Using Dynamic Groups to Configure the Licensing Tool

Dynamic Groups are a great way to specify which users receive licenses, especially when you need to select multiple Organizational Units (OUs). Using them with our licensing tool gives admins more control than when using OUs alone. Once set up, if you need to add or remove a new OU, you can simply modify it within the Dynamic Group yourself, instead of submitting a request to us.

Creating The Dynamic Group

To get started, ensure that your domain has a Workspace Plus/Standard license assigned. This is required for the Create dynamic group option to be available.

1. In the Admin console, navigate to Directory > Groups and select Create dynamic group.
   
2. Select the desired condition from the condition drop-down.
   • Ancestor Organizational Unit includes the OU and the Sub-OUs underneath it.
   • Parent Organizational Unit only includes users directly in the OU selected.
3. Select the necessary Organization Unit.
4. Click PREVIEW at the bottom to ensure the displayed users appear accurate. You may need to scroll down to see the preview.
5. Once confirmed, select CREATE DYNAMIC GROUP, input the desired Email Address, and create.
   

As with any group, ensure you've set the Access Settings to your desired restrictions. As a group used only for licensing, consider restricting the Who Can Post setting so users aren't able to email this Group.

Pro Tip: The Org Unit ID for a Dynamic Group can be difficult to read. Consider using the Description field to provide a clear summary of what the dynamic group contains.

Options for Dynamic Groups

Dynamic Groups can include or exclude specific OUs, giving you greater flexibility. For example, the screenshot below shows a Dynamic Group that will include all users within the Student OU and its sub-OUs (Ancestor organizational unit equals Student) except for users who are directly in the Grade 01 OU. This is useful for limiting licenses in a top-level OU that contains a mix of users who need and don't need a license.

Note: While there is no limit to the number of conditions in a Dynamic Group, there is a 10,000-character limit for the query itself.

Modifying A Dynamic Group

Currently, modifying a Dynamic Group requires you to create an entirely new query or manually change the existing one. You can't simply change the drop-down selections.

1. Find the Group on the Directory > Groups page or search for it at the top of the Admin console.
2. Once chosen, select Edit Membership Query.
   
3. There you will see the current query at the top, which includes the unique IDs of the organizational units. Scroll down and select CREATE NEW QUERY.
4. Begin crafting an entirely new query. Depending on the number of conditions you’ve previously had and the complexity of the change, this can be an arduous task.
    
   • If you only want to add a new OU, you could choose the OU type (Parent or Ancestor) and select the OU as previously done. You can see the newly generated query for that OU at the bottom.
   • Highlight and Copy the query.
5. Select the EDIT ORIGINAL QUERY option and append the query from the previous step to the end of the original query. To append a query, add || (The OR operators) to the end and then paste it in.
6. Click save.
   

Note: Whenever a group is being updated, its status will show Updating memberships. Once the process is complete, the status will turn green and display Up to date.