MCommunity Group Synchronization to U-M Google and Dropbox

MCommunity Directory groups are synchronized to U-M Google and U-M Dropbox so you can use them when sending email, sharing resources, and collaborating. This document lists what parts of MCommunity groups are sent to U-M Google and U-M Dropbox.

For details about using MCommunity groups within U-M Google, refer to Google: Working with MCommunity Groups.

What Goes to U-M Google

These parts of an MCommunity Directory group are synchronized to U-M Google Groups:

• Group email address
• Group name
• U-M group members (in the form of [email protected]): The group member list is sent to U-M Google, but it is not visible. The only part of your group you can see in U-M Google is the email address. (It auto-completes as you type it when sharing a resource.)

Note: MCommunity group owners must also be members to access content shared with the group.

• Display to Anyone (privacy) setting: This setting is sent to U-M Google so that U-M Google knows whether it can show the member list of a group that has been invited to a U-M Google calendar event or not.
• Subgroups (or nested groups)

These parts are not synchronized:

• Group Also Known As names or aliases
• External members: You will need to share resources with them individually.  Email is sent to external members.

What Goes to U-M Dropbox

These parts of an MCommunity Directory group are synchronized to U-M Dropbox:

• Group name
• Group email address
• Number of group members
• U-M group members: The group member list is sent to U-M Dropbox, and it is only visible to those in the group.

Note: MCommunity group owners must also be members to access content shared with the group.

These parts are not synchronized:

• Group Also Known As names or aliases
• Subgroups (or nested groups)
• External members: You will need to share resources with them individually.

Expired/Disabled Groups Are Synchronized

Expired groups are synchronized to U-M Google and U-M Dropbox. When a group in the MCommunity Directory expires, it remains in the directory in a deactivated state (mail cannot be sent to it) for one year before it is deleted. (Refer to the MCommunity expiry policy.) During that year, group owners can renew the group. If an expired group were to be removed from U-M Google or U-M Dropbox and then renewed, any previous sharing settings would break. For this reason, synchronized groups are not removed from U-M Google and U-M Dropbox until they are removed from the directory.

Expired groups can be used for resource sharing, but notification emails sent to them will be undeliverable. 

After an expired group has been deactivated for a year, it is removed from the MCommunity Directory. When a group is removed from the directory, it is also removed from U-M Google and U-M Dropbox.

Group Settings

Important: For your group to work as expected when sharing U-M Google and Dropbox resources, make sure that Messages can be sent to the group by anyone. If your group settings dictate that only members can send mail to it, notifications from U-M Google and U-M Dropbox will not be delivered to the members. This is because the address used to send the notices is not a member of any group.