!!! Changes to Google Services !!!

AS OF December, 2023, THE INFORMATION BELOW IS DEPRECATED AND HAS CHANGED.  

FOR UP TO DATE INFORMATION REGARDING THESE CHANGES, PLEASE VISIT THIS PAGE AND LOOK FOR COMMUNICATIONS FROM FBRI IT.  

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On April 26, 2023 the Virginia Tech Department of IT announced significant changes to their future adoption and availability of the University provided Google services and the Google Suite of applications.  

 
The VT News story from today can be found here: https://vtx.vt.edu/articles/2023/04/google-changes-announcement.html

Additional details and information can be found here: https://it.vt.edu/projects/google-changes.html

THIS IS A SIGNIFICANT CHANGE to the services most of us use on a daily basis.  We are aware of the impact of these changes and will work diligently with you to smooth the transition.

 

KEY POINTS:

• There will be NO changes to the ‘local’ FBRI Exchange mail system or your @vtc.vt.edu accounts.
• Google shared drive creation will be limited and only employees will be able to create them, but may invite students to join them (May, 2023).
• All new @vt.edu mailboxes will be provisioned in the Microsoft Exchange Online Platform (July, 2023). 
• ALL users will be required to migrate primary @vt.edu email and calendars from Google / Gmail to the Microsoft Exchange Online platform (starting October, 2023).
• Google drive storage allocations for all users will be reduced (October, 2023).
• At this time, it is understood that Google Groups, Docs, Sheets, Presentations, Forms, and Sites will still be available, but will be subject to the Google Drive storage and creation limitations. 
• Google Photos will no longer be available and content will be deleted (July, 2024).
• There ARE Microsoft Exchange Online options for all Google services being limited and removed, as well as new applications and features.
• Migration assistance from the Department of IT, as well as the FBRI IT Team, will be available. 

WHEN DOES THIS TAKE PLACE? 

• Changes start on May 10 of this year; however, migrations of existing services do not start until October, 2023.
• You can view the detailed timeline here: https://it.vt.edu/projects/google-changes/timeline.html

 WHAT CAN YOU DO NOW?

• Educate yourself on the changes using the links above and start to think about how these changes impact your workflows.
• Record any significant workflows you discover that depend heavily on Google services so we can ensure they will all be addressed as we move closer to the migration dates.
• Record your questions and attend upcoming TOWN HALLS hosted by the FBRI IT Team (dates TBA). 
• Request a consult with us for you and / or your Lab and we will schedule one in the upcoming months.

Using Microsoft Cloud Storage:

To get started using Microsoft Cloud Storage, please read our Office 365 Cloud Storage Services Help guide.

We will work diligently to support all our users and colleagues through this important change.