365 Office Addin Tab Pane in Outlook and Task Pane in Outlook in single manifest

To implement both an Office 365 Add-in Tab Pane and a Task Pane in Outlook using a single manifest, you will need to leverage the unified manifest for Microsoft 365, which allows for the integration of various functionalities across different platforms, including Outlook and Teams.

Key Points:

1. Unified Manifest: Ensure you are using the unified manifest version (1.3 or higher) as it supports both Tab Pane and Task Pane functionalities. However, note that the Microsoft 365 Admin Center currently does not support uploading V1.3 manifests directly, which may limit your deployment options.
2. Task Pane Configuration: For the Task Pane to work during mail compose/read events, you need to configure the extensions.runtimes and ensure that the actions.type is set to openPage for the Task Pane. This configuration will allow the Task Pane to open when composing or reading emails.
3. Tab Pane Configuration: The Tab Pane can be configured under the staticTabs section of your manifest. Make sure that the contentUrl points to the appropriate web application that will be used in both Teams and Outlook.
4. Deployment: Since the unified manifest is not fully supported for direct upload in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center, you may need to publish your add-in to the Microsoft Marketplace first, and then deploy it through the Admin Center. This will generate an add-in only manifest that can be used on platforms that do not directly support the unified manifest.

Example Structure:

Your manifest should include both the staticTabs for Teams and the extensions for the Task Pane functionality. Here’s a simplified example:

{
  "$schema": "https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/json-schemas/teams/v1.16/MicrosoftTeams.schema.json",
  "version": "1.3.3",
  "manifestVersion": "1.16",
  "id": "your-addin-id",
  "staticTabs": [
    {
      "entityId": "tab1",
      "name": "Tab 1",
      "contentUrl": "https://your-url.com/tab1",
      "scopes": ["personal"]
    }
  ],
  "extensions": {
    "runtimes": [
      {
        "id": "TaskPaneRuntime",
        "actions": [
          {
            "type": "openPage",
            "id": "taskPaneAction",
            "title": "Task Pane",
            "page": "https://your-url.com/taskpane"
          }
        ]
      }
    ]
  }
}

Conclusion:

By carefully structuring your manifest to include both the Tab Pane and Task Pane configurations, and by following the deployment steps, you can achieve the desired functionality across Outlook and Teams. Keep an eye on updates from Microsoft regarding the support for unified manifests in the Admin Center, as this will facilitate easier deployment in the future.

References:

• Create add-in commands with the unified manifest for Microsoft 365
• Tutorial: Build a message compose Outlook add-in
• Office Add-ins with the unified app manifest for Microsoft 365

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