Skip to main content

Managing Participant Options in a Zoom Meeting

Zoom provides a number of options to help you manage which tools are available to participants when connected to your meeting. Some of these options restrict communication while others help secure the meeting against unwanted access. These options can be employed individually or concurrently to help you host the best Zoom meeting for your needs.

NOTE: With the introduction of Zoom version 4.6.10 on April 8, 2020, Zoom provided easy access to a number of in-meeting security features right from the main Zoom toolbar. With the new Security toolbar option, you can restrict user entry and interactions from one location including locking the meeting, enabling waiting rooms, disabling chat and disabling screen sharing.

Restricting Access to Only Drexel Accounts

Drexel IT has enabled an option that allows you to restrict access to your Zoom meetings so that only officially licensed Drexel Zoom accounts can access your meeting.

Enabling the Drexel Only Option - One Time Setup

  1. Sign in to the https://drexel.zoom.us website.
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Scroll to Only authenticated users can join meetings and enable the toggle (set to blue).

Restricting a Meeting to Drexel Zoom Only

  1. When scheduling or editing a meeting, check the Only authenticated users can join option under Meeting Options. NOTE: If you enable this option, guest speakers will be unable to your Zoom session. To admit guest speakers, you must edit the Zoom meeting prior to joining the session and disable (uncheck) the Only authenticated users can join option.

Set a Meeting Password

For an added layer of security, a password can be set on a meeting. To join such a meeting, a participant must either have a Zoom generated URL with the password in it or must supply the password when attempting to enter the meeting.

Adding a Password to a Meeting

  1. When scheduling or editing a meeting, check the Require meeting password option under Meeting Password.
  2. Enter the desired password in the provided text box.

Removing a Password from a Zoom Link

  1. Sign in to the https://drexel.zoom.us website.
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Scroll to Embed password in meeting link for one-click join and disable the toggle (set to grey).

Using Waiting Rooms

Waiting rooms allow you, the host, to control when participants join a meeting. You can admit participants one by one or all at once. You can also turn on or off the waiting room ad hoc during a Zoom meeting to control access.

Using a Waiting Room to Start a Meeting

  1. When scheduling or editing a meeting, check the Enable waiting room option under Meeting Options.

Enabling or Disabling a Waiting Room in a Meeting

  1. While in a meeting, select Security from the Zoom toolbar.
  2. Select Enable waiting room to enable (checked) or disable (unchecked) the waiting room feature.

Restricting Chat

By default, within a Zoom meeting, participants have the option to chat with the group as a whole, the host privately or one another privately. This setting can be changed ad hoc during a Zoom meeting.

For all versions of Zoom

  1. While in a meeting, select Security from the Zoom toolbar.
  2. Select Chat to disable the chat feature for all participants. No chat is allowed when this feature is disabled (unchecked).

Restricting File Sharing

By default, within a Zoom meeting, participants can share files with you and other participants of the meeting. This feature can be disabled in your settings. NOTE: This option will apply to all meetings as the new default.

  1. Sign in to the https://drexel.zoom.us website.
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Select In Meeting (Basic) or scroll to this section.
  4. Scroll to File transfer and disable the toggle (set to grey).

Restricting Audio Sharing

During a Zoom meeting, participants have the option to unmute their microphone to share audio with the group. As the host of a meeting, you can remove this ability so only you can control which participants are muted and which are not.

  1. While in a meeting, select Manage Participants from the Zoom toolbar.
  2. Expand the More menu.
  3. Select the Allow Participants to Unmute Themselves option to allow (checked) or remove (unchecked) the ability for participants to unmute their microphone.

Restricting Video Sharing

While Zoom does not allow hosts to start the video feed on a participants device, hosts can stop the video feed and prevent it from being re-shared. Once a host has stopped the video feed for a participant, only the host can re-enable that participants ability to share video.

Stopping a Participants Video Feed

  1. While in a meeting, select Manage Participants from the Zoom toolbar.
  2. Hover over the participant you wish to remove and select More.
  3. Select Stop Video.

Re-Enabling a Participants Video Feed

  1. While in a meeting, select Manage Participants from the Zoom toolbar.
  2. Hover over the participant you wish to remove and select More.
  3. Select Ask to Start Video.

Restricting Screen Sharing

Due to recent security changes, only a host can share their screen in a Zoom meeting by default. For a participant to share their screen, access must be given first.

  1. While in a meeting, select Security from the Zoom toolbar.
  2. Select Share Screen to disable (unchecked) participants ability to share their screen during a meeting.

Removing a Participant

Zoom allows a host to remove a participant from a meeting if they are causing a problem. By default, a participant who is removed can no longer join the Zoom session. NOTE If you remove a participant from a meeting, they will be unable to join your class in the future until you allow removed participants from re-entering.

To Remove a Participant

  1. While in a meeting, select Manage Participants from the Zoom toolbar.
  2. Hover over the participant you wish to remove and select More.
  3. Select Remove.

Allow Removed Participants to Rejoin a Meeting

  1. Sign in to the https://drexel.zoom.us website.
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Select In Meeting (Advanced) or scroll to this section.
  4. Scroll to Allow removed participants to rejoin and enable the toggle (set to blue).
    • Once your meeting has started again with the participant re-added, follow these setup to disable (set to grey) the same option.

Restricting Access to an Active Meeting

Zoom offers the option to deny entry to any meeting after it has begun. Utilizing this option is NOT recommended as it would prevent participants who had to drop out of the meeting for legitimate reasons from rejoining the session. Instead, it is recommended that you use the waiting room option to control access as outlined in the Using Waiting Rooms section.

  1. While in a meeting, select Security from the Zoom toolbar.
  2. Select Lock Meeting to lock (checked) or unlock (unchecked) the meeting.
Have Questions?