G-Suite and Shared email groups

[tj2419]

I am trialling G-Suite for a possible migration and trying to find where to configure email groups for staff. E.g. All Staff, Teaching Assistants etc

 

Can anyone point me in the right direction?

 

Thanks

[Saladin]

Admin Console -> Groups -> Create Group

 

From there you can allocate that group a single email address and then add the appropriate users.

[jthompson]

I'm struggling with this, too. You can use Google groups to achieve something similar to an exchange distribution list, but the permissions on those lists are very simplistic. It's either allow anyone to send to the group, allow only domain members to send to the group, or allow only the group's members to send to the group. What we'd need is an option to say only members of some other group (e.g. 'Staff'), can send to a group (e.g. 'SLT').

 

We'd also want an option that doesn't allow a group's members to send to the group, but does allow some other group to send (e.g. 'SLT' sending to 'All Students'. I wouldn't want students able to mass mail themselves).

[caffrey]

Google Apps Directory Sync can do this too, just create a Universal Distribution list in Active directory with an email address and GADS will sync it

[rogerdnixon]

You can set very granular group permissions - in the admin console - groups - access settings. This takes you to the groups settings. There you can access Basic Permissions, Posting Permissions, Moderation Permissions and Access Permissions. Basic Permissions suffice for most things. So we have a group called "students" which contains all students and some members or LG. The staff members are "managers" and the students are only "members". We have it set that only managers and owners can post to the group. We generally apply this to all teaching groups where the teachers are managers and the students just members without posting permissions. You can also add groups to groups if you want and it follows the same sort of thing.

 

Under Posting Permissions you can get more granular and set finer controls and setup post moderation in moderatin permissions. Think of groups as a forum not just a distribution list - users can go to "Groups" and interact with the group there reply to threads as you would here. You can also allow say owners to edit other users posts. There is also a range of group types - we use collaborative inboxes quite a bit for public facing email address that then get viewed by group members who then take ownership of specific threads - helpdesk style.

 

You can bulk set and change group permissions using the commandline tool GAM - and populate groups with it as well.

[tj2419]

Thanks guys, all in all, every bit of information I needed there cheers

[jthompson]

You can set very granular group permissions - in the admin console - groups - access settings. This takes you to the groups settings. There you can access Basic Permissions, Posting Permissions, Moderation Permissions and Access Permissions. Basic Permissions suffice for most things. So we have a group called "students" which contains all students and some members or LG. The staff members are "managers" and the students are only "members". We have it set that only managers and owners can post to the group. We generally apply this to all teaching groups where the teachers are managers and the students just members without posting permissions. You can also add groups to groups if you want and it follows the same sort of thing.

 

Under Posting Permissions you can get more granular and set finer controls and setup post moderation in moderatin permissions. Think of groups as a forum not just a distribution list - users can go to "Groups" and interact with the group there reply to threads as you would here. You can also allow say owners to edit other users posts. There is also a range of group types - we use collaborative inboxes quite a bit for public facing email address that then get viewed by group members who then take ownership of specific threads - helpdesk style.

 

You can bulk set and change group permissions using the commandline tool GAM - and populate groups with it as well.

 

Is it possible with G Suite Groups to achieve the following example?

 

Have a group (SLT) to which members of another group (Staff) can send messages but not read any. That is, the equivalent of this arrangement for an Exchange distribution list.

 

 

If not, I guess it could be fudged by creating a new user (called something like SLT-Delivery) which is a member of the SLT Google group and has Gmail rules set up to forward incoming messages to the group (with rules to ignore messages from students, external senders, etc.).

[rogerdnixon]

Yes. You set posting permissions to anyone on the domain (for example) and view topics to either members/managers or just owners. We use this a lot with public facing groups (collaborative inboxes) - public can post only members can view posts.

[jthompson]

Yes. You set posting permissions to anyone on the domain (for example) and view topics to either members/managers or just owners. We use this a lot with public facing groups (collaborative inboxes) - public can post only members can view posts.

Thanks

I was hoping to also be able to limit posting permissions to some other group. In my example, that would mean that staff could send a message to SLT, but students or public senders could not (whilst still limiting the viewing of topics as you've described).

 

Whilst I'm sure Google Groups is great, it's simply too different a concept from old fashioned distribution lists imho, despite the web being full of "sure, just create a group!" answers to this type of question.

[jthompson]

I've just had a thought. One of the options for posting permissions is 'All organization members'. Is this referring to the domain as a whole, or is it referring to the individual organizations in our domain? We already have staff users and each year group in their own organizations, but I can't see how a particular group 'belongs' to any one of those.

 

[rogerdnixon]

Then simply make staff members (ie. they are a member rather than a manager or owner) of the group who can post but not view posts and SLT managers who can view posts. Limit posting to member/managers/owners. You do all this in the "basic permissions" section of the groups settings.

Remeber you can also put groups within groups which can make things simpler.

[jthompson]

Then simply make staff members (ie. they are a member rather than a manager or owner) of the group who can post but not view posts and SLT managers who can view posts. Limit posting to member/managers/owners. You do all this in the "basic permissions" section of the groups settings.

Remeber you can also put groups within groups which can make things simpler.

 

Right, yes I think that makes sense. So for my SLT group, I'd add SLT people as owners and add the existing staff group as a member. Permissions would then be owners to view and members to post.

[rogerdnixon]

Correct - but I would always limit who is an owner as they can delete the group etc. SLT could just be managers which in most cases is enough.