Understanding Office 365 Shared Computer Activation

Office 365 ProPlus, the Office suite included in many Office 365 subscription plans, requires that installs of the software be activated for each user of the software. Shared computer activation, first available in 2014, allows multiple users to activate the Office 365 ProPlus desktop suite on a single instance of Windows, without creating activation conflicts between users. This can be important when using Office 365 ProPlus on server-based desktops and on shared computers such as call center workstations. However, the use of shared computer activation brings an additional Office deployment scenario that organizations will need to plan for before they deploy Office 365 ProPlus internally.

Normal Office 365 ProPlus Activation

Office 365 ProPlus is licensed on a subscription basis with User Subscription Licenses (User SLs). By default, the Office 365 ProPlus applications are view-only when initially installed. The software allows users to open and view documents, but not create or edit them, unless the software is activated by a user with Office 365 credentials that have been assigned a license to Office 365 ProPlus. To activate, users sign in to the software with their Office 365 credentials, which Microsoft validates to ensure the user is licensed correctly. Ongoing reactivation is required approximately every 30 days. (Organizations can configure directory integration so that users sign in to Windows using the same set of credentials as Office 365, which can make activation transparent to the user.)