-14T08:11:24.5566667+00:00

Hello,

our company has to certify/test their software to be compatible with older MS Office COM module versions (Office 2016, Office 2019, Office 2021).

We're running most of our development infrastructure including test deployment servers in the cloud.

These test deployment servers are Windows based (Windows Client/Windows Server) as our developed software is running on Windows only. Since these test hosts run in the cloud, our testers would like to access them via RDP.

Our company has a M365 E5 subscription and some testers/developers also have an MSDN/Visual Studio Subscription.

I've tried installing MS Office 2021 in an Azure VM and when activating it with my M365 account, it got upgraded to MS 365, however that's not what needs to be tested.

My question is: How can I install and activate Office (2016,2019,2021) on an Azure Virtual Machine(s), so that multiple users (testers) can access the activated installation via RDP, install and test our software for compatibility with the installed Office version?

Thanks in advance,

Pirmin

Office
Office
A suite of Microsoft productivity software that supports common business tasks, including word processing, email, presentations, and data management and analysis.
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Azure Virtual Machines
Azure Virtual Machines
An Azure service that is used to provision Windows and Linux virtual machines.
8,069 questions
Office Management
Office Management
Office: A suite of Microsoft productivity software that supports common business tasks, including word processing, email, presentations, and data management and analysis.Management: The act or process of organizing, handling, directing or controlling something.
2,200 questions
Accepted answer
  1. Prrudram-MSFT 26,196 Reputation points
    2024-11-14T10:26:26.82+00:00

    Hello @PirminMeixner-0456

    I have looked at the https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365-apps/licensing-activation/overview-shared-computer-activation
    I believe to install and activate Office (2016, 2019, 2021) on an Azure Virtual Machine(s) for multiple users, you can use the Shared Computer Activation (SCA) feature. SCA allows you to deploy Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise to a computer in your organization that is accessed by multiple users.

    To use SCA, you need to use the Office Deployment Tool to install Office. You can download the Office Deployment Tool from the Microsoft Download Center. The Office Deployment Tool requires a configuration XML file. You can customize the XML file to specify the Office products and languages to install, as well as other settings.

    For more detailed instructions on how to use SCA to install and activate Office on an Azure Virtual Machine(s), please refer to the following article: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/deployoffice/overview-shared-computer-activation

    1 person found this answer helpful.

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