Understanding Sponsored Accounts' Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 Services


Introduction

Microsoft 365 (M365) services are provided to sponsored accounts at Virginia Tech if a license is purchased by the department. Google Workspace storage, email, and calendar are not provided. However, collaborators can share files in Google Workspace with sponsored account holders. The following article contains  

  • Overview of services
  • How to access the services
  • How to find training on the services 
  • Where to find information on the cost of services
  • Eligibility Requirements
  • What happens after eligibility is lost
  • What if they have multiple relationships with Virginia Tech
  • What to do if they cannot access their services 

Explanation

Overview 

Sponsored accounts with a license receive the following in Microsoft 365. 

Services 

Storage 

NOTICE! 
 
In 2025, Microsoft 365  
storage will be changing. 

 

Sponsored account storage defaults*  

5 GB  

Email and Calendar 
(Exchange Online) 

100 GB  
(A5 license) 
 

50 GB  
(A1 license) 

OneDrive 

 
5 TB 

(A5 license) 

 

100 GB 

(A1 license) 

 

*Additional storage may be allocated by the department 

Additional Microsoft 365 apps include: 

  • Bookings 

  • Delve 

  • Excel 

  • Forms 

  • Insights 

  • Learning 

  • Lists 

  • Loop 

  • OneNote 

  • People 

  • Planner 

  • Power Apps 

  • Power Automate 

  • Power BI 

  • Power Pages 

  • PowerPoint 

  • Project 

  • Stream 

  • Sway 

  • Teams 

  • To Do 

  • Whiteboard 

  • Word 

 

Sponsored accounts do not receive access to storage, email, or calendar in Google Workspace. However, files can be shared with them.  

Additional Google Workspace apps include: 

Only applications that allow files in Google Workspace to be shared with the individual. 

Access 

  • VT email and calendar can be accessed on the web at outlook.office.com or by downloading the Outlook desktop application. 

  • The Google Workspace services listed above can be accessed at www.google.com. 

Training 

  • Division of IT Knowledge Base articles 

Cost 

M365 services are paid for by the university and departments. License details and costs can be found on the Software Service Center’s Department Software List. 

GW file sharing services is provided at no cost to the sponsored account or department.

Eligibility 

Users with the VT-AFFILIATE-TEMPORARY affiliation are eligible to receive M365 services but it requires the purchase of a license by the department. More information about affiliations can be found in the article, Understanding Virginia Tech Affiliations. A sponsored account holder can view their affiliations within the IT Account Manager. 

Loss of Eligibility 

The steps below assume that the sponsored account does not gain any other affiliation with the university such as employee or student. In these cases, they will obtain or retain services based on those affiliations (See Understanding Storage and Services for Google and Microsoft Based on Constituent Groups for more information). To understand the specific services for an affiliation, please visit the articles for employees or students. 

Sponsored account holders lose their eligibility once the account expires and if is not renewed. They must make sure that any business or research related files are provided to the appropriate departmental personnel along with management or ownership of collaborative spaces. In addition, they must export any personal emails or files they want to keep to another location before their services stop. Data and email migration services are not provided. 

  1. When a sponsored account expires and does not get renewed, i.e., they lose the VT-AFFILIATE-TEMPORARY affiliation. Their account is suspended immediately.

  2. Once their account is suspended, the account holder will lose
    • All GW and M365 services
    • Any emails or files stored within these services
    • Any file permissions associated with the account
    • Any Team or Group memberships
    • Any Google Play purchases, YouTube data and Google Voice accounts associated with the sponsored account
    • The ability to use their Virginia Tech Google account for any third-party authentication.
  3. The account will remain suspended for 45 days before being deleted. Departments needing access to the work data from these accounts should submit requests within the 45-day window. The former account holder cannot request access to the suspended account nor to the emails or files contained within the account.
    • Once an account is deleted, it will not be re-enabled, and deleted data will be unrecoverable. 

Sponsored account holders need to make sure that any business related emails or files are provided to the appropriate departmental personnel and export any personal emails or files they want to keep to another location before their services stop. These articles can help export data. 

Eligibility with Multiple Affiliations 

If a sponsored account holder gains additional relationships with the university while being sponsored, such as employee or student, they may be entitled to those services or retention of services after loss of sponsorship eligibility.  Visit our Knowledge Base article called Understanding Storage and Services for Google and Microsoft Based on Constituent Groups for more details. 

Troubleshooting 

If a sponsored account holder loses access to GW or M365 services and believes this to be in error, there are steps that they can take. 

  1. Verify they have VT-AFFILIATE-TEMPORARY as an affiliation (affiliations can also be viewed in the IT Account Manager) If they do not see this affiliation, we suggest they reach out to their sponsor or departmental HR representative.

  2. Check their M365 license in MyCAT. If you do not have a valid license, we suggest they contact their departmental IT.

  3. If their affiliations are correct and they have a valid license, contact 4help.