Google Workspace (GW) and Microsoft 365 (M365) services are provided to employees at Virginia Tech. 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

Overview

Employees receive the following in Microsoft 365.

¹Additional storage may be allocated by the department

Additional Microsoft 365 apps include²:

²Downloadable versions are only available with an A5 license.

Employees receive the following in Google Workspace.

³Additional storage may be allocated by the department

Additional Google Workspace apps include:

Access

• VT email and calendar can be accessed on the web at outlook.office.com or, A5 license only, by downloading the Outlook desktop application.
• The Microsoft 365 services listed above can be accessed or downloaded (A5 license only) at my.office365.vt.edu.
• The Google Workspace services listed above can be accessed at www.google.com.
• Departmental Teams, Sites, or M365 Groups can be requested at Departmental Team, SharePoint Site, or M365 Group. Only faculty and staff can request, but students, retirees, alumni, and external guests can be invited to join.

Training

• LinkedIn Learning via OneCampus (requires signing in with their Virginia Tech username and password)
• Division of IT Knowledge Base articles
  • Exchange Online
  • Microsoft 365
  • Google Workspace
• TLOS’s (Technology-enhanced Learning and Online Strategies) Professional Development Network (PDN)

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.

An employee’s base level of storage within GW is provided at no additional cost by the university. Additional GW storage can be purchased by their department. The cost associated with the additional storage can be found on the Software Service Center’s Department Software List. The cost for GW storage will begin November 1, 2024.

Eligibility

People with the VT-EMPLOYEE affiliation are eligible to receive employee services.  This can occur before their start date. Microsoft services are provided at the A1 level until an A5 license is confirmed by the Software Service Center. More information about affiliations can be found in the article, Understanding Virginia Tech Affiliations. An employee can view their affiliations within the IT Account Manager.

Loss of Eligibility

The steps below assume that the employee has no other affiliation with the university such as student, alum, or retiree (GW or M365). In the case of multiple affiliations, 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 alumni, students, and retirees (GW or M365). An employee can view their affiliations in MyCAT.

Employees 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 an employee is no longer affiliated with the university, i.e., their affiliation becomes VT-EMPLOYEE-FORMER, their account will be suspended, without notification, approximately one month after their last day of work.
   1. Exception: Faculty members paid to teach credit courses or provide other credit instruction and identified as “9A - Instructional Adjunct” in the Banner system, i.e., 9-month adjunct employees. These employees will receive a 120-day grace period after loss of affiliation during which their services will not be affected to provide continuity between semesters.
2. Once their account is suspended,
   • The former employee 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 and YouTube data associated with the account
     • The ability to use their Virginia Tech Google account for any third-party authentication.
   • 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. Former employees cannot request access to a suspended account nor to the emails or files contained within the account.
3. Once an account is deleted, it will not be re-enabled, and deleted data will be unrecoverable.

Employees 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.

• Exporting Email
• Migrating files out of My Drive using Google Takeout
• Transferring Files from OneDrive

Eligibility with Multiple Affiliations

If an employee has multiple relationships with the university in addition to employee, such as student, alum, or retiree (GW or M365), they may be entitled to additional services or retention of services after loss of employee eligibility.  Visit our Knowledge Base article called Understanding Storage and Services for Google and Microsoft Based on Constituent Groups for more details.

Even if eligible for the Gmail service, employees are required to use Exchange Online, they cannot set a forward to @g.mail.vt.edu, and they will be restricted from sending and receiving in Gmail.

Troubleshooting

If an employee 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-EMPLOYEE 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 supervisor 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.

The flowchart below shows the lifecycle for an employee who has no other affiliations.