Moderators can create up to 16 group rooms within a BigBlueButton conference for a specified period of time, for example, to enable viewers to work in groups. It is recommended that the group offer is communicated in advance, for example in the form of a suitable presentation slide with further information on the breakout rooms, which cannot currently be named individually.
To create breakout rooms in the conference, first click on the users list Cog Wheel "Manage users" (1) and select "Create breakout rooms" (2) in the menu that opens. You are now in the breakout room menu.
A maximum of 16 breakout rooms can be set up, to which you can distribute the viewers of the conference. You can set the desired "Number of rooms" (3) via the selection list of the item with the same name.
You set how much time the viewers should have in the breakout rooms by entering a value of at least five minutes in the input field under "Duration (minutes)" (4) or by using the buttons to the right of it. All breakout rooms have the same lifetime and can be ended prematurely together, but cannot be extended subsequently. Once the time has expired, the users are automatically brought back to the main conference room.
Moderators can enter any breakout room. There are two options for assigning users to the breakout rooms:
In the lower area of the menu, a field appears with a list of users who have not yet been assigned (5) and one field for each breakout room. Now drag and drop the names of at least one user from the first field into the desired breakout room (6). Alternatively, you can use the "Randomly assign" feature (7) located to the right of the duration to quickly fill the breakout rooms. Assigned viewers can only stay in the set breakout room using this method, unassigned viewers cannot enter a breakout room. Moderators can grant permission for a (additional) group room afterwards, but cannot revoke it for previous breakout rooms.
You can "Allow users to choose a breakout room to join". To do this, activate the option via the checkbox (8). Viewers then decide for themselves which groups they go to. Any assignment already made in the fields will be ignored. Viewers will be able to be in multiple group rooms at the same time. Note that no capacities can be set for breakout rooms, so some rooms may become empty and others very full.
After you have configured everything appropriately and assigned the viewers, start the breakout rooms via the "Create" button (9) at the top right.
If you selected manual assignment during creation and want to invite new viewers to breakout rooms or extend the assignment, first click on the users list Cog Wheel "Manage users" (10) and select "Breakout room invitation" (11) in the menu that opens.
You are now in the breakout room invitation menu. There you will again see the field with the unassigned users (12). To invite a user, drag and drop their name from this first field into one of the room fields.
In order for viewers to be invited to another breakout room, they must not be in one. Otherwise, they will appear grayed out with a lock icon (13). Viewers with additional invitations are still able to enter the previously assigned breakout rooms via the Breakout Rooms section; it is not possible to revoke this permission.
When you are finished, confirm by clicking the "Invite" button (14) at the top right.
Once the breakout rooms have been created, the "Join breakout room" screen appears for invited users. If moderators allow the free choice of a breakout room, a selection list appears here via which the desired room can be specified. Otherwise, the assigned breakout room is displayed here. If you click "Close" at the top, you will remain in the main room. The "Join room" button at the top right takes you to the breakout room.
After creation and as long as the breakout rooms are active, the "Breakout Rooms" section (15) appears in the left sidebar of the main room for all users who are authorized for access. If viewers have closed the invitation or the breakout room or (additionally) want to join another breakout room, a listing of the rooms they can enter appears here. This way, moderators who cannot be invited by a hint can enter all breakout rooms. Next to each room you will find a button to "Join room" (16), if you are not already in it.
If you are new to the conference or do not see the Breakout Rooms section, contact a moderator if necessary to receive an invitation to a breakout room.
When you enter a breakout room, a new tab will open in your web browser and your audio will now be disconnected in the main room and "taken" to the breakout room, which may take a brief moment. If necessary, you can reach the main room via the tab bar of your web browser and reactivate the audio connection there.
All users in a breakout room become moderators. The first individual to connect is automatically assigned the presenter role, but this role can be taken by others at any time. The user with the role is thus able to present files, share their screen, play a video, conduct polls, use the annotation tools and give whiteboard access to others. The "Select random user" feature is not available due to the lack of viewers in the room.
The breakout rooms only take over the last displayed slide of the presentation in the main room, which is why navigating is not possible. For the whiteboard, a blank presentation or even the start presentation linked in the chat box with its blank slides can be used. Be sure to save the whiteboard results as a screenshot before time runs out. A blue bar appears at the top centered in the room indicating the remaining time.
For moderators, the room number of users in breakout rooms is displayed in the symbol (17) in the main room; viewers only see this information for themselves. In the "Breakout Rooms" section in the left sidebar, moderators will see a list of all breakout rooms with the users in them and their number (18). Next to each room you will find a button to "Join room" (19), if you are not already in the respective room. If you joined the audio conference with microphone in the main room (blue audio button with telephone symbol), you can speak directly into the respective breakout room and listen to it via the "Join audio" button (20) that only appears then, you will be automatically unmuted. You will then appear with a telephone icon in the users list of the breakout room. When you are finished, you can use the same button to "Return audio".
When the preset duration of the breakout rooms is reached, they are automatically closed.
Moderators can also end the group work prematurely. To do this, call up the "Breakout Rooms" section on the left-hand side. There you can see the remaining duration of the breakout rooms (21) and "End all breakout rooms" using the button of the same name (22) at the very bottom.
After ending the breakout rooms, the users are brought back to the main room of the conference. In doing so, the browser tab with the group room closes automatically and the audio connection is "taken along" again without any intervention, which may take a brief moment.