Installer Guide – empower® Suite >= 9.7

Available from Version: 9.7

Operating System: Windows

Required Permissions: User, IT Admin

This article describes the installation process of the empower® Client Software on a Windows system as well as important prerequisites.

Note

If there are any questions reading this document, contact empower® Support.

Note

For further information regarding the installation of a syncless empower® Chart Creation version, see Installer Guide – empower® Chart Creation >= 9.6.

For further information regarding the installation of the empower® AI Assistant, see Installer Guide – empower® AI Assistant.

For further information regarding the installation of an empower® Branding version, see Installer Guide – empower® Branding >= 9.7.

For further information regarding the installation of empower® Slides for macOS, see Installer Guide – empower® Slides for macOS.

Hardware Requirements

  • 2GHz or faster processor

  • 4GB of RAM

  • The required hard disk space for the application is dependent on the content included in your empower® Version.

    A default version needs approximately 1.4 GB of available hard disk space for the application.

    This amount highly depends on the size of the content in your empower® Version.

  • Possible HTTPS connection to the empower® Activation Server

Software Requirements

  • Operating System: Windows 11

  • Office 2021*, 2024

  • Office 365 ProPlus and Enterprise E3 and E5

  • .NET version:

    • Latest .NET8* Desktop Runtime version, available under:

      .NET8 Download

      This version must be used if the .NET8 installer (empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi or empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi) is used. It can only be used with 64-bit Office versions.

      If empower® Chart Creation or empower® Charts is in use, the .NET8 installer is recommended for 20% better performance.

    • .NET Framework 4.8 or higher (required for all versions)

      This version can be used if the .NET Framework installer (empowerSuite-perMachine.msi or empowerSuite-perUser.msi) is used. It can be used with both 64-bit and 32-bit Office versions.

Important

*End of life as of October 2026.

As of October 2026, empower does no longer support this Office version. Please ensure that you switch to a supported version in time.

For further information from Microsoft, see End of support for Office 2021.

Note

*empower continuously monitors third‑party components and framework dependencies. If a component reaches end-of-life, empower will make sure to provide relevant updates that ensure long-term support.

For further information from Microsoft, see .NET and .NET Core Support Policy.

Note

ARM-based systems are not supported.

Installation Files

The installation package consists of two components:

  • .msi file (either per Machine or per User)

    • per User: Installs empower® only for the current user

    • per Machine: Needs elevated permissions and installs empower® on the local machine for all users

  • Payload folder

The two components must be stored right next to each other.

Important

Before you start the installation, make sure that all Office applications are closed.

Note

We provide you with the installation files tailored to your plan. These include the .msi file and the Payload folder. The installation files are not available for download elsewhere.

If you have not selected a plan, contact empower® Support.

The .msi file is the execution file, whereas the folder Payload contains the following files:
Platform_Payload_Folders.png

Note

If the empower® AI Assistant is also being installed, you are provided with a separate installer and payload folder.

For further information, see Installer Guide – empower® AI Assistant.

Data Folder (Solutions)

  • License file: licensekey.txt

  • RemoteServiceConfig.xml

Data Folder (Products)

  • License file: slidesenterprise_licensekey.txt

  • License file: charts_licensekey.txt

  • License file: docs_licensekey.txt

  • License file: sheets_licensekey.txt

  • License file: mails_licensekey.txt

  • RemoteServiceConfig.xml

During installation, the content is placed in the data directory. Content will be installed onto the system.

Install Folder

  • Holidays.xml

  • aip_labelsettings.xml (optional)

  • Customizing folder:

    • Customizing file: .ecdc/.ecbc or .jsconcu (optional)

During installation, the content is placed in the installation directory. Content will be installed onto the system.

Note

The listed files are required for empower® Chart Creation and Charts. Inside the folder install, they are stored under the following path:

.NET Framework variant:

Payload\Install\netfx\ChartCreation\empower.ChartCreation.Charts.Feature

.NET8 variant:

Payload\Install\net\ChartCreation\empower.ChartCreation.Charts.Feature

Note

If a license for empower® Document Automation is present, a whitelist for admins must be created on the empower® Database.

For further information, see Assign Admin Permissions for empower® Document Automation.

Metadata Folder

Content is evaluated by empower® during installation but not installed onto the system.

Step-by-Step Installation Guide

To install empower®, follow the following steps:

  1. Make sure all Office applications are closed.

  2. Execute the installer.

    For .NET8 installers, the file is either named empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi or empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi.

    For .NET Framework installers, the file is either named empowerSuite-perUser.msi or empowerSuite-perMachine.msi.
Installation_Installation_Files.png

  1. Continue the installation by clicking on the button Next.
Installation_Welcome.png

  1. Accept the license agreement and continue by clicking on the button Next again.
Installation_License_Agreement.png

  1. All empower® Components to be installed on the device are listed here.

    1. If you are installing empower® Solutions, the required components are preselected.

    2. If you are installing empower® Products, make sure to only select the components which you have purchased.

      If your installation includes empower® Charts, select the option PowerPoint.

      If your installation includes empower® Mails (version 9.10 or higher), make sure to select the options Outlook and Word.

      For lower versions, only the option Outlook is required.

  2. Click on the button Next to continue with the installation.
Installation_Components.png

  1. Start the installation by clicking on the button Install.

    If you are using a per Machine installer, a dialog box opens.
Installation_Install.png

  1. Click on the button Yes to allow empower to make changes to the device and finish the installation.

    If you are using a per User installer, this step is skipped.

    The installation starts.
Installation_Allow_Installation.png

  1. Finish the installation by clicking on the button Finish.
Installation_Finish.png

Important

Only select the empower® Components you have purchased.

Otherwise you will receive an error message.

Note

If there are open Office applications, a dialog box opens.

Installation_Dialog_Open_Applications.png

Close the applications and click on the button Retry to start the application.

After Installation

Depending on which components have been purchased, empower® is displayed as follows in the respective application.

Solutions

empower® Brand Control

PowerPoint (empower® Ribbon):

19447660631580-mceclip4.png

Excel (empower® Ribbon):

19447683326236-mceclip5.png

Word (empower® Ribbon):

19447660635036-mceclip6.png

Outlook (Group empower Mails):

Outlook_Group_empower_Mails.png

empower® Chart Creation

PowerPoint (Tab Insert):

CC_Ribbon_White_Theme.png

Excel (Tab Insert):

CC_Group_empower_Excel.png

Note

If a license for empower® Chart Creation is present, the add-in is also registered in Excel.

empower® Content Enablement

PowerPoint (Tab Home):

19447782630428-mceclip7.png

Excel (Tab Home):

19447782631708-mceclip8.png

Word (Tab Home):

19447782632732-mceclip9.png

Products

If you have installed an empower® Add-in for PowerPoint (empower® Slides or Charts), follow the following steps after installation:

  1. After you have finished the installation, start PowerPoint.

  2. if necessary, log in to the empower® Sync with a given username and password.

    empower® prepares PowerPoint and loads all relevant data. This can take some time.

  3. After a successful setup, restart PowerPoint.

    You will receive a notification and the empower® Ribbon becomes visible.

    If you have only installed empower® Charts, the group empower becomes available in the tab Insert.

empower® Slides

ppt_slides.png

empower® Charts

Charts_Ribbon.png

Note

If you have installed empower® Slides and Charts, a button to insert charts becomes available in the empower® Ribbon in PowerPoint.

If you have installed an empower® Add-in for Word (empower® Docs), follow the following steps after installation:

  1. Open Word.

  2. If necessary, log in with a given log in username and password.

    empower® prepares Word and loads all relevant data. This can take some time.

  3. After a successful setup, restart Word.

    The empower® Ribbon becomes visible.

    docs.png

If you have installed an empower® Add-in for Outlook (empower® Mails), follow the following steps after installation:

  1. Open Outlook.

  2. If necessary, log in with a given log in username and password.

    empower® prepares Outlook and loads all relevant data. This can take some time.

  3. After a successful setup, restart Outlook.

    The group empower Mails becomes visible.

    Outlook_Group_empower_Mails.png

If you have installed an empower® Add-in for Excel (empower® Sheets), follow the following steps after installation:

  1. Open Excel.

  2. If necessary, log in with a given log in username and password.

    empower® prepares Excel and loads all relevant data. This can take some time.

  3. After a successful setup, restart Excel.

    The empower® Ribbon becomes visible.

    sheets.png

License Activation

In order to activate the license, the client needs to be able to connect to the internet.

The licensing server is available under the address activate.empowersuite.com via Port 443.

This connection needs to be allowed in proxy or firewall settings.

Note

If this online activation is not possible, empower® can provide an alternative license file (license.key).

This file needs to be distributed to all machines where no internet activation is possible.

Note

For further information regarding the license activation and storage paths, see Licensing for empower®.

Installation Paths

Once empower® has been installed, the license keys are saved as .txt files on the file system.

They can be accessed via the following path:

per User: %localappdata%/empower

per Machine: %Programdata%\empower

Note

If you have installed empower® Solutions, all license keys are stored in the file licensekey.txt.

If you have installed empower® Products, the license keys are stored in separate license files per product.

Install and Manage Components via Command-Line

If you want to install components per command line, you can use the property ADDLOCAL by MSI.

If you want to remove/uninstall parts of the components you can use the property REMOVE by MSI.

Note

For further information regarding the property ADDLOCAL, see ADDLOCAL property

For further information regarding the property REMOVE, see REMOVE property.

Allowed properties are the following:

  • PowerPoint

  • Word

  • Excel

  • Outlook

  • charts (obligatory for empower® Chart Creation and empower® Charts)

  • sync (obligatory for all installation except standalone installations of empower® Chart Creation and empower® Charts)

  • autoupdater (obligatory for per User installations)

Note

If a license for empower® Chart Creation or Charts is present in the payload folder, there will always be an add-in registered in Excel regardless of the selection in the installer.

It is possible to install silently without specifying any ADDLOCAL parameter when using a solution license in the payload (except for per User installations, these need the autoupdater specified).

If the payload setup does not define a default set of components to install, the definition of ADDLOCAL is mandatory on the first installation.

To execute a silent installation (Silent Mode), /q is used.

The following command can be used to start a silent installation:

msiexec /i "[PATH TO .MSI FILE]" /q ADDLOCAL=[COMMA SEPARATED LIST OF FEATURES]

Note

For silent installations, the parameter /q is supported. The parameters /qn and /qb are not supported.

If a log file should be created during the installation, the following command can be used:

msiexec /i "[PATH TO .MSI FILE]" /q /l*v ADDLOCAL=[COMMA SEPARATED LIST OF FEATURES]

The storage location for the log file can be defined using /l*v.

In this case, the v stands for the log level verbose.

Important

Replace the name of the .msi file with the actual name of the installer provided when using the example command.

Example Commands

The following two commands serve as an example for per Machine and per User installations that should install all features available in PowerPoint, including the charting features included in empower® Chart Creation and Charts:

Example for per Machine installation:

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,charts,sync

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log REMOVE=PowerPoint,charts,sync

Example for per User installation:

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,charts,sync,autoupdater

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log REMOVE=PowerPoint,charts,sync,autoupdater

In the following, examples for the installation of empower® Solutions are provided:

Solution Parameters – per Machine:

Brand Control

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,Word,Excel,Outlook,sync

Content Enablement

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,Word,Excel,sync

Chart Creation

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,charts

All Solutions (Suite)

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,Word,Excel,Outlook,charts,sync

Solution Parameter – per User:

Brand Control

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,Word,Excel,Outlook,sync,autoupdater

Content Enablement

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,Word,Excel,sync,autoupdater

Chart Creation

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,charts,autoupdater

All Solutions (Suite)

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,Word,Excel,Outlook,charts,sync,autoupdater

In the following, examples for the installation of empower® Products are provided:

Product Parameters – per Machine:

All Products (Suite)

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,Word,Excel,Outlook,charts,sync

Slides

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,sync

Docs

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=Word,sync

Charts

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,charts

Mails

Versions <= 9.9: msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=Outlook,sync

Versions >= 9.10: msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=Outlook,Word,sync

Sheets

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perMachine-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=Excel,sync

Product Parameters – per User:

All Products (Suite)

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,Word,Excel,Outlook,charts,sync,autoupdater

Slides

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,sync,autoupdater

Docs

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=Word,sync,autoupdater

Charts

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=PowerPoint,charts,autoupdater

Mails

Versions <= 9.9: msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=Outlook,sync,autoupdater

Versions >= 9.10: msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=Outlook,Word,sync,autoupdater

Sheets

msiexec /i empowerSuite-perUser-net.msi /q /l*v installer.log ADDLOCAL=Excel,sync,autoupdater

Important

For installations of versions higher and equal to 9.10 that include empower® Mails or the Outlook component of empower® Brand Control, it is required to install the components for Outlook and Word.

Setup Parameter

If empower® is not installed via the user interface of the installer, the following setup parameters can be used:

Parameter

Valid Values

Default Value

(if not defined)

Definition

ENABLE_PAYLOAD_CHECK

0, 1

1

Defines whether the payload folder should be checked. This parameter only affects the check by the Suite uninstaller.

Checks that are explicitly carried out by the components (e.g. Chart Creation) are not affected by this.

EXECUTINGDIRECTORY

Path

Empty

This parameter can be used to specify the path where the .msi file is located.

This may be necessary to define the storage location when executing the command from another folder.

SYNC_START_IMMEDIATELY

0, 1

per User: 1

per Machine: 0

This parameter enforces starting the empower® Sync after setup if the setup runs in silent mode. By default, in this mode the empower® Sync will not be started automatically. Setting this parameter to 1 enforces the automatic start.

If the setup is executed in non-silent mode, the empower® Sync will be started automatically, regardless of this parameter.

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