Office 365 FAQ

What is Office 365? How is it different from Microsoft Office?

“Office 365” refers to subscription plans that include access to Office applications plus other productivity services that are enabled over the Internet (cloud services), such as Skype for Business, Exchange Online hosted email for business, additional online storage with OneDrive and Skype world minutes for home.

Many Office 365 plans also include the desktop version of the latest Office applications, which users can install across multiple computers and devices. The Office 365 plans that are online-only are a great choice for certain business needs, and they are compatible with desktop versions of the latest version of Office, Office 2010, Office 2007 (with slightly limited functionality), Office 2011 for Mac, and Office 2008 for Mac.

All Office 365 plans are paid for on a subscription basis, monthly or annually.

“Microsoft Office” is the name still used for the familiar productivity software. Office suites have traditionally included applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. All the new Office suites (for example, Office Standard 2013) include the latest versions of these applications. These suites can be installed on only one PC and do not come with any cloud-based services included in Office 365.

Will Office 365 work with my existing copy of Office?

Office 365 works best with the latest version of Office, Office 2010, and Office 2011 for Mac. Office 365 works with slightly limited functionality with Office 2007. If you have an earlier edition of Office, you will need to update to a newer version of Office in order to use Office 365; or you can subscribe to one of the many Office 365 plans that include the latest version of Office. In addition to getting the latest version of Office as part of your subscription, you will also get automatic updates, so your Office will always be up to date

Is Internet access required to use Office 365?

Yes. Internet access is required to install and activate all Office 365 plans and to manage your subscription account. Internet connectivity is also required to access Office 365 cloud productivity services, including email, conferencing, IT management, and other services.

Many Office 365 plans also include the desktop version of Office, One of the benefits of having the desktop version of Office applications is that you can work offline and have the confidence that the next time you connect to the Internet all your work will automatically sync, so you never have to worry about your documents being up to date. Your desktop version of Office is also automatically kept up to date and upgraded when you connect to the Internet, so you always have the latest tools to help you work.

What is the Cloud?

“The cloud” is a friendly way of describing web-based computing services that are hosted outside of your organization. When you use cloud-based services, your IT infrastructure resides off your property (off-premises), and is maintained by a third party (hosted), instead of residing on a server at your home or business (on-premises) that you maintain. With Office 365, for example, information storage, computation, and software are located and managed remotely on servers owned by Microsoft. Many services you use every day are a part of the cloud—everything from web-based email to mobile banking and online photo storage. Because this infrastructure is located online or “in the cloud,” you can access it virtually anywhere, from a PC, tablet, smartphone, or other device with an Internet connection.

What mobile apps are available for Office?

Office for Android™: View, create and edit documents with touch-friendly Word, Excel and PowerPoint apps. You can count on Office for Android to keep your content and formatting intact so the document looks great when you’re back on your PC or Mac. In Word, add comments or track changes while you work together with others. Review and update Excel spread sheets and easily add formulas or charts. Make changes to PowerPoint presentations and project them wirelessly on a big screen. You can view documents for free with Office for Android. Editing and creating documents requires an eligible Office 365 subscription

Office for iPad®: View, create and edit documents with touch-friendly Word, Excel and PowerPoint apps. You can count on Office for iPad to keep your content and formatting intact so the document looks great when you’re back on your PC or Mac. In Word, add comments or track changes while you work together with others. Review and update Excel spread sheets and easily add formulas or charts. Make changes to PowerPoint presentations and project them wirelessly on a big screen.
You can view documents for free with Office for iPad. Editing and creating documents requires an eligible Office 365 subscription

Office Mobile: Office Mobile is preinstalled on Windows Phone 8 and is available for select models of iPhone® and Android phones. Office Mobile offers great Office content viewing and on-the-go content editing capabilities. And you can count on Office Mobile to keep your content and formatting intact so the document still looks great when you’re back on your PC or Mac. Office Mobile for iPhone and Android phones can be used for free for non-commercial use, simply download the app from the store on your phone.
In order to edit or create documents or to access documents stored in SharePoint and OneDrive for Business on premises, you must have a qualifying Office 365 plan

Outlook Mobile: Windows Phone 8 includes a pre-installed version of Outlook that you can use to access your Outlook.com, Office 365, or Exchange email.

OneNote: You can use the mobile OneNote app to access your notes while on the go. This app is available on Windows Phone 8, iPhone, iPad, and Android phones.

OWA: If you have an Office 365 subscription that includes Exchange Online, you can use the OWA app to sort, scan, and respond to email, and stay on top of your schedule. This app is available on iPhone and iPad.

What if I already own a domain name and want to use it with Office 365?

You can add the domain name you own to Office 365 to create domain-based email addresses.

Can I switch to other Office 365 plans?

Yes. If you need to upgrade, you can transition your account to a different plan.

Can I mix and match different Office 365 plans?

Yes, you can mix and match Office 365 plans. Please note that there are some license limitations at the plan level. The Office 365 Business, Business Essentials, and Business Premium plans each have a limit of 300 users, while the Enterprise plans are for an unlimited number of users.

Can I cancel my subscription at any time?

You can cancel your subscription at any time. However, depending on the product and the type of subscription you have, there may be a penalty for cancelling before the end of your contract. For subscriptions with a monthly commitment payment, there is no penalty for cancelling your contract at any time. Annual commitment subscriptions that are paid month to month may incur some penalties if cancelled early.

What happens to my data if I cancel my subscription?

Your data is yours. If you decide to cancel your Office 365 subscription, you can download your data—for example, your email and documents on team sites—and save it to another location. You should save your data before you cancel. After you cancel your subscription, data associated with your Office 365 account will be available to your administrator(s) in a limited function account for 90 days.

I’m running Windows Vista or Windows XP. Will I have any limitations?

Office 365 Business, Business Essentials, and Business Premium support Windows Vista and Windows XP for most web-based functionality. However, they do not support the download and use of the latest version of Office software, and you cannot substitute Office 2010 for the latest version. You can connect your existing Office 2010 or Office 2007 software to the Office 365 service, but if you are running Windows Vista or Windows XP, you cannot install Office 365 Business, Business Essentials, and Business Premium software, and you cannot replace Office 365 Business, Business Essentials, or Business Premium software with a download of Office 2010.

I want to get going. Who can help me with this process?

We can. At Labyrinth IT Solutions all our staff are trained in guiding you through the sign up process and setting up your new account. We are with you every step of the way.