How to custom-configure a Microsoft Outlook 2007 install using OCT
It's important to install and configure Microsoft Outlook in a consistent manner throughout
your Exchange Server organization so that users know what to expect when accessing a workstation.
Identical configurations can also help lower support costs. During a Microsoft Office 2007
deployment, the installation wizard doesn't provide many options. This doesn't mean, however, that
you have to manually configure each instance of Outlook after the installation is complete.
Instead, you can use the Office Customization Tool (OCT) to perform custom configurations during
the initial installation. This tip shows you how.
Keep in mind that only the volume license version of Microsoft Office 2007 is equipped with the
Office
Customization Tool.
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This was first published in October 2008
If you attempt to run the Office Customization Tool on other versions of
Office 2007, you'll receive the following error message:
Files necessary to run the Office
Customization Tool were not found. Run Setup from the installation point of a qualifying
product.
Fortunately, there is a workaround. Copy the files from the Office 2007 installation media to a
folder on a network share. Next, download the AdminTemplates.exe
file.
This file contains the administrative templates necessary to control various Office 2007
settings at the Group Policy level as well as the Office Customization Tool. Simply decompress the
file and copy its contents to your network share where the Microsoft Office source files reside.
Once everything is in place, open a Command Prompt window and enter the following command:
\\server_name\share\Setup.exe \admin.
Windows will launch the Office Customization Tool once you enter the Setup command with the
\admin switch. The tool will first ask if you want to create a new setup customization file for
Microsoft Office 2007, or if you would like to open an existing Setup customization file.
Next, choose the option to customize Microsoft Office 2007 and click OK.
At this point, you'll be taken to the screen that is shown in Figure 1. This screen shows that
the Office Customization Tool works a bit differently than most of Microsoft's other tools. While
most of the company's tools are wizard-based (excluding command-line tools), the Office
Customization Tool isn't.
Figure
1. The Office Customization Tool lists the commands you can execute. (Click on image for
enlarged view.)
A wizard-based tool usually forces you to perform steps in a certain order. To move onto the
next step, you generally click Next. The Office Customization Tool, on the other hand, takes
a different approach. Figure 1 shows a column on the left that lists the various tasks that you can
perform. You can click on any of these tasks at any given time to go to them directly.
Useful Microsoft Outlook customization sections
When customizing Microsoft Outlook, the two most interesting areas are the Modify User
Settings section (Figure 2) and the Outlook section.
Figure
2. The Modify User Settings section lets you configure Outlook's features. (Click on image
for enlarged view.)
The Modify User Settings section lets you customize the end-user experience. For example, you
could hide the task list or require that all messages are spell-checked before being sent.
The Outlook section is located near the bottom of the left-hand column. It's primarily
associated with Outlook profiles and can be used to create or modify profiles. This is where you
would specify an Exchange server or add account information to a profile.
Note: The Microsoft Office suite comprises several individual applications. The method
demonstrated in this tip can be used to customize other Microsoft Office applications.
About the author: Brien M. Posey, MCSE, is a five-time recipient of Microsoft's Most Valuable
Professional award for his work with Exchange Server, Windows Server, Internet Information Services
(IIS) and File Systems and Storage. Brien has served as CIO for a nationwide chain of hospitals and
was once responsible for the Department of Information Management at Fort Knox. As a freelance
technical writer, he has written for Microsoft, TechTarget, CNET, ZDNet, MSD2D, Relevant
Technologies and other technology companies. You can visit Brien's personal website at www.brienposey.com.
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