FAQ¶
Does this work with all versions of Prism?¶
refractions supports Prism 9 and later (modern .pzfx format). Prism 8 support is
best-effort — older .pzf files may need to be re-saved as .pzfx first.
Do my colleagues on Windows need Refractions?¶
No. Refractions keeps the Office file as a real OLE-embedded Prism document — that's
true for .pptx, .docx, and .xlsx. Colleagues on Windows can double-click any chart
to open it in Prism and edit, exactly like before.
Does Refractions work in Word and Excel too?¶
Yes. The task pane runs identically in PowerPoint, Word, and Excel on Mac. The scope differs by host: in PowerPoint it's the current slide, in Word it's the whole document, in Excel it's the current sheet. Outlook for Mac is not supported (it doesn't use the add-in sideload mechanism).
Can I create a brand-new Prism chart from Refractions?¶
Yes. From the chart list in the task pane, click Insert new Prism chart. Refractions
creates a fresh pre-allocated .pzfx, opens it in Prism for you to fill in, and embeds
the result into your document on Update — same flow as editing an existing chart.
Does Refractions work with files on OneDrive or SharePoint?¶
Yes. Open the document from OneDrive or SharePoint, click Continue on this Mac in the Refractions pane, edit your charts, then click Put back. Refractions uploads the file as a new version of the original, and checks first that nobody changed it in the meantime. Step by step: OneDrive & SharePoint.
For work and school accounts, a Microsoft 365 administrator must approve Refractions once for the organization before Put back works. Send them For IT admins: approve Refractions.
What about files in my locally synced OneDrive folder?¶
Files you open from Finder inside the OneDrive sync folder work normally — PowerPoint sees them as ordinary local files, and the sync client uploads the updated file after Refractions edits it. The same file opened through PowerPoint's cloud picker or a sharing link opens via its cloud URL instead, and gets the Continue on this Mac round trip described above. Either route works; for synced files, opening from Finder skips the round trip.
If colleagues are actively co-editing the same document in the cloud while you edit the synced copy, the sync client may flag a conflict and create a "conflicted copy". Fine when you're the only editor; coordinate when you're not.
What happens if I get a new Mac?¶
If you've used all your license seats, raise a ticket in the support portal or email [email protected] with the license key and the hostname of the Mac you want to deactivate. We'll free a seat within one business day.
Is my Office data sent to the cloud?¶
Not to us. All chart processing happens locally on your Mac. Refractions makes two kinds of network calls:
- License validation against
https://refractions.app/api/validate-license/, which sends only the license key and a SHA-256 fingerprint of your hostname and primary MAC address. No document content, no chart data, no personally identifying information. - Microsoft 365, only when you use Put back on a OneDrive or SharePoint document. The file goes directly between your Mac and Microsoft, to the place it came from. It never passes through Refractions servers, and your Microsoft sign-in is stored encrypted on your Mac.
What's the refund policy?¶
If refractions doesn't work for you, email support within 30 days for a full refund.
Can I install refractions on multiple Macs with one license?¶
The Individual tier covers 1 Mac. The Lab tier covers 5 Macs. Need more? Email support about volume licensing.
Does refractions work without an internet connection?¶
Yes — for up to 7 days after the last successful license validation. You only need internet access for activation and the periodic re-validation.
How do I uninstall?¶
Run the bundled uninstaller from Terminal:
It does the whole job: quits Refractions, deletes the app, and removes the
localhost certificate, the sideloaded Office add-in manifests, the daemon logs,
and the license cache. You'll be asked for your Mac password, because the
installer put the app in /Applications as an administrator.
Then restart PowerPoint, Word, and Excel — until you do, a stale Refractions tile can linger in Insert → My Add-ins.
Reinstalling later?
Uninstalling clears the local license cache but does not release your seat — it never contacts the license server. Reinstalling on the same Mac re-activates with the same key and doesn't use up another activation, so keep your key handy (it's in your original activation email).
Moving to a different Mac only needs a step first once both of the seat's two
activation slots are used: deactivate an old Mac at
refractions.app/lab/login/, or the new one will
fail with seat_already_bound.
To leave the Refractions Local CA trusted in your keychain (useful if you're
reinstalling shortly), pass --keep-ca.
Removing it by hand¶
Dragging /Applications/Refractions.app to the Trash removes the app but leaves
four things behind:
~/.refractions— license cache and the localhost certificate~/Library/Logs/Refractions— daemon logs- the sideloaded manifests in each Office host's
Documents/weffolder, which produce add-in tiles that error when clicked - the Refractions Local CA entry in your login keychain, a trusted root that now points at nothing
The uninstaller exists to clear all four, so prefer it if you can.
Your PowerPoint, Word, and Excel files are not modified by Refractions at install or uninstall time.