Tag Archives: Other

Available in beta: Convert your client-side encrypted spreadsheets after a Vault or Takeout export

What’s changing

After a Vault or Data export (Takeout), admins can now convert their exported client-side encrypted spreadsheets to Excel files. This allows organizations to maintain access to and analysis of sensitive data in a portable format even after it has been exported from Google Workspace. 

Eligible Google Workspace admins can use this form to request access to the beta. We’ll share more specific instructions once you’re accepted into the beta.


Getting started

  • Admins: Client-side encryption can be enabled at the domain, OU, and Group levels (Admin console > Data > Compliance > Client-side encryption). Visit our Help Center to learn more about client-side encryption.

Rollout pace


Availability

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

Resources


New beta that supports running Google Drive on Arm-compatible Windows PCs now available

What’s changing

We're excited to announce beta support for Drive for desktop on Windows 11 devices powered by Snapdragon processors. Compiled natively for ARM64, this release enables users to easily sync and store files online from Windows PCs powered by Snapdragon. 


To opt-in to the beta, download and install the beta version of Google Drive for desktop on Arm-compatible Windows 11 device powered by Snapdragon. If you wish to opt-out at any time, disconnect your account and then uninstall the application. 


Getting started 

  • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature. 
  • End users:
    • The beta version of Google Drive for desktop can only be installed on devices running Windows 11 and requires Microsoft WebView2, which is typically included with Windows 11. If it is missing or was previously removed, our installer will recommend you download and install it. 
    • Note: This is a beta version and may contain bugs. It should be used with non-production data only. Alternatively, ensure that your data is backed up separately. 
    • Should you encounter any issues, please submit feedback through the application. Kindly include logs to facilitate troubleshooting and assist us in improving the application. 

Availability 

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, Workspace Individual Subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts 

Resources 

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – November 29, 2024

2 New updates

Unless otherwise indicated, the features below are available to all Google Workspace customers, and are fully launched or in the process of rolling out. Rollouts should take no more than 15 business days to complete if 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.


Drag and drop contacts in the addressee fields when composing an email on your Android device 
When writing an email in the Gmail app on your Android device, you can now drag and drop contacts in the addressee fields. This makes it easier for you to move an email address between the "to," "cc," and “bcc” fields. | Rollout to Rapid Release domains and Scheduled Release domains is complete. | Available to all Google Workspace customers, Workspace Individual Subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts.
Drag and drop contacts in the addressee fields when composing an email on your Android device

Expanding row limits in Connected Sheets for Looker 
Earlier this year, we increased the maximum number of rows of results returned from BigQuery to 100,000 for pivot tables. This week, we’re expanding this to Connected Sheets for Looker by increasing the maximum number of rows of results returned from Looker to 100,000 for pivot tables. With this update, users can analyze even more results in Sheets from the petabytes of data in Looker. | Rolling out to Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains now. | Available to all Google Workspace customers, Workspace Individual Subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts. | Visit the Help Center to learn more about Connected Sheets for Looker.


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.


The Gemini mobile app is now available for Google Workspace users
The Gemini mobile app for Android and iOS devices is now available for Google Workspace users accessing Gemini as a core service. | Learn more about the Gemini mobile app.

Introducing huddles: instant-on, audio-first meetings in Google Chat
In continuing our effort to make Google Chat your home for team collaboration, we’re excited to introduce a fast and flexible way to connect: huddles. Powered by Google Meet, huddles let you start an audio-first meeting, making real-time collaboration easier than ever. Once the huddle has started, you can resize or drag the window, add video, or share your screen for a fuller meeting experience while multitasking in Chat. | Learn more about huddles in Chat.



Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – November 22, 2024

2 New updates

Unless otherwise indicated, the features below are available to all Google Workspace customers, and are fully launched or in the process of rolling out. Rollouts should take no more than 15 business days to complete if 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.


Find files more easily with the Drive Android file picker
In 2023, we introduced a streamlined file organization with the new Google Drive location picker on web. Now, we’re rolling out similar improvements to the Drive app on Android devices. This update will make it easier to find recently viewed Drive items and clearly see what other storage locations besides "My Drive" are available to you, such as items you have access to within shared drives. | Rollout to Rapid Release domains is complete; launch to Scheduled Release domains planned for December 2, 2024. | Available to all Google Workspace customers, Google Workspace Individual subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts. | Visit the Help Center to learn more about how to use Google Drive. 
Drive files on Android

View tasks lists on the Google Calendar Android app 
Last year, we introduced full screen tasks lists for Google Calendar on web, enabling users to see all their tasks and task lists in a single full screen view. This week, we’re excited to announce that this same functionality is now available on Android devices. This update makes it easier for users to stay on top of and organize their tasks, especially while on-the-go. | Rolling out to Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains now. | Available to Google Workspace customers, Google Workspace Individual subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts. | Visit the Help Center to learn more about Google Tasks.
tasks lists on the Google Calendar Android app


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.


Easily respond to comments and access requests without leaving Google Chat with the auto-installed Google Drive Chat app 
Starting this week, the previously introduced Google Drive Chat app will be automatically installed and send you notifications about recent activity in Google Drive documents, such as new comments and share requests. | Learn more about the auto-installed Google Drive Chat app.

Table reference improvements in Google Sheets
This week, we introduced updates to table references that enhance discoverability and usability. | Learn more about table references in Sheets.

Educators can now request access to third-party apps for their students 
We’ve introduced a new workflow that allows educators to request access to unconfigured third-party apps on behalf of their students. | Learn more about requesting access to third-party apps for students.

Automatic framing is now available to everyone in Google Meet video calls, plus an improved experience when using virtual backgrounds 
We’re expanding automatic framing to all users, as well as introducing an improved experience while using a virtual background. | Learn more about automatic framing in Meet.

Add multiple multimedia files to a single message in Google Chat 
Users can now upload and send up to 20 multimedia files (photos and videos) in one Chat message. | Learn more about sending multimedia files in Chat.

More ways to get started quickly with building blocks in Google Docs 
This week, we introduced a new collection of building blocks designed to help you manage important business workflows in Docs, including team task management, project tracking, hiring, and more. | Learn more about new building blocks in Google Docs.

New file picker method for pre-selecting Google Drive files coming soon 
Today, Google Drive developers rely on the drive.file scope and the Google Picker API to optimize user experience and safety when creating their applications. To make it faster and easier for users to provide applications access to specific Drive files, the Google Picker API will introduce a new method to the Class view called setFileIds(fileIds) in January 2025. | Learn more about the new file picker method for pre-selecting Google Drive files.

Easily find and navigate your Google Chat conversations by organizing them into custom sections
As we continue to enhance the user experience in Google Chat over the last year, we’re excited to announce that users can now organize Chat conversations into custom sections. | Learn more about custom sections in Chat.

New Asus hardware kits for Google Meet
Asus is launching new hardware room kits certified for Google Meet that now offer daisy chain capabilities. Developed with AVer, this refreshed room kit portfolio will work in video conferencing rooms and spaces of just about any size. | Learn more about Asus hardware kits for Google Meet.



Completed rollouts

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


Rapid Release Domains: 
Scheduled Release Domains: 
Rapid and Scheduled Release Domains: 


    New Asus hardware kits for Google Meet

    What’s changing

    Asus is launching new hardware room kits certified for Google Meet that now offer daisy chain capabilities. Developed with AVer, this refreshed room kit portfolio will work in video conferencing rooms and spaces of just about any size. After initial setup, admins can easily enroll, manage, and monitor these devices using the Google Workspace admin console. 



    The kits are composed of the following components:

    • Compute: We’re refreshing existing ASUS kits with a new ASUS Google Meet compute system. This new Meet compute system is slimmer and easier to deploy than previous versions, offering a longer device lifespan until September 2030. 
    • Controller: Mimo Myst controller
    • Audio: AVer Fone 540 speakermic (with expansion mics available for larger rooms)
    • Camera:
      • AVer Cam340+ for small and medium rooms
      • AVer Cam 520 Pro3 for large rooms
        • This device also features built-in third-party room framing, which helps ensure the room is optimally framed. You can turn on this framing from the device by selecting Control camera > Framing by Aver.

    Getting started

    • Admins: Asus room kits for Google Meet require Google Meet hardware licenses. The updated Asus Google Meet hardware kits for Google Meet are available today – contact your reseller to learn more. This device should be rebooted after installation and runs on M126 – visit the Help Center to check the latest status on M126.
    • End users: Once an Asus room kit has been successfully enrolled, you can join Google Meet meetings normally and take advantage of our embedded interoperability to join Zoom and Webex calls.

    New file picker method for pre-selecting Google Drive files coming soon

    What’s changing 

    Today, Google Drive developers rely on the drive.file scope and the Google Picker API to optimize user experience and safety when creating their applications. 

    To make it faster and easier for users to provide applications access to specific Drive files, the Google Picker API will introduce a new method to the Class view called setFileIds(fileIds). This method lets application developers present users with a picker that is pre-navigated to the specified file IDs the application is seeking access to, allowing faster consent for your users and a more continuous experience for your application. 

    Getting started 

    • Admins: There is no admin control for this feature. 
    • Developers: If you have a user interaction such as a chat interface where a user already provided the FileId that they want to open using your application, you can now provide that FileId via the View class and Google will prompt the user to grant you OAuth access directly to that file or files. 
    • End users: There is no end user setting for this feature. 

    Rollout pace


    Availability 

    • Available to all Google Workspace customers and Workspace Individual Subscribers 

    Resources 

    Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – November 15, 2024

    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.


    Upload Google Docs and other file types to Gem instructions
    Beginning this week, you can upload reference documents, including Google Docs and Google Sheets via Google Drive, when creating Gems. By adding reference documents to your Gems instructions you can further tailor Gems to meet your specific needs. | Learn more about uploading Docs and other files types to Gem instructions.

    Reference your Google Calendar using Gemini in the side panel of Gmail
    Users can now ask Gemini in Gmail to perform calendar related actions or answer questions about their calendars. | Learn more about using Gemini in Gmail to reference Calendar.

    Respond to conversations without leaving the home view in Google Chat
    We’re introducing a split pane in the home view of Chat that allows users to respond directly to a space, group or direct message without ever navigating away from the home view in Chat. | Learn more about replying in Chat home.

    Use Gemini in Google Docs to create unique images for your documents
    Following our introduction of uploading full-bleed cover images in Google Docs and AI-generated images in Google Slides with help me visualize, we’re launching the ability to create unique inline images and full bleed cover images using Gemini in Docs. | Learn more about using Gemini in Docs to create images.


    Completed rollouts

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


    Rapid Release Domains: 
    Scheduled Release Domains: 
    Rapid and Scheduled Release Domains: 

    Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – November 8, 2024

    4 New updates

    Unless otherwise indicated, the features below are available to all Google Workspace customers, and are fully launched or in the process of rolling out. Rollouts should take no more than 15 business days to complete if 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.




    Import data into group chats using the Google Chat API 
    In September, we introduced a feature through the Google Workspace Developer Preview Program that enables developers to create group chats in import mode using the spaces.create method when migrating to Google Chat from other messaging platforms. This week, we’re excited to announce that this is now generally available for Google Workspace developers. | Roll out to Rapid Release domains and Scheduled Release domains is complete. | Available to all Google Workspace customers. | Learn more about import mode. 


    Search for and reuse pre-defined queries from BigQuery in Connected Sheets
    Currently, users can define saved queries in BigQuery Studio and notebooks, but they cannot reuse those queries in Connected Sheets without copy/pasting them. This week, we’re excited to announce that users can now search for and reuse pre-defined queries directly from BigQuery to load Connected Sheets data. To do so, go to Connection Settings > Edit connection > Saved queries and query editor and search for your query by project. | Rolling out now to Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains at an extended rollout pace (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility), with expectation completion by December 6, 2024. | Available to all Google Workspace customers, Workspace Individual Subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts. | Visit the Help Center to learn more about writing & editing a query and getting started with BigQuery data in Google Sheets. 

    Search for and reuse pre-defined queries from BigQuery in Connected Sheets


    Launching to beta: Import sensitive Microsoft Word documents as client-side encrypted Google Docs. 
    Beginning this week, eligible customers can import and convert sensitive Microsoft Word files into Google Docs with client-side encryption. When collaborating with external and internal stakeholders, you may find yourself working across both Google Docs and Microsoft Word. This update keeps your work moving by layering interoperability on top of the confidentiality benefits of client-side encryption: customers are in direct control of their encryption keys and the identity service that they choose to authenticate for those keys. Eligible Google Workspace admins can use this form to request access to the beta. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Education Standard customers. | Visit the Help Center to learn more about client-side encryption. More specific instructions will be shared once you’re accepted into the beta. 


    Select Google Chat settings can now be applied at the group level 
    Admins can now apply the following Google Chat settings at the group level: 
    While these settings can also be configured at the Organizational Unit (OU) level, this update provides more granular control for admins. This is critical for our customers, who frequently request more flexibility in how they apply settings, giving them more flexibility on how to configure settings based on the various needs of their users. | Roll out to Rapid Release domains and Scheduled Release domains is complete. | Available to all Google Workspace customers.


    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.


    View in-meeting chat messages in Google Meet live streams 
    Starting this week, when you’re viewing a Google Meet live stream, you will be able to see chat messages that are sent by participants who have joined via the meeting link. | Learn more about in-meeting chat messages in Meet live streams. 


    Now generally available: use Gemini in the side panel of Workspace apps in seven additional languages 
    Beginning this week, select users can use Gemini in the side panel of Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Drive, and Gmail, in seven additional languages: French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish. | Learn more about additional Gemini languages. 


    Announcing general availability of Google Vids: Our new AI-powered video creation app for work to help tell stories across your organization 
    Earlier this year, we announced Google Vids, the newest productivity app in our suite of Google Workspace products. Vids is an AI-powered video creation app for work designed to help teams in customer service, learning and development, project ops and marketing tell more engaging stories at work through video. This week, we’re excited to announce the general availability of Google Vids for select Workspace editions. | Learn more about Vids. 


    Google Vids is now available for Google Workspace for Education, providing easy video creation for teaching and learning 
    Earlier this year, we announced Google Vids would soon empower educators and students to easily create and collaborate with video. This week, we’re excited to announce the general availability of Google Vids for Education Plus and Gemini for Workspace customers. | Learn more about Vids for EDU.


    Introducing a refreshed library of high-quality Google Slides templates that elevate your presentations
    We’re introducing a new collection of modern, professionally designed templates in Google Slides to help users build presentations much faster. These new templates cater to a wide range of use cases that provide users with the perfect starting point for their presentations. | Learn more about Slides templates.


    Expanding access to the Gemini app for teen students in education
    Google Workspace for Education admins can now turn on the Gemini app with added data protection as an additional service for their teen users (ages 13+ or the applicable age in your country) in the following languages and countries. | Learn more about the Gemini app for teen students in education.


    Completed rollouts

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


    Rapid Release Domains: 
    Scheduled Release Domains: 
    Rapid and Scheduled Release Domains: 

    Paused rollouts

    We have paused the rollout for this feature while we evaluate performance and quality. We will provide an update with new rollout information as soon as possible.

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

    Expanding access to the Gemini app for teen students in education

    What’s changing

    Google Workspace for Education admins can now turn on the Gemini app with added data protection as an additional service for their teen users (ages 13+ or the applicable age in your country) in the following languages and countries. With added data protection, chats are not reviewed by human reviewers or otherwise used to improve AI models. The Gemini app will be a core service in the coming weeks for Education Standard and Plus users, including teens, 


    We created this Gemini experience for teens after consulting with child development and learning science experts - including conducting learning focused red teaming, an industry standard testing process to find vulnerabilities in generative AI - and testing with youth advisory panels to ensure we’re bringing this technology to students responsibly.

    Gemini can help teen students learn responsibly and confidently in an AI-first future.



    Who’s impacted

    Admins and end users


    Why it’s important

    Google is committed to making AI helpful for everyone, in the classroom and beyond. We want to both prepare teens with the skills and tools they need to thrive in the future where GenAI exists and help them learn how this technology can be used to unlock creativity and facilitate learning. Expanding access to the Gemini app to younger students provides guided support to help them learn more confidently with in-the-moment assistance, practice materials, and real-time feedback. 


    Additional details

    Upon accessing the Gemini app for the first time, teens will be guided through an AI Literacy video, endorsed by ConnectSafely and Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI)--with tips on how to use generative AI responsibly. And according to Common Sense Media, the Gemini teen experience is considered “low risk” and is designated as “designed for kids”.

    “Google's Gemini, which is currently the only major platform to create a specific experience for teens, includes additional CSAM (child sexual abuse material) safeguards, content policies, and in-product experiences that help teens understand the limitations of generative AI." - Common Sense Media


    Getting started


    Rollout pace

    • Available now.

    Availability

    • Available for Google Workspace Education Fundamentals, Standard, Plus and the Teaching & Learning Upgrade

    Resources


    Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – November 1, 2024

    4 New updates

    Unless otherwise indicated, the features below are available to all Google Workspace customers, and are fully launched or in the process of rolling out. Rollouts should take no more than 15 business days to complete if 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.

    Apply black & white filter to Google Drive scans on Android devices 
    In August, we announced that you can now save files scanned in the Google Drive Android app as a .JPEG. This week, we’re excited to introduce an additional scanning option that gives you the ability to apply a black & white filter on your document scans. This new filter helps enhance texts and other important elements, ensuring they are sharply defined when compared to the background region. | Rolling out now to Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains. | Available to all Google Workspace customers, Workspace Individual Subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts. | Visit the Help Center to learn more about scanning files with your mobile device.
    Apply black & white filter to Google Drive scans on Android devices

    AI Classification now supports Field Selection for Model Training 
    When AI Classification first launched, Labels eligible for model training needed to have a single field of either a badge or option-list field type, and Labels with multiple fields were ineligible. Now, customers that use AI Classification will be able to select which badge or option list field they would like to train a model for after identifying the target label. Once trained and enabled, the AI model will automatically apply the label and will only populate the selected field. | Roll out to Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains is complete. | Available to customers with the AI Security add-on, Gemini Enterprise add-on, and Gemini Education Premium. | Visit the Help Center to learn more about Label Google Drive files automatically using AI classification. 


    Reducing noise from unfollowed threads in Google Chat
    In order to make it easier to identify which unread threads are most relevant to you, we’re reducing the noise by removing visual cues from threads that you do not follow in Google Chat. Starting this week, new activity, such as unread messages from threads you do not follow, will no longer bold and appear at the top of your conversation lists. | Rolling out now to Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains on web and mobile at an extended rollout pace (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility). | Available to all Google Workspace customers. 


    Introducing a better filter by condition experience for tables in Google Sheets 
    Tables in Google Sheets will now provide users with a smarter filter by condition experience. Sheets offers 21 options for users to filter by condition, such as “Date is” or “Text ends with”. However, we know there are scenarios in which certain filters might not be applicable based on the type of data in a spreadsheet. Based on the set column type, users will now only see relevant filter by condition options. For example, if your column type is set to number, the filter options will be number-based only. | Roll out to Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains is complete. | Available to all Google Workspace customers, Workspace Individual Subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts. | Visit the Help Center to learn more about sorting & filtering your data.
    Introducing a better filter by condition experience for tables in Google Sheets



    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.


    Refine emails faster with updates to the “Polish” shortcut in Gmail 
    We’re expanding the Help me write shortcut to web and introducing a Polish shortcut on web and mobile that helps you refine emails even faster. | Learn more about email shortcuts in Gmail. 

    Google Classroom now supports exporting missing and excused grades to select Student Information Systems (SIS)
    Teachers can now include missing and excused grades when exporting grades to their Student Information Systems (SIS). | Learn more about exporting missing and excused grades to select Student Information Systems (SIS). 

    New density setting in Google Chat 
    To give users more control over how they see information in Google Chat, we’re introducing a new setting that allows you to control the visual density of screen elements. Choose between “Comfortable” or “Compact” on chat.google.com. | Learn more about density settings in Chat.

    Context Aware Access insights and recommendations are now generally available
    We’re making it easier to apply context-aware access (CAA) policies with new insights and recommendations. We’ll proactively surface potential security gaps and suggest pre-built CAA levels which admins can deploy to remediate the security gaps. | Learn more Context Aware Access insights.

    FedRAMP High authorization for Gemini for Workspace 
    As recently announced, we submitted our package to obtain FedRAMP High authorization for Gemini for Workspace, including the Gemini app. A FedRAMP High certification assures federal agencies in the United States that a cloud service provides the highest level of protection for their most sensitive data, enabling them to confidently leverage cloud technologies for critical operations. | Learn more about FedRAMP High authorization for Gemini.

    Gemini in the side panel of Google Chat is now available
    We’re expanding Gemini in Chat to help users collaborate more effectively in their spaces, group messages and direct messages. | Learn more about Gemini in the side panel of Chat. 

    Data classifications labels for Gmail are now available in open beta
    In addition to Google Drive, we’re expanding data classification labels to now include Gmail. Classification labels are used to classify and audit content according to organizational guidelines (“Sensitive”, “Confidential”, etc.) and apply policies, such as data loss prevention (DLP) rules, to protect sensitive information in email messages. Classification labels will be available when using Gmail on the web – support for Gmail on mobile devices will be introduced in the coming months. | Learn more about the beta for data classifications labels for Gmail.


    Completed rollouts

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


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