Skype for Business Mac Client CU1 Update Summary

Yesterday Microsoft announced Cumulate update 1 for the Skype for Business Mac client which is very welcomed I’m sure ! Check out blog post from Msft here

So what’s new features and improvements has this brought to the Mac client I’m sure is the number 1 question !

But also lets not forget known issues and workarounds, one which is interesting is with single / tabbed conversations windows not available, this seems to be issue with the client not being able to detect if Server-Side conversation history is enabled and it wont default to a single windows experience. It does note to check preferences in the client. More details are below.

Tabbed conversations issue is also noted that it was allowed in previous client version to be used even if the back end infrastructure didn’t allow it previously and some users had message delivery failures and has resulted in this option being removed for some users so user may see conversation windows differences. Microsoft noted they are looking into this.

To use tabbed conversation in single windows its looking like you need Skype for Business server 2015 / SfB Online with Server-side conversation history enabled. To enable server side conversation history you need exchange 2013 or higher / Exchange Online. Also for SfB Server users server side conversation history has be enabled as well. So admins need to check this as well.

Requirements for single/tabbed window experience:

Skype for Business Online or Skype for Business Server 2015
Server-side conversation history enabled.

Features Added in CU 1

Features Added	Details
Manage contact groups	Skype for Business Online and Skype for Business Server 2015 users can now add and remove contact groups and enterprise distribution groups to their contact list.
Tag contacts for status change alerts	Skype for Business Online, Skype for Business Server 2015, and Lync Server 2013 users can tag a contact so that they are alerted any time the status of the contact changes to online.

Improvements with CU 1

Improvements	Details
Messaging	Improved sender experience in the case when a recipient is unable to respond to incoming messages. Fixed chat notification issues — In some cases, new chat notifications were not marked because the client assumed the user read them already.
Meetings	Numerous fixes and reliability improvements so you get a more stable meeting experience.
General	Calendar syncing issues fixed so at start up meetings can be retrieved correctly. Sign-in bug fixes — some account types were not able to sign in.

Known Issues

Full list of Known Issues here

CU 1 Known issues highlights

Issue	Details
Single/tabbed window experience not available	By default, if your topology meets the following requirements, all conversations will be shown in a single/tabbed window. However, there are cases when the client can’t detect if server-side conversation history is enabled and it will not default to single window view. This can be remedied by updating settings under Preferences. Requirements for single/tabbed window experience: Skype for Business Online or Skype for Business Server 2015 Server-side conversation history enabled. Troubleshooting if single window mode is not available, check the following: Preferences > General > Show conversation in separate windows is unchecked.
E-911 with ADFS not supported	This is a known issue and will be addressed in a future update of Skype for Business Server 2015.
Menu to add/rename/delete contact group are disabled right after adding a new group	Workaround: Select any contact or group, and the menu will be re-enabled.
Expand/Collapse Group Chevron icon is out of sync with the list of contacts after minimize/maximize Skype for Business	Workaround: Click on the chevron to correct the icon.
Adding a distribution group that has more than 100 contacts will result to 100 contacts only	Workaround: To view the full member list of distribution group, use Outlook to expand the group.

How do i get the update ?

Two methods,

Either using the Microsoft AutoUpdate (MAU) if you have already deployed the SfB Mac client already
Or for new users a manual download via Microsoft download centre here

Client Version number

With CU 1 – 16.1.0.456

Do i need to update my Skype for Business Server or Lync Servers ?

It does note under the manual download detail that’s its recommended for the best user experience to ensure customers are running the latest Server side cumulative updates which are November 2016 for both SfB and Lync Server 2013. Or it mentions move to Office365 for always up to date infrastructure which made me smile. Downloads link are below.

SfB Server 2015 (9319.272 ) – November 2016 CU4 here
Lync Server 2013 (8308.974) – November 2016 CU8 HF1 here
Lync Server 2010 – SfB Client not supported im afraid so it suggests Mac 2011 client only.

Also i have found info on the mobility requirements on the known issues page which mentions the latest CU updates for SfB Server and Lync Servers and notes mobility is not required if the latest CU is applied.

Without Skype for Business Server 2015 CU4 (build 9319.272 or higher, now available) or Lync Server 2013 CU8 HF1 (build 8309.973 or higher, now available), Skype for Business on Mac requires Mobility enablement on the server side. After updating to builds 9317.272 or 8309.973, Mobility enablement will no longer be required.

Here’s some screenshots of Updates and improvements

MAU Update process for SfB Client

I had a new update for the MAU so updated this first.

It then opened and i checked for updates.

I quit the Skype for Business client as it was running in the background and selected retry

It checks for more update and its done.

You can check About Skype for Business for the new version

Improvements Screenshots

Contacts – Create new groups from menu

Add a name

Add to Contact list

You can move contacts by right clicking and moving

Had a bit of an issue when i tried to delete group by right click and option greyed out

Selected group and used Contact menu option and greyed out

this was an empty group so i thought lets assign a user and see what happens that didn’t work. I got an error message so i signed quit the client and restarted and its ok now. I did add a new group previously with the same name and got an error so perhaps this caused it. I did try to recreate the duplicate group name error and test deleting groups again after restarting but all was ok.

I tried again and it was ok.