In 2018-19, AU will implement Office 365 for all employees. Office 365 will be the future collaboration platform for individuals and groups.

2018.09.21 | Louise Asmund-Hjorth

Photo: Lars Kruse

You should never promise too much. Especially when it comes to IT systems. But there’s a lot to suggest that Aarhus University’s implementation of Office 365 for all employees is something to look forward to. Office 365 includes all the familiar Microsoft Office programs in improved versions, as well as new extra features. 

OneDrive – your new personal drive with file-sharing feature

One of the essential features of Office 365 is OneDrive, the personal drive where you can save documents and files in the cloud. OneDrive will replace the U-drive and additionally act as an internal file sharing platform. Using OneDrive, you can share files with other units and people at AU in an easy and secure way – without having to use external services that do not comply with AU’s guidelines regarding data protection. Both researchers and administrative staff have requested a file sharing feature of this kind for a long time.

Sharepoint

Do you often work in teams where you need a secure and easily accessible place to communicate about the project and share data? Then you should be using Sharepoint, which is an integrated part of Office 365. In Sharepoint, you can create safe websites where you can store, organise, synchronise and share data and information with both colleagues and external partners. Sharepoint in Office 365 will thus be the future collaboration platform for Aarhus University.

Gradual implementation

The implementation of Office 365 at AU will be phased, and is expected to be completed in 2019. AU IT will start by moving the calendar and email to the cloud during autumn 2018. The move will not affect you or your access to calendar and email. But now you know that Office 365, including its tools for file-sharing and collaboration, is on its way. You will be kept informed about the implementation and when the new features are ready to use.

Additional information

• AU IT will be available to answer questions about Office 365, but they would like you to wait until they have properly prepared the support units at the faculties. They expect to be ready in early 2019.
• If you want to know more about the implementation of Office 365, you can contact project manager Karsten Ovesen, AU IT. 

The Cloud is the popular name for a network of virtual internet servers.. The cloud offers a much more secure way of storing data and is also a cheaper and easier solution for AU than having to organise server storage space and maintenance of hardware etc. ourselves. 

External file sharing services include services such as WeTransfer and the American service Dropbox. The problem with these services is that they are not in compliance with AU’s guidelines regarding data protection, both because they do not have a data processing agreement, and because they often locate their servers in countries with inadequate data protection legislation. This is why it’s actually illegal to use these services at AU.