[Guide] How to Slipstream Service Packs into Microsoft Office Setup?
We know that Microsoft regularly releases Service Packs for its products such as Windows, Microsoft Office, etc. These service packs install latest updates, hotfixes and fix several bugs and issues present in the software.
Consider a situation! You install a fresh Windows for example Windows 7. After installing Windows, you’ll need to separately install its Service Pack 1 to fix issues, add new functionality, etc. Same thing applies to Microsoft Office suite. If you install Microsoft Office such as Office 2007, Office 2010 or Office 2013 version, you’ll need to separately install its service pack.
Installing Service Packs manually and separately from the main product always takes extra time and that’s where the concept of slipstreaming comes to rescue.
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Slipstreaming or integrating service pack in a software product is the process to add the new service pack files into the main product setup so that when we install the software product, it automatically installs the service pack and we don’t need to install the service pack manually.
There are many freeware available for slipstreaming service packs in Windows operating system such as nLite, vLite, RT Seven Lite, etc.
If you want to slipstream service packs into Microsoft Office setup, this tutorial will definitely help you. Today in this tutorial we are going to share a very simple and easy to follow method which will help you in putting service packs directly into Office setup so that it automatically installs service packs at the time of Office installation in your computer.
NOTE: This method of slipstreaming service pack into Microsoft Office setup will apply to all Office versions and all service packs. In other words, the trick of service pack slipstreaming into Office setup is same for all Office versions. Also it doesn’t matter whether you are trying to slipstream service pack 1, 2 or 3, it’ll work for any service pack version and any Office suite.
So without wasting time lets start the tutorial:
STEP 1: First of all copy Office setup files from the setup disc to your hard disk drive. You can copy the setup files anywhere on your computer for example at Desktop or in any drive such as D:, E:, etc.
It would be better if you create a new folder to copy all setup files inside it. You can give any name to this new folder.
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STEP 2: Now download the required Service Pack setup file if you don’t have it.
- Download Microsoft Office 2007 Service Pack 3 (SP3)
- Download Microsoft Office 2010 Service Pack 2 (SP2)
- Download Microsoft Office 2013 Service Pack 1 (SP1)
Please keep in mind that all service packs for Microsoft Office are cumulative which means the newer version of service pack already contains all updates present in the previous version of service pack. For example, SP2 of Office 2010 contains all updates present in SP1 of Office 2010, so you don’t need to slipstream both service packs into Office 2010 setup. Just slipstream the latest service pack i.e. SP2 into Office 2010. Same principle applies to other Office versions.
STEP 3: Now you’ll need to extract all the files from service pack’s EXE file. You can use the free archive utility 7-Zip to extract the content of service pack’s EXE file.
Just right-click on service pack’s EXE file and select the 7-Zip option to extract its content to a new folder.
Once you extract the service pack’s EXE file content, you’ll get several files in the new folder such as .txt, .xml, .msp.
STEP 4: Go to the folder containing Office setup files mentioned in STEP 1 and look for a folder “Updates” inside it. If you don’t see the folder, create a new folder and set its name to Updates.
Now copy the content of service pack’s EXE file which you got after extracting the service pack in STEP 3 and paste them in Updates folder.
That’s it. Now whenever you run Office setup.exe file, it’ll automatically install service pack files.
If you want to create setup disc, you can use any 3rd party disc burning software to create a new setup DVD for your Office installation slipstreamed with the latest service pack.
nice article VG… though I don’t use MS office anymore… kingsoft free office suit is enough for me. It offers all the basic features in a much smaller package 🙂
Hello VG
I know this article’s for Microsoft office, but
since it’s about slipstreaming, I have a question.
How can you check if SP1 is slipstreamed into a Windows 7 DVD?
I have a Windows 7 installation DVD, but I don’t know if it has SP1 in it…
Thank you.
although its a gud article and might help some ppl but i beg to differ in the sense that the new office iso with integrated sp1 is almost around 800MB(x64 version) and if we follow the slipstream method the whole of the iso will become over 1.5 GB., which would also include downloading of SP1 which in itself is around 700mb. Hence why not download the new iso only and save urself the trouble….
@Jake
Check the license agreement while set-up starts.
Hi,
Thanks, but in what way is this useful, when it is so easy to find original images from Microsoft on the web which are already up to date and include latest patches/Service Packs…? And to my knowledge it is absolutely not illegal to download these ISOs if you install with a genuine paid-for key…
Hey Vishal,
I installed updates of windows through windows update.is there any way of Keeping those updates i.e. setup of those updates for later use?
Even after slipstreaming Microsoft Office 2010 SP2 inside the setup files(i.e. Updates folder) am being offered to install that SP1 again from Windows Update!
Can you help @VG?
Screenshot: imagesup.net/?di=1413954111034
Note: Using Windows 8 Pro x86
A bit off-topic, but RT Seven Lite appears to have gone to meet its maker, as the website no longer exists. You can still find downloads available here and there, but with the disappearance of its main support and distribution site, I think it’s safe to say that RT Seven Lite has gone the way of the dodo. 🙁
There may be hope on the horizon for Windows 7 users, however, as I was just on the nLite page. Its author recently resumed updates to nLite (after a five year absence), and has indicated that a version for Windows 7 is in the works. Granted, this was posted in August 2013, but nLite is a great tool for Windows XP installation customizing, so I’d expect that a Windows 7 version would be of similar quality.
Hey VG , will a similar method work for slipstreaming updates in Win 8 / 8.1 ISO. If yes , could you please guide me in doing so??
^^ There is a method to slipstream SP in Windows setup but its not as easy as the above mentioned method, so I’ll advise you to use freeware for Windows setup as mentioned in above tutorial.
@Martin J. Pollard
Agree.
https://www.askvg.com/download-nlite-for-windows-7-windows-8-and-windows-8-1/
@Rahul
First check in an Office program whether SP1 has been installed correctly or not.
@Sumit
There are some 3rd party utilities available to download and save available updates and hotfixes. Just google for hotfix downloader or similar terms.
@wth
No. Technically its not legal to download those ISO available on Internet.
@Jake
You can also check DLL or EXE file properties in setup folder and check the file version.
How do you do this when you purchase online. You only get an .exe file?
Extracting using 7zip is incorrect, at least for Office 2007 Sp3. 7zip extracts it in the wrong format, according to the following link
[QUOTE] – The reason we have had to Integrate or Slipstream the SP3 file this way is because the update needs to be in the .msp file format to be able to install from the updates folder from your Microsoft Office 2007 Installation CD/DVD [/UNQUOTE]
there are so many updates for office in recent months i just need to include them too but i am totally confused how to do that so using offline updaters for deploying updates
as my opinion slipstream is the best way to save much installation time but no perfect method still now