Microsoft Word and Excel Macros for DeskSite and FileSite Expire August 26, 2021
by Jared Barraford
Managing Director
What is the Advisory?
On July 16th, 2021, iManage has released an updated CSAR for all customers running DeskSite or FileSite builds on any version of 9.3.6 or earlier that requires an update to prevent Microsoft Word and Excel from disabling the use of the Save, Save As, Open and Print via Shortcut commands.
Background + Impact
For security reasons, iManage develops macro files for Word + Excel that control Office shortcut key integration using digital signatures to designate that the files are from a trusted source, and which are set to expire on a preset date. This certificate rollover may be familiar, as a similar advisory was put out for non-9.3.6 clients around December 2nd of 2018. In both cases, depending on the Macro security settings for each Office environment, Word and Excel may display a warning message about an invalid or expired digital certificate after August 26th, 2021, and the use of Save, Save As, Open and Print may be disabled for the user.
NOTE1: This should only affect shortcut keys from Word + Excel, and this should not affect any corresponding functionality initiated directly from buttons on the iManage ribbon or Office backstage menus.
NOTE2: Work 10 Desktop Office integration, or Work 10 Desktop Office integration running in compatibility mode with 9.3.6 clients should not be impacted, but every environment should test their specific setup to be sure these macro files are not in use.
How to Address the Advisory?
First, be aware of the current configuration for Office macro settings in your environment – strict macro runtime settings, Trusted Publishers and Trusted locations all have the potential to change how macro templates such as these run when their digital certificate expires. To update the templates and certificates, iManage provides CSAR-2829 for 9.3.x builds of DeskSite and FileSite.
iManage also states that the certificates are updated in the latest release of DeskSite / FileSite 9.3.7. Before upgrading to any new version of DeskSite or FileSite or patching either release, proper testing is advised.
If you would like assistance remediating this advisory or planning any iManage client upgrades to 9.3.7 or Work 10 Desktop in your environment, please contact our experts at service@helient.com.