There are no new updates to share this week. Please see below for a recap of published announcements. 


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.



Improved quality and performance for Google Meet effects on the web 
Background effects are now more accurate for Google Meet users on the web. This allows you to experience more accurate background blur, background replace, and immersive background and styles. | Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus customers, and Workspace Individual users on eligible devices in eligible countries (Northern America, Europe, Northern Africa, Central Asia, Southeastern Asia). Visit the Help Center to learn more about availability. | Learn more. 

More control over accessibility preferences in Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Drawings 
You’re now able to set preferences for Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Drawings individually, rather than having the same accessibility settings apply across these products. | Learn more. 

Updated user interface for managing email quarantines 
In the coming weeks, you will see a new user interface when using the email quarantine tool. This brings the email quarantine experience inline with other tools in the Admin console, making it more intuitive to navigate and use. | Learn more. 

See how much noise is being removed during Google Meet video calls 
Google Meet can now remove background noises such as typing, construction sounds, or background chatter. | Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Workspace Individual customers only. | Learn more. 

Conveniently connect site visitors with social channels in new Sites 
Site editors can now insert stylized social media links into pages within their site, enabling you to more conveniently connect site visitors with additional information and content on your social channels. | Learn more. 

Enhancements to the “Frame people” feature on Google Meet hardware devices 
We’ve introduced two enhancements on Google Meet hardware devices for the “Frame people” feature: 
  • The “Frame people” feature is now more easily discoverable and can be accessed in a meeting from the touch panel in fewer steps. 
  • A solution to a recent bug impacting the auto framing capability for some Google Meet hardware devices. The auto framing functionality has been restored to impacted devices with improved reliability and performance. 
Available to all supported Google Meet hardware devices that have not yet reached their auto-update expiration date. | Learn more. 

New color categorization in Calendar to better understand how you’re spending your time 
You can now categorize your time by naming and assigning a corresponding color label to an event within Time Insights in Calendar. | Available to Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus and Nonprofits customers only. | Learn more. 

Easily assign Tasks from Google Docs 
In Google Docs, you can now assign a checklist item to yourself or a colleague that will then show up in the assignee’s Tasks list. | Learn more. 


For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).

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Frictionless sharing across Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides 
In the effort to make collaboration simpler for users, we've introduced a new sharing experience in Workspace. Now, when you click the "Share" button in the top-right corner of your file, you'll see a streamlined design that makes it easier to share files with others and/or specific groups of people in your organizations, control whether your file is searchable to groups with access, and to copy the file link. | Learn more. 

new-sharing-experience

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. 



Data Loss Prevention for Drive helps protect sensitive data when users upload files to external Google Forms, now generally available 
Users can now respond to external forms that contain file upload questions, while also helping to prevent the leak of sensitive and confidential information. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Standard, and Education Plus customers. | Learn more. 


New options for styling fonts in Google Forms 
We’ve added additional font style and sizing options, and the ability to customize header, subheader, and body text separately in Google Forms. | Learn more. 


Adjust spacing between content in Sites using new density theme setting 
Site editors can now adjust the spacing between the content on their site with a custom theme setting that offers Compact, Cozy, or Comfortable spacing options. | Learn more. 


Easily print your Tasks List 
You can now print personal and Chat spaces Task lists on web, making it easier for you to track assigned items offline or plan with pen and paper if that’s your preference. | Learn more. 


For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).

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The announcements below were published on the Workspace Updates blog earlier this week. Please refer to the original blog posts for complete details.

Send group membership information in outbound SAML responses 
Admins can now configure and send group membership information as part of SAML responses. | Learn more. 


Add personal tasks from Google Chat 
In Google Chat, you can now create personal tasks from individual or group messages. | Learn more. 


Take action on multiple text selections in Google Docs 
Using Google Docs, you can now make multiple text selections at once, and apply actions such as delete, copy, paste, or format to all selections. | Learn more. 


Add shared drives to specific organizational units 
Admins can now place shared drives into sub organizational units (OUs), enabling them to configure sharing policies, data regions, access management, and more at a granular level. | Available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Standard, Education Plus, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade, and Nonprofits customers only. | Learn more.


Embed content as a full page in new Google
Sites Site editors using new Google Sites can now add content as a full page from the following sources: custom code, other websites, and Google apps, such as Maps and Docs. | Learn more. 


Copy your client-side encrypted Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides files 
If you have client-side encryption enabled for Docs, Sheets and Slides, you can now make a copy of an existing encrypted document, spreadsheet or presentation. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Standard and Education Plus customers only. | Learn more. 


Cut, copy and paste files using keyboard shortcuts in Google Drive Web 
You can now use familiar keyboard shortcuts Ctrl + C (or ⌘ + C on Mac), Ctrl + X and Ctrl + V to copy, cut and paste Google Drive files in your Chrome browser. | Learn more. 


For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).

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Update 
[2024]: We have completely rolled back this feature on web and there are no plans to relaunch this feature at this time. We will provide an update if and when one becomes available.
[February 2, 2022]: We have temporarily paused the rollout for this feature. We apologize for the delay and we will share an update once rollout resumes.

PPTX file limit increase in Google Slides 
You can now import PPTX files up to 300MB into Google Slides using Office Editing mode — previously, 100MB was the maximum. Once imported, you can save back your edits to the underlying PPTX file. | Available to all Google Workspace customers and users with personal Google accounts. | Learn more.



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. 



Use a new enterprise certificate condition to set context-aware access rules for company-managed devices 
When configuring context-aware access rules, you can now use a new signal to determine whether a device is company-owned. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, Education Plus, and Cloud Identity Premium customers. | Learn more. 



For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).
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To insert a people chip, type  “@” in any cell to search your directory or by selecting Insert > People chip.


Getting started

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
  • End users: This feature will be available by default. To insert a smart chip in a cell, press “@” or by selecting Insert > People Chip. Visit the Help Center to learn more about using smart chips in Google Sheets.

Rollout pace


Availability


  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers
  • Available to users with personal Google accounts

Resources



Roadmap


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Example of updated menu in Google Sheets

Example of updated menus in Google Sheets

Who’s impacted 

End users 

Why it’s important 

The new design improves findability of key features, making it quicker and easier to use Sheets, especially on devices with smaller screens. 

Additional details 

Some of your favorite menu items may have moved a little, but all existing functionality is still available. We hope that their new home will be more intuitive and make it easier and faster to navigate the product.

Getting started 

Rollout pace 

Availability 

Resources 

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New look and feel for Workspace Updates email subscriptions 
Starting September 29, we're going to be improving the look and feel of the emails you receive when you subscribe to Workspace Updates. 
  • The emails themselves will be sent from noreply@workspaceupdates.withgoogle.com, so be sure to update any inbox filters or labels you may have and check your spam folders if you don't immediately see them. 
  • Emails for the Workspace Updates Blog in non-English markets will update to this new format in the coming weeks. 
  • If you have any feedback about these emails after September 29th, please feel back to let us know in the linked form. 
Full rollout (1-3 days for availability). | Available to all Google Workspace customers and users with personal Google Accounts. | Workspace Updates Blog Email Subscription Feedback



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.

Upgrade to the newest version of the Google Chat app
We’ve recently released a new version of this app. Users who are still on the older Chat PWA version and will see an in-app banner nudging them to upgrade by visiting chat.google.com. | Learn more.



Improved visibility in Google Meet on web
Google Meet on the web now automatically detects when a user appears underexposed and enhances the brightness to improve their visibility. | Learn more.



Control the ability to present to Google Meet from Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides with a new Admin setting
Admins can turn the ability to present from Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides directly to Google Meet on or off for their organization with a new setting. | Learn more.



One-click recommended actions in the Alert Center
In the Alert Center, Admins will see new one-click recommended actions for various alerts, which they can implement without leaving the Alert Center. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, and Education Plus customers. | Learn more.



Improved Search In Gmail on Android
You can now quickly and easily filter email and search results on Android mobile devices to find the one specific email or information you’re looking for with new search filters. | Learn more.



New graphs for metrics over time in Meet Quality Tool
We’ve added detailed metrics over time for endpoints in Meet Quality Tool, which will help admins perform more advanced troubleshooting. | Learn more.



Perform refined email searches with new rich filters in Gmail on web
When searching in Gmail on web, enhanced search chips will provide richer drop-down lists with more options that help you apply additional filters. | Learn more.



Easily chat with meeting participants from a Google Calendar event
Within the Calendar event on web or mobile, you’ll see a Chat icon next to the guest list — simply select this icon to create a group chat containing all event participants. | Learn more.



Ability to mute all Google Meet participants at once rolling out to mobile platforms
Earlier this year, we announced the ability for meeting hosts to mute everyone all at once in Google Meet on desktops/laptop devices. This feature has begun rolling out to iOS devices, with Android availability coming later this year. | Learn more.



For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).

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Within the Admin console, navigate to Apps > Google Workspace > Google Meet > Meet Video Settings to configure the "Integrations" setting.


Getting started 


Rollout pace 


Availability 

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers 
  • Not available to Google Workspace Individual customers or users with personal Google accounts 

Resources 

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  • Scroll through a vertical stream of slides, 
  • Pinch to zoom to get a closer look, 
  • Easily switch between editing, presenting, or casting content. 



We hope these updates make it easier for you to read through, consume, and add or view comments in Slides while using a mobile device. This update is already available on Android. 

Getting started 

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
  • End users: To use this feature, open any presentation on the Slides app on iOS. Visit the Help Center to learn more about how to use Google Slides on iOS. 

Rollout pace 


Availability 

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers and users with personal accounts. 


Resources 

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What’s changing

Beginning today, we’re rolling out Material You: a new design system for Google Workspace apps on Android devices. Material You features an updated, fresh look and feel for your apps, along with additional options for personalization. 

Some changes you’ll notice are:



Who’s impacted

End users



Additional details

On Pixel devices with Android 12 or newer, you’ll have the option to match the colors of your apps to your device wallpaper for a more dynamic, personalized look.


To expand upon our existing accessibility support, Material You will automatically adjust contrast, size, and line width based on user preferences and app context. Pre-existing  color schemes, for example color-coded file types, folder colors, or for in-app warnings, will remain unchanged.



Availability across Google Workspace apps:

Gmail
These changes are available on Gmail version 2021.08.24 and newer.





Google Meet
These changes will be available on Meet version 2021.09.19 and newer starting September 19.




Google Drive
These changes are available on Drive version 2.21.330 and newer starting September 9.






Google Docs, Sheets, Slides
These changes are available on Docs, Sheets and Slides version 1.21.342 and newer starting September 1.




Google Calendar
These changes are available on Google Calendar version 2021.37 and newer starting September 20.


Keep
Available for Keep version 5.21.361. and newer beginning September 21.





Getting started

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
  • End users: On Android 12 and Pixel devices, you can view and select themes based on wallpaper colors applied by going to Settings > Wallpaper & style.

Rollout pace

  • Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility). 


Availability

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers
  • Available to users with personal Google accounts


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Formula suggestions will make it easier to write new formulas accurately and help make data analysis quicker and easier.

Simply begin inserting a formula in Sheets—suggestions will be automatically displayed and as you continue to type. You can view additional incremental suggestions in the drop-down menu.





We hope these formula suggestions make it easier and faster for you to work with and analyze your data.

Getting started

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
  • End users: This feature will be available  by default and can be disabled by going to Tools > Enable formula suggestions or from the three-dot menu of the suggestion dialog box. Visit the Help Center to learn more about using formulas and functions in Google Sheets. 

Rollout pace


Availability

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers
  • Available to users with personal Google accounts

Resources

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The theme colors section is now at the top color picker, and the “theme” placeholder has now been enhanced to show the name of the theme. Now you can easily identify your company brand and use the theme colors of the brand.


To select theme colors, go to any color picker dropdown and click the edit button for your theme color palette. In the theme color sidebar, select a color from the dropdown to begin editing. Note that color changes apply only to the current theme you selected and will not create a new theme.


Example of selecting customized theme colors. In this case the theme is named “Simple Light.”


We hope this new feature will help you customize your presentations in Sheets and Slides and enable you to incorporate your company’s brand colors.


Getting started

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
  • End users: This feature will be ON by default. 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 August 17, 2021


Availability

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers 
  • Available to users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

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Gif showing a form being filled out and saved



Who’s impacted

End users


Why it matters

This highly requested feature helps ensure you won’t have to start over if:
  • You can’t complete a form or quiz in one sitting,
  • You have to switch between multiple devices,
  • You have low internet connectivity.

Additional details

Form owners and editors can disable this feature for responders to a specific form. You may want to disable the feature on forms that are:
  • Used for repeated data entry,
  • Embedded in websites,
  • On certain shared devices, such as registration or information kiosks.

To disable this feature, within Google Forms, go to Settings > Presentation > Restrictions and select “Disable autosave for all respondents”.


Getting started

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.

Rollout pace

  • Rapid Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on August 3.
  • Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 15.

Availability

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers
  • Available to users with personal Google accounts

Resources

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Now, Smart Compose is available in comments for Google Slides, Sheets, and Drawings.

Image of Smart Compose offering a suggestion in a comment
Smart Compose offering a suggestion in a comment.



Getting started

  • End users: This feature will be ON by default and can be disabled by going to Tools > Preferences and unchecking “Show Smart Compose Suggestions.” When enabled, you’ll automatically see Smart Compose suggestions. To accept a suggestion you like, press “tab” or press the right arrow key. Visit the Help Center to learn more about using Smart Compose in Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Drawings.

Rollout pace

  • This feature is available now for all users.

Availability

  • Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Frontline, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Nonprofits, Cloud Identity Free, Cloud Identity Premium

Resources

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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.


Improvements for braille mode in Google Docs provide a richer, more interactive experience
We've improved how suggestions are announced in braille mode in Google Docs. You’ll now hear detailed suggestion information inline with the rest of the text — this includes whether the suggestion is an insertion or deletion, and the author of the suggestion. | Learn more.



Disabling File Transfer in Google Chat
Admins can now disable or limit file sharing for their users in Chat. Specifically, admins
will be able to specify controls within and outside their organization, and will be able to choose between restricting all files, allowing images only, or allowing all files. | Available to Google Workspace Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, Enterprise Essentials | Learn more.



Alert Center enrichment with VirusTotal threat context now generally available
Earlier this year, we pre-announced an integration between the Alert Center and VirusTotal. Currently, the Google Workspace Alert Center provides admins with actionable, real-time alerts and insights regarding security-related activity in their domain. With the VirusTotal (now part of Google Cloud) integration, admins have the ability to dig into their alerts at a deeper level. | Available to Google Workspace Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals and Education Plus customers. | Learn More.



Use dynamic security groups for group based policies
Google Workspace admins can now use dynamic groups to manage policies for their users in the Admin console. Previously, it was only possible to apply these policies to static groups and OUs. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Cloud Identity Premium customers. | Learn more.



Workspace for Education Plus now syncs Google Classroom courses and rosters with Student Information Systems
U.S. school districts with Google Workspace for Education Plus will be able to automatically set up Google Classroom courses and keep rosters in sync with their Student Information System (SIS). IT admins will do the setup via Clever, meaning teachers will no longer need to manually create classes and invite students to join them. | Learn More.



Enhancements to Google Voice
We’ve made several enhancements to Google Voice, including information and troubleshooting tips for missed calls, the ability to easily redial dropped calls, the ability to delete SMS messages in bulk, and an option to show your Google Voice number as the caller ID when forwarding calls. | Learn more.



Search within a folder in Google Drive on iOS
You can now search for content inside a specific folder in Google Drive on iOS. Simply navigate to the folder you want to search within and select the search bar — you’ll see a list of suggested folders, documents, and users to refine your search results. Select the folder chip before typing your search query. | Learn more.



Assign SSO profile to organizational units or groups with the new SAML Partial SSO beta
Currently, you can configure to authenticate your users using a third-party identity provider — this configuration applies to all users within your domain. Now, you have the option to specify groups or organizational units (OUs) to authenticate a subset of your users using Google. This feature is available as an open beta. | Learn more.



New enrollment privilege and naming updates for Google Meet hardware in the Admin console
We are making two improvements to the admin controls for Google Meet hardware: a new enrollment privilege admins and updates for hardware management in the Admin console. | Learn more.



Use the new Google Meet web app for better meetings on desktop devices
We’ve launched a new Google Meet standalone web app. This Progressive Web Application (PWA) has all the same features as Google Meet on the web, but as a standalone app it’s easier to find and use, and it streamlines your workflow by eliminating the need to switch between tabs. | Learn more.


For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).

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You’ll now hear detailed suggestion information inline with the rest of the text — this includes whether the suggestion is an insertion or deletion, and the author of the suggestion.


Getting started

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
  • End users: This feature will be OFF by default and can be enabled by the user by going to Tools > Accessibility settings > Turn on braille support. Visit the Help Center to learn more about how to Use a braille display with Docs editors.

Additional details

  • Users should make sure to update to the latest versions of their assistive technologies and browsers to fully benefit from these improvements.

Rollout pace


Availability

  • Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Frontline, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Nonprofits, Cloud Identity Free, Cloud Identity Premium

Resources

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We’re adding the ability to block another user in Google Drive. If blocked, the user will not be able to share any Drive items with you, and items owned by the user will not be able to be shared with you or be shown when you’re browsing Google Drive. In addition, your files will not be available to the user you’ve blocked, even if you’ve previously shared items with them.  | Learn more.



Select multiple tabs in Google Sheets and perform basic actions on the selection
Now you can select multiple tabs in Google Sheets and perform basic actions on the selection (such as moving the tabs together, deleting, duplicating, copying, coloring, or hiding). | Learn more.



Image placeholders make it easy to work as a team with images in Slides themes and layouts
Now when you create a theme in Slides, you can add image placeholders to your layouts. | Learn more. 



Easily collaborate and share Slide presentations with side-by-side viewing in Google Chat
In Google Chat, you can now open and edit a Slide presentation in a side-by-side view. | Learn more. 



For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).

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