Introduction

This blog explains how to restrict Google Calendar sharing between different Organizational Units (OUs) in Google Workspace. In educational institutions and enterprises, calendar sharing across departments or student groups can lead to privacy issues, distractions, or unintended access to sensitive scheduling information. By configuring sharing settings at the OU level, Google Workspace admins can maintain control over who can see, share or collaborate on calendars across different teams or groups. This guide walks you through the steps to apply these restrictions effectively using the Admin console.

Why to Restrict Google Calendar Sharing Between OUs?

Restricting Google Calendar sharing between Organizational Units (OUs) in Google Workspace is essential for maintaining privacy, minimizing distractions and ensuring that calendar data is only visible to relevant users. Without proper restrictions, users in one OU may be able to access or even edit calendar events created by users in another OU, leading to unnecessary exposure of internal schedules, classroom activities or confidential meetings.

Example Scenario:

Imagine a K–12 school using Google Workspace, where teachers and students are organized into separate OUs. Without restrictions, a high school student could search and view other teacher’s calendars, potentially revealing private meeting schedules, exam planning sessions or parent-teacher conference slots. Similarly, in a corporate office, marketing staff might gain access to HR's calendar events that contain confidential interview or policy review meetings.

How to Restrict Google Calendar Sharing Between Organizational Units (OUs)

Restricting calendar sharing between Organizational Units (OUs) in Google Workspace helps maintain privacy, prevent information leaks and ensure users only see relevant events. Here’s a step-by-step guide to configure these settings from the Admin console.

1: Sign in to the Google Admin Console

  1. Go to admin.google.com.
  2. Sign in with your super admin account.

2: Navigate to the Calendar Sharing Settings

  1. In the Admin console homepage, go to Apps > Google Workspace > Calendar.
    Navigate to the Calendar Sharing Settings

  2. Click on Sharing settings.
    Click on Sharing settings.

3: Select the Organizational Unit

  1. On the left panel, select the OU that you want to restrict.
  2. Make sure you're on the selected OU, if you want settings to apply only to that specific OU.
    Select the Organizational Unit

4: Adjust External and Internal Sharing Options

  1. Under Internal Sharing Options for Primary Calendars, set a more restrictive option.
    • Only free/busy information (hide event details)
    • No sharing (if you want complete isolation)
  2. Optionally, disable calendar sharing outside your organization under External Sharing Options.
    External Sharing Options.

5: Save the Changes

  • Click Save at the bottom of the page.
  • Allow some time for changes to propagate across user accounts.

Tips to Restrict Google Calendar Sharing Between Organizational Units (OUs)

Implementing OU-based calendar restrictions in Google Workspace is a key step toward improving privacy and security. Here are some practical tips to ensure effective and sustainable control.

  • Don’t apply settings at the top-level domain if you want changes to affect only a specific OU.
  • Choose Only free/busy info or No sharing to limit visibility between OUs.
  • Turn off sharing with users outside your domain to prevent data leakage.
  • Use tools like Calendar API or GAM to review and clean up access controls.
  • Inform staff and students about calendar sharing policies to reduce accidental oversharing.
  • Enable alerts and reports in the Admin Alert Center to detect unauthorized cross-OU sharing.
  • Assign access to shared calendars using Google Groups tied to specific OUs for better access control.

Conclusion

Restricting Google Calendar sharing between Organizational Units (OUs) is essential for maintaining privacy, reducing distraction, and ensuring that sensitive information is only visible to the right users. With the right settings in the Admin console and best practices like auditing permissions, educating users and monitoring activity, you can create a more secure and organized calendar environment across your Google Workspace domain. Whether you're managing a school, a business or a large organization, applying these controls helps enforce boundaries and promote responsible collaboration.

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