Last Updated: September 17, 2018 You can now finally. The final version was released late on 26th October 2016 although Microsoft slipped it out quietly overnight as there was no until later. The to the new client was also released on November 22nd to include contact group management, contact tagging and stability improvements. Note that if you’re still using the Preview of Skype for Business on Mac, you can install the final release alongside it – it won’t copy over the Preview installation. Microsoft does recommend uninstalling Lync 2011 first as it may conflict with the new client.
Here we take a closer look at the new Skype for Business Mac. The long awaited release of the Skype for Business Mac client was delayed in Q3 by Microsoft. It was originally due for release in Q3 2016 but then revised to October 2016 although this seemed increasingly unlikely as October drew to a close. Even just a few days ago “we aren’t able to provide the exact date when Skype for Business 2016 Mac Client will be released”.
It’s now clear that Microsoft simply left it very late in the month to release Skype for Business on Mac. SfB has been long awaited on Mac to replace the highly unreliable and maligned which hasn’t been updated by Microsoft since 2011. Until now, Mac users have either been stuck with the Lync or had to use or the recently released service in the meantime (more on those two later). Here’s an overview of the new Skype for Business 2016 Mac client. As stated in the introduction, anyone can now from Microsoft. The system requirements for Skype for Business on Mac are OS X 10.11 El Capitan or macOS Sierra 10.12.
It will not work on OS X 10.7 Lion, OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, OS X 10.9 Mavericks or OS X 10.10 Yosemite. You’ll also need to make sure you’ve upgraded the server to Skype for Business Server 2015 or Lync Server 2013. For Outlook integration you need at least Outlook Mac build 15.27 (161010). Note for any other technical doubts, the (SOF) has also been updated to help system admins roll out Skype for Business for Mac in enterprise environments.
The Skype for Business Mac download runs the Skype for Business for Mac installer which requires your Mac admin password to install and will also prompt you to close your browser while you install it. Note that the Skype for Business Mac installer also installs Microsoft Update on your Mac to keep the software updated.
When you launch Skype for Business on your Mac for the first time, it will automatically ask you whether you want to check for software updates manually or automatically and offer you the chance to join the Office Insider program: Skype for Business will then launch and you log on using your organization credentials: The advanced options also allow you to configure a proxy for SfB to use: When you launch Skype for Business for Mac, you’ll need to enter your organization username and password. Note that a Skype username or Microsoft account will not work. However, even as late as the 24th of October 2016, Microsoft Support said it could no longer confirm when the Skype for Business Mac client will be released suggesting that it probably wouldn’t be released in October as planned.: We aren’t able to provide the exact date when Skype for Business 2016 Mac Client will be released.
Microsoft Support simply referred Mac users to the for further news although at the time of writing, even that hasn’t been updated to announce the final version has been released. SfB Preview Version The SfB Preview is effectively the Skype for Business Mac Beta version and is therefore incomplete and is subject to bugs and crashes. You can still run the Preview of Skype for Business for Mac side-by-side with both the final version of Skype for Business and Lync for Mac so you don’t have to worry about breaking or overwriting the Preview or Lync if you install the final release. You’ll have to manually uninstall the Preview if you want to get rid of it. Like the final release of Skype for Business on Mac, access to the Preview has been shrouded in quite a bit of confusion.
Originally, you could only but due to high demand, on April 26th 2016 Microsoft stopped sending invites for Skype for Mac Preview. The senior product marketing manager for Skype for Business Paul Cannon: There has been tremendous interest in the preview, with over 22,000 individuals, representing more than 7,000 organizations, signing up since it opened on April 26. We are now at capacity for the number of preview participants and are no longer accepting registrations. Microsoft has been prioritizing IT users and system administrators before end users so IT departments or system admins are more likely to have been accepted than public users (it was not possible to sign-up as a system admin and individual user with the same ID). When you went to the Skype for Business Preview page, you could choose to sign-up either as an individual or as a company: You then got an overview of the preview program: You then had to sign-up using your Microsoft account – if you had a Hotmail account or Windows Live Account that would do too.
Note that you could not sign-up for an organization and an individual account with the same Microsoft account – you would need two separate accounts. You then got a message confirming that you’d signed-up successfully: After this, you simply get redirected back to the Skype for Preview Page with the message: “New product opportunities are coming your way soon! Please check back in the coming days to see what opportunities are available for your feedback.” Those lucky enough to get an invite had to wait weeks with many complaints over the on-boarding process and Microsoft warned users to check their spam or junk filters for invites. Once accepted, users received a validation welcome email but some users reported that even after receiving invites, the download was not appearing in the “My Activities” tab and instead simply got a “Nomination Processing” message indicating Microsoft were struggling to keep-up with demand. When you selected to sign-up as an organization, Skype for Business for Mac also did not appear in the list of programs available for testing either. Again, you had to wait for the invitation email from Microsoft first. Once an IT administrator had downloaded the Preview of SfB, they could distribute it to other members within the organization or company.
It’s likely Microsoft will roll out new updates to the Preview first for testing so if you want to be on the cutting edge of Skype for Business, it’s a good idea to keep it installed alongside the final version. Any feedback, problems or issues you have using the new client, you can post on the. There were supposed to be 3 Preview versions of SfB for Mac released: Preview One: Already released beginning of Q3 2016. Includes meeting features such as Meeting Calendars, Instant Messaging in meetings (goodbye Lync for Mac!), Meet Now and the ability to share desktops and content in full screen mode. Note that Preview One did not include Instant Messaging – that was added in Preview Two (see below). Sony content manager software 1.2 for mac. Preview Two: Already released July 5 2016.
Added Instant Messaging, Presence & Contacts (see whether a contact is online or offline, their status i.e. In a meeting or available), Group Video Calling (up to four people simultaneously) and Peer-to-Peer video calling (P2P) for private calls. You can also now see IM Conversation History and restart chats at any time.
Note that there is no tabbed IM conversations yet so you need a separate window open for each chat. Microsoft has also fixed various bugs in Skype for Business for Mac identified in Preview 1 including:. Screen sharing preview not updating when content or number of screens changed. “You are about to leave a meeting’ removed from chats.
Call controls no longer hidden when mouse cursor is hovering in conversation screen. Ending a call crashes fixed. Camera turning on while not in a call bug fixed. Chat messages disappearing after clicking send bug fixed. Switching audio/video device in 1:1 calls not working bug fixed. System proxy exclusion settings now work. Group video call crashes fixed.
Participant name now matches avatar/video in a conference call. Various bugs fixed regarding incoming audio and video calls. Other minor bug fixes Preview Three: This was due late summer 2016 but since it never arrived, it now seems the official release (known as RTM – Release to Manufacturing version) of Skype for Business on Mac is effectively Preview 3. The final version adds voice calling to traditional landline phone numbers.
Response to the Previews was mixed although there were numerous reports of frequent drop outs and crashes which may be why Microsoft delayed the release of the final version of Skype for Business on OS X until the issues were resolved. I already have S4B for mac.
Its equally terrible. No Outlook online meeting function, frequent drop outs, frequent crashes. — Graeme Hutchison (@gdhutchison) There were also issues in Preview 2 with RDP and multi-monitor support, rejoining meetings that are already underway, problems with meeting invite notifications and proxy issues. A few organizations published their initial impressions of Skype for Business for Mac although it’s not clear if this is strictly allowed as part of signing the Microsoft NDA. For example, and noted that instead of the Gallery View in the Windows version, Mac users currently got the Speaker View during a call. It also reported that although screen sharing is possible, you can’t request or give mouse control and there is no access to advanced options such as whiteboard, polling or PowerPoint presentations.
You can watch a brief video of the Preview of SfB for Mac in action here. Release Roadmap Microsoft initially stated that the final public version of summer 2016. Released this roadmap to give a more detailed overview of its development: More news about the Skype for Business for Mac roadmap was released by Microsoft to the IT Pro Community in late April 2016 during a web broadcast confirming this indicating that there will be 3 Preview versions followed by the final release in Q3: However on September 13th 2016, Microsoft officially stated that there is now “no set date for the release of Skype for Business on Mac”. (1/2) Hi, Adam. Currently, there is no set date for the release of Skype for Business for Mac. — OfficeSupport (@OfficeSupport) Finally at the Microsoft Ignite event, it finally that Skype for Business for Mac will be released on October 2016 as covered earlier in this article and released a new roadmap for it: Microsoft has often kept Mac users hanging with release dates but with the much publicized scheduled roadmap for SfB, it seemed even up until Q2 2016 that Microsoft was definitely on track this time.
Microsoft already had a Skype For Business For Mac prototype ready at the beginning of the year: Even more encouraging for Mac users was that Microsoft stated that it intends to make Skype for Business for Mac its “most modern Skype client”, better than even the Windows version (although we’ll believe that when we see it) and it has been built from the ground-up for Mac. An early Microsoft SfB for Mac demo also revealed a few things about how Skype for Business on Mac will look: As you can see, messages are displayed in a single window view with optional pop-out tabbed conversations and it looked early on like the product will be brought in line with the consumer version of Skype for Mac so that they eventually become one product. Microsoft also got Mac users excited by in time for the imminent release of SfB on Mac. In addition, Microsoft also which indicated that it was ready to go sooner rather than later: Conclusion The confusion over the Skype for Business Preview and delay of the release of Skype for Business for Mac just goes to show how hard it is for even a company with the resources of Microsoft to keep a project on schedule. As stated earlier, there will undoubtedly be similar problems with both the release date and functionality of Skype for Business on Mac (there always are with Microsoft products on OS X) and we’d recommend using a dedicated communication solution such as trying a free trial of, or which are also fully integrated with Microsoft Office, Google for Work and some of the. To receive the latest news on Skype For Business for Mac announcements, you can follow the You can also find answers to any doubts or questions you might have by going to the.
There’s also a specific. You can also make suggestions to Microsoft and get involved with other Skype for Mac users on the. If you’re still using the Preview alongside the final version and have any feedback to share with Microsoft, you can also do so via Jammer in the. If you have any questions, experiences or issues with Skype For Business on Mac, let us know in the comments below.
Skype With The World Do you have friends or family that use Skype for Business at other universities or organizations? KU has open federation for Skype for Business, which means you can connect with friends and colleagues at more than 850 organizations around the world that also offer open federation. You can add a non-KU person at an open federation site to your contacts list and immediately begin a chat or S4B-to-S4B voice or video call.
Check the to find organizations that have Skype for Business open federation. The University of Kansas on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, gender identity, gender expression, and genetic information in the university's programs and activities. Retaliation is also prohibited by university policy.