Google Groups can be used for a variety of things, but it's most commonly used for group discussions and communication. Learn more about how it works and how to set it up. |
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Using UW Groups With UW Google
You can now use UW Groups to manage permissions for your UW Google account. Using a group to share your documents, calendar, or site allows you to share with the same set of people without entering each individual UW NetID every time you want to share something new.
Getting Started
- Ask about existing UW Groups
- Your department may already be using UW Groups to manage other services at the UW. Be sure to check with your department's IT staff, or any other department administrators that may be in charge of UW Group creation. You may be able to use a group that already exists instead of creating a new one. Searching available groups is a simple way to see which groups have already been established. You can search for groups using the UW Groups service.
- Establish a new UW group
- If you want to establish a new UW group, start at the UW Groups Web page, which includes an overview of what groups are, and how they are typically used.
- Enable a UW group for use with UW Google Apps
- A group must be activated in order to use UW Google Apps. To activate an existing group:
- Use the UW Groups service to find a group you administer.
- Click on the group you want to activate in UW Google Apps.
- Click Applications, then click Edit.
- Under UW Google Apps, change the Status to Active.
How to Share Using Google
Once your UW Group has been set up and enabled for use with UW Google, you can use it to control sharing for UW Google documents, calendars and sites. In each case, the email address for the group will need to be used in the sharing interface. Each group's email address will look like this: uw_group_id@uw.edu The method used to share each item varies, depending upon the UW Google service you use. Google provides excellent instructions for each method of sharing:
Using the Google Groups App
The Google Groups App, included with UW Google, provides a discussion space. It's useful to be aware of some of the limitations of the Google Groups App:
- New Google Groups cannot be created
- Membership changes for UW Groups must be done through the UW Groups interface
- UW Groups are not listed in the Google Groups directory
- The settings for UW Groups in the Google Groups App cannot be altered in any way
Even with a limited feature set, the Google Groups App does provide one big advantage: UW Google users are able to participate in discussions using existing Google Groups. This means that UW Google Apps users have access to thousands of existing groups and can participate in any group they are invited to. As we continue to work on both UW Groups and UW Google, we hope to reduce these limitations over time.
Additional Considerations
- Nested member groups (a group within a UW Group) will not automatically be added to UW Google when the parent group is activated. To ensure all member groups are usable in UW Google, enable each of them for use within UW Google.
- Adding a UW NetID as a member of a UW Group will not automatically create a UW Google account. If you share with a group that includes people without Google accounts, then those individuals will receive an invitation from Google to set up an account.
- Email addresses outside of the UW may also be used with UW Groups to grant access to UW Google items.
- UW Groups activated in UW Google have the ability to receive mail like an email list. Settings determining who may send to a specific group, if anyone, can be adjusted in the UW Groups service.
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