Large Zoom Meeting Recommendations

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This article details our recommendations for large online Zoom meetings.

  1. To log in to Zoom, visit https://apps.ithaca.edu.
  2. Click Zoom to open the web application.
  3. Click Sign In (in the top right corner) and then log in with your IC Netpass credentials. If prompted to log in to the Zoom application, click the Sign In with SSO button and enter Ithaca in the company domain text box.

For large Zoom meetings, it is recommended that the host and presenters join 30 minutes prior to the meeting start time with the "enable join before host" feature disabled and the "waiting room" feature enabled (to provide a back-stage area to meet prior to admitting people into the meeting from the waiting room). It is also recommended that at least 1 co-host be designated to assist with managing the meeting (to manage questions, the waiting room or other functions). Detailed recommendations are below. 

Schedule a New Meeting

Meeting Details

  1. Enter the Topic, Description (Optional), Date and Time, Duration, and Time Zone. The time of the meeting should be the actual start time of the session (even if you plan to join 30 minutes ahead of time).
  2. Check the "Required" box for Registration. With registration enabled, participants will see a screen to enter their information and the meeting host can confirm attendance based on registration.
  3. Under Security, check the box to enable "Waiting Room". Once in the meeting, the host can then "Admit All" into the meeting and leave the waiting room enabled or disabled as preferred. Learn more about the waiting room
  4. Under Audio, select "Both" so individuals can join by computer or phone.

Meeting Options

  1. Leave the "Allow participants to join anytime" box unchecked. With this disabled, only the host or Alternative Host can start the meeting. Learn more about Host and co-host controls in a meeting
  2. Check the box to "Mute participants upon entry."
  3. "Require authentication to join" - This setting depends on the audience participating. Enabling this option will require users to log into Zoom in order to access the meeting. It is recommended that the IC community log in with instructions provided to attendees (e.g. "Sign in with SSO" and enter Ithaca for the domain).
  4. "Breakout Room pre-assign" - This is a great option for breaking into smaller groups during a large meeting. Learn more about breakout rooms:
  5. Leave the "Automatically record meeting" box unchecked - Considerations should be made as to with whom and how a recording would be shared, as well as the participant's understanding of the meeting being recorded.
  6. Leave the "Approve or block entry to users from specific regions/countries" box unchecked - This setting depends on the audience participating.

Alternative Hosts

  1. Enter "Alternative Hosts" as desired. For large meetings, one alternative host is recommended. The Alternative Host can start the meeting on the host's behalf. Learn more about Roles in a meeting.

Additional Options (After clicking Save)

Registration Tab

  1. Click Edit next to "Registration Options" to further customize Zoom registration.
  2. Under "Approval" select "Automatically Approve" - Choosing Automatically Approve or Manually Approve depends on the audience attending your meeting and how the meeting information was distributed. Choose the option that best meets your needs. Learn more about registration. 
  3. Under "Notification" leave the "Send an email to host when someone registers" box unchecked.
  4. Under "Other options" check the box to "Close registration after event date" and "Allow attendees to join from multiple devices".
  5. Under "Other options" uncheck the box to "Show social share buttons on registration page".
  6. Further customize any registration questions under the "Questions" and "Custom Questions" tabs.

Email Settings Tab

  1. Click Edit next to "Email Contact" to update the name and email address attendees can reach out to with questions.
  2. Click Edit next to "Confirmation Email to Registrants" to disable or to further customize the confirmation email attendees receive upon registering for the Zoom meeting. Depending on how meeting details are shared and whether you are asking participants to register in advance, you may decide to disable this setting when participants are instructed to access Zoom information via Outlook Calendar for example.

In-Meeting Settings

For large Zoom meetings, it is recommended that the host joins the meeting ~10 minutes before the alternative host and presenters to verify in-meeting settings. Select the various icons in the meeting controls to enable or disable in-meeting settings. Click (...) more if you do not see one of the icons in your immediate view. Learn more about Host and co-host controls in a meeting.

Security

  1. Click the Security icon and enable or disable the options below. Learn more about in-meeting security options.
  2. Lock Meeting - Disable
  3. Enable waiting room - Enable
  4. Hide Profile Pictures - Disable (depends on your meeting)
  5. Allow Participants to: Share Screen - Disable
  6. Allow Participants to: Chat - Enable (Instruct attendees to enter a Q: in front of their question to help differentiate between questions and comments in a large meeting)
  7. Allow Participants to: Rename Themselves - Disable
  8. Allow Participants to: Unmute Themselves - Disable
  9. Allow Participants to: Start Video - Disable

Participants

  1. Click the Participants icon and select (...) in the bottom right for additional options
  2. Mute Participants upon Entry - Enable
  3. Allow Participants to Unmute Themselves - Disable
  4. Allow Participants to Rename Themselves - Disable
  5. Play sound when someone joins or leaves - Disable
  6. Enable waiting room - Enable
  7. Lock Meeting - Disable

Chat

  1. Participant can chat with - No One / Host Only / Everyone Publicly / Everyone Publicly and Directly - select the option to best fit your meeting needs

Screen Sharing

  1. Click "Advanced Sharing Options" and select the sharing options that best fit your meeting needs
  2. How many participants can share at the same time? One / Multiple
  3. Who can share? Only Host / All Participants - Choosing Only Host includes co-hosts. If a small number of participants need to share it is recommended they are made co-hosts, otherwise All Participants may be selected allowing anyone to screen share.
    • Who can start sharing when someone else is sharing? Only Host / All Participants

Spotlight Video

Learn how to spotlight a keynote speaker using spotlight video.

Polling

Learn more about Polling for meetings to further engage your participants.

Managing Participants in a Meeting

Visit Zoom's support site for more detailed information on managing participants in a meeting.

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