Jan 08, 2019 In Microsoft Skype for Business Server 2015, when a Skype for Business on Mac client user tries to add a new participant to a peer-to-peer call that has a screen sharing by using the Video-based Screen Sharing (VbSS) feature, you may find the escalation fails and the participant can't receive the meeting invitation to join the peer-to-peer session.
- Disable Vbss Skype For Business Macos Update
- Skype For Business Disable Vbss
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- This is correct, but to clarify for macos Sierra - if you don't want Skype for Business to open automatically go to System Preferences Users & Groups Current User Login Items. If Skype for Business is listed, select it, and then click - to remove it. It won't start anymore. – dunxd Jan 28 '17 at 0:18.
- Disable Skype for Business Online License for each user (do this for every user): Return to the Office 365 Admin Center and click on Users in the navigation pane on the left and then select Active Users. Click on the user to edit it. On the right- hand side under the “Assigned license”, click Edit.
- May 28, 2020 Skype for Business on Mac is the all new client that provides great communication experiences for Apple users. Features like one-click join, edge-to-edge video, and full screen sharing give you a superior Skype Meetings experience.
Updated 1/20/2018 – Corrected information on Office 2016 MSI supportability. Updated information on Skype for Business for Mac 2016. Updated Skype Meetings App supportability. Updated mobility clients supportability.
Updated 8/31/2017 – Updated information on Office 2016 MSI supportability.
Updated 10/27/2016 – Included updated information about client VBSS support and required versions. Included updated information about non-VBSS support scenarios. Included updated registry keys to disable VBSS in conference scenarios.
Updated 10/13/2016 – Included updated information about Surface Hub VBSS support and information about LWA/SWA VBSS support
Updated 7/15/2016 – Included updated information about LRS VBSS support, Surface Hub VBSS support, MCU VBSS Support and Office365 MCU VBSS Support, and MCU Bandwidth information
Updated 6/9/2016 – Included information about Cumulative Updates for VBSS-related fixes
Updated 2/12/2016 – Including information about disabling VBSS via registry keys
If you’ve been following along with my blog, you may have noticed that I published an article around application sharing a few months ago. AppShare tends to be the ‘forgotten modality’, in my opinion, so the goal was to raise awareness around just how considerable the usage could impact enterprise networks. Knowing that video based screen sharing (VBSS) was coming down the pipeline, the intention was to come back and publish info on VBSS afterwards, but Jeff Schertz beat me to it and published an article that took the wind out of my sails – we’ll hash out the differences over a beer when I’m back in Chicago, Jeff ?
Note: While I was away on vacation, Jeff Schertz published another article before me – again – but in his defense, if the roles were reversed then I would have done the same thing! All a matter of timing ?
I won’t attempt to completely re-invent the wheel given that Jeff’s post already has most of the info, but I’ll add some personal flavor to the discussion that will increase the available information out there and potentially fill in some gaps…
Background on VBSS vs RDP
From OCS 2007 to the current Skype4B Server 2015 version, application sharing has been accomplished by using the RDP protocol for both peer to peer and multi-party communications. The biggest problem came down to performance of that RDP-based solution and the movement away from RDP to H.264UC within VBSS is a big step in overcoming the overall performance issues. Since VBSS uses H.264UC to actually encode the application sharing traffic and UDP as a network transport, it has essentially become a video-stream instead of the RDP/TCP session that was previously present. The improvements are noticeable but there more than a few issues to note as of current…
Where is VBSS available?
Microsoft now has an official Office support page with information about where VBSS is available.
- The Office 2016 suite (Click to Run) on Windows machines only.
- Note: Requires version 16.0.6330.1000 or above
- The Office 2016 suite (MSI) on Windows machines only.
- Note: Requires version 16.0.4401.1000 or above
- Skype for Business for Mac 2016
- Note: Requires version 16.2.145 or above
- Skype4B Mobility clients
- iOS and Android clients support VBSS but require specific versions:
- iOS version 6.7 or higher
- Android 6.7.0.7 or higher
- iOS and Android clients support VBSS but require specific versions:
- Skype Meetings App
- Note: VBSS is limited to View-only scenarios
- 1:1 (or peer to peer) sessions using the Share Desktop feature in the Skype4B client.
- 1:M (or multiparty) sessions using the Share Desktop feature in the Skype4B client.
- Skype for Business Server 2015 MCUs as of the CU3 update
- Note: Requires July 5, 2016 CU on the client to utilize.
- Office365 MCUs as of the CU3 update
- Note: Requires July 5, 2016 CU on the client to utilize.
- Note: Within a conference, the joining of any down-level client that does not support VBSS forces all clients to switch back to RDP.
- Surface Hub
- Note: Requires the Anniversary Update 1607 to utilize
Note: For P2P scenarios, the ability to use VBSS is largely independent of server version or hybrid topology state and instead is largely based on the client itself. As a result you can still achieve VBSS usage even when your server back-end does not support it.
Where is VBSS not available?
- Lync 2013/2010 clients – I am not expecting this to change and those clients will continue to utilize RDP.
- Note: Skype 2015 clients are really Lync 2013 clients with the new UI.
- Using the Share Program feature in the Skype4B client – If you share an application, such as Word, RDP will likely continue to be used for the foreseeable future until Microsft adds VBSS for this particular scenario.
- Using the Share Program feature in the Lync 2013/2010 client – If you share an application, such as Word, RDP is the only option available and will continue to be used for the foreseeable future.
- Using the Give Control feature within application or screen sharing (updated) – if you grant control of your desktop to another user, the client automatically falls back to RDP.
- Lync 2013 Mobility clients – given the more limited processing power in mobile devices (and other mobile challenges such as bandwidth), RDP is still used in the mobile clients.
- Lync for Mac 2011 – the Lync for Mac 2011 client does not support VBSS and will continue to utilize RDP.
- Lync Server 2013 multiparty sessions (updated) – All multiparty application sharing sessions (either formal, such as a meeting, or informal, such as an four-party IM with application sharing) eventually terminate on an MCU, specifically the Application Sharing MCU, on your Front End or an Office365 Front End. The MCU must include support within the SDP for VBSS, which is not available for Lync Server 2013.
- Note: I do not expect VBSS to come to any previous server version, such as Lync Server 2013 or Lync Server 2010.
- Lync Web App/Skype Web App – Even though VBSS has been added to the MCU’s, the plug-in for LWA (or Skype Web App) does not support VBSS.
- Lync Room Systems – LRS is really the Lync 2013 client at its core, so I do not expect this to change and those clients will continue to utilize RDP until the LRS systems are updated to the 2016 client code.
- Skype for Business Room Systems – At the current time the S4B room system software really is Lync 2013 at the core. The most recent update simply changed the branding and UI but the core application still remains on the Lync 2013 code. I would expect VBSS to come to the Skype4B Room Systems at some point in the future when the core application is upgraded.
- Surface Hub – While Surface Hub now supports VBSS as of the Anniversary Update, there still may be interoperability issues that cause it to fail. Additionally, if the Surface Hub hasn’t been updated to the latest update then VBSS won’t be available.
VBSS Bandwidth Planning
As Jeff Schertz pointed out (and as I’ve seen in deployments already) the bandwidth numbers for VBSS change when compared to RDP. Bandwidth planning for RDP-based app share was a big point in my previous post and with VBSS now in the picture, it becomes even more important. If you search for information on application sharing bandwidth, you’ll likely come up with very few pieces of information. The only published application sharing bandwidth information is actually hidden within two pieces of official Microsoft documentation but that information is specific to RDP-based flows and not VBSS:
In both pieces of documentation, Microsoft explicitly outlines bandwidth estimations for application sharing traffic:
Table 1 – RDP Application Sharing Bandwidth Estimations
Screen Size | Acceptable | Optimal |
1280×800 | 384 Kbps | 1.5 Mbps |
1440×900 | 512 Kbps | 2 Mbps |
1680×1050 | 768 Kbps | 2.75 Mbps |
1920×1200 | 1 Mbps | 3.5 Mbps |
The numbers above also don’t have any bearing on bandwidth expectations when using the High Performance RDP sharing option, so for the sake of comparison we’ll simply compare VBSS with regular RDP scenarios. Jeff Schertz pointed out an increase of 25% when comparing VBSS to RDP and I can confirm that’s a fairly good expectation, although maybe a bit on the low end, but still usable. With that information and assumption, the application sharing bandwidth table begins to change and we can create ourselves a new table for VBSS:
Table 2 – VBSS Application Sharing Bandwidth Estimations
Screen Size | Acceptable | Optimal |
1280×800 | 480 Kbps | 1.875 Mbps |
1440×900 | 640 Kbps | 2.5 Mbps |
1680×1050 | 960 Kbps | 3.40 Mbps |
1920×1200 | 1.25 Mbps | ~4 Mbps* |
Looking at the table with new info, a few points (some existing and some new) can be made…
VBSS bandwidth is still variable in nature and can have a wide range of bandwidth requirements
There’s no denying that a static, non-moving screen won’t require much bandwidth, but movement of applications, scrolling of Word documents and refreshing of screens could require a significant increase in bandwidth requirements. Don’t always assume the lower value is a hard-and-fast-rule – it’s really more an average towards the left side of the Bell Curve. Bandwidth above the average can (and will) occur.
VBSS bandwidth requirements are most largely coupled to screen resolution
The higher the resolution, the more bandwidth required but a ceiling does seem to be present due to maximum video payload bitrate of the H.264UC codec implementation within Skype4B. See below.
VBSS may be limited to 1920×1080 screen resolutions*
So - implementing local recording for Skype for Business on Mac is a dead end, in my opinion - I'm glad they have shelved it and moved instead towards recording to the cloud independent of platform (this should also be available on Android and iOS), if you're correct that this is the real roadmap. Recording meetings locally on my PC is not an ideal scenario, as I end up with huge files which need to be uploaded or sent by email. It adds up, when you have a lot of meetings. Skype for business mac microphone not working. Cloud recording should be implemented across the board, regardless of platform.
Given that the H.264UC codec is used for VBSS, there is a limitation with the resolution support of the codec as implemented within Skype4B. Microsoft’s documentation lists 1920×1080 as the top-end resolution for H.264UC, so screens with higher resolution than that – namely 4K or 5K or 8K – will not transmit at the native resolution and be capped at the maximum encoding rate of 1920x1080p which is approximately 4 Mbps. I am anticipating that Microsoft may have to add additional levels and profiles of H.264 to support the higher resolutions above 1080p. If that happens, expect bandwidth to increase accordingly.
What makes it “Acceptable” vs “Optimal”?
VBSS offers a significant improvement in frame rate (and thus performance) when compared to RDP so the tables above will certainly change from what I’ve posted (which aren’t official in any way). That being said, don’t try to starve application sharing bandwidth just because it’s ‘appshare’. Given that VBSS is really a video stream, the performance of VBSS will be directly tied to network performance provided for that traffic. If you go much lower than the ‘Acceptable’ numbers in the second table, expect users to complain of slow refresh rates, jumpy application sharing, and/or wholly unusable application sharing sessions. There absolutely are scenarios where VBSS could consume the bandwidth listed in the ‘Optimal’ column, so it will be paramount to make sure that sufficient bandwidth is provided.
MCU Bandwidth will increase substantially with VBSS
Given that VBSS is a video stream and generally uses more bandwidth than RDP, your Skype4B MCU’s (whether on-premises or in Office365-land) will see an increase in bandwidth usage. Consider the following statement from the newly-minted TechNet page about Capacity Planning:
For larger on-premises deployments, re-thinking how you size your Front End pools now becomes critical so that you can properly handle VBSS bandwidth expectations for meetings. For Office365 deployments, properly sizing your Internet and/or ExpressRoute circuits to handle the bandwidth load for VBSS in conferences will be critical. Don’t skimp on this and control application sharing bandwidth per my recommendations below!!!
Controlling VBSS Bandwidth
Microsoft has added no additional controls for controlling application sharing bandwidth, so there’s nothing new to discuss. At this point your only recourse is to utilize one of the methods given in my previous post on controlling Application Sharing Bandwidth.
Disabling VBSS
As of the CU3 update, Microsoft has added native functionality within Conferencing Policies to control the usage of VBSS. There are effectively two options available: disable VBSS globally or disable VBSS within specific conferencing policies.
Note: The above cmdlets will only be recognized by the July 5, 2016 (and later) client versions of Skype for Business 2016 (not 2015 or Lync 2013), so if you need to disable VBSS for pre-July 5, 2016 clients, then you’ll need to deploy the registry keys below to force the Office 2016 suite client to utilize the legacy RDP functionality for screen sharing:
Note: the last two registry keys above apply only to clients that are running the July 5 update to the client. That client version supports conferencing-based VBSS, so if you need to disable VBSS for conference scenarios, use the last two registry keys above if you haven’t already disabled VBSS via the conferencing policy settings.
Cumulative Updates for VBSS
Microsoft has been continuously updating the client to fix VBSS issues that have been cropping up over the last few months. If you are having crashing issues you can also take a look at the following KB articles for fixes specific to Skype for Business:
Other Important VBSS Factors
Given that VBSS is H.264UC based, some companies may begin to notice that workstations appear to have more difficulty and crash or experience other odd issues when upgrading to the Office 2016 suite and begin using Skype4B. H.264 is almost always hardware accelerated and as a result has a much tighter integration and reliance with BIOS versions, video drivers, chipset drivers and Windows platform updates. Don’t believe me? Check this out:
Previously, drivers were begrudgingly updated when companies wanted to utilize video within Skype4B and ignored otherwise. Now that VBSS is in the mix and is essentially video, it is absolutely paramount to have the latest drivers on your workstations for proper function of Skype4B for the simple support of application sharing. Now more than ever, it is crucial that companies include a holistic approach to system updates and don’t focus solely on security patching.
In my previous post, I shed some light on new Skype for Business Client (formally known as Lync client ) look and options available to end user. This post will focus on the steps require to enable or disable Skype for Business Client for end user. Being an administrator you can control whether a user can use Skype for Business or not. With that being said, let’s get started with this post.
Before we start, i assume that you currently have Lync 2013 deployed in your infrastructure and the steps mentioned below are tested on Lync 2013 server edition. Here are the steps to Enable or Disable Skype for Business client in Lync 2013 server.
Mostly Microsoft product updates are pushed to end users from Windows Updates and Microsoft prefer to push new product updates from Windows Updates too. You can either manage Windows Updates centrally using WSUS and allow which updates can be pushed to end users machine and if you don’t have any centralized Patching system then you probably come up with this scenario where few users update their Lync client to Skype for Business and few using Lync. Once lync client is updated to Skype for Business client users will get the following pop up.
Most of the companies wants to standardize their software deployment and if you want to manage standardization of Lync client without using any central management system then here are the steps which will help you to control lync client version on your end user machines.
Disable Vbss Skype For Business Macos Update
Enable Skype User Interface
Skype For Business Disable Vbss
By default Skype for Business client UI value is Null in Lync Client policy. We can check client policy setting using this cmdlet,
Get-CsClientPolicy -Identity Global <PolicyName>
We can allow Skype for Business client interface using following cmdlet in Lync Management Shell,
Set-CsClientPolicy -Identity Global -EnableSkypeUI $True
To enable for particular set of users,
New-CsClientPolicy -Identity AllowSkypeUI -EnableSkypeUI $True
Grant-CsClientPolicy -Identity <sip address> -PolicyName AllowSkypeUI
After configuring client policy, Lync client will prompt for restart,
Disable Skype User Interface
To disable Skype for Business client user interface run the following command in Lync management shell,
Set-CsClientPolicy -Identity Global -EnableSkypeUI $False
Registry Settings
Disable Vbss Skype For Business Macos Free
Administrators can control the client interface using registry settings too. Here is the registry location:
Best mail app for macos. Even better, create your own tags to make the classification system as specific as you need it to be.Thunderbird features an integrated calendar and chat client, both of which are indispensable for work, and boasts great privacy features — like not automatically displaying images (hence stopping pixel trackers) when you open emails (can be changed in Preferences).Overall, Thunderbird has some powerful value propositions, but is also a bit ugly and unintuitive.
Disable Vbss Skype For Business Mac Os Download
HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftOfficeLync
To change registry settings using powershell,
Enable Skype for Business: Set-ItemProperty HKCU:SoftwareMicrosoftOfficeLync -Name EnableSkypeUI -Value 00,00,00,01
Disable Skype for Business: Set-ItemProperty HKCU:SoftwareMicrosoftOfficeLync -Name EnableSkypeUI -Value 00,00,00,00
The following two tabs change content below.Sajeel is a Unified Communication specialist with 6+ years of experience on Microsoft Lync (Skype for Business), Exchange, AD, O365 and Cisco Unified Communications. He is currently working as Lync consultant with expertise in planning, designing, implementing and managing Microsoft Universal Communications.
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- Enable / Disable Skype for Business Client - April 18, 2015
- Skype for Business Client Announced - April 15, 2015