Convert Office LTSC 64-bit to 32-bit on EC2 Windows

by Ali Alzand

This guide walks you through converting a 64-bit Office installation to 32-bit Office LTSC Professional Plus 2021 on an EC2 Windows instance and activating it using AWS License Manager.

Note: This guide is specifically for instances launched from the Office LTSC Professional Plus 2021 AWS Marketplace offering. It uses AWS License Manager for activation and requires the appropriate VPC endpoint configuration.

Why 32-bit Office?

While 64-bit Office is recommended for most scenarios, you may need 32-bit Office for:

• Compatibility with legacy 32-bit add-ins or ActiveX controls
• Integration with older 32-bit applications
• Specific business requirements that depend on 32-bit COM objects

Prerequisites

• License Manager user-based subscriptions configured for Microsoft Office. See this blog post for detailed setup instructions.
• EC2 Windows instance launched from the Office LTSC Professional Plus 2021 AWS Marketplace AMI with 64-bit Office installed
• Instance deployed in a subnet with internet connectivity (required for downloading Office installation files)
• RDP access to the instance configured and tested
• User associated with administrative privileges on the instance

Workflow

Step 1: Uninstall 64-bit Office

1. RDP to the instance
2. Open Programs and Features (Control Panel)
3. Uninstall the current Office installation (64-bit version)
4. Reboot the instance

Step 2: Prepare Office Deployment Tool

1. Download the Office Deployment Tool
2. Run the executable and accept the license agreement
3. Select a folder to extract the tool (e.g., C:\ODT)
4. Download the configuration.xml
5. Place the configuration.xml file in the ODT folder from step 3 above

Step 3: Download and Install 32-bit Office

1. Open Command Prompt as administrator
2. Navigate to your ODT folder: cd C:\ODT
3. Download Office files: setup.exe /download configuration.xml
4. Install Office: setup.exe /configure configuration.xml
5. Open any Office application (e.g., Word) and accept the license agreement
6. Verify 32-bit installation by opening Word → File → Account → About Word (should show "32-bit")

Step 4: Activate Office with AWS License Manager

1. In the AWS Console, go to VPC → Endpoints

2. Locate the endpoint: com.amazonaws.<region>.activation-license-manager

3. Copy the first DNS name (e.g., vpce-xxxxx.activation-license-manager.us-east-1.vpce.amazonaws.com)

4. Open PowerShell as administrator and run the following script (replace UpdateMe with your DNS name):

   $Endpoint="UpdateMe"
   $dnsResult = Resolve-DnsName "$Endpoint" -Server "169.254.169.253" -ErrorAction Stop
   $ipv4Address = $dnsResult | Where-Object { $_.Type -eq "A" } | Select-Object -First 1
   $ServerIPAddress = $ipv4Address.IPAddress
   
   $Path = 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office16'
   Set-Location -Path $Path
   Write-Output "Running the activation script with the license manager: $ServerIPAddress"
   cscript ospp.vbs /sethst:$ServerIPAddress
   cscript ospp.vbs /act

5. You should see output similar to:

   ---Processing--------------------------
   ---------------------------------------
   Installed product key detected - attempting to activate the following product:
   SKU ID: fbdb3e18-a8ef-4fb3-9183-dffd60bd0984
   LICENSE NAME: Office 21, Office21ProPlus2021VL_KMS_Client_AE edition
   LICENSE DESCRIPTION: Office 21, VOLUME_KMSCLIENT channel
   Last 5 characters of installed product key: 6F7TH
   <Product activation successful>
   ---------------------------------------
   ---------------------------------------
   ---Exiting-----------------------------

6. Verify activation status:

   cscript ospp.vbs /dstatus