3.3 Managing Users (Google)

Basics

A user is anyone in your organization who uses Google Workspace. For people in your organization to use your Google Workspace services, you must give each person a user account and a Google Workspace license. An account gives each user the following:

  • A name and password for signing in to Google services;
  • An email address at any of your domains (if you're using Gmail); and 
  • A profile or contact name, which you can easily change later.

You should know the following terms: 

  • Google account
  • Roles
  • Users

Adding New Users

Before people can sign in and use your organization's Google services, like Google Workspace or Cloud Identity, they need a user account. The easiest way to add user accounts is to add them individually in your Google Admin console.

The easiest way to add new users is do so one at a time by Adding an Account for a New User (this works for new users only, and each user needs a unique license.). 

You can also add users in bulk (for example if you are adding the entire staff to your network). Follow these steps to add users in bulk:

  1. First, check to see if anyone you plan to add already has a Google Account with your institution. If they do, follow steps to avoid conflicts with those accounts. 

  2. If your organization uses an LDAP directory, such as Microsoft Active Directory, use Google Cloud Directory Sync to synchronize user data in your existing LDAP directory with your Google account (syncs groups, contacts, and organizations, too).

  3. If you have programming skills and want the most flexible option use the Admin SDK Directory API to create a large number of users.

  4. If you need to provision thousands of users as quickly as possible
    Add 50,000 or more users at once using a third-party tool (requires experience using a command line)

  5. If none of the above options applies to you, you can add up to 150,000 users at once by uploading their names in a CSV file.

After adding new users

Users can start using their new account right away, but note that it can take up to 24 hours for all Google Workspace services to be available.

It is recommended that you add 2-step verification for secure access

Once you have added users, you can manage their:

If you need to grant administrative access to any users, you can find the steps for assigning pre-built administrator roles here. These include but are not limited to: Super Admin, Group Admin, User Management Admin, Services Admin. Review the role descriptions to better understand the capacity each does and does not have.

Here are additional resources you may find useful:

Complete the following task or self-assessment:

Add several users to Google Workspace one at a time. Then add several more users to Google Workspace using one of the bulk methods. If possible, add users with different roles. Reflect on the following questions:

  • Which of these methods will be best for you and your learning community?
  • If you ran into any snags, how did you solve them? If things went smoothly, what advice would you have for fellow tech support staff so that they can do so as well?