With this new capability, admins can make it easier for teachers to set up and maintain their classrooms, saving them time since they won’t have to input grading settings for new classes they create. This will also ensure more consistency in grading settings for classes in a district.
Getting started
Admins:
This feature will be OFF by default and can be enabled at the OU level by going to the Admin console > Apps > Google Workspace > Classroom > Default grade settings.
Note: If any of the central settings need to be changed or deleted, you can do so in the Admin console as outlined above. However, any changes made to default settings will only apply to new classes going forward and not existing ones.
When a teacher creates a new class in Google Classroom, the settings defined by admins are automatically populated for the class. Teachers can still edit or delete these settings for their classes if they choose.
Note: Any changes made by teachers will be specific to that class only and will not propagate back to the Admin console.
Today, we’re expanding these protections by enabling admins to combine DLP rules with Context-Aware Access conditions. When combined, admins can configure if IRM should be enforced based on context conditions, such as a user’s location or IP address. This gives admins the ability to configure context-aware-access conditions in a more granular way and is an important step forward in applying administrator controls at the document level. Prior to this release, Context-Aware-Access can only be used to restrict full access to an entire application.
Getting started
Admins: This feature will be OFF by default and can be enabled per-file by creating DLP rules with a CAA access level attached. See this help center article for more information on how to configure these rules.
End users: Depending on your admin configuration, you may be restricted from taking certain actions on Drive files.
When such an allowlist is specified, users in the organization will only be able to use those allowlisted URLs for both their Apps Scripts and their Sheets IMPORT functions. This allows organizations to more granularly control access in a way that better aligns with a Zero Trust security posture.
Who’s impacted
Admins and end users
Why it’s important
Data exfiltration is an important security concern for admins, especially when it comes to Apps Scripts and Sheets because certain functions are capable of accessing external data. With this update, admins have more granular control over URLs accessed by users in their organization.
Getting started
Admins:
Logs can be found under Reporting > Audit and investigation > Drive Log Events OR Security > Security Center > Investigation Tool.
The URL allowlists can be found in the Admin console under Apps > Google Workspace > Drive and Docs > Features and Applications > Importing and fetching from URLs.
If an allowlist is not established, no URLs will be restricted.
To access this feature, double-click on a PDF from the Google Drive doclist to open it in a new tab > click on the Gemini icon in the top bar next to your profile picture.
When using this for the first time, you’ll see a welcome dialogue that automatically opens the side panel.
Many users follow threads within spaces in Google Chat to ensure they don’t miss any updates. To build upon this experience and help you keep track of important discussions occurring in threads, we’re introducing the ability to follow and review threads within the home shortcut.
Threads you’ve chosen to follow will now appear directly within home, enabling you to quickly catch up. Rather than searching for the space and finding the thread, clicking on the thread via home takes you directly to the threaded conversation. You can also use the “Threads” button in home to filter your view to show threads only. This option is next to the “Unread” toggle, which filters your unread messages across DMs, spaces, and threads. You have the ability to filter for unread threads specifically when this is toggled on and the “Threads” button is selected.
Who’s impacted
End users
Why it matters
Through this update, the home view has become even more useful with the ability to easily stay on top of followed threads.
Additional details
As a reminder, threads are followed in the scenarios below:
You are the author of the main message that a thread was initiated from.
You are explicitly following (via the “Follow” button).
You have replied via thread or were mentioned.
You have set the notification setting of the corresponding space to notify for “All”.
If a thread is no longer relevant to you, you can “Unfollow” it via the button in Home.
Getting started
Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
Rapid Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on July 29, 2024, with expected completion by September 30, 2024
Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on August 26, 2024, with expected completion by October 31, 2024
Android:
Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on July 29, 2024, with expected completion by September 30, 2024
iOS:
Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on July 31, 2024, with expected completion by September 30, 2024
Availability
Available to all Google Workspace customers and Workspace Individual Subscribers
The announcements below were published on the Workspace Updates blog earlier this week. Please refer to the original blog posts for complete details.
Google Drive inventory reporting is now available in open beta
Google Drive inventory reporting is now available in open beta, providing admins with enhanced visibility into the state of their data assets. | Learn more about Drive inventory reporting.
Reduce live-stream bandwidth consumption to a fraction of the traffic volume with eCDN for Google Meet
In September 2023, we introduced ultra-low latency livestreaming and since then we’ve introduced several improvements for the overall experience. This week, we’re excited to introduce the latest enhancement for ultra-low latency live streaming: Enterprise Content Delivery Network (eCDN) support for Google Meet. | Learn more about reducing live-stream bandwidth.
Adding Data Loss Prevention (DLP) to form content in Google Forms
We’re continually investing in data protection capabilities for Google Forms. We’ve already enabled data loss prevention (DLP) for Google Drive policies that apply to files submitted in external Forms, including Forms from external organizations. To expand on this, we’re announcing that DLP policies for form content in Google Forms is now generally available. | Learn more about DLP with Forms.
Enable Classification labels on specific Google Workspace applications
To improve granularity in enabling & governing labels, we are replacing and improving the existing “Labels” setting within Apps > Google Workspace > Drive & Docs and adding label-level application toggles to the Label Manager tool. | Learn more about classification labels on Workspace apps.
Introducing Google Meet LTI™
To help improve remote and hybrid learning, we’re introducing Google Meet LTI™ for Canvas by Instructure and PowerSchool Schoology Learning. This builds on the existing Google Workspace Learning Interoperability Tools including Assignments LTI™ and Google Drive LTI™. | Learn more about Meet LTI™
Improved collaboration with Google Workspace LTI™ integrations in PowerSchool Schoology Learning
In order to bring the collaborative power of Google Workspace for Education to even more partners, we’re excited to announce updated Google Workspace LTI™ integrations in Schoology. | Learn more about Workspace LTI™ integration in PowerSchool Schoology.
Automatically generated captions for videos in Google Drive
Starting this week, when you upload a video to Google Drive, captions for the video can be automatically generated. | Learn more about generated captions for Drive videos.
Label administration is becoming more discoverable and flexible in the Admin console
We’re introducing several changes to make labels more discoverable and flexible for organizations. | Learn more about labels in the Admin console.
AI Classification in Google Drive is now available for the Gemini Education Premium add-on
We’re expanding the availability of AI Classification in Google Drive to Google Workspace for Education customers with the Gemini Education Premium add-on. | Learn more about AI Classification in Drive.
Enhancing your productivity on Android devices with new features in Gmail and Google Chat apps
We’re introducing numerous improvements across the Gmail and Google Chat apps on Android foldables and tablets in order to enhance your productivity when using these devices. | Learn more about Android features in Gmail and Google Chat apps.
[July 31, 2024] We have temporarily paused the rollout for the ability to view a list of keyboard shortcuts in the Gmail & Chat app when pressing “?” on an external keyboard plugged into an Android device. We expect this feature to be fully rolled out by the end of August. We will share another update to confirm when rollout has completed.
What’s changing
We’re introducing numerous improvements across the Gmail and Google Chat apps on Android foldables and tablets in order to enhance your productivity when using these devices.
In the Gmail app, you’ll notice a new formatting bar located on the email compose screen. This now includes additional formatting options like the ability to change the font type and make a bulleted list.
Next, you’ll be able to view a list of helpful keyboard shortcuts in the Gmail app and in the Chat app by pressing “?” when you plug an external keyboard into your Android device.
Lastly, we’re enabling Smart Compose on Android tablets and foldables, a feature originally introduced on Gmail web that intelligently autocompletes your emails. Similar to the mobile experience, Smart Compose suggests text as you type that can be accepted by swiping across the gray text or pressing tab on a physical keyboard.
Getting started
Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
Even though data security is paramount in today’s digital world, organizations struggle to label their data at scale, rendering label-based data protections less useful. This problem is solved by AI classification, automatically applying labels to both new and existing files in Google Drive.
Powered by privacy-preserving AI models that can be uniquely trained on specific customer needs, AI classification automatically identifies, classifies, and labels files in Google Drive.. This helps organizations standardize data classification and achieve labeling consistency at scale. Labels can then be used to trigger rules on files that can and cannot be shared through data loss prevention (DLP) controls, lifecycle management policies, as well as audit and reporting use cases.
Available for Google Workspace for Education customers with the Gemini Education Premium add-on.
This feature is already available to customers with the Gemini Enterprise add-on, and via the AI Security add-on for select Google workspace customers.
1. Label Manager’s New Location: The Label Manager interface is moving from a standalone UI into the Workspace Admin console. Prior to this change, Label admins had to navigate to https://drive.google.com/labels to manage labels in their organization. Going forward, admins can access the Label Manager tool by going to Security > Access and data control in the Admin console.
2. Combined Label Types: Currently, there are two label types: Badged and Standard. Badged labels are single-field option lists with prominent visual display and coloring. Standard labels support complex metadata structures with up to ten fields of various formats. To make labels more adaptable, we’re combining these label types together, and going forward, every label will support up to 10 fields, one of which can be set as a “Badged list”.
3. Label Ordinality: With the combination of label types, organizations will now be able to create many labels with badge fields. As a result, there will be scenarios in which multiple badges are applied to a single file. Some UI surfaces only support the display of a single badge, so to address this, admins will now be able to configure label ordinality in the Label Manager list view. The ranking of label ordinality will govern which label is prominently displayed when there are multiple badged labels on the same file.
Getting started
Admins:
To access the Label Manager in the Admin console, go to https://admin.google.com/ac/dc/labels or Security > Access and data control > Label manager).
End users: There is no end user setting for this feature.
Automatic caption generation can improve the accessibility of media stored in Drive and can save you the effort of manually creating captions. It also allows you to easily search for videos based on their content, making it much simpler to find the exact file you need.
Additional details
You can manually request automatic captions for any video that was uploaded prior to this new update. See end user instructions below for more information.
Getting started
Admins:
This feature will be ON by default and as a result captions will generate automatically when a user uploads a video to Drive. Or, admins can choose between two options:
Option 1: Disable this feature
Option 2: Set it so captions only generate when a user requests them for a specific video by going to the Admin console > Drive and Docs > Features and Applications > Automatically-Generated captions.
If your admin selects option 1, you can add generated captions by right-clicking the video in your Drive > Manage caption tracks > generate automatic captions. You can also generate captions when the video is playing by going to the three dot menu on top right > manage captions tracks > generate automatic captions.
If your admin selections option 2, no action is required on your end and captions will automatically be generated upon video upload.
In order to bring the collaborative power of Google Workspace for Education to even more partners, we’re excited to announce updated Google Workspace LTI™ integrations in Schoology, a K-12 learning management system that makes it easy to implement hybrid learning and integrate your favorite teaching and learning tools.
To simplify this experience and enable users to operate on a newer, more secure and feature-rich version, Google Workspace LTI™ in PowerSchool Schoology Learning will now use the LTI 1.3. As a result, teachers and students have access to enhanced assignment capabilities and a secure classroom-centric Google Meet experience, directly in PowerSchool Schoology Learning:
With Assignments LTI™, you can:
Distribute, analyze, and grade student work with Google Workspace for Education.
Analyze student work submissions originality reports to save time and ensure authenticity.
With Google Drive LTI™, you can securely embed and upload Google Drive files directly in PowerSchool Schoology Learning.
With Google Meet LTI™, you can seamlessly schedule and host secure Google Meet sessions directly within PowerSchool Schoology Learning.
You can use Google Meet LTI™ to easily enable secure remote and hybrid learning - via video conferencing - directly within Canvas by Instructure and PowerSchool Schoology Learning. Educators can schedule video meetings with pre-configured host controls, including recordings, transcripts, and breakout rooms*. Students can view meeting recordings and artifacts from past class sessions directly within Meet. Google Meet LTI™ is also deeply integrated with your learning management system so that only educators can start the meeting and only students in the course can join.
*Support for pre-configured breakout rooms is coming soon — we’ll provide more details on the Workspace Updates blog once that becomes available.
To improve granularity in enabling & governing labels, we are replacing and improving the existing “Labels” setting within Apps > Google Workspace > Drive & Docs and adding label-level application toggles to the Label Manager tool.
Classification labels can be applied to a Workspace application once it's selected during the setup process. A lock icon will be displayed in line with the application toggle when the label is referenced by a policy, such as a DLP rule. To remove all rules that reference a specific label, go to the Data protection section of the Admin console > Security > Access and data control.
The active labels in your Workspace domain will continue to function and will be auto-enabled for Drive & Doc as a result of this update.
Note: Labels can be viewed by any admin in your organization with the Manage Labels privilege. They could also be visible to everyone in your organization if the label's permissions are set that way.
With DLP, Forms with sensitive content can be blocked from being viewed or responded to by external individuals. Based on DLP rules configured by the admin, this feature checks form content including questions, form title and description and answer options provided in the form, and prevents sensitive content from being shared externally; it does not check form responses provided by end users that are submitted to external forms.
This screenshot of a Google Form includes mentions of “Project X”. DLP rules are configured to detect and prevent sharing of Forms with responders outside the organization with any mentions of “Project X”, the sensitive content in this form.
Additional details
If you do not want DLP rules applied to users in your domain, you can exclude certain groups or organizational units from DLP checks. You can also exclude specific Forms by using nested condition operators in DLP for Drive rules. To do so, add a ‘AND NOT’ conditional operator and specify a relevant secondary condition, such as the presence of a custom-defined “isForm” label that you have applied to the Forms you want excluded.Visit this Help Center to learn more about using Workspace DLP to prevent data loss.
Getting started
Admins:
Data loss prevention rules scoped to Drive files defined for your domain will be applied automatically to Forms.
If you are not using DLP for Google Drive, you can create DLP rules at the domain, OU, or group level in the Admin console under Security > Data protection. You can apply block, warn or audit actions, consistent with DLP for Drive. If you apply the block action, users external to the domain will not be able to view or respond to forms with sensitive content.
End users: End users can respond to forms as usual to forms that do not violate DLP rules, but if a form violates Drive DLP rules for their domain, form editors may see warnings and form responders external to the domain may be blocked from viewing or responding to the form.
Rollout pace
Rapid Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on July 24, 2024
Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on August 5, 2024
Availability
Available for Google Workspace:
Enterprise Standard, Plus
Enterprise Essentials Plus
Education Fundamentals, Standard, Plus, the Teaching & Learning Upgrade
When configured by admins, eCDN has the potential to reduce bandwidth consumption to a fraction of the traffic volume. This applies to all live streams, including those originating from outside of your own domain. This is achieved through peer-assisted media delivery — whereby live streamed content is automatically shared between nearby peers, reducing the need to retrieve content from Google servers and minimizing bottleneck. There is no additional software, hardware, or end user action required to use eCDN — it works automatically in the background.
With eCDN turned on, live streamed content is shared between peers (as seen on the right), reducing the need to retrieve content from Google servers (as seen on the left).
Who’s impacted
Admins and end users
Why it’s important
Live streaming is a key tool for presenting information to large audiences such as town-hall meetings, weekly broadcasts or other kinds of events with large audiences. As such, video quality of live streamed content is critical. Using eCDN can significantly reduce the strain on internet gateways while delivering a high-quality viewing experience with consistently low latency. Without eCDN, each viewer is sent their own individual feed. With eCDN turned on for a private network, the backend will send media to a significantly lower number of clients in that network. Those clients will then use the eCDN technology to take over and redistribute media to ensure that all viewers in that network receive the media they need, with high quality and preserved ultra-low latency.
Getting started
Admins:
This feature will be OFF by default and can be enabled at the group level in the Admin console under Apps > Workspace > Meet > eCDN settings. The peering behavior of eCDN clients can be configured at granular levels if needed, including down to the subnet level.
End users: There is no end user action required — make sure you’re using Chrome 121 or later on a laptop or desktop computer to ensure the highest quality ultra-low latency live streaming experience.
Note: eCDN is available for those customers who have received the ultra-low latency live streaming experience. For some customers, that update is rolling out at a slower rate and they may not receive these updates for several months.
Compared to using APIs, Drive inventory reporting is a more efficient alternative to piecing together a full representation of Drive items from audit events and various other surfaces. The comprehensive view of the file corpus—including classifications, sizes, and locations—allows administrators to identify security risks, such as unauthorized access or oversharing. It also aids in ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements, like those for data retention and destruction.
Getting started
Admins: Eligible Admins can enable this feature in the Admin console by going to Reporting > Data Integrations and enabling Drive Inventory Export. Visit the Help Center to learn more about Drive inventory reporting. Admins interested in providing feedback to the product team during the open beta can fill out this form.
End users: There is no end user impact or action required.
Rollout pace
This feature is available now for all eligible users.
All new appointments need to be booked through appointment schedules in Google Calendar
Earlier this year, we announced that the appointment slots feature will be replaced by appointment schedules in Google Calendar. Starting this week, only appointment schedules can be created. In a couple of weeks, the appointment slots booking pages will no longer be available. At that time, all new appointments will need to be booked through appointment schedules. | Appointment schedules are available to Google Workspace Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Standard, Education Plus, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade, Nonprofits, Google Workspace Individual customers and Google One Premium users. | Visit the Help Center for detailed information about appointment schedules.
Available in beta: migrate sensitive files to Google Drive with client-side encryption
We are making it easier to programmatically import sensitive files to Google Drive with client-side encryption by providing code samples on Github. Eligible admins can apply for beta access to this Drive API feature using this form. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus; Education Standard and Education Plus.
Previous announcements
The announcements below were published on the Workspace Updates blog earlier this week. Please refer to the original blog posts for complete details.
Google Classroom now supports exporting grades and importing rosters and grade settings with PowerSchool SIS
Google Classroom teachers can now export and import select information via the new integration with PowerSchool SIS. | Learn more about the integration with Classroom and PowerSchool SIS.
Teachers will soon be able to create a new class in Google Classroom using Student Information System (SIS) data
In the coming weeks, we will be introducing a new feature that allows teachers to set up a Google Classroom class using information directly imported from an SIS, including co-teachers, student rosters and class lists, grading categories and grading periods. Please note this feature is only available with our current SIS partners. | Learn more about creating new classes in Classroom using SIS data.
Google Workspace extensions for Gmail, Google Drive and Google Docs are now available in open beta for Gemini (gemini.google.com)
We’re pleased to announce Google Workspace extensions for Gmail, Google Drive and Google Docs are available for Gemini (gemini.google.com). When enabled, Gemini will be able to cross reference these apps as data sources to better inform its responses. | Learn more about the beta for Gemini (gemini.google.com).
Import and export Markdown in Google Docs
We’re introducing highly-requested features that enhance Docs' interoperability with other Markdown supporting tools. | Learn more about markdown in Docs.
Clearer re-enrollment for Google Meet hardware devices
We're updating the way Google Meet hardware devices are re-enrolled to provide a more intuitive experience for administrators. | Learn more about re-enrollment for Meet hardware devices.
Available in beta: Policy Visualization across Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Drive
Users who are interacting with policy-protected content, such as those with data loss prevention (DLP) rules or trust rules, will now be proactively informed about what actions are prevented by those policies. | Learn more about policy visualization.
Enable guardians to preview assigned classwork within Google Classroom
Guardian email summaries will now include links that let guardians preview their student's Classwork pages, including assigned work and attachments provided by the teacher. | Learn more about guardians and Classroom.
Going forward, guardian email summaries will now include links that let guardians preview their student's Classwork pages, including assigned work and attachments provided by the teacher. With this update, guardians can stay up-to-date with what their students are learning. Guardians will not be able to see their student’s grades or submissions, class communication, or other students’ work. Guardians can easily access this page directly from the Classroom email summaries or from the link shared by teachers.
Who’s impacted
Admins and end users
Why it matters
This feature keeps guardians informed about their student’s assignments in class.
Additional details
Teachers with the Google Workspace Education Plus edition who already send guardian email summaries will notice those emails automatically start including guardian previewing links. No action is needed to get started.
Getting started
Admins: Admins can turn Guardian Access ON or OFF for their domain and determine whether only admins, or admins and verified teachers, can control guardians accounts and per-class access. If admins choose the latter, verified teachers are able to add or remove guardian accounts for students in their class and determine whether each class will be available for guardian access. Visit the Help Center to learn more about managing guardians in your domain.
End users: In classes where you have guardian summaries turned ON, guardians can now preview your classwork page and any classwork assigned to their student(s). You can turn this setting OFF at any time in your Class Settings page.
Guardians: You have guardian preview capabilities to your student’s Classwork page through direct links in the email summary. Visit the Help Cenet to learn more about guardian email summaries.
To improve upon this experience, users who are interacting with policy-protected content, such as those with data loss prevention (DLP) rules or trust rules, will now be proactively informed about what actions are prevented by those policies.
For example, if a user is interacting with a document affected by DLP-enforced information rights management (IRM) and a Trust Rule, they will see a shield icon and side panel that informs them of the restricted actions.
Who’s impacted
End users
Why it matters
With this update, users will be made aware of which actions they are taking that are disabled on a document, spreadsheet, slide or file due to data protection controls.
Getting started
Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
End users:
Any user will be able to see policy visualization if it's active on a document, but the owner of the document is used to determine if it's turned ON.
A shield icon and side panel will automatically appear when security controls are present.
Visit the Help Center to learn more about the policies that enable Policy Visualization:
In the Google Cloud Community, connect with Googlers and other Google Workspace admins like yourself. Participate in product discussions, check out the Community Articles, and learn tips and tricks that will make your work and life easier. Be the first to know what's happening with Google Workspace.
On the “What’s new in Google Workspace?” Help Center page, learn about new products and features launching in Google Workspace, including smaller changes that haven’t been announced on the Google Workspace Updates blog.
