How To Check For Office 365 Updates On Mac

• How To Check For Office 365 Updates On Mac
• 3 Ways To Update Outlook On PC Or Mac - WikiHow

Dec 21, 2020 • Filed to: Solve Mac Problems • Proven solutions

Automatic updates for Office 365 upgrade is enabled by default. To check, navigate to File - Account in any of the Office apps such as Word, Excel, or PowerPoint. Under Office updates, check if the statement 'Updates are automatically downloaded and installed' is present. If it isn't present that means the automatic updates are not enabled. Activate Office 365 versions of Office for Mac. If your organization has an Office 365 (or Microsoft 365) plan, make sure you assign each user a license for Office before you deploy Office for Mac to your users. If you don't assign a user a license, you can still deploy Office for Mac to that user, but the user won't be able to activate and use. Update Office from the Mac App Store. Open the Mac App Store from your Dock or Finder. Click Updates on the left side menu, then click Update All, or the Update button next to the. In the User name field enter your CULoginName@colorado.edu, then enter your IdentiKey password in the Password field. When completed, click Add account.Note: If prompted for a server address, enter outlook.office365.com, then click Add account again.

This is a query from one of the Mac users who can't seem to perform MS Office update on Mac. Since Office is a premium suite of applications developed by Microsoft, Mac users often struggle to use it. A lot of times, Mac blocks the auto-update for third-party apps like MS Office, which causes this problem. Though, there could be numerous other issues related to Microsoft Office update on Mac that you might encounter.

In this guide, we will teach you how to do Microsoft Office update on Mac and overcome numerous other issues related to it.

Part 1. Brief Overview of Microsoft Office on Mac

As you know, Microsoft Office is a premium suite of various utility applications that is available for several platforms. If Mac users want, they can simply download the relevant MS Office suite from its official website. Some of the most popular applications on it are MS Word, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint, MS Access, etc. From working on text-based documents to creating professional slideshows, there are so many things that we can do using the MS Office suite.

Though, if you want to make the most of these applications, then consider updating Office on Mac regularly.

• An updated application will have the needed security packages to keep the tool safe and reliable.
• If there was an issue with a previous version, then an update would be able to fix it.
• You can enjoy all the new features of the applications by updating them.
• The new version would have more extensive compatibility for Mac and other supported tools.
• In most of the cases, a stable update also makes the application run faster and in a more efficient way.
• It will also help in memory and resource optimization of the tool by Mac.

Part 2. How to Update Microsoft Office on Mac?

As you know, since there are so many benefits of doing a Microsoft Office update on Mac, you should also consider the same. Ideally, you can update Word for Mac manually or even enable the automatic update feature as well. Let's get to know how to update Word on Mac in detail. You can follow the same technique for other Office applications too.

Set up Microsoft Office AutoUpdate

This is the easiest solution to update Word for Mac, as it will save your time and efforts in the future. One of the best things about MS Office is that it allows us to turn on the automatic update feature for its apps. By using this feature, you can automatically update Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and other Office applications for Mac as well.

Whenever a new update would be released, the application will install it automatically. Therefore, MS Word would always stay up to date without much effort. To learn how to update Word on Mac automatically, follow these steps:

1. To start with, simply launch the application (like Word or Excel) on your Mac that you wish to update.
2. Now, go to the main menu and visit the 'Help' section. From here, click on the 'Check for Updates' button.
3. The following pop-up would appear, asking how do you like to update the application. Instead of the manual option, enable the 'Automatically Download and Install' feature and save these changes.

2. Do Office Update from the Mac App Store

This is another smart and quick solution to do Microsoft Word update for Mac as well. A while back, Microsoft has made all kinds of utility apps available on the Mac App Store. Therefore, users can just visit the Mac App Store to purchase the Word application or even update is, as per their convenience.

1. Firstly, go to your Mac's App Store. You can access it from the dock or via the Finder.
2. Once the App Store is launched, you can just visit the Office application page and click on the 'Update' button adjacent to its icon.
3. Additionally, you can also visit the 'Updates' section on the App Store (from the top of the left panel). Here, you can view a list of all the applications that are available for update.
4. Locate the MS Office or Office 365 application and click on the 'Update' button to start downloading the latest upgrade.

3. Join the Office Insider for Microsoft Update on Mac

To make it easier for users to be aware of the latest updates of the Microsoft applications, the company has come up with an 'Insider' program. If you want, you can also join the 'Office Insider' feature for free.

Once you have subscribed to it, Microsoft will keep you updated about the available releases, upgrades, and relevant news about the Office applications. Also, it will let you have early access to updates and new product releases as well.

1. To access the Office Insider feature, just launch the MS Word application on Mac and go to Help menu > Check for Updates.
2. Apart from selecting options for manual or automatic updates, there is also a feature stating 'Join the Office Insider program to get early access to new releases'.
3. Just enable this checkbox so that you can join the Office Insider program and get early access to the latest product updates or releases.

Part 3. FAQs about Microsoft Office Update on Mac

By following the above-listed methods, you would be able to do MS Word update on Mac quite easily. Apart from that, a lot of users ask us the following questions about Office Update on Mac that might help you as well.

1. How to Check the Microsoft Office Version on Mac

If you wish to download a utility tool for Office or simply need to be aware of its latest features, then you might need to know its current version first. Thankfully, it is quite easy to know about the current Office version that you are using on your Mac. Simply launch the Office application (like MS Word) and go to its main menu: Word > About Microsoft Word.

A pop-up window will open, listing some details about the MS Office application installed. Here, you can view the version of the Office application that you are using.

2. How to Fix 'Microsoft AutoUpdate Not Working on Mac'

As we have listed above, the easiest way to update Word for Mac is by turning on its AutoUpdate feature. Though, there are times when the AutoUpdate feature doesn't work on Mac. Mostly, it happens when Mac's native firewall disables the update or if a system is connected to an unreliable network. Here's an easy way to fix the Microsoft AutoUpdate issue on Mac.

1. Simply go to Mac's System Preferences and launch the Network Settings. From here, click on the 'Advanced' options.
2. Now, go to the 'DNS' tab and click on the Add ('+') icon, which would be located at the bottom of the window.
3. Here, you need to type two new DNS addresses: 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4 to add them to the network servers.
4. Save these settings and launch MS Word on your Mac again. Go to Help > Check for Updates and click on the 'Install' button to resolve the auto-update issue on Mac.

Apart from that, you can also disable the firewall on Mac, make sure it is connected to a trusted network, or try to manually update Word once. This will hopefully resolve the issue and you would be able to update Office 365 on Mac seamlessly.

Part 4. What If You Lost Data During Office Update on Mac

If the Office update on Mac is halted in between or gets crashed due to any unexpected reason, then chances are that you might end up losing your data as well. If you don't want to suffer from an unexpected situation like this, then keep a data recovery tool handy. Since Recoverit Mac Data Recovery software by Wondershare is one of the best Word recovery tools, we would recommend using it for sure. It doesn't matter what kind of situation you are in or what could have caused the loss of Office documents on Mac, you would be able to extract it easily with Recoverit.

To understand how to retrieve deleted notes on Mac using Recoverit Data Recovery, the following steps can be followed:

Step 1: Select a Location

Firstly, you need to install Recoverit Data Recovery on your Mac by downloading the application from its website. Launch it whenever you want to restore notes on Mac and select a source location to scan. That is, select the native source drive of Mac and click on the 'Start' button.

Step 2: Scan the Location

As the application would start scanning your Mac for the lost notes, you can just wait for a while for the process to be completed. The interface will also display the progress of the entire process for your convenience.

Step 3: Preview and Recover

When the extraction process is completed, the application will notify you. Now, you can just preview and select the files you wish to get back. Click on the 'Recover' button and make sure that you save your notes to a trusted location.

Part 5. Tips for Microsoft Office Update on Mac

To make it easier for you to update Word on Mac, you can consider following these tips and suggestions.

• Set a frequency to check for updates

Even when you have enabled the AutoUpdate feature, you can set a frequency for the application to check for updates. It can be daily, weekly, or monthly. Go to Help > Check for Updates and simply choose either of these options.

• Disable firewall

2. Do Office Update from the Mac App Store

This is another smart and quick solution to do Microsoft Word update for Mac as well. A while back, Microsoft has made all kinds of utility apps available on the Mac App Store. Therefore, users can just visit the Mac App Store to purchase the Word application or even update is, as per their convenience.

1. Firstly, go to your Mac's App Store. You can access it from the dock or via the Finder.
2. Once the App Store is launched, you can just visit the Office application page and click on the 'Update' button adjacent to its icon.
3. Additionally, you can also visit the 'Updates' section on the App Store (from the top of the left panel). Here, you can view a list of all the applications that are available for update.
4. Locate the MS Office or Office 365 application and click on the 'Update' button to start downloading the latest upgrade.

3. Join the Office Insider for Microsoft Update on Mac

To make it easier for users to be aware of the latest updates of the Microsoft applications, the company has come up with an 'Insider' program. If you want, you can also join the 'Office Insider' feature for free.

Once you have subscribed to it, Microsoft will keep you updated about the available releases, upgrades, and relevant news about the Office applications. Also, it will let you have early access to updates and new product releases as well.

1. To access the Office Insider feature, just launch the MS Word application on Mac and go to Help menu > Check for Updates.
2. Apart from selecting options for manual or automatic updates, there is also a feature stating 'Join the Office Insider program to get early access to new releases'.
3. Just enable this checkbox so that you can join the Office Insider program and get early access to the latest product updates or releases.

Part 3. FAQs about Microsoft Office Update on Mac

By following the above-listed methods, you would be able to do MS Word update on Mac quite easily. Apart from that, a lot of users ask us the following questions about Office Update on Mac that might help you as well.

1. How to Check the Microsoft Office Version on Mac

If you wish to download a utility tool for Office or simply need to be aware of its latest features, then you might need to know its current version first. Thankfully, it is quite easy to know about the current Office version that you are using on your Mac. Simply launch the Office application (like MS Word) and go to its main menu: Word > About Microsoft Word.

A pop-up window will open, listing some details about the MS Office application installed. Here, you can view the version of the Office application that you are using.

2. How to Fix 'Microsoft AutoUpdate Not Working on Mac'

As we have listed above, the easiest way to update Word for Mac is by turning on its AutoUpdate feature. Though, there are times when the AutoUpdate feature doesn't work on Mac. Mostly, it happens when Mac's native firewall disables the update or if a system is connected to an unreliable network. Here's an easy way to fix the Microsoft AutoUpdate issue on Mac.

1. Simply go to Mac's System Preferences and launch the Network Settings. From here, click on the 'Advanced' options.
2. Now, go to the 'DNS' tab and click on the Add ('+') icon, which would be located at the bottom of the window.
3. Here, you need to type two new DNS addresses: 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4 to add them to the network servers.
4. Save these settings and launch MS Word on your Mac again. Go to Help > Check for Updates and click on the 'Install' button to resolve the auto-update issue on Mac.

Apart from that, you can also disable the firewall on Mac, make sure it is connected to a trusted network, or try to manually update Word once. This will hopefully resolve the issue and you would be able to update Office 365 on Mac seamlessly.

Part 4. What If You Lost Data During Office Update on Mac

If the Office update on Mac is halted in between or gets crashed due to any unexpected reason, then chances are that you might end up losing your data as well. If you don't want to suffer from an unexpected situation like this, then keep a data recovery tool handy. Since Recoverit Mac Data Recovery software by Wondershare is one of the best Word recovery tools, we would recommend using it for sure. It doesn't matter what kind of situation you are in or what could have caused the loss of Office documents on Mac, you would be able to extract it easily with Recoverit.

To understand how to retrieve deleted notes on Mac using Recoverit Data Recovery, the following steps can be followed:

Step 1: Select a Location

Firstly, you need to install Recoverit Data Recovery on your Mac by downloading the application from its website. Launch it whenever you want to restore notes on Mac and select a source location to scan. That is, select the native source drive of Mac and click on the 'Start' button.

Step 2: Scan the Location

As the application would start scanning your Mac for the lost notes, you can just wait for a while for the process to be completed. The interface will also display the progress of the entire process for your convenience.

Step 3: Preview and Recover

When the extraction process is completed, the application will notify you. Now, you can just preview and select the files you wish to get back. Click on the 'Recover' button and make sure that you save your notes to a trusted location.

Part 5. Tips for Microsoft Office Update on Mac

To make it easier for you to update Word on Mac, you can consider following these tips and suggestions.

• Set a frequency to check for updates

Even when you have enabled the AutoUpdate feature, you can set a frequency for the application to check for updates. It can be daily, weekly, or monthly. Go to Help > Check for Updates and simply choose either of these options.

• Disable firewall

Sometimes, Mac's native firewall can stop Office to download the needed updates. Therefore, if you are not able to install updates on Mac, then disable its firewall for a while. Once the update is installed, you can turn it on again.

• Use a secure connection

If you are connected to a public network, then you might encounter security issues while updating MS Office on Mac. To avoid this, make sure your Mac is connected to a trusted network, to begin with.

• Update the entire suite

Instead of updating individual Office apps, you can consider updating the entire suite as well. This will let you have consistency between different applications.

• Take a backup before update

Sometimes, we can experience unwanted data loss during a failed update of applications. To avoid this, it is better to take a backup of your important files beforehand.

Conclusion

After following this guide, you would certainly be able to do Microsoft Office update on Mac without any trouble. Apart from listing a guide on how to update Word on Mac, we have also made you familiar with numerous tips and suggestions related to it. If you don't want to suffer from the loss of your important documents, then make sure you have Recoverit Data Recovery application installed. It will let you get back lost or deleted files from your Mac in an effortless manner.

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One of the benefits of Microsoft 365 Apps is that Microsoft provides new (and updated) features for Office apps, such as Excel and Word, on a regular basis. You can control how often the users in your organization get these new features by specifying the update channel.

In addition to new features, update channels provide, as needed, security and non-security updates on a regular basis, every month. Non-security updates provide fixes for known issues and provide stability or performance improvements for Office.

There are three primary update channels:

We recommend Current Channel, because it provides your users with the newest Office features as soon as they are ready. If you need additional predictability of when these new Office features are released each month, we recommend Monthly Enterprise Channel. In those cases where you have select devices that require extensive testing before receiving new features, we recommend Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.

But, we realize that there are multiple factors that will determine which update channel you select for your deployment of Microsoft 365 Apps. For example, network bandwidth utilization, end-user training and support, line-of-business applications, and other organizational requirements.

Comparison of the update channels for Microsoft 365 Apps

The following table provides a comparison of Current Channel, Monthly Enterprise Channel, and Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.

¹ For a list of release dates for these update channels, including version and build numbers, see Update history for Microsoft 365 Apps.

² For information about what feature updates and non-security updates are included in a given release of these update channels, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps releases.

³ For a list of security updates included in a given release of these update channels, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps Security Updates

⁴ For a table that shows which version and build is currently supported for each of these update channels, see Update history for Microsoft 365 Apps.

Note

• To ensure that you have the most up-to-date security and non-security updates, we recommend that you always update to the most current version and build available for your update channel.
• To simplify update management, we recommend that you configure devices to get Office updates directly from the Office Content Delivery Network (CDN) on the internet. For more information, including implications for network bandwidth utilization, see Managing updates.

Current Channel overview

We recommend Current Channel, because it provides your users with the newest Office features as soon as they are ready. Current Channel usually receives new features at least once a month, but there is no set schedule for when those updates are released.

Current Channel also receives other updates during the month, which include security and non-security updates. There is no set schedule for these updates, but in general there are two or three releases each month, including one on the second Tuesday of the month.

Feature updates for Current Channel

New, or updated, features for Current Channel usually are released every month. There is no set schedule for when a feature update for Current Channel occurs. A feature update for Current Channel is made available only when various release criteria are met, including criteria related to stability and performance.

In some cases, a new feature is made available only to a subset of users as the feature is gradually rolled out in Current Channel.

For a list of feature updates included in a given release of Current Channel, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps releases.

Preview upcoming new features of Current Channel

To become familiar with the new features coming in the next feature release of Current Channel, we recommend that you use Current Channel (Preview).

There isn't a set release schedule for Current Channel (Preview). In general, a new version of Current Channel (Preview) with new features is released at least a week or more before that new version is released to Current Channel. There might be several releases of Current Channel (Preview), with non-security updates, before that version is released to Current Channel.

You should deploy Current Channel (Preview) to a small, representative sample of users in your organization. This can help you identify any possible issues for your organization before those new features are released more broadly to your users that have Current Channel.

We also encourage you to use Current Channel (Preview) so that you can identify any possible issues that you want us to fix before that version is released to Current Channel. This can help reduce the number of non-security updates that are needed for Current Channel.

Security updates for Current Channel

If needed, security updates for Current Channel are released on the second Tuesday of the month.Security updates are cumulative. The most current release of Current Channel includes the security updates from previous releases of Current Channel.

Separate downloads of just security updates for Current Channel aren't available. Also, new security updates aren't provided for versions of Current Channel that are no longer supported.

For a list of security updates included in a given release of Current Channel, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps Security Updates.

Non-security updates for Current Channel

If needed, non-security updates are provided for Current Channel. Non-security updates provide fixes for known issues and provide stability or performance improvements for Office.

There is no set schedule for when non-security updates are released for Current Channel. Non-security updates are usually included with the following releases:

• When a new version of Current Channel is released with new features
• When security updates are released on the second Tuesday of the month

Non-security updates can be released at other times. For example, to fix an issue with a new feature that was recently released. In general, Current Channel can get two or three updates per month that contain only non-security updates.

We also encourage you to use Current Channel (Preview) so that you can identify any possible issues that you want us to fix before that version is released to Current Channel. This can help reduce the number of non-security updates that are needed for Current Channel.

Non-security updates are cumulative. The most current release of Current Channel includes the non-security updates from previous releases of Current Channel.

Separate downloads of just non-security updates for Current Channel aren't available. Also, new non-security updates aren't provided for versions of Current Channel that are no longer supported. They are listed as 'Resolved issues.'

For a list of non-security updates included in a given release of Current Channel, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps releases. They are listed as 'Resolved issues.'

Support duration for Current Channel

Any given version of Current Channel is supported only until the next version of Current Channel is released, which is usually every month. For example, Version 2004 is supported until Version 2005 is released. To see which version of Current Channel is currently supported, refer to the table at the top of Update history for Microsoft 365 Apps.

Monthly Enterprise Channel overview

We recommend Monthly Enterprise Channel if you want to provide your users with new Office features each month, but only want to receive one update per month on a predictable release schedule.

Updates to Monthly Enterprise Channel are released on the second Tuesday of the month. This monthly update can include feature, security, and non-security updates.

Feature updates for Monthly Enterprise Channel

New, or updated, features are released in Monthly Enterprise Channel on the second Tuesday of the month. These new features are features that are already available to all users in Current Channel. Separate downloads of just feature updates for Monthly Enterprise Channel aren't available.

Features that are currently in Current Channel need to meet certain release criteria before they are included in a feature update for Monthly Enterprise Channel. Because of this, some features that are in Current Channel aren't included right away in the next available feature update for Monthly Enterprise Channel.

For a list of feature updates included in a given release of Monthly Enterprise Channel, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps releases.

Preview upcoming new features of Monthly Enterprise Channel

There is no dedicated preview channel for Monthly Enterprise Channel, like there is for Current Channel and for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.

To become familiar with the new features in a monthly feature release of Monthly Enterprise Channel, you can have a representative sample of users in your organization download and start using the new version as soon as it becomes available on the Office CDN. Then, let the new version roll out to the remainder of your organization over the course of several days as Office automatically becomes aware that a new version is available on the Office CDN.

If you're thinking of using Current Channel as your preview channel, be aware that new features you see in Current Channel aren't necessarily the same new features you'll see in the next monthly feature update for Monthly Enterprise Channel. That's because Current Channel can contain new features that are only available to a subset of users as the feature is gradually rolled out. Monthly Enterprise Channel will only contain features that have been completely rolled out in Current Channel. Therefore, a new feature that's available in Current Channel might not be available in Monthly Enterprise Channel for several months, because the feature is still being rolled out in Current Channel.

Security updates for Monthly Enterprise Channel

If needed, security updates for Monthly Enterprise Channel are released on the second Tuesday of the month.

Security updates are cumulative. The most current release of Monthly Enterprise Channel includes the security updates from previous releases of Monthly Enterprise Channel.

Separate downloads of just security updates for Monthly Enterprise Channel aren't available. Also, new security updates aren't provided for versions of Monthly Enterprise Channel that are no longer supported.

Alexa static mac address. For a list of security updates included in a given release of Monthly Enterprise Channel, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps Security Updates.

Non-security updates for Monthly Enterprise Channel

If needed, non-security updates for Monthly Enterprise Channel are provided on the second Tuesday of the month. Non-security updates provide fixes for known issues and provide stability or performance improvements for Office.

If there is a critical issue that needs to be fixed sooner, such as one related to data loss, we will provide an updated release with the fix, instead of waiting for the next scheduled monthly update.

Non-security updates are cumulative. The most current release of Monthly Enterprise Channel includes the non-security updates from previous releases of Monthly Enterprise Channel.

Separate downloads of just non-security updates for Monthly Enterprise Channel aren't available. Also, new non-security updates aren't provided for versions of Monthly Enterprise Channel that are no longer supported.

For a list of non-security updates included in a given release of Monthly Enterprise Channel, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps releases. They are listed as 'Resolved issues.'

Support duration for Monthly Enterprise Channel

Any given version of Monthly Enterprise Channel is supported for two months. For example, the version of Monthly Enterprise Channel that is released on the second Tuesday of August is supported until the second Tuesday of October.

At any given time, there are always two versions of Monthly Enterprise Channel that are supported. To see which versions of Monthly Enterprise Channel are currently supported, refer to the table at the top of Update history for Microsoft 365 Apps.

Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel overview

We recommend Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel only for those select devices in your organization where extensive testing is needed before rolling out new Office features. For example, to comply with regulatory, governmental, or other organizational requirements. Or, in those cases where there are other reasons why your organization can't provide your users with new Office features on a more frequent basis than twice a year.

Updates to Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel are released on the second Tuesday of the month. In January and July, the monthly update can include feature, security, and non-security updates. In other months, the update can include security and non-security updates.

Feature updates for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel

New, or updated, features are released in Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel twice a year, on the second Tuesday in January and July. New features aren't added to Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel at any other time. Separate downloads of just feature updates for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel aren't available.

These new features are features that are already available to all users in Monthly Enterprise Channel. Features that are currently in Monthly Enterprise Channel need to meet certain release criteria before they are included in a feature update for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel. Because of this, some features that are in Monthly Enterprise Channel aren't included right away in the next available feature update for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.

For a list of feature updates included in a given release of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps releases.

Preview upcoming new features of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel

To become familiar with the new features coming in the next feature release of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel, we recommend that you use Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview).

Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview) is released with new features twice a year, on the second Tuesday in March and September. This provides you with four months before those same new features are released in Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel. Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview) also receives, if needed, security and non-security updates every month, on the second Tuesday of the month.

You should deploy Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview) to a small, representative sample of users in your organization. This can help you identify any possible issues for your organization before those new features are released more broadly to your users that have Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.

We also encourage you to use Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview) so that you can identify any possible issues that you want us to fix in the four months before that version is released to Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel. Once a version is released to Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel, the approval process for non-security updates becomes even more rigorous.

Security updates for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel

If needed, security updates for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel are released on the second Tuesday of the month.

Security updates are cumulative. The most current release of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel includes the security updates from previous releases of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.

Separate downloads of just security updates for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel aren't available. Also, new security updates aren't provided for versions of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel that are no longer supported.

For a list of security updates included in a given release of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps Security Updates.

Non-security updates for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel

If needed, non-security updates for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel are provided on the second Tuesday of the month. Non-security updates provide fixes for known issues and provide stability or performance improvements for Office.

If there is a critical issue that needs to be fixed sooner, such as one related to data loss, we will provide an updated release with the fix, instead of waiting for the next scheduled monthly update.

We tend to provide fewer non-security updates for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel than the other update channels. In part, that's because most issues are identified, thanks to customer feedback, and fixed when the features are rolled out earlier in the other update channels, such as Current Channel and Monthly Enterprise Channel. Also, many customers have asked us to provide an update channel that doesn't change often, because changes could require them to do another round of compliance testing. So, before we approve the release of any non-security updates to Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel, we carefully assess the impact of introducing the change to the update channel. Critical issues that result in data loss, or significantly affect a large number of customers using Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel, are likely to be approved. We also encourage you to use Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview), so that you can identify any possible issues you want us to fix in the four months before that version is released to Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.

Non-security updates are cumulative. The most current release of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel includes the non-security updates from previous releases of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.

Separate downloads of just non-security updates for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel aren't available. Also, new non-security updates aren't provided for versions of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel that are no longer supported.

For a list of non-security updates included in a given release of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel, see Release notes for Microsoft 365 Apps releases. They are listed as 'Resolved issues.'

Support duration for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel

Any given version of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel is supported for fourteen months. This means that the new version of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel that is released in January is supported until March of the following year, and the July release is supported until September of the following year.

At any given time, there are always two versions of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel that are supported. To see which versions of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel are currently supported, refer to the table at the top of Update history for Microsoft 365 Apps.

The longer support duration for Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel is intended to provide more time and flexibility for those organizations that have devices that require extensive testing before rolling out new Office features. For example, in those cases where organizations have to comply with specific regulatory, governmental, or other organizational requirements. The longer support duration gives these organizations the ability to deploy new features only once a year if needed.

How to configure and manage update channels

Update channels are device-specific and apply only to installations of Office on devices running Windows. The choice of an update channel for a device is not a setting that follows the user from device to device. For example, if a user works on different devices running Windows, those devices could be configured to use different update channels. That means the user could have access to different Office features depending on which device they're using. Mac maximize window shortcut.

Also, you can only configure one update channel for a device. For example, if you're installing Office, Project, and Visio on the same device, they all must use the same update channel. You can't have a mix of update channels on the same device.

Not all devices in your organization have to be configured with the same update channel. For example, IT staff and application developers might be on Current Channel (Preview), so that they can try out upcoming new Office features, while the rest of the organization is on Monthly Enterprise Channel. If you decide to implement different update channels within your organization, keep in mind that groups of users might have access to different features depending on which update channel they're on, which might make collaborating between groups of users more difficult.

Default update channel

Each subscription product is configured with a default update channel. If you don't specify the update channel when you install the product by itself on a device, the product will be configured to use the default update channel.

Current Channel is the default update channel for Microsoft 365 Apps for business and the subscription versions of the Project and Visio desktop apps.

As of June 9, 2020, Current Channel is also the default channel for Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise in most cases. For more information, see Change to the default update channel for Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise.

Configure the update channel

How To Check For Office 365 Updates On Mac

Office Deployment Tool

You can use the Office Deployment Tool and specify the Channel attribute in your configuration file. There is a Channel attribute available in the Add element and in the Updates element. For more information, see Configuration options for the Office Deployment Tool.

Group Policy

You can download the Administrative Template files (ADMX/ADML) and enable the Update Channel policy setting. When you enable the policy setting, you can select the appropriate update channel from a drop-down list. You can find this policy setting under Computer ConfigurationPoliciesAdministrative TemplatesMicrosoft Office 2016 (Machine)Updates.

Microsoft 365 admin center

If you allow your users to install Office for themselves from the portal, you can specify which update channel they install. To do that, sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin center with your admin account, go to Show all > Settings > Org settings > Services > Office installation options, and then choose the appropriate update channel for your users. This setting applies to all users in your tenant and only applies to users that install Office for themselves from the portal.

Manage the update channel

After Office is installed, you can change the update channel for a device. For more information on how to do that, see Change the Microsoft 365 Apps update channel for devices in your organization. Keep in mind that if you change the update channel for the device, the features that the user has access to will change. For example, if you move the device from Current Channel to Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel, the user might lose access to features that they've been using, because those features aren't available yet in Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.

Additional information about update channels for Microsoft 365 Apps

Other products

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• These update channels also apply to the subscription versions of the Project and Visio desktop apps. For example, if you have Project Plan 3 or Visio Plan 2.
• OneDrive and Microsoft Teams have their own update cadences that are separate from these update channels. For more information, see The OneDrive sync app update process and Teams update process.
• If you're deploying Office Professional Plus 2019 or Office Standard 2019, which are volume licensed versions of Office, there is a different update channel you need to use. For more information, see Update channel for Office 2019.
• If you have a home subscription of Office, such as Microsoft 365 Family or Microsoft 365 Personal, the only update channels available to you are Current Channel and the update channels available through the Office Insider program.

Managing updates

• To simplify managing updates, especially for Current Channel and Monthly Enterprise Channel, we recommend that you configure devices to receive updates directly from the Office Content Delivery Network (CDN) on the internet.
• If you configure devices to get updates directly from the Office CDN, and those devices are running Windows 10, you can take advantage of Delivery Optimization to help reduce network bandwidth utilization.
• When we make a new release available on the Office CDN, we gradually advertise the availability of this release over a period of several days to devices worldwide that have Office installed. This way not all devices in your organization will try to access the Office CDN at the same time to download the new release, which could possibly cause network bandwidth utilization issues.
• For examples of approximate update sizes when updating from a recent release to the most current release of an update channel, see Download sizes for updates to Microsoft 365 Apps.
• If you use Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, you can manage updates for these update channels by using the Software Update management workflow. For more information, see Manage updates to Microsoft 365 Apps with Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager.

Version and build information

• To see the update channel that Office is configured for, open an Office app, such as Word, and go to File > Account. The name of the update channel appears in the Product Information section under the About heading. The version and build number for the update channel are also shown there.
• When an update channel release contains feature updates, the version number is updated. For example, from Version 2004 to Version 2005. If a release contains only new security updates or new non-security updates, then only the build number gets updated and the version number remains the same.

Support duration for other update channels

• Any given version of Current Channel (Preview) is supported only until the next version of Current Channel (Preview) is released, which is usually every month. For example, Version 2004 is supported until Version 2005 is released.
• Any given version of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview) is supported for only six months. This coincides with how often Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview) is updated with new features. For example, the version of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview) that is released in March with new features is supported until September, which is the next time new features are released in Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview). The September release is supported until the following March. To see what version of Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview) is currently supported, refer to the table at the top of Update history for Microsoft 365 Apps.

Office Insider program

• The Office Insider program gives you early access to Office features through these update channels: Beta Channel and Current Channel (Preview). For more information, see Office Insider for Business.
• Beta Channel, which was previously named Insider (and sometimes referred to as Insider Fast), provides access to new features even before they are available in Current Channel (Preview). But, Beta Channel is not supported so should only be used in test environments and by a small group of select users, such as IT staff or application developers.