Updated: July 15, 2020 (June 20, 2016)

Office Online Server Tightens Edit Licensing

Rob Horwitz analyzes and writes about Microsoft licensing programs and product licensing rules. He also trains organizations on best Microsoft... more

The May 2016 release of Office Online Server tightens licensing rules for editing Office documents in a browser. Office Online Server runs on on-premises servers to provide browser-based viewing and limited editing of Excel, OneNote, PowerPoint, and Word documents stored in SharePoint Server. It replaces Office Web Apps Server 2013, which shipped in late 2012 around the time Office 2013 became available. The rule change means customers who require browser-based editing of Office documents will find it difficult to maintain license compliance unless they purchase Office suites organization-wide through an Enterprise Agreement (EA).

Certain Types of Use Still Free

Both Office Online Server and Office Web Apps Server can be installed in one of two modes. The default mode supports viewing files only; no editing capability is provided. The optional installation mode allows any user to edit, create, and view files.

If Office Online Server or Office Web Apps Server is installed in the default view-only mode, all use is free regardless of user type.

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