Update Microsoft Office

Microsoft Office in its many versions needs to be updated much like Windows does.  It has security holes and other issues that are patched all the time.  Updates will also increase performance.  Thankfully, Microsoft makes it easy for us by offering it to us in Windows Update format. Here are the steps to do this:

Go online to Microsoft Office Online. http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/downloads/default.aspx



Click on "Check for Updates." (If you have not previously used this site, you may have to install Office Update Installation Engine ActiveX Control onto your system. Follow directions they provide).

Select "Office Update."

You must have your software validated as "genuine" to continue. Select "continue" to proceed with verification. This will only take a few seconds to complete.

Click on "continue." Your system will be scanned. This may take several minutes, depending on your connection. You will see a progress bar going across the screen showing the percent completion of the scan.

Once your system is scanned, you will see a selection of updates (if there are any available for your software). The updates are separated into two sections: Required Updates and Optional Tools.

Any updates that are in the Required Update section should be downloaded. These are the updates recommended by Microsoft. Select all of these updates.

Click on "Agree and Install." You will see the total download size listed and also an estimated download time.

You will see an Office Update Wizard box displaying the progress of the download. This wizard will take you through the complete update process. Once this is complete, you will see a list of all updates displaying if they were successful or not.

You may have to restart your system to complete the update. Select "Finish" and "Yes," if you want to restart immediately, or "No," if you want to do it at a later time.