Definition

This action allows you to retrieve detailed information about a specific group, including its properties and a list of all members within the group. By providing the Group Key, you can access essential details such as the group’s ID, email address, name, description, and more. This action helps in group management by making it easy to access and manipulate data about any group within your domain. Key capabilities include retrieving direct member counts, aliases, and identifying whether a group was created by an administrator. This action is invaluable for managing groups, understanding group structures, and integrating group-related information into your automated workflows.

Example Use Cases

1️⃣ Team Management

HR or IT teams can use this action to retrieve group details like the group’s email, name, and members for efficient team communication and management.

2️⃣ Access Control

This action helps in automating permission settings by retrieving the members of specific groups, ensuring the right people have access to shared resources and services.

3️⃣ Group Auditing

Security teams can use this action to review group memberships and identify potential security risks or ensure that groups are correctly configured.

4️⃣ Email Automation

Marketing or communication teams can use this action to pull group emails and send updates or newsletters to all members, streamlining communication.

5️⃣ Data Integration

Sync group information with other systems or applications (like CRM or HR systems) to ensure that the organization’s structure and team memberships are always up to date.

Inputs

1️⃣ Connection

This field specifies the connection to Google Directory that you want to use for retrieving group information.

Explanation: The connection is required to authenticate and authorize Zenphi to access your Google Directory data. This connection must be set up beforehand in Zenphi and linked to your Google Workspace account.

2️⃣ Group Key

The Group Key is the identifier of the group you want to retrieve information for.

Explanation: This field can be either the Group Email or Group ID. The Group Key is used to uniquely identify and locate the group in Google Directory. You can use the group’s email (e.g., [email protected]) or its unique ID from the previous retrieval or API responses.

Supported Formats:

• Group Email (e.g., [email protected])
• Group ID (a unique string identifier assigned to the group).

Ensure the Group Key is accurate and exists within the Google Directory to avoid errors. Using the Group ID is more reliable since it’s unique, while the email address can change if the group’s email alias is modified.

Outputs

1️⃣ Group Id

The unique identifier assigned to the group in Google Directory.

Explanation: This is the ID used by the Google Directory API to uniquely reference a group. It can be used to create group request URIs or for API calls that interact with this group.

• Example Use: If you want to perform additional operations on this group, like modifying settings or removing members, you can use this Group Id.

2️⃣ Group Email

The email address associated with the group.

Explanation: This is the primary email address used by the group to receive and send emails. All members of the group typically receive emails sent to this address.

Example Use: The Group Email can be used to send messages to all members of the group at once or when configuring permissions for file access (such as in Google Drive).

3️⃣ Name

The name assigned to the group.

Explanation: This is the display name of the group, which is typically used to identify the group within your organization’s directory. It’s helpful for recognizing the group when managing users or permissions.

Example Use: This could be useful when you need to list or categorize groups, such as creating a report on different departments or teams.

4️⃣ Description

A brief explanation or additional details about the group.

Explanation: The description field contains information regarding the purpose or function of the group, offering context to its users. It helps admins understand the group’s role without needing to dig deeper into the group’s structure or permissions.

Example Use: This is useful when managing multiple groups and needing a quick way to differentiate them based on their purpose (e.g., Project Team for Marketing Campaign).

5️⃣ Created by Admin

Indicates whether the group was created by an administrator or a regular user.

Explanation: This field is a Boolean value (true or false). If the group was created by an administrator, the value will be true, and if it was created by a user, the value will be false.

Example Use: This field is useful for auditing and understanding whether certain groups have been set up by admins for organizational purposes or were initiated by regular users.

6️⃣ Direct Members Count

The number of users who are direct members of the group.

Explanation: This field provides a count of the number of users who are directly added to the group. It does not include members of child groups if the group is part of a larger, hierarchical group structure.

Example Use: This can be used for reporting or for analyzing the size of groups in your organization to help determine which teams may require more resources or support.

7️⃣ Aliases

A list of email aliases associated with the group.

Explanation: Aliases are additional email addresses that redirect messages to the group's primary email. These allow the group to receive emails under multiple names without creating separate groups.

Example Use: For example, if the group’s primary email is [email protected], it may also have aliases like [email protected] or [email protected] that all route to the same group.

8️⃣ Non-Editable Aliases

A list of non-editable alias email addresses.

Explanation: These are email addresses that belong to the group but cannot be modified or removed, particularly if they belong to external domains. These are generally read-only properties and are used for maintaining consistent email functionality.

Example Use: If a group has an alias from a different domain (e.g., [email protected]), this alias would appear in the non-editable aliases list, ensuring it’s not mistakenly removed during group management.

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These output fields provide critical information for managing groups effectively, including insights on group membership, administrative details, and aliases, and can help administrators make informed decisions about access, security, and communication within their Google Directory.

Example Scenario

Managing Marketing Team Access and Group Membership

A company’s IT department is responsible for managing employee access to various teams and resources within Google Workspace. They use Google Groups to streamline communications and ensure the right people have access to relevant data and updates.

Problem:
The company needs to retrieve information about the marketing team’s Google Group, including its members and aliases, to ensure the group is properly configured before launching a new marketing campaign.

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Steps Using the Action:

1. Set Up Connection:
   The IT administrator first sets up a Google Directory connection in Zenphi to connect to the company's Google Workspace account.

2. Input Group Key:
   The IT administrator enters the Group Key, which could be the email address or the unique ID of the marketing team’s Google Group (e.g., [email protected]). The group key will help Zenphi identify and fetch the correct group.

3. Run the "Find Group" Action:
   Once the connection and group key are configured, the "Find Group" action is triggered. Zenphi sends a request to Google Directory and retrieves the group’s details, including:

   • The Group ID (e.g., abcd1234)
   • The Group Email ([email protected])
   • The Group Name (Marketing Team)
   • A Description of the group (Team responsible for marketing campaigns)
   • The number of Direct Members (e.g., 15 members)
   • A list of Aliases (e.g., [email protected], [email protected])
   • Any Non-Editable Aliases (external emails like [email protected])

4. Review Results:
   After executing the action, the IT administrator reviews the retrieved data. They check that the members list is up-to-date, ensuring the right individuals are part of the marketing team. Additionally, they verify the group has the correct aliases and non-editable aliases for communication across different domains.

5. Make Adjustments:

   • If any members are missing, the administrator can use a separate Zenphi action to add them.
   • If any aliases need to be updated or adjusted, they can do so directly in Google Directory.
   • If there are any issues with non-editable aliases, the IT team can review permissions and ensure they comply with external domains.

6. Conclusion:
   The action allows the IT department to easily retrieve key details about the marketing team’s Google Group, ensuring effective communication and proper group configuration. This information will also help the department assess whether the group is set up according to internal policies, especially when integrating with tools like Google Drive or Gmail for campaign distribution.