As schools evolve technology strategies to accommodate more flexible learning environments, many districts move from on-site devices to permanent take-home programs. Whether your school has adopted a hybrid learning model, supports 1:1 devices, or enables students to complete assignments at home, ensuring proper device management is crucial for success.
What You'll Learn
In this article, you'll learn how to configure Google Workspace settings to support take-home devices effectively. We'll cover the latest updates for device management, network access, and browser policy settings to keep devices secure and ensure students have access to the resources they need—whether in the classroom or learning from home.
Overview of Key Settings
One of the core benefits of Google Workspace for Education and Chrome profiles is that settings follow the user account, not the device. This feature means that when students sign in with their managed accounts on Chromebooks or other devices, the same policies and security settings apply, no matter where the login happens. To ensure this consistency, administrators need to enforce sign-in and sync policies.
Enforcing Browser Sign-In and Sync
To ensure students receive the correct policies on both managed and unmanaged devices, it's crucial to configure the Browser sign-in settings to Force users to sign in to use the browser. This setting ensures that Chrome Sync is enabled, applying user-specific policies to Chrome Browser on any device, including PCs, Macs, and Android devices.
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From the Admin Console: Navigate to Devices > Chrome > Settings. On the User & browser settings tab, scroll to the Sign-in settings section and click on Browser sign-in settings. Select Force users to sign-in to use the browser from the Configuration field.
By enforcing this setting, students working from home on personal devices receive the same security policies as when on school-managed devices, ensuring access to extensions, content filters, and other tools necessary for their learning.
Configuring Network Access for Home Use
If your school has recently shifted from classroom-only device use to take-home models, you’ll need to adjust network settings to ensure Chromebooks can access the internet from home. Through the Network General Settings in the Google Admin Console, administrators can:
- Restrict which network devices can connect to after sign-in.
- Allow or block specific networks, ensuring students have reliable access from home while maintaining security.
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From the Admin Console: Navigate to Devices > Networks. Scroll to the General settings (Chromebook only) section and click anywhere on that card to open General settings. For the Wi-Fi networks setting, select Restrict or Restrict only if managed Wi-Fi network is in range.
These settings were crucial during the initial pivot to remote learning and continue to play an important role today as students complete work both on and off campus.
Managing Third-Party Cookies and Security Updates
Over the past few years, Google Chrome has introduced several security updates related to third-party cookies. While these updates enhance online security, some educational websites haven’t fully adjusted, causing issues with Google sign-ins. If students encounter trouble signing in with their Google credentials, you can:
- Allowlist third-party cookies for specific educational sites that haven’t updated to the latest cookie standards.
- Use the User & Browser Settings in the Admin console to allow legacy cookie behavior on a per-site basis while maintaining stricter security elsewhere.
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From the Admin Console: Navigate to Devices > Chrome > Settings ~ Users & browsers. Scroll to the Content section and click on the Default legacy SameSite cookie behavior setting. Select Revert to legacy SameSite behavior for cookies on all sites from the Configuration field.
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From the Admin Console: Navigate to Devices > Chrome > Settings ~ Users & browsers. Scroll to the Content section and click on the Default legacy SameSite cookie behavior setting. Select Revert to legacy SameSite behavior for cookies on all sites from the Configuration field.
Although you can opt to revert all sites to the legacy behavior temporarily, addressing the issue on a site-by-site basis is the best long-term solution.
Managing Cookies for Google and YouTube
Within the User & Browser Settings, there’s also an option to allow cookies for trusted sites like Google and YouTube. Blocking cookies for Google services can lead to sign-in issues or incomplete user sessions.
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From the Admin Console: Navigate to Devices > Chrome > Settings ~ Users & browsers. Scroll to the Content section and click on the Cookies setting. Add Google and YouTube to the Allowed Cookies list, ensuring smooth access for students.
Additional Device Settings for Today’s Take-Home Programs
In addition to user policies, several device-level settings should be reviewed to support today’s take-home programs:
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Sign-in Screen Behavior: Customize what students see before signing in to managed Chromebooks.
- From the Admin Console: Navigate to Devices > Chrome > Settings ~ Device settings. Scroll to the Sign-in settings section and click on the Sign-in Screen setting. Select Always or Never show user names and photos from the Configuration field.
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Update Restrictions: Control when and how Chromebooks receive updates without interfering with learning.
- From the Admin Console: Navigate to Devices > Chrome > Settings ~ Device settings. Scroll to the Device update settings section and click on the Auto-update settings option. Additional blackout Windows lets admins add a new set of hours when updates are not to occur.
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App-Controlled Updates: Define update policies for specific apps used by your students.
- Navigate to Devices > Chrome > Settings ~ Device settings. Scroll to the Device update settings section and click on the App-controlled updates setting. Click Select an app, to pen the Chrome Web store, where you can search for and select the app you want.
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Offline Syncing: For students without reliable internet access at home, enabling this setting in the User & Browser Settings allows them to continue accessing Google Drive and other learning materials even offline.
- Navigate to Apps > Google Workspace > Drive and Docs > Features and Applications. Hover over the Offline setting and click the edit icon at the right. Select Allow users to enable offline access and click Save. When you turn this setting on, if the Google Docs Offline extension is not installed, it prompts end users to install it. This extension allows you to create, view, and edit Google Docs files without an internet connection. Be sure to add this extension to your extension allow list.
Pro Tip: Pro Tip: Rather than waiting for users to install the Google Docs Offline extension when prompted, it's a best practice to force-install the extension for them. Force-install ensures all users immediately have offline access to their files without manual installation. To do this, navigate to Devices > Chrome > Apps & Extensions > Users & browsers and search for the Google Docs Offline extension. Click on the app to open its settings, set the Installation policy to Force install, and click Save. This proactive step helps avoid disruptions and ensures a smoother user experience.
- Navigate to Apps > Google Workspace > Drive and Docs > Features and Applications. Hover over the Offline setting and click the edit icon at the right. Select Allow users to enable offline access and click Save. When you turn this setting on, if the Google Docs Offline extension is not installed, it prompts end users to install it. This extension allows you to create, view, and edit Google Docs files without an internet connection. Be sure to add this extension to your extension allow list.
Flexible, User-Centered Management
Google Workspace for Education’s focus on managing users rather than devices remains a key advantage for schools. This user-centered approach allows administrators to make real-time changes to device settings—even after Chromebooks have been sent home—without requiring physical access to the devices. Whether it’s adjusting security policies, allowing access to new tools, or supporting remote learning, these changes can be applied from the Admin Console and will take effect immediately.
If you need additional support with configuring take-home devices or have questions about device management, contact your Google Customer Success Specialist for further training or assistance.
With ongoing advancements in technology and learning environments, this guide ensures your school’s take-home device program is both secure and flexible, providing students with the tools they need to succeed.
| Document Version | Date | Description of Change |
| 1.0 | 2/23/2024 | Removed tags with underlines, selected proper tags |
| 1.1 | 3/18/2024 | Updated RAM reference to GCSS |
| 1.2 | 9/11/2024 | Rewrote, new screenshots, reverify |
| 1.3 | 9/12/2024 | Added Kyle's thoughts on Offline, force install |