Gsuite - Hide Group(s) from directory

[timbo343]

Is there a way to hide specific groups in Gsuite to stop staff and students seeing them in the Directory?

 

I see there is a way to do this for users under the user profile > user information section > directory sharing > Switch to OFF however it would seem there isn't the same option for groups.

 

The guides written by Google state >> https://support.google.com/a/answer/167427?hl=en however the group / distribution list still appears in the directory even when the user is not part of the group.

 

Has anyone managed to get this to work?

[DGardiner]

Is there a way to hide specific groups in Gsuite to stop staff and students seeing them in the Directory?

 

I see there is a way to do this for users under the user profile > user information section > directory sharing > Switch to OFF however it would seem there isn't the same option for groups.

 

The guides written by Google state >> https://support.google.com/a/answer/167427?hl=en however the group / distribution list still appears in the directory even when the user is not part of the group.

 

Has anyone managed to get this to work?

i think that article is refering to the group directory at groups.google.com not the contacts directory

[timbo343]

Thanks, so is it possible to remove a Group / DL from the "Directory" just like hiding a user?

[DGardiner]

Thanks, so is it possible to remove a Group / DL from the "Directory" just like hiding a user?

 

i honestly have no idea, i have custom directories setup for all our users but the groups all seem to be auto filled, there is a mention of groups on the contacts sharing page and them being visible https://support.google.com/a/answer/60218

 

but i dont see anywhere this is defined?

[Zoom7000]

Thanks, so is it possible to remove a Group / DL from the "Directory" just like hiding a user?

 

If your students are in their own OU, you can restrict directory visibility from them in the admin console:

 

Directory > Directory settings > Visibility settings > [select Student OU] > Directory visibility

 

 

See this article for more information: https://support.google.com/a/answer/9401094?hl=en

 

Control who users can find in the Directory

 

As a Directory admin, you can set which users are visible to other users in your organization. When a user is visible to another user, their contact information is available in search and their email address autocompletes in services like Gmail and Drive.

 

Before you begin: To apply the setting for certain users, put their accounts in an organizational unit.

 

1. In your Google Admin console (at admin.google.com)...
   
2. Go to Directory settings.
   
3. Click Visibility settings.
   
4. To apply the setting to everyone, leave the top organizational unit selected. Otherwise, select a child organizational unit.
   
5. In the Directory visibility section, select from the following options:
   

• No users - Users can't find other users or groups. Autocomplete and search use only addresses in the user's Contacts.
  
• All users - Users can find all other users in the organization, except for users who are hidden from Directory. They can find all groups that are visible to the organization.
  
• Users in a custom directory - Users can find only users in a custom directory. They can find all groups that are visible to the organization. Learn how to set up a custom directory.
  

Click Save. If you configured a child organizational unit, you might be able to Inherit or Override a parent organizational unit's settings.

 

It can take up to 24 hours for changes to take effect.

Edited November 19, 2019 by Zoom7000

[timbo343]

Thanks, looks like i need to speak to someone about getting the DIRECTORIES Permission!

[DSapseid]

I had this exact problem with directories when we migrated to GSuite, whole MAT on one GSuite means the students could email the CEO! Not an ideal situation!! Now changed so students have no address list and the staff can only see staff in our school - staff were lazily typing in a name and clicking the first one despite the surname being wrong and in a different school

 

Just a heads up on a couple of other settings i have made is to turn off the access for students to create classrooms and team drives. Had some students set them up and lay 'ground rules' for being a member and storing inappropriate material. It doesnt stop them being added to either just stops them creating their own.

[timbo343]

Now i can see the directory settings page and configured it for students so they can only see our school teachers which are in a group.

 

However we have a fair few distribution lists / groups like our MFDService distribution group that we use for MFD service updates, printstatus and parenteveningfeedback distribution groups that we would like to hide from ALL USERS of the MAT as no one needs to know about these however trying to hide these groups from the directory is proving difficult - is there any way to do this?

[gh5000]

Now i can see the directory settings page and configured it for students so they can only see our school teachers which are in a group.

 

However we have a fair few distribution lists / groups like our MFDService distribution group that we use for MFD service updates, printstatus and parenteveningfeedback distribution groups that we would like to hide from ALL USERS of the MAT as no one needs to know about these however trying to hide these groups from the directory is proving difficult - is there any way to do this?

Same as you've just done for students. A custom list of addresses that you want staff to see and apply it to them.

[DSapseid]

Same as you've just done for students. A custom list of addresses that you want staff to see and apply it to them.

 

Doing this for staff stops them seeing the groups in the directory if they click on the "To" button on compose but if they type the name in they still appear. I dont think you can fully hide the groups though.

 

I have setup a custom address list for my staff with membership based on being part of the all staff group. If i start typing in all staff i can see the all staff address lists for all the schools.

[timbo343]

Custom Directories are enforced here for students (Staff have the ability to see all users) but users can still find the distribution group when using autocomplete in the TO field or when clicking on TO and doing a search that way.

 

Would this be classed as a flaw in the Google System!?

 

It would seem as a user coming from Office365 to GSuite things aren't as well designed or thought about as what they are in the Office365.