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University Software Standards

Effective from: Dec 2024
Last Review: Nov 2024

Category Recommended Software Standard Acceptable Software Software under consideration
1. Operating System Windows 11 Enterprise Edition 64-bit
Multilingual User Interface with Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese
(36 months from release date)		 Windows 10 Enterprise Edition 64-bit Multilingual User Interface with Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese

  • 22H2 (end of support on 14 October 2025)*
2. Office Suite Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise (previously named Office 365 ProPlus) Office LTSC Professional Plus 2024 (Long Term Servicing Channel) with Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese

Office LTSC Professional Plus 2021 (Long Term Servicing Channel) with Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese

Office LTSC 2021 will become End of Mainstream Support on 13 October 2026.]

 —
3. Document Exchange Adobe Acrobat Reader Adobe Acrobat Standard

Adobe Acrobat Pro

(* Only required for editing PDF documents)

 Foxit PDF Editor+

(* Only required for editing PDF documents)
4. E-mail Outlook, Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise Outlook 2024
Outlook 2021		 —
5. Scheduling Outlook, Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise Outlook 2024
Outlook 2021		 —
6. Web Browser* Microsoft Edge Chrome —
7. Anti-virus Kaspersky Total Security for Windows Windows Defender Antivirus (Pre-installed service with Windows 11, 10) —
8. File Compression WinRAR latest version [NB: ZIP file format is still recommended] — —
9. Secured Shell PuTTY , WinSCP latest version* OpenSSH client —
10. Protecting digital information, Data Encryption for USB removable storage devices; and full-disk encryption for laptops Microsoft Information Protection (MIP) unified labeling client Microsoft BitLocker*
Microsoft BitLocker To Go*

*Remark:

  • Item 1 Operating System
    • Windows 11 Enterprise will be released once per year and will be end of servicing after 36 months from release date. Refer to Lifecycle FAQ – Windows.
    • Windows 10 Enterprise 22H2 will be the final version of Windows 10 Enterprise and will reach end of support on October 14, 2025.
  • Item 9 Secured Shell
    • is required only for users who need to use the software.
    • OpenSSH client is built-in feature in Windows 10 (Build 1809 and later)
  • Item 10 Protecting digital information, Data Encryption
    • Microsoft BitLocker is recommended for users who need to handle sensitive information. BitLocker is Drive Encryption technique for OS and Fixed data drives.
    • Microsoft BitLocker To Go is BitLocker Drive Encryption for removable storage devices.

Notes on the selection of University Software Standards:

  1. Executive Summary – Adopting Software Standards in the University
  2. For all software
    • Both Chinese and English versions are recommended depending on the actual needs of the departments/units.
    • Departments/Units are recommended to watch out for the securities patches/software updates provided by the vendors and install the critical patches when necessary. ITSC will also notify departmental LAN administrators about the critical updates of various software.
  3. For Electronic Filing – To read PDF documents, departments/units are recommended to install the latest Adobe Acrobat Reader which can be downloaded from Adobe website. Users need to edit PDF document could purchase Adobe Acrobat Standard, Adobe Acrobat Pro or Foxit PDF Editor+.
  4. For Chinese Character Set – ITSC is implementing a Supplementary Chinese Character Set for the University so that our specially created Chinese characters would be displayed correctly.
  5. For the software compatibility with the following campus wide applications, please refer to Tips and Getting Started guide at:
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The Racial Diversity and Inclusion Charter for Employers 2024-2025 Web Accessibility Recognition Scheme - Gold Award
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