Waiting Room Not working

[NZMT]

Hi there, 

We have an issue where our zoom meetings although set up to use waiting room for "everyone" is not working, guest just come into the meeting without being admitted and it is very unprofessional. I have looked through my settings everything is as recommended.

Is anyone else having this issue. Or have a solution? 

[iambobsat · Accepted solution]

Hi NZMT, 

Common causes

1. Meeting-specific setting overrides

   • Even if you turn on Waiting Room in your account settings, scheduled meetings (or past recurring meetings) may have their own setting copied from when they were created. Changing the global default doesn’t always affect existing meetings.

2. Bypass due to “internal users” / same domain

   • The Waiting Room feature has an option such as “Users in your account / in your domain” that may bypass the waiting room. If participants are signed into Zoom with accounts in the same domain (or you’ve allowed certain domains), they may go straight in.

3. Use of the Personal Meeting Room (PMI) link

   • If you’re using your personal meeting ID (PMI) link, it’s possible it has different settings. Some users report that the Waiting Room is not applied as expected to the PMI unless explicitly changed.

4. Instant meeting or Zoom Phone elevated meeting

   • Some meeting types (instant meetings, or meetings elevated from a Zoom Phone call) might bypass the waiting room unless it’s manually enabled while in-meeting.

Here’s a step-by-step checklist you can go through before your next meeting to ensure the Waiting Room works for everyone.

1. Account level setting (admin)

   • Sign into Zoom web portal as an administrator.

   • Go to Account Management → Account Settings → Meeting → In-Meeting (Advanced).

   • Ensure “Waiting Room” is turned on.

   • Click “Edit Options” for Waiting Room. For “Who should go into the waiting room?” select “All participants” (not just “Guests” or “Users not in your account”). That way, even internal users will go through the waiting room.
   • Optionally, click the 🔒 padlock to “Lock” this setting so it applies to all users and cannot be changed per-meeting.

2. Meeting-specific setting

   • For each scheduled meeting, open it in Zoom web portal → Edit.

   • Scroll to the security options. Confirm “Waiting Room” is enabled for that meeting, and that it inherits the “All participants” option. Sometimes you must explicitly check it.

   • If you’re using your personal meeting room (PMI) link, check its settings separately: Meetings → Personal Meeting Room section.

3. Check “Join Before Host” setting

   • If your meeting allows participants to join before host, and you have Waiting Room enabled for all, participants will still be held in the waiting room until you arrive. But if you allowed some users to bypass, this might create confusion.

4. Disable bypass for internal users (if unwanted)

   • Ensure you haven’t set “Users in your account/whitelisted domain” to bypass the waiting room. If you did and you want everyone to wait, you must choose “All participants” in the Waiting Room options.

5. Update and test

   • Make sure your Zoom client (host) is updated to latest version.

   • Schedule a test meeting (with an external email/device) to confirm the waiting room behavior.

   • During the meeting, look at the “Participants” panel and confirm the waiting room list appears when someone joins.

6. After changes, re-schedule or re-edit recurring meetings

   • If you changed global settings, check that recurring meetings (or older scheduled meetings) reflect the new settings. Sometimes they need each meeting edited or a new meeting created.

[MGSR]

Hi @NZMT!

Did you see the previous response from @iambobsat?
If it has resolved your inquiry, please press Accept as Solution.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Have a great day!

[MGSR]

Hi @NZMT!

Given the time elapsed since we last heard from you, I've taken the liberty of marking the provided answer as the solution.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Have a fantastic day!