πŸ“‹ Outlook Add-In (classic): Configuration for Terminal Servers and Multi-user Environments

This article describes the targeted control of the Add-In via the LoadBehavior registry key for terminal servers as well as the central configuration via the user.config file.

Rollout for specific users on a terminal server

If you are using a terminal server environment (e.g., Citrix or Microsoft Terminal Server), it is often desired to activate the Outlook Add-In only for specific users. This requires an adjustment to the Windows registry.

Please proceed as follows:

  1. Perform the installation of the Outlook Add-In system-wide for "All Users" (ALLUSERS="1").
  2. This will create the registry keys under the following path:
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\Outlook\Addins\FTAPI Outlook Add-In

Deactivation for specific users

For all users who should not receive the Outlook Add-In, please roll out the following folder in the user context manually or via GPO:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Outlook\Addins\FTAPI Outlook Add-In

In this new key, you must set the following values:

  • DWORD value (32bit); Name: LoadBehavior; Value=0
  • String; Name: Description; Value=FTAPI Outlook Add-In
  • String; Name: FriendlyName; Value=FTAPI Outlook Add-In
  • String; Name: Manifest; Value=C:\Program Files (x86)\FTAPI\Outlook Add-In\FTAPIOutlookAddin2013.vsto|vstolocal
Screenshot Registry Editor LoadBehavior

The Outlook Add-In now behaves as follows:

  • Users who do not have the LoadBehavior entry under HKEY_CURRENT_USER: Add-In starts regularly with Outlook.
  • Users who have set the entry under HKEY_CURRENT_USER (Value 0): Add-In does not start.

Important: Please note that you may need to delete or correct the LoadBehavior key under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE again after a version update of the Add-In.

Subsequent modification of settings (user.config)

It may be necessary to adjust the settings of the initial installation subsequently. The configuration file user.config is created in the user's local roaming profile after the first start of Outlook:

C:\Users\<Username>\AppData\Roaming\FTAPI\Outlook Add-In\user.config

The file is in XML format and structured as follows per setting:

<Setting name="Name of the setting" serializeAs="String"><value>Value of the setting</value></Setting>

Practical example: Adjusting the archiving limit

You want to change the file size limit for automatic archiving after sending an email from 5 MB to 10 MB.

  1. Open the user.config file of a test profile.
  2. Search for the setting ArchiveDownloadedAttachmentMaxSizeMB.
  3. Change the value from 5 to 10.
  4. Save the XML file.

The adjusted file can then be distributed centrally to various users via a Group Policy (GPO File Preference).

Related articles

πŸ“‹ Outlook Add-In (classic): Installation parameters for administrators