Google workspace CLI

Google Workspace CLI

Expert guidance and automation for Google Workspace administration using the open-source gws CLI (github.com/googleworkspace/cli, Apache-2.0). The CLI builds its command surface dynamically from Google's Discovery Service, so it covers every supported Workspace API plus +-prefixed helper commands. This skill adds local Python tools (doctor, auth guide, recipe catalog, security audit, output analyzer).

Verify before scripting: gws generates commands at runtime from Google's API discovery documents, and the CLI is pre-v1.0. Always confirm a command's exact surface with gws --help, gws <service> --help, or gws schema <service>.<resource>.<method> before putting it in automation. Commands in this skill marked (verify) are illustrative of the gws <service> <resource> <method> pattern and must be checked against your installed version.

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Quick Start

Check Installation

# Verify gws is installed and authenticated
python3 scripts/gws_doctor.py

Send an Email

gws gmail +send --to "[email protected]" \
  --subject "Weekly Update" --body "Here's this week's summary..."

List Drive Files

gws drive files list --params '{"pageSize": 20}' | python3 scripts/output_analyzer.py --select "name,mimeType,modifiedTime" --format table

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Installation

npm (recommended; requires Node.js 18+)

npm install -g @googleworkspace/cli
gws --version

Homebrew (macOS/Linux)

brew install googleworkspace-cli

Cargo (from source)

cargo install --git https://github.com/googleworkspace/cli --locked
gws --version

Pre-built Binaries

Download from github.com/googleworkspace/cli/releases for macOS, Linux, or Windows. Nix users: nix run github:googleworkspace/cli.

Verify Installation

python3 scripts/gws_doctor.py
# Checks: PATH, version, auth status, service connectivity

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Authentication

OAuth Setup (Interactive)

# Step 1: Create Google Cloud project and OAuth credentials
python3 scripts/auth_setup_guide.py --guide oauth

# Step 2: Run interactive auth setup (uses gcloud if available)
gws auth setup

# Step 3: Log in, requesting only the scopes you need
gws auth login -s drive,gmail,sheets

Headless/CI

# Generate setup instructions
python3 scripts/auth_setup_guide.py --guide service-account

# Export credentials from an interactive machine, then point the CLI at them
gws auth export --unmasked > credentials.json
export GOOGLE_WORKSPACE_CLI_CREDENTIALS_FILE=/path/to/credentials.json

Environment Variables

# Generate .env template
python3 scripts/auth_setup_guide.py --generate-env

Variable	Purpose
GOOGLE_WORKSPACE_CLI_CLIENT_ID	OAuth client ID
GOOGLE_WORKSPACE_CLI_CLIENT_SECRET	OAuth client secret
GOOGLE_WORKSPACE_CLI_CREDENTIALS_FILE	Path to exported credentials JSON
GOOGLE_WORKSPACE_CLI_TOKEN	Pre-obtained OAuth token
GOOGLE_WORKSPACE_CLI_CONFIG_DIR	Override default config location
GOOGLE_WORKSPACE_CLI_LOG	Enable debug logging

Validate Authentication

python3 scripts/auth_setup_guide.py --validate --json
# Tests each service endpoint

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Workflow 1: Gmail Automation

Goal: Automate email operations — send, search, label, and filter management.

Send, Reply, Forward (helper commands)

# Send a new email
gws gmail +send --to "[email protected]" \
  --subject "Proposal" --body "Please find attached..."

# Reply to a message (auto-threading); check exact flags with: gws gmail +reply --help
gws gmail +reply ...

# Forward a message; check exact flags with: gws gmail +forward --help
gws gmail +forward ...

# Unread inbox summary
gws gmail +triage

Search and Inspect (discovery commands)

Discovery commands follow gws <service> <resource> <method> and take request parameters as JSON via --params (query/path params) and --json (request body). Inspect any method's exact schema first:

# What does messages.list accept? (verify)
gws schema gmail.users.messages.list

# Search emails (verify against the schema above)
gws gmail users messages list --params '{"userId": "me", "q": "from:[email protected] after:2025/01/01"}' \
  | python3 scripts/output_analyzer.py --count

# List labels (verify)
gws gmail users labels list --params '{"userId": "me"}'

Bulk Operations

Use --dry-run first, and --page-all to paginate (one JSON line per page):

# Preview, then archive read emails older than 30 days (verify method schema first)
gws gmail users messages list --params '{"userId": "me", "q": "is:read older_than:30d"}' --page-all \
  | python3 scripts/output_analyzer.py --select "id" --format json
# Then feed ids to gmail users messages modify (see: gws schema gmail.users.messages.modify)

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Workflow 2: Drive & Sheets

Goal: Manage files, create spreadsheets, configure sharing, and export data.

File Operations

# List files
gws drive files list --params '{"pageSize": 50}' \
  | python3 scripts/output_analyzer.py --select "name,mimeType,size" --format table

# Upload a file (helper)
gws drive +upload ./report.pdf --name "Q1 Report"

# Create a Google Sheet
gws sheets spreadsheets create --json '{"properties": {"title": "Budget 2026"}}'

# Download/export — inspect the method first (verify)
gws schema drive.files.export

Sharing (verify schemas first)

# Inspect the permissions API surface
gws schema drive.permissions.create

# Share with user (verify against schema)
gws drive permissions create --params '{"fileId": "<FILE_ID>"}' \
  --json '{"type": "user", "role": "writer", "emailAddress": "[email protected]"}'

# List who has access (verify)
gws drive permissions list --params '{"fileId": "<FILE_ID>"}'

Sheets Data

# Read values (helper); check exact flags with: gws sheets +read --help
gws sheets +read ...

# Append a row (helper); check exact flags with: gws sheets +append --help
gws sheets +append ...

# Or use discovery methods (verify):
gws schema sheets.spreadsheets.values.update
gws sheets spreadsheets values get --params '{"spreadsheetId": "<SHEET_ID>", "range": "Sheet1!A1:D10"}'

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Workflow 3: Calendar & Meetings

Goal: Schedule events, find available times, and generate standup reports.

Event Management

# Create an event (helper); check exact flags with: gws calendar +insert --help
gws calendar +insert ...

# Upcoming events (helper, timezone-aware)
gws calendar +agenda

# Or via discovery (verify):
gws schema calendar.events.insert
gws calendar events list --params '{"calendarId": "primary", "maxResults": 10}'

Find Available Time

# Free/busy via the Calendar API (verify schema first)
gws schema calendar.freebusy.query
gws calendar freebusy query --json '{"timeMin": "...", "timeMax": "...", "items": [{"id": "[email protected]"}]}'

Standup Report (workflow helpers)

# Today's meetings + tasks
gws workflow +standup-report \
  | python3 scripts/output_analyzer.py --format table

# Next meeting prep; check exact flags with: gws workflow +meeting-prep --help
gws workflow +meeting-prep

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Workflow 4: Security Audit

Goal: Audit Google Workspace security configuration and generate remediation commands.

Run Full Audit

# Full audit across all services
python3 scripts/workspace_audit.py --json

# Audit specific services
python3 scripts/workspace_audit.py --services gmail,drive,calendar

# Demo mode (no gws required)
python3 scripts/workspace_audit.py --demo

Audit Checks

Area	Check	Risk
Drive	External sharing enabled	Data exfiltration
Gmail	Auto-forwarding rules	Data exfiltration
Gmail	DMARC/SPF/DKIM records	Email spoofing
Calendar	Default sharing visibility	Information leak
OAuth	Third-party app grants	Unauthorized access
Admin	Super admin count	Privilege escalation
Admin	2-Step verification enforcement	Account takeover

Review and Remediate

# Review findings
python3 scripts/workspace_audit.py --json | python3 scripts/output_analyzer.py \
  --filter "status=FAIL" --select "area,check,remediation"

# Execute remediation (example: check current Drive settings first; verify)
gws drive about get --params '{"fields": "*"}'
# Follow remediation commands from audit output (verify each against gws --help)

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Python Tools

Script	Purpose	Usage
gws_doctor.py	Pre-flight diagnostics	python3 scripts/gws_doctor.py [--json] [--services gmail,drive]
auth_setup_guide.py	Guided auth setup	python3 scripts/auth_setup_guide.py --guide oauth
gws_recipe_runner.py	Recipe catalog & runner	python3 scripts/gws_recipe_runner.py --list [--persona pm]
workspace_audit.py	Security/config audit	python3 scripts/workspace_audit.py [--json] [--demo]
output_analyzer.py	JSON/NDJSON analysis	gws ... --json | python3 scripts/output_analyzer.py --count

All scripts are stdlib-only, support --json output, and include demo mode with embedded sample data.

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Best Practices

Security

1. Use OAuth with minimal scopes — request only what each workflow needs
2. Store tokens in the system keyring, never in plain text files
3. Rotate service account keys every 90 days
4. Audit third-party OAuth app grants quarterly
5. Use --dry-run before bulk destructive operations

Automation

1. All gws output is structured JSON — pipe it through output_analyzer.py for filtering and aggregation
2. Use gws workflow +* helpers for multi-step operations instead of chaining raw commands
3. Use the local recipe catalog (gws_recipe_runner.py) as command templates, then verify each against gws --help
4. --page-all emits one JSON line per page (NDJSON) for streaming large result sets
5. Use --dry-run to preview any request before executing it

Performance

1. Request only needed fields via the API's fields parameter in --params (reduces payload size)
2. Use pageSize in --params to cap results when browsing
3. Use --page-all only when you need complete datasets; tune with --page-limit / --page-delay
4. Prefer + helpers (single optimized calls) over hand-chained API calls
5. Cache frequently accessed data (e.g., label IDs, folder IDs) in variables

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Limitations

Constraint	Impact
OAuth tokens expire after 1 hour	Re-auth needed for long-running scripts
API rate limits (per-user, per-service)	Bulk operations may hit 429 errors
Scope requirements vary by service	Must request correct scopes during auth
Pre-v1.0 CLI status	Breaking changes possible between releases
Google Cloud project required	Free, but requires setup in Cloud Console
Admin API needs admin privileges	Some audit checks require Workspace Admin role

Required Scopes by Service

# List scopes for specific services
python3 scripts/auth_setup_guide.py --scopes gmail,drive,calendar,sheets

Service	Key Scopes
Gmail	gmail.modify, gmail.send, gmail.labels
Drive	drive.file, drive.metadata.readonly
Sheets	spreadsheets
Calendar	calendar, calendar.events
Admin	admin.directory.user.readonly, admin.directory.group
Tasks	tasks