Learn How to Bulk Suspend Users by Group/OU

Introduction

In this article, you will learn how to bulk suspend users by Group/OU. A suspension of unmanaged user accounts by the IT admin and managers will enhance organizational security. It protects their organization from data losses and other cyber risks. However, bulk suspend users by Group/OU can become tedious if you delete the accounts one by one. Instead, they can opt for bulk suspend users. This enables Google Admins to suspend multiple accounts at one go.

Reasons for an Efficient User Suspension

There are several reasons behind the individual or mass user suspension by the IT Admin. This is necessary for the security compliance of your organization. The reasons are –

• When some users leave the organization, their Google Workspace accounts become unmanaged. So, there remains scope for unauthorized access to their accounts by other users or hackers. It's risky for your corporate data. Know more from here.
• Active users in an organization may suffer from stolen passwords or unauthorized access. In this case, you have to suspend those users' accounts temporarily.
• Another case happens when a user violates your organization's rules, such as spreading spam or illegal activities.

Bulk Suspend Users by Group/OU in Google Workspace with xFanatical Foresight Automation tool

xFanatical Foresight automation tool comes with a no-code automation solution for streamlining your business workflows. Automating complex business workflows eliminates repetitive manual tasks for administrators and users that the native Google Cloud services can't perform. Thus it builds productivity and saves time and money.

The feature of bulk suspending users by group or OU is not available in Google Admin Console. So, xFanatical Foresight introduces this feature for the Admin.

Demo Video

Instructions

To complete this automation workflow, you need to create two rules:

• Rule 1: Bulk suspend users by group
• Rule 2: Bulk suspend users by OU

Process for the Rule 1

Rule Creation

1. Log in to your xFanatical Foresight account with your Google Admin account. 
2. Go to the Rules page and click the New Rule  button.
3. Select the Manual trigger from the select a trigger screen.
4. Click Next.
5. On the Select an action screen, click the List group members action.
6. Enter the group's email ID by selecting Digital Marketing Interns in the Group email field.
7. Click Review.
8. Enter the Rule name, click Create.

Triggering Rule

• Go to the Rules page and click the Play icon next to the created rule.

Verifying the Results

1. Ensure to check the Notification Bell for any notifications.
2. Click View All to confirm successful execution of the rule.
3. Download the CSV file from the Log page.

Next, upload the same CSV file to finalize the rule for suspending the specific group of users.

1. Go to the Rules page and click the New Rule button.
2. Select the Data uploaded trigger from the select a trigger screen.
3. Click on the upload box and upload the downloaded .CSV, wait for the CSV to be parsed.
4. Click Next.
5. On the Select an action screen, click the Suspend user action.
6. In the  Primary email field, select the Member Email variable from the dropdown.
7. Click Review.
8. Give the Rule name and click Create.

Process for the Rule 2

Rule Creation 

1. Go to the Rules page and click the New Rule  button.
2. In the Select a trigger screen, click the Manual trigger.
3. Click Next.
4. On the Select an action screen, click the List users action.
5. Select /Marketing/Social Media in the Organization unit field. Click Review.
6. Give the Rule name, and click Create.

Rule Trigger

• Trigger the rule to export the CSV file and download it directly from the Logs page.
• Next, upload the same CSV file to apply the final suspension rule for a specific OU. Then, click New Rule to proceed.
• Once you've selected the Data uploaded trigger, upload the CSV file and wait for it to be parsed. Then, click Next.
• Select the Suspend user action.
• Select Email in the Primary email field. Click Review.
• Enter the Rule name, and click Create.

Triggering Rule

Now, let's trigger Rule 1 and Rule 2 to obtain the final results.

Rule 1: Upload the CSV file containing the list of group users to create Rule 1.

• Click the Upload Icon to upload the CSV file containing the list of group users.
• Rule 2: Upload the same CSV file containing a list of Organizational Unit users.

Rule Verification

1. Find the notification in the upper right corner and select it. 
2. Check the notification for Rule 1 from the bell icon.
3. Additionally, verify the successful execution result from the Logs page.
4. Additionally, verify the result of Rule 2 using the same process. This will detail the types of suspended users by email, with email notifications sent to both the groups' and OU users' email IDs.

Conclusion

Managing user accounts efficiently is crucial for any large organization. The xFanatical Foresight automation tool simplifies this process, making it easy to bulk suspend users by group or organizational unit. By following the steps outlined in this blog post, you can ensure a smooth and streamlined approach to user management, enhancing both security and productivity.

Now learn more automation workflows with xFanatical Foresight and improve your efficiency.

Try a 14-day free trial with Foresight. You should read other blogs related to this one - Suspend Google Workspace Users by Schedule, etc.