Managing IT environments in enterprises often requires installing or replicating specific software versions to troubleshoot customer issues or conduct tests. I recently faced a situation where I needed to install a specific version of Office 365. In this blog, I'll share my experience and the tips I learned.

The Challenge

My customer reported an issue with a particular version of Word (version 16.0.15601.20626). To replicate and address this issue, we needed to install the same version of Office in our environment.

The Solution: Using the Office Deployment Tool

After some research, I found that the Office Deployment Tool (ODT) is the best way to install a specific version of Office. ODT allows for precise control over the installation and configuration of Office through an XML configuration file.

Step 1: Determining the Version Information

First, I needed to determine the exact Office version used by the customer. By visiting the Office 365 Version, I found the corresponding version number and confirmed it was part of the Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.

Step 2: Configuring the XML File

Next, I created the following XML configuration file, specifying the version, channel, language, and other settings of Office:

<Configuration>
  <Add OfficeClientEdition="64" Channel="SemiAnnual" Version="16.0.15601.20626">
    <Product ID="O365ProPlusRetail">
      <Language ID="en-us" />
    </Product>
  </Add>
  <Updates Enabled="FALSE" />
</Configuration>

This configuration ensured that I installed the correct version and kept the version consistent by disabling automatic updates with <Updates Enabled="FALSE" />.

Step 3: Running the Office Deployment Tool

The final step was to execute the installation. This required using the command line interface to run the Office Deployment Tool, pointing it to the configuration file I just created. The specific command is as follows:

setup.exe /configure configuration-Office365-x64.xml

This command initiates the installation of Office 365 according to the parameters defined in the configuration-Office365-x64.xml file, including the specified version and the disabled auto-update option.

Through this step, Office 365 begins to install based on our preset configuration. The process may take some time, depending on network speed and computer performance.

I hope this blog helps IT professionals who need to install a specific version of Office 365. If you have any questions or want to share your own experiences, please leave a comment!