Google Workspace Updates: October 2020

Replace your background in Google Meet

Friday, October 30, 2020

What’s changingYou can now replace your background with an image in Google Meet. You can either use Google’s hand-picked images, which include office spaces, landscapes, and abstract backgrounds, or upload your own image.

Who’s impacted
End users
Why you’d use it
Custom backgrounds can help you show more of your personality, as well as help hide your surroundings.
Additional detailsWe recently launched the ability to filter out disruptive background noise and blur your background in Google Meet. Together, these features reduce audio and visual distractions, and help ensure more productive meetings.
Virtual backgrounds work directly within your browser and do not require an extension or any additional software. At launch, they’ll work on ChromeOS and on the Chrome browser on Windows and Mac desktop devices. Support on Meet mobile apps will be coming soon; we’ll announce on the Google Workspace Updates blog when they become available.
Getting startedAdmins: At launch, there will be no admin control for this feature. Admin controls to select which organizational units can use custom and preset backgrounds for meetings they organize will be introduced later this year. We’ll announce on the Google Workspace Updates blog when they’re available.
End users: This feature is OFF by default. Visit our Help Center to learn more about how to change your background on Google Meet.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release domains: Gradual rollout to eligible devices (up to 7 days for feature visibility) starting on October 30, 2020
Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout to eligible devices (up to 7 days for feature visibility) starting on November 6, 2020

Availability

Available to Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers
Available to users with personal Google accounts
Selecting your own picture is not available to participants of meetings organized by Education and Enterprise for Education customers

Resources

Roadmap

This feature was listed as an upcoming release.

Set your status as away in Google Chat in Gmail

Thursday, October 29, 2020

Quick launch summaryYou can now set yourself as “away” in Chat in Gmail.
When you set your status to away, you will show as offline to others, even when you’re active, helping you to focus solely on your work uninterrupted.

New presence menu in Gmail

Set your status as away on Gmail mobile apps

For domains that still use chat in classic Hangouts, disabling the “Show when you were last active” setting will now show you as away in Chat.
This feature is rolling out to Gmail on the web and the Gmail iOS app. It will be coming soon to the Gmail app on Android. We will post on the Google Workspace Updates blog when this rollout begins.
Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
End users: This feature will be off by default. To set your status to away, select that option in the presence menu in Gmail.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on October 29, 2020
Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on November 12, 2020

Availability

Available to Workspace Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers
Not available to Workspace Essentials and Enterprise Essentials customers

Resources

Google Help: Change your Gmail availability & status

Office editing mode is now the default editing mode for Office files in Drive on the web

Tuesday, October 27, 2020

What’s changing We’re changing the default editing mode for Microsoft Office files in Google Drive on the web. Now, when you double-click on an Office file, it will open directly in Office editing mode.
Previously, double clicking would open a preview of the document, from which users could choose whether to open in Office editing mode or download the file. You can still use the preview mode by right clicking the file and clicking "Preview,” or by pressing ‘P’ on the keyboard while double clicking the file.

Who’s impacted End users

Why it’s important This change makes it quicker to open and start editing documents. Users can directly edit, comment, and collaborate on Office files using the familiar interface of Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides, with changes automatically saved to the file in its existing Office format.

Additional details Note that:

This change will apply to all compatible Office file types, including .docx, .doc, .ppt, .pptx, .xls, .xlsx, .xlsm
Password protected Office files will not open directly in Office editing mode. These files will continue to open in Preview mode.
If the “Office Editing for Docs, Sheets & Slides” Chrome extension is installed, we will redirect to the extension and not to Docs, Sheets, or Slides. This is the same as if you select “Open with” today.

Getting started

Admins: This feature will be ON by default. There is no admin control for this feature.
End users: This change will take place by default when opening compatible Office files in Drive on the web. You can still use the preview mode by right clicking the file and clicking "Preview," or by pressing ‘P’ on the keyboard while double clicking the file. Visit the Help Center to learn more about working with Office files in Drive.

Rollout pace

Availability

Available to Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers, and users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Google Help: Work with Office files

Enhanced Support for Google Workspace now available

Tuesday, October 27, 2020

What’s changing We recently announced that G Suite is now Google Workspace: everything you need to get anything done, all in one place.

As part of our effort to tailor offerings to meet distinct customer needs, we’re expanding our Customer Care portfolio to include a new level of service: Enhanced Support. Designed for customers who need fast, advanced, and complete support, it offers accelerated response times, advanced product knowledge and Third-Party Technology Support. Enhanced Support is included with Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus editions.

Customers can contact sales for more details on purchasing Enhanced Support separately.

Who’s impacted Admins

Why you’d use it Enhanced Support offers:

An accelerated Support experience, available 24/7. For Priority 1 cases, customers can expect a first meaningful response within one hour; for Priority 2 cases, they can expect a response in four hours.
Intelligent triaging. This ensures that cases are routed directly to technical experts who have advanced product knowledge and training, as well as additional tools to provide complete support.
Third-Party Technology Support: Enhanced Support can help customers leverage the many third-party integrations available on Google Workspace. This includes, assistance with application set-up, configuration, and troubleshooting.

Additional details There are now three levels of service available to customers. Each has a different combination of speed and services based on business needs:

Standard Support: Included with Business Starter, Business Standard, and Business Plus editions, Standard Support offers 24/7 technical support, with a four-hour response time for the highest priority cases.
Enhanced Support: Our new offering, Enhanced Support comes with faster support (a one-hour response time), intelligent triaging, and Third-Party Technology Support.
Premium Support: Launched earlier this year, Premium Support offers the fastest response time, 15 minutes for P1 cases, a named Technical Account Manager, and additional support functions.

To learn more about our Support offerings, see our Customer Care portfolio.
Coming in 2021, a support API will be available for Enhanced and Premium Support customers. With the API, you’ll be able to create and manage support cases on a single platform. Stay tuned to the Google Workspace Updates blog for information when this launches.

Getting started

Admins: Enhanced Support is included with Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus Editions. It is available for purchase by Business Standard and Business Plus customers.

Availability

Included with Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus editions
Available as an upgrade for Business Standard and Business Plus editions

Resources

Google Workspace Customer Care offerings

New events in Google Chat audit logs

Tuesday, October 27, 2020

Quick launch summaryWe’ve added audit logging for several new user events in Google Chat. Detailed audit logging is a critical component in effectively managing secure chat usage within your ___domain.
The new events include:

Invite sent
Message edited
Attachment uploaded
Attachment downloaded
Room member added
Room member removed

We’ve also expanded the information included with each audit log. The following additional fields are now populated for all events if they are available for that event:

Message ID
Room ID
Room name
Attachment name
Attachment hash
External room
Room history setting
Recipient
Attachment URL

Note that these additional fields are only available via the Reports API or security investigation tool.

Getting started

Admins: This feature will be available by default in the Admin console. Visit the Help Center to learn more about using and customizing audit logs with Chat.
End users: There is no end user setting for this feature.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on October 27, 2020

Availability

Available to Workspace Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers
Not available to Workspace Essentials and Enterprise Essentials customers

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Google Chat audit log

Streamlined and intuitive app management in the Admin console with new unified experience

Thursday, October 22, 2020

What’s changing We’re creating a single place to manage web and mobile apps in the Admin console. With the new ___location, we’ll also be updating the management interface to be more consistent and intuitive. You’ll find this at Admin console > Apps > Web and mobile apps. There, you’ll be able to see configured apps, search apps, add apps, manage user access, adjust settings, and more for:

Android apps. This was previously at Admin console > Devices > Mobile settings > App management > Manage apps for Android devices. Learn more about mobile app management.
iOS apps. This was previously at Admin console > Devices > Mobile settings > App management > Manage apps for iOS devices. Learn more about mobile app management.
SAML apps. This was previously managed at Admin console > Apps > SAML apps. Learn more about SAML app management.

You’ll no longer be able to manage apps in the previous locations. However, you’ll still manage the Android available apps and system apps settings in Admin console > Devices > Mobile settings.

Who’s impacted Admins

Why it’s important By reducing the locations you need to use to manage different categories of apps and creating simplified and consistent workflows, it will be quicker and simpler to manage app use and deployment for your organization.

Additional details

New ___location for web and mobile apps:

New and consistent experience to add web and mobile apps:

Unified settings and quick controls to view access and manage apps:

Getting started

Rollout pace

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on October 21, 2020

Availability Mobile app management:

Available to Business Plus; Enterprise; Education and Enterprise for Education; G Suite Basic and Business; and Nonprofits customers
Not available to Business Starter, Essentials, and Enterprise Essentials customers.

SAML app management:

Available to Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers

Resources

Introducing data protection insights reports

Wednesday, October 21, 2020

What’s changing We’re creating reports with recommendations that will help customers proactively understand and protect sensitive content. The reports will show:

How many files in your organization contain sensitive information.
How many sensitive files in your organization have been shared externally.
Insights into the type of sensitive information (e.g. credit card numbers, social security numbers, etc.) in those files.

Note that a report will be proactively generated for Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus customers on a periodic basis. They do not require any Data Loss Prevention (DLP) rules to be set up in the Admin console. You can turn off the report by going to Admin console > Data Protection > Data protection insights.

An example of a Data Protection insight report
Who’s impacted Admins

Why it matters Protecting your company’s confidential data is critical. DLP supports this by giving you control over what users can share, and helps prevent the unintended exposure of sensitive information.
These new reports will help you understand what sensitive information is stored in your organization, and can help you make more informed decisions to protect it. For customers new to DLP, a report can help you identify the types of sensitive content, such as credit card numbers and tax IDs, that you might want to prioritize establishing DLP policies for. For customers already using DLP, a report can help you identify data types that you may not have authored DLP policies for.
Enterprise Standard and Enterprise Plus customers also have access to Google Workspace’s DLP systems, which can make it easier to implement chosen DLP policies and create alerts for ongoing monitoring of issues identified in the report.

Getting started

Admins:

End users: No end user impact.

An email which helps admins find and use the report
Rollout pace

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility)] starting on October 21, 2020

Availability

Available to Available to Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials (___domain verified), Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus customers, as well as G Suite Business customers
Not available Available to Essentials, and Business Starter customers, as well as G Suite Education, Enterprise for Education, Nonprofits, and Basic customers

Resources

Roadmap

This feature was listed as an upcoming release.

Google Workspace Add-ons now generally available in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides

Wednesday, October 21, 2020

Quick Summary Google Workspace Add-ons are now available for Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. Google Workspace Add-ons are already available for Calendar, Gmail, and Google Drive.

Google Workspace Add-ons allow you to use third-party applications within Google Workspace, helping you get work done faster without switching from one app to another.
Organizations can also create add-ons using Apps Script or alternative runtimes — use the Google Workspace Developer guide for add-ons to learn more about building add-ons.
Getting started

Admins: In the Admin Console, you can specify which applications your users can install from the Google Workspace Marketplace. You can also install chosen Google Workspace Add-ons for your entire ___domain via the listing in the Google Workspace Marketplace.
End users: If allowed by your admin, you’ll be able to install Google Workspace Add-ons using the “+” button in the Google Workspace quick access side panel. The add-ons you install will appear in the side panel across Google Workplace apps.

Rollout pace

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on October 21, 2020

Availability

Available to Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, G Suite Business, Basic, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers and users with personal accounts.

Resources

Roadmap

This feature was listed as an upcoming Google Workplace release.

Grant access to Drive files directly from Gmail

Tuesday, October 20, 2020

Update[October 26, 2020]: Please note that there is now an extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days) for this feature.
Quick launch summary We’re making it easier to manage access requests to Drive files by sending dynamic emails which allow you to respond to the request without leaving Gmail.
When someone requests access to a Drive file, you’ll receive an email with the access request. Now, Gmail users will be able to manage that request directly from that email, without leaving the message. Specifically, you’ll receive a dynamic email that lets you review the request, choose the access level (e.g. edit, comment, or view), and grant access directly from the email.
Previously, you had to open the document in a new tab or app to manage the access request. The dynamic email will make it quicker and simpler to manage these requests and control access to your files. It will work for Gmail users on the web, on Android, and on iOS.
Note that the 'from' address for access request emails is changing with this launch. They will now come from drive-shares-dm-noreply@google.com.

Getting started

Admins: This feature will be ON by default if dynamic email is available for your users. Use our Help Center to learn more about dynamic email and how to turn it on or off for your users.
End users: This feature will be ON by default for users with dynamic email turned on. Use the Help Center to learn more about how to turn dynamic email on or off for your account.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on October 20, 2020

Availability

Available to Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers, and users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Use SmartFill to help automate data entry in Google Sheets

Thursday, October 15, 2020

What’s changing We’re launching SmartFill for Google Sheets, which detects and learns patterns between columns to intelligently autocomplete data entry.

For example, if you have a column of full names, you may want to split it into a column with first names and a column with last names. As you start typing first names into a column, Sheets will automatically look for patterns. If Sheets detects a pattern, it will generate the corresponding formula, and then autocomplete the rest of the column for you.

We previously announced that SmartFill for Sheets was coming soon. See more details below.

Who’s impacted End users

Why it’s important We hope that SmartFill will make it easier to prepare and use data in Sheets. Similar to how Smart Compose in Gmail helps you write faster with fewer mistakes, SmartFill makes data entry quicker and less prone to error.

We also recently launched Sheets Smart Cleanup, which uses similar intelligence to help prepare and analyze data in Sheets. By adding new, intelligent features to help automate data preparation and analysis, we hope to empower all users to harness the power of data and quickly make data-backed decisions.

Additional details In addition to using data that’s in a sheet, SmartFill can also use data from Google’s Knowledge Graph. For example, it can use public data to autocomplete a list of countries where a list of cities are located.

For Enterprise Plus customers, it can also use information from your company’s people Directory to autocomplete data. For example, it can use organization-only data to fill in email addresses for company employees.

Getting started

Rollout pace

Availability

Available to Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers, and users with personal Google Accounts
SmartFill integration with people directory is only available to Enterprise Plus customers.

Resources

Google Help: Use SmartFill in Sheets to automate data entry
Google Workspace Updates Blog: New features to help improve and analyze data in Google Sheets
Cloud Blog: Analyzing petabytes of data just got easier, with Google Sheets

Roadmap

This feature was listed as an upcoming release.

Enhancing Google Workspace Add-ons in Gmail with Compose-time functions

Thursday, October 15, 2020

Quick launch summary We’re enhancing the way you work with Google Workspace Add-ons in Gmail with the addition of Compose-time functions. Compose-time functions can help modify and format your messages in Gmail faster by:

Adding recipients in the “To”, “CC”, and “BCC” fields.
Inserting content into the subject line and body of the email.
Inserting message templates for a consistent look and feel for your communications, and more.

Organizations can also create their own compose-time add-ons using Apps Script or alternative runtimes. Use the Google Workspace Developer Guide to learn more about building compose actions.
Getting started

Admins: In the Admin Console, you can specify which applications your users can install from the Google Workspace Marketplace. You can also install chosen Google Workspace Add-ons for your entire ___domain via the listing in the Google Workspace Marketplace.
End users: If allowed by your admin, you’ll be able to install Google Workspace Add-ons using the “+” button in the Google Workspace quick access side panel. The add-ons you install will appear in the side panel across Google Workplace apps.

Rollout pace

Compose time add-ons are available now in the Google Workspace Marketplace.

Availability

Available to Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers (when enabled by admins) and users with personal accounts.

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Allowlist Workspace Marketplace apps
Google Workspace Developer: Extending the compose UI with compose actions
Google Help: Use Google products side by side
Google Workspace Marketplace

Changes to Google Chat migration timeline

Thursday, October 15, 2020

just announcedtimeline Google Workspace and G Suite for Education customers have to migrate from classic Hangouts to Google Chat

In June, we introduced the Chat preferred setting in the Admin console to allow any admin to opt in to migrate all end users to Chat. We also made Chat preferred configurable at the organizational unit level.

In 2021, we will start migrating all remaining customers with “Chat and classic Hangouts" and "classic Hangouts only" settings selected to Chat. Here’s what you can expect:

Opt-out upgrade (no earlier than Q2 2021): All customers will be migrated to Chat Preferred unless their admins explicitly opt out. Customers who only have enabled Chat, with classic Hangouts completely disabled, will not be impacted.
Mandatory upgrade (late 2021): All remaining customers will be migrated to Chat Preferred, and we will fully replace classic Hangouts with Chat. There will be no option to opt out at this stage.

We will provide advance notice (4 weeks minimum) on the Google Workspace Updates blog before each phase begins. Stay tuned for more information.
Getting started

Admins: No action is needed at this time. Check out the Help Center for more information on transitioning your users to Chat.
End users: There is no end-user action for these changes.

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Google Chat upgrade timeline
Keyword: The latest with Google Hangouts and what to expect with the future upgrade to Google Chat

Use the Count API to estimate Vault API export sizes

Thursday, October 15, 2020

Quick launch summary We’re adding a Count API to the Vault API. The Count API enables you to see the number of messages, files, or other data items that match a search query.

You can use the number of items to estimate the size of the export, and then choose to proceed with the export or adjust the query to retrieve fewer items. This can help ensure a successful export by reducing the likelihood of export errors due to size.

Getting started

Rollout pace

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on October 15, 2020

Availability

Available to Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Enterprise for Education, G Suite Business, as well as other customers with the Vault add-on license
Not available to Essentials, Business Starter, and Business Standard customers, as well as G Suite Education, Nonprofits, and Basic customers

Resources

Roadmap

This feature was listed as an upcoming release.

New default video playback option in Google Slides

Wednesday, October 14, 2020

Quick launch summary We’re updating the default way videos play when you present in Google Slides. Now, the video will start playing when you click to advance the presentation. Previously, the presenter had to specifically click on the video to start playing.
With this launch, there are now three options to control playback:

Play (on click) - Video will play when you advance the slide. (This is the new default option.)
Play (automatically) - Video will play without you clicking to advance.
Play (manual) - Video will play when you click specifically on the embedded video in the slide while presenting. (This was previously the default.)

The new play on click option works the same way as any other animation or slide transition. When you’re presenting a slide with an embedded video, advance the slide by pressing a key, clicking a mouse, or using a remote clicker, and the video will start playing. You can adjust the sequence the video plays in the animations sidebar, so you can coordinate playback with other animations on the slide.

Note that this change in default behavior will only apply to videos inserted after the launch takes place. Videos already in presentations will not change playback type automatically, but you can change them manually in the format options.

The new default will help make presentations flow better and reduce distractions, so presenters can focus on content rather than where they have to click.

Getting started

Rollout pace

Availability

Available to Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers, and users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Google Help: Insert or delete images & videos

Managed Android devices must upgrade to Android Device Policy by March 19, 2022

Wednesday, October 14, 2020

[Updates] March 7, 2023: All devices with the Google Apps Device Policy will lose access during March 2023. Existing Google Apps Device Policy app users must switch to Android Device Policy before then to continue syncing work data. Note that, per our last update, the new user registration flow on Google Apps Device Policy will be blocked and users may see errors during the registration process as of January 2022. See below for more information and instructions.
January 26, 2022: The new user registration flow on Google Apps Device Policy will be blocked and users may see errors during the registration process.

October 21, 2021: We have adjusted the timing for this change. Now, Google Apps Device Policy app won't be available for new enrollments beginning January 19, 2022. Existing Google Apps Device Policy app users must switch to Android Device Policy before March 19, 2022 to continue syncing work data. Previously, we stated that users must switch before October 26, 2021.
What’s changing Last year, we announced that a new Android management client, Android Device Policy, would replace the legacy Google Apps Device Policy client. We’re now discontinuing the legacy client.

To ensure that devices enrolled by users with advanced management will continue to sync and have access to data, users in your organization must switch to Android Device Policy before March 19, 2022. Google Apps Device Policy app won't be available for new enrollments beginning January 19, 2022. If users still have Google Device Policy on this date, they won't be able to sync their devices or access data.
To switch to Android Device Policy, users must have an Android 6.0 Marshmallow or later device that supports a work profile. For users with devices that don’t meet these requirements, consider switching to basic mobile device management.

Devices enrolled by users with basic management must move to Android 6.0 Marshmallow or later before March 19, 2022 to continue enforcing a screen lock. If a user's device can't be upgraded to Android 6.0 or later, their device will continue to sync and retain access to data, however it will not be able to enforce a screen lock.

Who’s impacted Admins and end users

Why it’s important The latest Android devices and operating system (OS) versions provide improved security features. Moving to Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) or newer can help ensure all devices are protected by the latest security features, and can take advantage of improvements in the Android enterprise experience.

Getting started

Admins: Admins can find devices which may need to take action in the Admin console. Visit our Help Center to learn more about the differences between Android Device Policy and Google Apps Device Policy. Different devices may need to take different steps to upgrade:

Advanced management devices:

Find advanced management devices by going to Admin console > Mobile devices and filtering for Type: Android and Management level: Advanced.
Determine which of these devices are currently managed by the Google Apps Device Policy app and support the Android Device Policy app (i.e. devices with Android 6+ and support for a work profile)
Send these instructions to your users to help them migrate to Android Device Policy.

Basic management devices:

Find basic management devices by going to Admin console > Mobile devices and filtering for Type: Android and Management level: Basic.
Instruct users of these devices to upgrade the Android OS to version 6.0 Marshmallow or later.

End users: Affected users can visit our Help Center to learn how to transition devices from Google Apps Device Policy to Android Device Policy.

Rollout pace

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: All devices must complete the upgrade by March 19, 2022. Google Apps Device Policy app won't be available for new enrollments beginning January 19, 2022. Android Device Policy is available now for all users.

Availability

Available to Workspace Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers
Not available to Workspace Essentials

Resources

Make Google Meet or an add-on your default video conferencing option in Google Calendar

Tuesday, October 13, 2020

UpdateNovember 3, 2020: This feature is not available to Essentials and Enterprise Essentials customers. We previously announced that this was available to all editions and have updated the announcement to reflect the correct availability.

New Groups will become the only user experience beginning November 10, 2020

Monday, October 12, 2020

UpdateOctober 20, 2020: We have adjusted the dates that classic Groups will be turned off. It will now take place between November 10, 2020 and November 12, 2020 for Rapid Release domains, and between November 16, 2020 and November 19, 2020 for Scheduled Release domains. These updates have been reflected in the post below.
Quick launch summary In May 2020, we launched new Google Groups to provide a modern experience that matches Gmail and other Google services. In September, we made new Groups the default experience for all users, but allowed individual users to choose to use the classic Groups interface.

Starting on November 10, 2020 for Rapid Release domains and on November 16, 2020 for Scheduled Release domains, classic Groups will be turned off completely. After that date, there will be no option to use the old version (previously at Settings > Return to classic Google Groups). Users within your organization who were already using new Groups will not notice a change, but users who had chosen to use old Groups will be moved to the new interface.

Getting started

Rollout pace

Availability

Available to Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers

Resources

New look and feel for the Google Meet Android mobile app

Friday, October 9, 2020

Quick launch summaryWe’re updating the user interface (UI) of the Google Meet Android mobile apps. The new mobile UI will have the same look and feel as that of the meeting experience in the Gmail app and was previously rolled out to the Meet app on iOS.
Check out the original announcement for more details on these changes.
Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: This feature is fully available on Android now.

Availability

Available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers

Resources

Google Help: Join a video meeting

Create breakout rooms for more engaged distance learning in Google Meet

Friday, October 9, 2020

What’s changingOrganizers of Enterprise for Education meetings can now use breakout rooms to divide participants into smaller groups during video calls in Meet. Participants can then easily rejoin the original meeting following their smaller group discussion.
This feature will be launching to additional Google Workspace editions later this year.

Use breakout rooms in Meet

Who’s impactedEnd usersWhy you’d use itWith this highly-requested feature, educators can offer increased engagement in their classes by splitting students up for simultaneous small group discussions or working time. Moderators can also jump between breakout rooms to monitor and participate in discussions.Additional detailsYou can create up to 100 breakout rooms in a call. Call participants will then be randomly and equally distributed across the rooms. You can also manually move people into different rooms. Check out the Help Center for more details.
While only event creators can create breakout rooms, anyone with a Google account that is joining from the web or through the Meet app can be a participant.
Breakout rooms must be created during a video call on a computer.Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
End users: This feature will be available by default. Visit the Help Center to learn more about using breakout rooms in Meet.

Rollout pace

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: Full rollout (1–3 days for feature visibility) starting on October 8, 2020

Availability

Resources

Google Help: Use breakout rooms in Google Meet

Roadmap

This feature was listed as an upcoming release.

Use new APIs to understand and audit group memberships

Friday, October 9, 2020

What’s changing We’re launching new APIs in beta to help better identify, audit, and understand indirect group membership (also known as ‘transitive’ or ‘nested’ group membership, see explanation below). The indirect membership visibility, membership hierarchy, and check APIs are part of the Cloud Identity Groups API and enable you to:

Visualize group membership
View all direct and indirect members of a group
View all direct and indirect memberships of a user
Find paths from a user to a group
Identify if an account is a member of a given group or not

These APIs are currently available as an open beta, which means you can use it without enrolling in a specific beta program. Use our API documentation to learn more.

Who’s impacted Admins and developers

Why it’s important These features will help provide all of the information you need to create visualization of complex group structures and hierarchies. Having this kind of membership visibility can help you make decisions about who to add to or remove from your groups.

Customers often use groups to manage access to content and resources within their organization. Using ‘nested’ groups is common as it can decrease duplication, simplify administration, and centralize access management.

However, nested groups can create a complex hierarchy that can make it hard to understand who ultimately has access to content or resources and why they have access. These APIs simplify finding out these answers by making it easier to identify the direct and indirect members for a group. Some use cases include:

A security team can quickly identify all group memberships and associated nested memberships when a bad actor account is identified.
An admin could perform a deep-dive on group structure for audit and compliance. By using the APIs to list and validate direct and indirect members for groups with many nested groups.
A developer could extract group information via the API and feed it to a visualization tool that supports DOT format to make auditing and visualizing complex nested structures easier.

Additional details Indirect memberships, also known as transitive memberships, come from ‘nested’ groups. Nested groups refer to situations where groups are members of other groups. As a result, users in the sub-group are members of both groups. For example, group Y is a member of group X. Users in group Y are direct members of group Y and indirect members of group X.

Getting started

Rollout pace

This feature is available now for all users in beta.

Availability

Available to Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Enterprise for Education, and Cloud Identity Premium customers
Not available to Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, and Business Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, and Nonprofits customers

Resources

Lock files via the Google Drive API to prevent content edits

Thursday, October 8, 2020

What’s changing You can now add and remove content restrictions via the Drive API. By using the new ContentRestriction API, any file type in Drive can be “locked,” preventing changes to the item’s content, title, and comments.
Content restrictions can be added or removed via the API and removed via Google Drive on the web by any user who has at least editor access level for the item.
Learn more about the new API functions in this Drive ContentRestriction (Locking) API documentation.

Who’s impacted Admins, end users, and developers

Why you’d use it While Google Drive’s collaborative editing and commenting features are often helpful and beneficial, sometimes it’s important to know that changes are not being made to a document. Locking a file with the ContentRestriction API can help accomplish this, and could be used to:

Lock authoritative versions of documents to create “official” or “final” documents for record keeping.
Prevent changes to documents that are involved in a workflow, automation, or business process.
Freezing activity on a document for a period of reviews or audits.

Getting started

Rollout pace

This feature is available now for all users.

Availability

Available to Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers

Resources

Roadmap

This feature was listed as an upcoming release.

Access checker for Slides now checks permissions when you share with new users

Thursday, October 8, 2020

Quick launch summary Access checker in Google Slides ensures viewers and presenters can play videos and audio files as expected. By automatically offering access suggestions for embedded content, users can create, present, and consume without needing to adjust permissions manually, and can be confident all users will have a seamless presentation experience.

Earlier this year, we announced that Access checker would check permissions when you inserted Drive-stored audio and video files in Google Slides. With this launch, we’ll also perform an access check for already embedded audio and video content after you share the presentation with additional users or groups. Specifically, when you close the sharing dialog, Access checker will run and may suggest permission changes for multiple Drive video and audio files in the presentation.

This additional functionality will help ensure all viewers and editors of the presentation will get a consistent experience. See our previous announcement for more information on Access checker in Slides.

Getting started

Admins: Use our Help Center to learn how to manage Access Checker for your organization.
End users: This feature will be ON by default. Use our Help Center to learn more about how to insert files in Google Slides.

Rollout pace

Availability

Available to Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers, and users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Roadmap

This feature was listed as an upcoming release.

Improved malware protection for users in the Advanced Protection Program

Thursday, October 8, 2020

Quick launch summary We’re adding new capabilities to help protect users in the Advanced Protection Program (APP) who use the Chrome web browser from malware. Specifically, when Chrome detects a potentially suspicious file download, users will see a new prompt asking whether they want to send the file to Google Advanced Protection to check for malware. If they choose to send it, Google Safe Browsing will scan it in real time and will warn the user if it determines the file is unsafe.

See our Security Blog post for more information on the new malware protection and how it works.

The message users will see when a potentially suspicious file download is detected

Getting started

Rollout pace

This feature is available now for all users in the Advanced Protection Program.

Availability

Available to Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers

Resources

Advanced Protection Program information & sign up page
Workspace Admin Help: Protect users with the Advanced Protection Program
Workspace Admin Help: Enable user enrollment in the Advanced Protection Program

See read receipts on direct messages in Google Chat, now generally available

Thursday, October 8, 2020

Quick launch summaryLast month, we announced that you’d soon be able to see when your Google Chat 1:1 direct messages have been seen. This feature is now rolling out to all Google Workspace customers.

See the original announcement for more information.Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
End users: There is no end user setting for this feature.

Rollout pace

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on October 8, 2020

Availability

Available to Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers

Updates

Replace your background in Google Meet

Set your status as away in Google Chat in Gmail

Office editing mode is now the default editing mode for Office files in Drive on the web

Enhanced Support for Google Workspace now available

New events in Google Chat audit logs

Streamlined and intuitive app management in the Admin console with new unified experience

Introducing data protection insights reports

Google Workspace Add-ons now generally available in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides

Grant access to Drive files directly from Gmail

Use SmartFill to help automate data entry in Google Sheets

Enhancing Google Workspace Add-ons in Gmail with Compose-time functions

Changes to Google Chat migration timeline

Use the Count API to estimate Vault API export sizes

New default video playback option in Google Slides

Managed Android devices must upgrade to Android Device Policy by March 19, 2022

Make Google Meet or an add-on your default video conferencing option in Google Calendar

New Groups will become the only user experience beginning November 10, 2020

New look and feel for the Google Meet Android mobile app

Create breakout rooms for more engaged distance learning in Google Meet

Use new APIs to understand and audit group memberships

Lock files via the Google Drive API to prevent content edits

Access checker for Slides now checks permissions when you share with new users

Improved malware protection for users in the Advanced Protection Program

See read receipts on direct messages in Google Chat, now generally available

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