Description of the versions of the Microsoft Office client software that are supported in Windows Server 2008

This article describes the versions of Microsoft Office that are supported in Windows Server 2008 (32-bit and 64-bit versions). This support includes deployment of Office client products in a Terminal Services environment in Windows Server 2008.

Microsoft Office XP, Microsoft Office 2003, the 2007 Microsoft Office suites, and Microsoft Office 2010 are all supported in Windows Server 2008. The 2007 Office suites with Service Pack 1 (or a later service pack) were extensively tested in Windows Server 2008 for optimal compatibility. Office 2010 is supported on the R2 release of Windows Server 2008.  The support of these Office products in Windows Server 2008 includes support of deployment through a Windows Server 2008-based terminal server.

Notes

• Although client products are supported in Windows Server products, for the best results, we recommend that a client version of Windows be used as the platform for these client products.
• Office 2000 (and earlier releases of Office) were not tested and are not supported in Windows Server 2008.
• For additional details on the system requirements for Office 2010, please read the information in the Office 2010 Resource Kit at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee624351.aspx (http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee624351.aspx) .

Because Office XP and Office 2003 are on Extended Support status, there are no fixes for issues that occur when these products are run in Windows Server 2008. For more information about the support policy for these and other versions of Office, visit the following Microsoft Web site: Because these versions of Office are on Extended Support status, no more service packs will be released for them.

The 2007 Office suites (with Service Pack 1 or a later service pack) are designed to run in Windows Server 2008. Therefore, the 2007 Office suites are the recommended and optimal versions of Office for this platform. Office 2010 products are designed to run in Windows Server 2008 R2.  The Office 2010 products are recommended on the R2 release of Windows Server 2008.  For more information about applications that are supported in Windows Server 2008, visit the following Microsoft Web site:For more information about Microsoft Support Lifecycle policies, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

Known issue

If the Windows Desktop Experience component of Windows Server 2008 is not installed, some file operations may not function correctly. In the default configuration of Windows Server 2008, this component is not installed. 

To install Windows Desktop Experience, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Server Manager.
2. In Server Manager, click Add Features under Features Summary.
3. In the Add Features Wizard dialog box, make sure that the Desktop Experience option is selected.
4. Click Next, and then click Install.
5. After the installation process is complete, click Close, and then exit Server Manager.

Note After you install Windows Desktop Experience, you must restart the computer.

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