Users will have more options on where to find, download, or use the new Outlook for Windows.
Starting at the end of September 2023, the new Outlook for Windows will also be accessible from the Microsoft Store in Windows and through the Search option in Windows, on top of being able to toggle from the Mail and Calendar apps. If you have previously disabled the “Try new Outlook” toggle in the classic Outlook for Windows, users might be able to find it through the options listed above.
The new Outlook for Windows is generally available for personal accounts but work and school accounts are still in preview.
To learn more about those changes, please read this blog.
[How this affects your organization:]
With this change, users will see the new Outlook for Windows pre-installed in their Windows device. They will also be able to search for it in the Microsoft Store.
Even if you have disabled the Mail and Calendar apps or the toggle in the current Outlook for Windows, users might still be able to install the new Outlook for Windows from the store.
[What you can do to prepare:]
If you are ok with your users adding their organization account to the new Outlook or if they are already using the new Outlook, there is nothing you need to do.
If you don’t want users adding their organization’s account to the new Outlook, you can block the ability to add a Microsoft 365 account to the new Outlook using these policies. If you have previously disabled this, you don’t need to do it again.
If you have previously disabled the toggle from showing up in the current Outlook for Windows using these policies and you still prefer your users to not add their corporate accounts to the new Outlook, then you can block the ability to add a corporate account using these instructions to make sure your users do not add their corporate account to the new Outlook.
If you want your users to use the new Outlook for Windows but don’t want them to add their personal accounts, you can disable that by using this parameter in PowerShell. In order for this to work, a managed Microsoft 365 corporate account from your organization must also be added to the new Outlook.
If you prefer to not have the new Outlook show up in your organization’s devices, you could remove it after it has been installed as part of the update. Admins can do this by following the instructions in this link to remove the app package using PowerShell and using the parameter Microsoft.OutlookForWindows.
The PowerShell cmdlet to use is:
Remove-AppxProvisionedPackage -Path c:\offline -PackageName Microsoft.OutlookForWindows
[How do I manage the new Outlook for Windows?]
There is now a GPO to manage the display of the “Try the new Outlook” toggle in the classic Outlook. The policy was included in the ADMX published from build 16.0.5401.1000. You can download the latest set of ADMX from this location on the download center: Administrative Template files (ADMX/ADML) and Office Customization Tool for Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise, Office 2019, and Office 2016.
Additionally, this can now be configured in Cloud Policy service: Overview of Cloud Policy service for Microsoft 365 – Deploy Office | Microsoft Learn.
Since the new Outlook shares codebase with Outlook on the web, most of the same policies that apply to Outlook on the web also apply to the new Outlook, such as Set-OwaMailboxPolicy (ExchangePowerShell) | Microsoft Learn and Set-OrganizationConfig (ExchangePowerShell) | Microsoft Learn Exchange PowerShell cmdlets.
We are actively looking at adding new capabilities to help more organizations try out the new Outlook.
