Google Workspace Updates: 2023

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap - March 24, 2023

fredag den 24. marts 2023

1 New updateUnless otherwise indicated, the features below are fully launched or in the process of rolling out (rollouts should take no more than 15 business days to complete), launching to both Rapid and Scheduled Release at the same time (if not, each stage of rollout should take no more than 15 business days to complete), and available to all Google Workspace and G Suite customers.

Enhancing the Google Drive mobile experience on Android tablets

We’re optimizing the Google Drive app for tablet displays through several modernizations, including shifting the navigation bar to the side, optimizing visual components to take advantage of the larger screen, and making it easier to see file details for a selected file. | Rolling out to Rapid Release domains now; launch to Scheduled Release domains planned for April 3, 2023.

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 to content organization in Google Docs

We’re rolling out improvements to the formatting and customization options for tables of contents in Google Docs. We’re also reorganizing the options included in the table properties sidebar in Docs to make it easier for you to find and utilize table formatting options. Learn more.

Add or remove client-side encryption from a Google Doc

You can now choose to add client-side encryption to an existing document or remove it from an already encrypted document (File > Make a copy > Add/Remove additional encryption). This update gives you the flexibility to control encryption as your documents and projects evolve and progress. | Learn more.

Completed rollouts

The features below completed their rollouts to Rapid Release domains, Scheduled Release domains, or both. Please refer to the original blog post for additional details.

Rapid Release Domains:

Refreshed interface for Google Drive, Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides

External label for Google Meet participants

Scheduled Release Domains:

[Weekly Recap] New free-hand PDF annotation support in the Google Drive app on Android

Rapid and Scheduled Release Domains:

Expanding noise cancellation in Google Meet to more devices

New updates for Google Meet on Poly Android-based appliances

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

Add or remove client-side encryption from a Google Doc

torsdag den 23. marts 2023

What’s changing You can now choose to add client-side encryption to an existing document or remove it from an already encrypted document (File > Make a copy > Add/Remove additional encryption). This update gives you the flexibility to control encryption as your documents and projects evolve and progress.

Getting started

Admins: Client-side encryption can be enabled at the domain, OU, and Group levels (Admin console > Security > Access and data control > Client-side encryption). Visit our Help Center to learn more about client-side encryption.
End users: If client-side encryption is enabled by your admin, use our Help Center to learn more about working with encrypted files in Drive, Docs, Sheets & Slides.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on March 23, 2023
Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on April 6, 2023

Availability

Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Standard and Education Plus customers

Resources

Improvements to content organization in Google Docs

mandag den 20. marts 2023

What’s changingWe’re rolling out improvements to the formatting and customization options for tables of contents in Google Docs. You now have the options to:

Toggle between three default styles
Toggle page numbers
Toggle tab leader styling (adds lines between a heading and the page number)
Include and indent headings based on levels

With these enhanced customizations, we hope this highly requested feature refines titles and headings to personalize the content of your document.

We’re also reorganizing the options included in the table properties sidebar in Docs to make it easier for you to find and utilize table formatting options. Upon adding or editing a table, you will notice a new “Table” section with alignment preferences and a new “Cell” section with clearer cell-specific formatting options within the table properties sidebar.

Getting started

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

For tables, go to Insert > Table > click the “Table options” button in the top toolbar to open the Table properties sidebar. You can also right-click a table and select “Table properties” to open the sidebar. Visit the Help Center to learn more about adding and editing tables.
For table of contents, go to Insert > Table of contents. In paginated mode, there are three table of contents quick layout options:

Plain text
Dotted
Links

Right-click the newly created table of contents and select “Table of contents options” to open the sidebar. Visit the Help Center to learn more about adding a title, heading, or table of contents in a document.

Rollout pace Table of Contents:

Table sidebar:

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on March 16, 2023

Availability

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

Resources

Google Help: Add and edit tables
Google Help: Add a title, heading, or table of contents in a document

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap - March 17, 2023

fredag den 17. marts 2023

New updates 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.

Introducing new space manager capabilities in Google ChatSpace managers now have additional capabilities to ensure effective conversations take place in spaces: space configuration, member management, and conversation moderation. | Learn more.

External label for Google Meet participants

“External” labels will be available in Google Meet. Users will see a label in the top-left corner of their meeting screen indicating that participants who are external to the meeting host’s domain have joined the meeting. In the people panel, external participants will be denoted with the same icon. | Learn more.

Provide custom Google Meet background images for your users

Admins can now provide a set of images for the background replace feature in Google Meet. This will enable users to easily select an image that properly represents their company's specific brand and style. | Learn more.

Improving your security with shorter Session Length defaults

To further improve security for our customers, we are changing the default session length to 16 hours for existing Google Cloud customers. Note that this update refers to managing user connections to Google Cloud services (e.g. Google Cloud console), not connections to Google services (e.g. Gmail on the web). | Learn more.

Completed rollouts

The features below completed their rollouts to Rapid Release domains, Scheduled Release domains, or both. Please refer to the original blog post for additional details.

Rapid Release Domains:

Save time with suggested work locations in Google Calendar

Improving Filters in Google Sheets

Scheduled Release Domains:

New option to view non-printing characters in Google Docs

Introducing new smart canvas features in Google Sheets and Google Docs (stopwatch chips)

Rapid and Scheduled Release Domains:

Increasing efficiency through better meeting room management with room release

Google Sheets adds powerful new functions for advanced analysis

Improving accessibility of the “connect device” feature on Google Meet hardware devices

Improving the contact management experience

Google Keep notes now available on home screen of Android devices

Indicate your Google Voice availability with more options

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

Improving your security with shorter Session Length defaults

onsdag den 15. marts 2023

What’s changing To further improve security for our customers, we are changing the default session length to 16 hours for existing Google Cloud customers. Note that this update refers to managing user connections to Google Cloud services (e.g. Google Cloud console), not connections to Google services (e.g. Gmail on the web).

For existing customers who have session length configured to Never Expire, we are updating the session length to 16 hours. See below for more information.

Who’s impacted Admins, end users, and developers

Why you’d use it Many apps and services can access sensitive data or perform sensitive actions. Because of this, managing session length is foundational to cloud security and compliance. It ensures that access to the Google Cloud Platform is finite after a successful authentication, which helps deter bad actors should they gain access to credentials or devices.

Additional details Google Cloud session controls For existing customers who have session length configured to Never Expire, we are updating the session length to 16 hours. This ensures customers do not mistakenly grant infinite session length to users or apps using Oauth user scopes. After the session expires, users will need to re-enter their login credentials to continue their access. This impacts the following:

Settings can be customized for specific organizations, and will impact all users within that org. This is a timed session length that expires the session regardless of the user's activity. When choosing a session length, admins have the following options:

Choose from a range of predefined session lengths, or set a custom session length between 1 and 24 hours.
Configure whether users need just a password, or require a Security Key to re-authenticate.

Third-party SAML identity providers and session length controls

If your organization uses a third-party SAML-based identity provider (IdP), the cloud sessions will expire, but the user may be transparently re-authenticated (i.e. without actually being asked to present their credentials) if their session with the IdP is valid at that time. This is working as intended, as Google will redirect the user to the IdP and accept a valid assertion from the IdP. To ensure that users are required to re-authenticate at the correct frequency, evaluate the configuration options on your IdP and review the Help Center article to Set up SSO via a third party Identity provider.

Trusted applications

Some apps are not designed to gracefully handle the re-authentication scenario, which can cause confusing app behavior. Other apps are deployed for server-to-server purposes via user credentials — because they don’t require service account credentials, they are not prompted to periodically re-authenticate.

If you have specific apps like this, and you do not want them to be impacted by session length reauthentication, the org admin can add these apps to the trusted list for your organization. This will exempt the app from session length constraints, while implementing session controls for the rest of the apps and users within the organization.

Getting started

Admins: For customers who have their session length set to "Never Expire", your session length will reset to 16 hours. It can be turned off or modified at the OU level. Visit the Help Center article to learn how to set session length for Google Cloud services for your organization.
End users: If a session ends, users will simply need to log in to their account again using the familiar Google login flow.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on March 15, 2023.

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace and Cloud Identity customers, as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Set session length for Google Cloud services
Google Workspace Admin Help: Control which third-party & internal apps access Google Workspace data
Google Workspace Admin Help: Set up SSO via a third party Identity provider
Google Help: Use a security key for 2-Step Verification
Google Cloud Docs: Creating and managing organizations
Google Identity Docs: Using OAuth 2.0 for Server to Server Applications

Provide custom Google Meet background images for your users

tirsdag den 14. marts 2023

What’s changing We’ve heard from our users that having backgrounds that match your brand guidelines are important for visual polish during critical meetings. Now, admins can now provide a set of images for the background replace feature in Google Meet. This will enable users to easily select an image that properly represents their company's specific brand and style.

Getting started

Admins: Visit the Help Center to learn more about letting your users change their backgrounds and special effects. Specifically, please refer to the “Set up custom images and “Set image access” instructions to ensure your users can use custom backgrounds.
End users: When enabled by your admin, visit the Help Center to learn more about changing your background in Meet.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout starting on March 14, 2023

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers

Note: Use this Help Center article to learn more about how to properly set image access so your users can use your custom backgrounds.
Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Let users apply backgrounds & special effects
Google Help: Change background and apply visual effects in Google Meet

External label for Google Meet participants

tirsdag den 14. marts 2023

What’s changing “External” labels will be available in Google Meet. Users will see a label in the top-left corner of their meeting screen indicating that participants who are external to the meeting host’s domain have joined the meeting. In the people panel, external participants will be denoted with the same icon.

Getting started

Admins: External labels will be on by default and can be configured in the Admin console at Apps > Google Workspace > Google Meet > Google Meet Safety Settings. Visit the Help Center to learn more about managing Meet settings for your users.
End users: No end user action is required — you’ll see warning labels for external participants when configured by your admin.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release domains: Full rollout (1–3 days for feature visibility) starting on March 14, 2023
Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on March 23, 2023

Availability

Available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Education Standard, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade, Frontline, and Nonprofits customers
Not available to users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Manage Meet settings

Introducing new Space Manager capabilities in Google Chat

mandag den 13. marts 2023

What’s changingLast year, we announced several improvements to spaces in Google Chat to help you better organize people, topics, and projects, which included introducing the space manager role. Currently, managers can:

Remove and add participants
Assign or remove the space manager
Delete a space
Delete messages
Edit the space description
Update space access from restricted to discoverable or vice versa

Starting today, space managers will now have additional capabilities to ensure effective conversations take place in spaces:

Space configuration: enables space managers to choose if members can change space details, such as name, icon, description, and guidelines, or turn Chat history on/off for the space.
Member management: allows space managers to decide if members can add or remove members or groups to a space.
Conversation moderation: authorizes space managers to determine whether members can use @all in a space.

Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature. Visit the Help Center to learn more about optimizing Chat spaces for your organization.
End users: Go to the space menu > select “Space settings” > configure space settings and modify permissions as needed. Visit the Help Center to learn more about managing your space settings.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on March 13, 2023
Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on March 27, 2023

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers
Not available to users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap - March 10, 2023

fredag den 10. marts 2023

Additional details for the updated Gmail experience on Android foldable devices and tablets

Last month, we announced an improved Chat, Meet, and Gmail experience on Android foldable devices and tablets. To provide additional details on functionality, Gmail supports a 2-pane view in landscape orientation only. | This is now available. | 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.

Indicate your Google Voice availability with more options

We’re making it easier for you to indicate your availability in Google Voice on web and mobile. Previously, you could only indicate your availability for all of your ring groups. This update gives you greater flexibility to manage your Ring Group availability in Google Voice, without the need to sign-out of Voice or block all incoming calls using “Do Not Disturb”. | Available to Google Voice Standard and Premier customers only. | Learn more.

Refreshed interface for Google Drive, Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides

In the coming weeks, you’ll notice a new look and feel for Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides on the web. Following the release of Google Material Design 3, the refreshed user interface is purposefully designed to streamline core collaboration journeys across our products. | Learn more.

New updates for Google Meet on Poly Android-based appliances

We are rolling out updates to Google Meet to support our upcoming launch of Google Meet on Poly Android-based appliances. Within the Google admin console, admins can enroll Poly devices and include reporting of these new appliances. The Google Meet hardware experience will become available in the upcoming Poly OS 4.0 update as part of the Poly Studio X series family. | Learn more.

Managed Android devices must upgrade to Android Device Policy during March 2023

In 2019, we announced that a new Android management client, Android Device Policy, would replace the legacy Google Apps Device Policy client. We’re now in the final stages of this upgrade. All devices with the Google Apps Device Policy will lose access during March 2023 if they have not already upgraded. | Learn more.

Completed rollouts

The features below completed their rollouts to Rapid Release domains, Scheduled Release domains, or both. Please refer to the original blog post for additional details.

Rapid Release Domains:

New option to view non-printing characters in Google Docs

[Weekly Recap] New free-hand PDF annotation support in the Google Drive app on Android

Introducing new smart canvas features in Google Sheets and Google Docs

Scheduled Release Domains:

Improved membership management for spaces

Rapid and Scheduled Release Domains:

[Weekly Recap] More ways to work with BigQuery data in Google Sheets (4 new Sheets functions)

[Weekly Recap] 360 degree video backgrounds available for Google Meet on mobile

Programmatically manage and apply Google Drive label taxonomy changes

Expanding noise cancellation to phone participants

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

Managed Android devices must upgrade to Android Device Policy during March 2023

torsdag den 9. marts 2023

What’s changing In 2019, we announced that a new Android management client, Android Device Policy, would replace the legacy Google Apps Device Policy client. We’re now in the final stages of this upgrade.

All devices with the Google Apps Device Policy will lose access during March 2023 if they have not already upgraded. 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 the legacy Google Apps Device Policy will be blocked and users may see errors during the registration process as of January 2022. Admins can act directly from the alert in the Admin console to identify users who need to upgrade.

Visit the Help Center to learn more about migrating to Android Device Policy and our previous announcement for more information.

Getting started

Admins: Admins can find devices which may need to act 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:

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

Devices on the old agent will lose access during March 2023.
Android Device Policy is available now and all users should upgrade to avoid disruption.

Availability

This change impacts Google Workspace customers who use basic and advanced mobile management.

Resources

New updates for Google Meet on Poly Android-based appliances

torsdag den 9. marts 2023

What’s changing We are rolling out updates to Google Meet to support our upcoming launch of Google Meet on Poly Android-based appliances. Within the Google admin console, admins can enroll Poly devices and include reporting of these new appliances. The Google Meet hardware experience will become available in the upcoming Poly OS 4.0 update as part of the Poly Studio X series family.

This update will become available over the next few weeks. However customers and admins can try out this experience ahead of the official Poly OS 4.0 launch by downloading the current beta candidate for their Studio X series device. For more information, please reach out to your Poly account team or reseller.

Additional details

The Google Meet hardware experience will be available on the Poly Studio X series family once they have been updated to Poly OS 4.0. Admins can enroll these devices and manage them as part of the regular Google Admin console experience. The Poly Studio X family offers appliances of all sizes: Studio X30 for small rooms, Studio X50 for medium rooms, and Studio X70 for large rooms.

This latest update will make it easier for customers currently using the Studio X line to switch to Google Meet from other conferencing platforms. It also offers new customers more choice and flexibility in their hardware options for Google Meet.

Google Meet on Poly Android appliances require Google Meet hardware licenses; these can be purchased through authorized resellers. Please contact your existing Google Meet hardware or Poly reseller for more details.

Getting started

Admins

End users: No action required. Once a Studio X Series device has been successfully enrolled, you can join Google Meet meetings normally.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature availability) beginning March 9, 2023

Availability

Available on Poly X30, X50 and X70 with support for additional Poly devices will be added over time
Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Licensing FAQ

Refreshed interface for Google Drive, Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides

mandag den 6. marts 2023

What’s changing In the coming weeks, you’ll notice a new look and feel for Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides on the web. Following the release of Google Material Design 3, the refreshed user interface is purposefully designed to streamline core collaboration journeys across our products.
In Docs, Sheets, and Slides, you’ll see improvements such as:

A simplified user interface at the top of your docs, sheets, and slides, helping you find frequently used actions faster
Additional user experience improvements in commenting, background, rulers, and gridlines.
Note that while there are no changes in functionality, some features have been relocated to reduce clutter within the new interface. Notably, you can find the latest status info for the doc, such as last edit and version history, via a single entry point: the clock icon in the top right corner.

In Drive, you’ll see improvements such as:

Key actions surfaced inline on files, for quick access and increased productivity.
Ability to select multiple items at a time and undertake batch operations for frequent tasks.
New search chips (including type, owner, and last modified) to help you find files faster.

Who’s impacted

End users

Why it matters

These key visual and interactive design changes will help you get your best work done faster by emphasizing the tools within our products used most frequently. For more information, check out the latest on the Workspace blog.

Rollout pace

Availability

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

Resources

Workspace Blog: New experiences in smart canvas deliver more flow, less work

Indicate your Google Voice availability with more options

mandag den 6. marts 2023

What’s changing We’re making it easier for you to indicate your availability in Google Voice on web and mobile. Previously, you could only indicate your availability for all of your ring groups.
This update gives you greater flexibility to manage your Ring Group availability in Google Voice, without the need to sign-out of Voice or block all incoming calls using “Do Not Disturb”.
You can now customize your availability for the following:

All calls.
Direct calls: if unavailable, calls will be sent to voicemail.
Calls from specific ring groups: if one or more ring group lines are unavailable, calls will be forwarded to the next available member of the group.

Getting started

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Full rollout (1-3 days for feature visibility) starting on March 6, 2023

Availability

Available to Google Voice Standard and Premier customers

Resources

Google Help: Manage call availability in Google Voice

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap - March 3, 2023

fredag den 3. marts 2023

3 New updatesUnless otherwise indicated, the features below are fully launched or in the process of rolling out (rollouts should take no more than 15 business days to complete), launching to both Rapid and Scheduled Release at the same time (if not, each stage of rollout should take no more than 15 business days to complete), and available to all Google Workspace and G Suite customers.

Improving Filters in Google Sheets

Filters and filter views help you analyze a set of data in a spreadsheet, and to improve upon this widely used feature, we’re introducing two updates. First, there will be a summary of the rows remaining after a filter is applied in Sheets. You will now see the number of rows that are displayed in the bottom right margin, helping you know immediately whether you are looking at the entire data set or just a subset of it. Second, with the new option to directly apply filters from the right-click menu, filters are now more accessible and discoverable. Simply right-click and apply filters directly to your data, remove them, or filter by the current cell value from the same menu. | Rolling out to Rapid Release domains now; launch to Scheduled Release domains planned for March 15th, 2023 | Learn more.

Programmatically manage and apply Google Drive label taxonomy changes

In 2022, we announced a highly requested update that allows admins and developers to programmatically manage labels at scale through Google Drive APIs. As a follow up, the Drive Labels API now supports taxonomy management, enabling admins and developers to programmatically add, modify, delete, and publish label taxonomy changes. | This is now available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, Education Standard, and Nonprofits customers only. | Learn more.

Expanding noise cancellation to phone participants

For select Google Workspace editions, participants who dial in by phone will have background noise removed from their audio. This helps ensure phone participants are easier to hear and understand during meetings, while removing any potential disturbing sound from the meeting. | This is now available to Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade, and Frontline customers only. | 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.

Save time with suggested work locations in Google Calendar

We added an update that helps you easily define your work location much quicker with suggested working locations based on your recent locations. | Available to Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Fundamentals, Education Plus, Education Standard, Teaching & Learning Upgrade, and Nonprofits, as well as legacy G Suite Business customers only. | Learn more.

All newly created spaces in Google Chat will be in-line threaded beginning March 13, 2023

As previously announced, we’re streamlining the way you organize conversations in Google Chat. Starting March 13, 2023, all newly created spaces in Google Chat will be in-line threaded. Users will no longer have the option to organize them by conversation topic, where related messages and replies were grouped together in the main conversation window. Existing spaces organized by conversation topic will continue to function as they do today. | Learn more.

Expanding noise cancellation in Google Meet to more devices

Beginning today, noise cancellation is available for users with personal Google Accounts on a wider variety of Android mobile devices, and for Google Workspace Business Starter, Education Fundamentals, Education Standard customers. It is also enabled by default for third-party devices that connect to Meet using Pexip. | Learn more.

Client-side encryption for Gmail is now generally available

Beginning today, client-side encryption for Gmail is now generally available for Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Education Standard customers. For customers currently enrolled in the beta, your experience will not change. | Learn more.

Google Keep notes now available on home screen of Android devices

In addition to dual pane view, drag out, and a number of other features supporting the mission to provide a top-class user experience on Android devices when using Google Keep, we’re introducing the Keep single note widget. With this new feature, you can “pin” a note or list to your home screen and edit them in the Keep app with a single tap. | Learn more.

Completed rollouts

The features below completed their rollouts to Rapid Release domains, Scheduled Release domains, or both. Please refer to the original blog post for additional details.

Rapid and Scheduled Release Domains:

Email notifications from Google now available in the Alert Center

Google Vault support for client-side encrypted emails

[Weekly Recap] In-line replies for email notifications in Google Classroom

Include captions with a Google Meet video recording

New setting for content managers to modify shared drives now on by default (iOS)

Control the visibility of warning banners in Gmail with a new admin control

[Weekly Recap] View your peripheral devices directly in the Google Meet green room

[Weekly Recap] Improved Chat, Meet, and Gmail experience on Android foldable devices and tablets

[Weekly Recap] Improvements to sales and customer service integrations in Google Chat

Client-side encryption for Gmail is now generally available

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

Google Keep notes now available on home screen of Android devices

torsdag den 2. marts 2023

What’s changingIn addition to dual pane view, drag out, and a number of other features supporting the mission to provide a top-class user experience on Android devices when using Google Keep, we’re introducing the Keep single note widget.
With this new feature, you can “pin” a note or list to your home screen and edit them in the Keep app with a single tap. Lists enable you to toggle checkboxes directly on the note without having to open the Keep app. Also, your notes and lists will reflect any background colors and reminders present within the Keep app. Finally, a collaborator icon will appear at the bottom of the note to indicate if it is a shared note between two or more people.
By giving you quick and easy access to your most important notes and lists on your home screen, we hope this feature increases your productivity while using the Keep app.

Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
End users: Visit the Help Center to learn more about viewing notes from your Android home screen.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on March 2, 2023

Availability

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

Resources

Google Help: View notes from your Android home screen
Google Workspace Updates Blog: Improving the Google Workspace experience on Android devices

Client-side encryption for Gmail is now generally available

tirsdag den 28. februar 2023

What’s changing Beginning today, client-side encryption for Gmail is now generally available for Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Education Standard customers. For customers currently enrolled in the beta, your experience will not change.

Workspace already encrypts data at rest and in transit by using secure-by-design cryptographic libraries. Client-side encryption takes existing encryption capabilities to the next level by ensuring that customers have sole control over their encryption keys—and thus complete control over access to their data. For more information, read the latest Workspace blog and our original beta announcement.
Getting started

Admins:

This feature will be OFF by default and can be enabled at the domain, OU, and Group levels (Admin console > Security > Access and data control > Client-side encryption).
Visit the Help Center to learn more about setting up client-side encryption for your organization and Google Vault support for client-side encrypted emails.

End users: Once enabled by your Workspace admin, to add client-side encryption to any message, click the lock icon and select additional encryption, and compose your message and add attachments as normal.

Rollout pace

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: Available now.

Availability

Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Education Standard customers
Not available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Education Fundamentals, Frontline, and Nonprofits, as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers
Not available to users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Expanding noise cancellation in Google Meet to more devices

mandag den 27. februar 2023

Quick summary To limit distractions during meetings, Google Meet offers noise cancellation to filter out background noises such as a closing door or the sounds of a nearby construction site. Beginning today, noise cancellation is:

Available for users with personal Google Accounts on a wider variety of Android mobile devices.
Available for Google Workspace Business Starter, Education Fundamentals, Education Standard customers.
Enabled by default for third-party devices that connect to Meet using Pexip

Expanding this functionality helps make calls more productive by reducing distractions across a wider variety of devices.
Getting started

Admins:

Visit the Help Center to learn more about turning noise cancellation on or off by default.
For Pexip users, noise cancellation is on by default — please refer to Pexip’s documentation for information on turning this feature off.

End users:

Visit the Help Center to learn more about turning filtering out noise from your meeting on Google Meet.
If you’re joining using a Workspace account, the meeting host's Workspace edition will determine the default state. You can turn the feature on or off from the settings menu.
If you’re joining a meeting on an Android device with your personal Google Account, noise cancellation is OFF by default.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on February 27, 2023

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Turn noise cancellation on or off by default
Google Help: Filter out noise from your meeting on Google Meet

All newly created spaces in Google Chat will be in-line threaded beginning March 13, 2023

mandag den 27. februar 2023

What’s changing As previously announced, we’re streamlining the way you organize conversations in Google Chat. Starting March 13, 2023, all newly created spaces in Google Chat will be in-line threaded. Users will no longer have the option to organize them by conversation topic, where related messages and replies were grouped together in the main conversation window. Existing spaces organized by conversation topic will continue to function as they do today.

Later this year, existing spaces organized by conversation topic will be migrated to the new in-line threaded experience — we will provide more information on the Workspace Updates blog and via email to the primary admin in your domain ahead of this change.

In-line threaded spaces

Space organized by conversation topic

Who’s impactedAdmins and end users

Why it’s important Spaces in Google Chat can help you communicate with a group of people or an organization about a topic, project, or shared interest. We’ve heard from users that having two different options to organize their spaces can be confusing. To streamline the user experience and accelerate product development, we’re focusing on the model most users prefer: in-line threading. With in-line threading, you can reply to any message and create a separate discussion isolated from the main conversation. In-line threads can be helpful when you want to reply to a specific message or discuss a topic in-depth without disrupting the flow of the main conversation.

Thread panel to create a separate discussion isolated from the main conversation in an in-line threaded space

Scan and understand what’s being discussed in the space
Browse all topics via the active thread navigation panel
Find and follow the most relevant topics and conversations

Additional details All spaces created on or after March 13, 2023, will be in-line threaded. Starting on that date, the option to “Organize the conversation by topic” will no longer be visible when users create a new space.

Getting started

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on March 13, 2023.

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers
Not available to users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Optimize Spaces for your organization
Google Help: Use Spaces in Google Workspace
Google Help: Learn when to use & organize a space
Google Help: Learn how to manage a space with in-line threading
Cloud Blog: Introducing innovations in Google Workspace to help your organization thrive in hybrid work
Workspace Updates Blog: Hold separate conversations in Google Chat spaces with in-line threading

Useful Links

Join the official community for Google Workspace administrators

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.

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Learn about more Google Workspace launches

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.

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Updates

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap - March 24, 2023

Add or remove client-side encryption from a Google Doc

Improvements to content organization in Google Docs

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap - March 17, 2023

Improving your security with shorter Session Length defaults

Provide custom Google Meet background images for your users

External label for Google Meet participants

Introducing new Space Manager capabilities in Google Chat

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap - March 10, 2023

Managed Android devices must upgrade to Android Device Policy during March 2023

New updates for Google Meet on Poly Android-based appliances

Refreshed interface for Google Drive, Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides

Indicate your Google Voice availability with more options

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap - March 3, 2023

Google Keep notes now available on home screen of Android devices

Client-side encryption for Gmail is now generally available

Expanding noise cancellation in Google Meet to more devices

All newly created spaces in Google Chat will be in-line threaded beginning March 13, 2023

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