Office 365 update has installed extra software (access / publisher etc...)

Freefaller · 4 Aug 2022 at 14:44

Hi all,

I have an office 365 family licence, and I installed it with a configuration xml to exclude access and publisher. Office updated recently and re-installed access and publisher!

Because it's click to run there's no individual elements I can remove - I wonder if there's any trick that you guys know of that can help with removing some of the individual elements? I can't seem to find anything that helps.

I'm going to try installing again using an offline installer - but I fear as soon as I run the update it'll just install all the extra gubbins!

cheers guys

Feek · 4 Aug 2022 at 15:27

If you grab the installer, run it and select 'custom', does it allow you to de-select the ones you don't want and then remove them?

Freefaller · 4 Aug 2022 at 15:48

Feek said:
If you grab the installer, run it and select 'custom', does it allow you to de-select the ones you don't want and then remove them?

No unfortunately there is no custom option. Click to run removes that completely.

Because it's a "click to run" you have to use the configuration xml file which I did. However the update installed at the stuff I removed from the configuration file!

The other option is not updating office, but that's often not wise!

Freefaller · 4 Aug 2022 at 19:32

I spoke to MS it seems you install it all or nothing. Ah well it doesn't take too much space.

Just seems daft to install stuff you don't need. I don't even know what publisher does!

Rroff · 4 Aug 2022 at 19:40

Sadly increasingly the way MS is going with software and people largely just accept it

(Some even defend it - I have no idea why unless they work for MS).

Freefaller · 4 Aug 2022 at 20:25

Rroff said:
Sadly increasingly the way MS is going with software and people largely just accept it

(Some even defend it - I have no idea why unless they work for MS).

Ah fair enough. Part of me wonders if I should have kept my 2016 versions, but I got a cheap upgrade last year for 365 and could use it with 6 computers across the home which makes life a little easier.

Adobe is even worse. You'd have thought for SaaS things would get cheaper not more expensive?!

andshrew · 5 Aug 2022 at 20:33

I'm not certain but the configuration.xml may only work properly for Enterprise and Business versions of 365 (ie. it will install fine for you but when you log in and activate your license it gets automatically reconfigured because you're using a consumer tier account, so it will "update" to the personal/family edition and install everything that version should have). I've never seen installs deployed using the configuration.xml re-configure themselves like you describe without someone manually running the installer on them, or something like that - never from regular updates.

Freefaller · 5 Aug 2022 at 23:22

I guess you're right. It must just be a licence based thing. MS have all but confirmed it. In the grand scheme of things it's not a big deal. I guess it's an old habit of just installing the bare minimum I need.