[DISCUSSION] Microsoft Office 2019

Hi All!
Is someone able to pinpoint to me where I can find Office 2019 telemetry removal scripts or reg items?
TIA

 

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Thanks for all of the help brilliant info indeed.

 

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Yeah, download works. Try to install.

 

I don’t have problems on downloading and installing 19, 21 & 24 VL versions. I thought you were having downloading problems only. On installing did you try/use the latest setup tool?

 

I also had that issue with O2019VL...download fine but error installing,,,

 

Yup my fault.
Downloading the 2019 Office files via /download switch works.
but
installing 2019 either via CDN or from the downloaded repo don't work since some weeks.
I'm using the latest ODT setup.exe file
thx @patapout for confirming.

 

After few tries , it work again now for 2019VL
I used "Office(R)Tool" with compatible mode (old_setup.exe) download and install ok...
Same thing but w/o compatible mode (latest_setup.exe) download ok but error installing !!

 

I also discovored yesterday that installing Office 2019VL via Office-R-Tool works.
But what do you mean with compatible mode?

 

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My Outlook 2013 stopped connecting to Outlook.com September 2024, on Windows 11. Is there any way to make Outlook 2013 connect again? I have Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2013 activated. Should I install Outlook 2019 or another version? Should I buy Outlook over again?

 

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Why would I prefer or want a manual removal over automatic removal? TIA

 

No one should
it's just the old post reference before Scrubber script was created

 

Regarding the YAOCTRI script, I've installed Office 2024 LTSC and choose to disable telemetry (7. Disable Telemetry: True). I've copied the source code incl my config file to ChatGPT and asked which Telemetry, Cloud services etc it knows which are not included in the YAOCTRI script and would fit my installation.

Below, I've added the script that ChatGPT has created for me (a post-YAOCTRI script).
What do you guys think about it? My skills are pretty basic...


Update: I've worked a bit more on the script and added an host entry and undo feature:

Spoiler: PostYAOCTRI-PrivacyHardening_V1.3.PS1

Code:

<#
.SYNOPSIS
Radical Office-only privacy & telemetry lockdown (post-YAOCTRI) script with optional host blocking.
.DESCRIPTION
Applies aggressive privacy, telemetry, cloud, OneDrive, and add-in restrictions
for MS Office while keeping manual updates possible. Optionally adds/removes host entries.
#>

# Ensure script runs as admin
If (-Not ([Security.Principal.WindowsPrincipal] [Security.Principal.WindowsIdentity]::GetCurrent()).IsInRole([Security.Principal.WindowsBuiltInRole] "Administrator")) {
    Write-Error "Please run this script as Administrator."
    Exit 1
}

# Function to add host entries
function Add-OfficeHosts {
    param (
        [string]$hostsPath = "$env:windir\System32\drivers\etc\hosts"
    )

    $hostsToAdd = @(
        "127.0.0.1 telemetry.office.com       # Blocks Office telemetry",
        "127.0.0.1 oneclient.sfx.ms           # Blocks OneDrive/Cloud integration",
        "127.0.0.1 clientconfig.microsoft.com # Blocks auto configuration updates from Microsoft",
        "127.0.0.1 officecdn.microsoft.com    # Blocks online templates and content downloads",
        "127.0.0.1 insights.office.com        # Disables Office Insights / analysis features",
        "127.0.0.1 help.office.com            # Blocks online help/documentation"
    )

    foreach ($entry in $hostsToAdd) {
        $existing = Get-Content $hostsPath -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
        if (-not ($existing -contains $entry)) {
            Add-Content -Path $hostsPath -Value $entry
        }
    }
}

# Function to remove host entries added by this script
function Remove-OfficeHosts {
    param (
        [string]$hostsPath = "$env:windir\System32\drivers\etc\hosts"
    )

    $hostsToRemove = @(
        "127.0.0.1 telemetry.office.com       # Blocks Office telemetry",
        "127.0.0.1 oneclient.sfx.ms           # Blocks OneDrive/Cloud integration",
        "127.0.0.1 clientconfig.microsoft.com # Blocks auto configuration updates from Microsoft",
        "127.0.0.1 officecdn.microsoft.com    # Blocks online templates and content downloads",
        "127.0.0.1 insights.office.com        # Disables Office Insights / analysis features",
        "127.0.0.1 help.office.com            # Blocks online help/documentation"
    )

    $currentHosts = Get-Content $hostsPath -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    $updatedHosts = $currentHosts | Where-Object { $hostsToRemove -notcontains $_ }
    Set-Content -Path $hostsPath -Value $updatedHosts
}

# -----------------------------
# Main menu loop
# -----------------------------
do {
    Clear-Host
    Write-Host "`nSelect an option:" -ForegroundColor Yellow
    Write-Host "1) Radical Office lockdown + host blocking"
    Write-Host "2) Remove previously added host blocking entries"
    Write-Host "3) Radical Office lockdown only"
    Write-Host "Press any other key to exit"

    $userInput = $Host.UI.RawUI.ReadKey("NoEcho,IncludeKeyDown").Character

    switch ($userInput) {
        '1' {
            Add-OfficeHosts
            Write-Host "Host entries added successfully." -ForegroundColor Green
            $AddHosts = $true
            break
        }
        '2' {
            Remove-OfficeHosts
            Write-Host "Host entries removed successfully." -ForegroundColor Green
            Write-Host "Press any key to return to main menu." -ForegroundColor Green
            $null = $Host.UI.RawUI.ReadKey("NoEcho,IncludeKeyDown")
            continue  # Zurück zum Hauptmenü
        }
        '3' {
            $AddHosts = $false
            break
        }
        default {
            Write-Host "Operation cancelled by user." -ForegroundColor Red
            exit
        }
    }

    # Exit loop only for Option 1 or 3
    if ($userInput -eq '1' -or $userInput -eq '3') { break }

} while ($true)

# ---------------------------------------
# Begin of Radical Office lockdown script
# ---------------------------------------

# Office versions to target                          
$OfficeVersions = @("16.0","15.0","14.0") # 2016, 2013, 2010

# Function to set registry keys idempotently                                          
function Set-RegistryValue {
    param (
        [string]$Path,
        [string]$Name,
        [Object]$Value,
        [Microsoft.Win32.RegistryValueKind]$Type
    )
    If (-Not (Test-Path $Path)) {
        New-Item -Path $Path -Force | Out-Null
    }
    $current = Get-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name $Name -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    If ($null -eq $current -or $current.$Name -ne $Value) {
        Set-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name $Name -Value $Value -Type $Type
    }
}

foreach ($ver in $OfficeVersions) {

    # Telemetry / Customer Experience
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\ExperimentEcs" -Name "Enabled" -Value 0 -Type DWord
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKCU:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\ExperimentEcs" -Name "Enabled" -Value 0 -Type DWord
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\Customer Feedback" -Name "Enable" -Value 0 -Type DWord

    # Online Content / Smart Services
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKCU:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\Internet" -Name "UseOnlineContent" -Value 0 -Type DWord
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKCU:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\Internet" -Name "OnlineContentEnabled" -Value 0 -Type DWord

    # OneDrive / Cloud
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKCU:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\CloudStorage" -Name "DisableCloudStorage" -Value 1 -Type DWord
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKCU:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\CloudStorage" -Name "DisablePersonalOneDrive" -Value 1 -Type DWord
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKCU:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\CloudStorage" -Name "DisableSharePointIntegration" -Value 1 -Type DWord

    # Office Upload Center
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Office\$ver\OfficeFileCache" -Name "Enabled" -Value 0 -Type DWord

    # Online Add-ins
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKCU:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\OfficeAddins" -Name "BlockAllInternetAddins" -Value 1 -Type DWord

    # Connected Experiences
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKCU:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\ConnectedServices" -Name "ServiceEnabled" -Value 0 -Type DWord

    # Disable Telemetry Service
    $svcName = "OTELService_$ver"
    If (Get-Service -Name $svcName -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue) {
        Set-Service -Name $svcName -StartupType Disabled
        Stop-Service -Name $svcName -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    }

    # Updates: allow manual only
    Set-RegistryValue -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Office\$ver\Common\OfficeUpdate" -Name "EnableAutomaticUpdates" -Value 0 -Type DWord
}

# -------------------------------------
# End of Radical Office lockdown script
# -------------------------------------

# Notify user based on option
if ($userInput -eq '1') {
    Write-Host "Radical Office lockdown applied successfully." -ForegroundColor Green
    Write-Host "Press any key to close." -ForegroundColor Green
} elseif ($userInput -eq '3') {
    Write-Host "Radical Office lockdown only applied successfully." -ForegroundColor Green
    Write-Host "Press any key to close." -ForegroundColor Green
}

$null = $Host.UI.RawUI.ReadKey("NoEcho,IncludeKeyDown")