Update on Focused Inbox rollout for Outlook 2016 for Windows users

Microsoft

Edited: Nov 10, 2017 with updated information. 

 

Focused Inbox is coming to an Outlook near you! Here is an update on our status for Outlook 2016 for Windows. If you want to see our latest for other platforms, see our blog post, as these details haven’t changed.

 

Note: we have provided admins the ability to control the rollout of Focused Inbox in their organizations. For more details, read our blog post on admin controls.

 

Rollout status

As a reminder, there is a client and service side component required for Focused Inbox to appear in Outlook. The user’s mailbox in Office 365 & Outlook.com must receive a service side update to be Focused Inbox enabled. Secondly, the user must have a build of Outlook that includes the client-side updates necessary for Focused Inbox to appear.

 

Service side status:

We deployed to 100% of Office 365 (Exchange Online) and Outlook.com mailboxes. This is no longer a factor in availabilty.  

 

Client side status:

There are a few client side requirements:

  • Requires build 16.0.7967.2xxx+.  
    • This build began rolling out on April 21, 2017 to the Monthly (formerly Current) Channel for Office 365 ProPlus as Version 1703.
    • Those using a Semi-Annual (formerly Deferred) Channel build will not have access to this feature right now, as those channels offer delayed access to builds. Semi-Annual Channel will get Focused Inbox in 2018. 
  • Currently, the feature requires Office 365 modern authentication be enabled.
  • Previous use of Clutter
    • To ensure a good experience for those who previously used Clutter, user may get Focused Inbox rolled out in a defaulted-off state. See the chart in the “Transition from Clutter” section of our blog post.

 

186 Replies

It is not supported yet. It will likely still be a few more months for Outlook.com accounts. 

Hi, we use Outlook 2016, my build is 16.0.8229.2073 32-bit, and we also use an sbs server. We recently upgraded our exchange to office365 for email only (not the entire office suite). On my android phone and when logged on to office 365 I get the FI but not on the installed Outlook on my pc. There is no FI button on the View ribbon.

 

Is there anything I can do to put it there?

 

Thanks

Allen, We are a first release for deffered channel user. Why did this not ship with the August update, and will it be there for us in september?

Hey James - you are correct. Focused Inbox doesn't work yet for @outlook.com accounts. Stay tuned!
We are not yet shipping Focused Inbox for Deferred Channel. We received some feedback on our current (monthly) channel experience we'd like to incorporate before we roll out to Deferred. We know those customer on DC are there because they like updates to be fully vetted by the rest of our customer base, so we want to ensure the experience is rock solid. Plan is for it to be in the following DC update.

Christine,

I would be interested to hear your AzureAD Connected experiance if you are willing to share?

Today is August 28, 2017.  We use Office 365 pro plus with Exchange server 2013 CU15 on-prem mailboxes - My MS 365 ProPlus  install version = V 1708 Build 8431.2046 Monthly targeted - regardless of office update channel we use, or the configuration of the AUAuth Certificate,  we still can not get, see or use  the Focused Inbox feature. 

Is it still NOT available for on-prem exchange mailboxes?   I appologize if this question was already answered...but trying to confirm the status.

 

Thank you,

Robert 

Hey Robert, 

 

Thanks for the note. Your guess is correct, as is stated in first set of requirements listed in the update above. Focused Inbox requires your mailbox be in Exchange Online. This feature is not available against an Exchange on-prem server, even with version of Outlook for Windows you get with Office 365. This is because the intelligence of FI is done at the service level (in Exchange Online). 

 

Hope this helps clear up the confusion. 

 

 

 

Thank you for your reply...however, that is really weird, because it works just fine in the Outlook app on Android with our current on-prem Exchange server

Allen, I asked the query below a few weeks ago and please can you let me know if/how/when FI will be available to me in the Outlook on my pc. Thanks.

 

Hi, we use Outlook 2016, my build is 16.0.8229.2073 32-bit, and we also use an sbs server. We recently upgraded our exchange to office365 for email only (not the entire office suite). On my android phone and when logged on to office 365 I get the FI but not on the installed Outlook on my pc. There is no FI button on the View ribbon.

 

Is there anything I can do to put it there?

 

Thanks

Hey David,

The original article outlines the requirements, so take a moment to read the original post. But based on what I can tell from your note here, you need to do two things. 1) You need to be using the Office 365 subscription version of Outlook (it sounds like you are saying you aren't using that? The build number would imply you are, but you say in the note that you are not). 2) you need to have enabled Modern Authentication in Exchange Online.

We will remove the M.A. requirement later this quarter (again, for O365 subscription client customers).

Hope that help!
Outlook for Android works differently, and support the experience regardless of the email service. For the rest of the clients (Windows, Mac, web) it will only work against Office 365 mailboxes.
@Allen Filush is there any update on when Focused Inbox will become available for Windows users without Modern Authentication? Thanks

Allen, Thanks for this.

 

I said that we do now use office 365 (the one you log in to at office.com) but most of the time we work at our PCs so mail is received in Outlook. Does that make a difference or would I still require MA to obtain an FI? If as you say the MA requirement will be removed shortly it's probably easier to wait. Please can you confirm.

 

Thanks again.

For customer using Office 365 ProPlus from the Monthly Channel, this should happen within the next quarter.
Office 365 is a little vague, as we have several plans to meet the needs of customers. We have plan that are web only (log in at Office.com) and plans that include the fully downloadable Office apps, which are purchased as part of the same subscription and update monthly (Office 365 E3 & Business Premium are the two most used examples of those plans). The Office that is installed as part of those later plans is required to use Focused Inbox.

In addition to that version of Office, you need to turn on Modern Authentication in Office 365 at this time. That requirement will be removed in the next 3 or so months, for the Monthly Channel users (those who get monthly updates). You will still need the version of Office references above, in any case.


Thanks for the clarification!

I have a mix of versions on a few different machines. I ran into an activation issue with an insider build, and it wasn't until I did a repair on the Office installation that Focused inbox showed up. Noticed that it wasn't on my other machine, Version 1708 Build 8431.2602 either, and sure enough, ran a quick repair and it appeared. Is this a normal situation, or was there something odd with my installations that caused this?

Allen, in reply to your comment
"We are not yet shipping Focused Inbox for Deferred Channel. We received some feedback on our current (monthly) channel experience we'd like to incorporate before we roll out to Deferred. We know those customer on DC are there because they like updates to be fully vetted by the rest of our customer base, so we want to ensure the experience is rock solid. Plan is for it to be in the following DC update"

 

We were planning to move all our users over to the current (monthly) channel to remove 'niggles' that only appear in older build versions.  As a result, we were planning to roll out the focused inbox.  Is this not advisable?

Thank you. We are in the UK and the subscribtion page on office.com says we have Office 365 Business Essentials. We have only the mail element and not the rest of the office suite. Will this receive FI without MA in the next quarter or so?