What IT Admins Need To Know About The Google Chat Upgrade

Beginning Aug. 16^th, organizations that use Google Workspace will automatically be migrated to “Chat preferred” unless a Google Workspace administrator decides to delay.

This means those at your organization who still use Hangouts and have not yet moved over to Google Chat will notice the change next month.

Google has announced beginning late 2021, Hangouts will no longer be supported and all users will be migrated to Google Chat.

Read: Why Organizations Should Proceed Slowly With Windows 11

For IT admins, you have the option to opt-out of the migration to preserve your organizations current settings or upgrade all users to “Chat preferred.”

To check your organization’s settings, on the Admin console, go to Apps > Google Workspace > Google Chat and Classic Hangouts > Service Status.

If your service setting is not “Chat and classic Hangouts,” no action is required. However, you’ll no longer be able to choose the “Chat and classic Hangouts” feature after the automatic migration.

If your service setting is “Chat and classic Hangouts,” you can migrate to Google Chat sooner than August 16^th or wait for the automatic migration.

Google says, “To opt out of the automatic migration and preserve your “Chat and classic Hangouts” setting for an organizational unit, take these steps before August 16, 2021:

Go to http://admin.google.com/ac/apps/gmail/migrationtochatsettings. If you see a 404 error, make sure to first sign in to the Admin console (step 1), and then try again.
Select Don’t migrate to Chat preferred as part of this migration opt-out launch.
Click Save.

When you’re automatically migrated to “Chat Preferred” users will be able to see Chat in Gmail. The classic Hangouts will be disabled, but they will still be able to access it on the web.

IT admins should carefully consider delaying the automatic migration or upgrading sooner. Google has released a list of Google Chat known limitations to help decide what the best option is for your organization. Regardless, Google Workspace users at your organization will need to know about the changes taking place next month.

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