Provide an Official Offline Distribution Method for Office.js (Alternative to CDN)
According to the Microsoft documentation on accessing the Office JavaScript API library (https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/office/dev/add-ins/develop/understand-the-javascript-api-for-office#access-the-office-javascript-api-library), the only official way to include Office.js in Office Add-ins is to load it from the CDN. While this works well for most scenarios, it creates a significant limitation for organizations that operate in offline or highly restricted network environments where external CDNs are not accessible.
Previously, the microsoft/office-js npm package (https://www.npmjs.com/package/%40microsoft/office-js) allowed developers to bundle Office.js with their add-ins, making offline deployments possible. Since this package has been deprecated, there is no longer an officially supported way to distribute Office.js in these environments.
I would like to request one of the following:
- Bring back an officially supported npm package for Office.js.
- Provide another supported mechanism for bundling or self-hosting Office.js in offline environments.
- Publish official guidance for deploying Office Add-ins in air-gapped or disconnected networks.
Supporting offline deployments would enable organizations with strict security requirements—such as government agencies, defense organizations, healthcare providers, and enterprises with isolated networks—to continue developing and deploying Office Add-ins using supported Microsoft solutions.
This would greatly improve the developer experience and make the Microsoft 365 Office Add-ins platform accessible to a broader range of enterprise customers.