Common Issues and Things to Check
We strongly advise reviewing this list for details on potential issues you may find and need to clean up in your imported content, regardless of which option you choose to get your copied course materials. Keep in mind the transition process is not perfect and Sakai and Canvas are two different systems, so some cleanup will be expected to make sure your new Canvas course is set up correctly for the Fall 2023 term. Use the Course Link Validator to confirm your links are valid and responsive. Here are things to keep in mind if you:
Imported content from Sakai may look different in Canvas but may still save time compared to building everything from scratch. Plan to spend time reviewing the site, comparing it against the original in Sakai, and making updates. We have found that Sakai Lessons content will likely need a considerable amount of cleaning in Canvas courses. See Crosswalk Between Sakai and Canvas for details on comparable tools between the two systems.
- Sakai Resources / Canvas Files
Sakai may fail to include some Resources when exporting. Confirm you have all files in your Canvas course and upload individual files as needed.
Renamed items in Sakai Resources will revert to original names. You will need to rename the files again in Canvas.
You may find duplicate copies of items, which may be due to them being added in multiple places in Sakai. Clean up Files as needed.
Your Canvas folders may be named by a series of characters, which are the item IDs in Sakai. Use the “bread crumb” links at the top or the folder menu on the left to navigate between folders.
Only files can be uploaded to Canvas Files. Other items such as external links should be added to Canvas Modules or Pages. See how to add links to Modules and create hyperlinks in the Rich Content Editor in Pages.
Canvas Files will always be in alphabetical order. Consider using Canvas Modules to control the display order.
By default Canvas sets files to Published, which means viewable by students. To avoid potential problems with students gaining access to things before they should it is recommended to create a folder titled "Unpublished Files," or similar and set the folder to Unpublished. Upload files to this folder first. Set permissions as desired and then move the file to where it fits in the Files folder.
- Syllabus
The Sakai Syllabus tool will not copy syllabus items over to Canvas. If you uploaded attachments to the Sakai Syllabus, you can find them in Canvas Files, though you will likely need to upload a new version of your course syllabus anyway.
If you have multiple Sakai Syllabus items, you can click on the Print View button and then copy and paste all of the content into a Word file.
- Sakai Lessons / Canvas Modules and Pages
Sakai Lessons are mostly comparable to a combination of Canvas Modules and Pages, and the copied Lessons content may need a considerable amount of cleaning in the Canvas course (e.g., your content may be broken into several shorter modules or all in one module, Lessons items may be broken into separate pages, etc.). Sakai Lessons will be converted into a series of links in Canvas Modules, and the content itself will end up in Canvas Files. Copy this content into Canvas Pages and then organize your course through Canvas Modules. Canvas Pages, Files, Assignments, Quizzes, and more can easily be linked and organized through Modules.
Canvas Modules are published by default unless hidden. Review to ensure students can only see content you want them to access.
- Sakai Forums / Canvas Discussions
Sakai Forums that did not contain a Topic were not copied into Canvas Discussions.
Sakai Forum and Title topics will appear as one Canvas Discussion title.
- Sakai Tests & Quizzes / Canvas Quizzes
Canvas keeps one copy of quizzes instead of two like Sakai (draft and published version). Review/delete unused assessments in Canvas Quizzes.
Assessments were migrated into Canvas using the Classic Quiz engine, which will be sunset in June 2024. If you currently do not have a preference over Classic or New Canvas Quizzes, we recommend migrating each quiz to New Quizzes to avoid learning another quiz engine once Classic Quizzes are taken out of Canvas.
Images or attached files on questions in Sakai Question Pools were not imported into Canvas. You must re-attach those items again in Canvas.
Survey questions are not compatible with Canvas.
- Announcements
Draft copies of Sakai Announcements are automatically published in Canvas.
Announcements may contain the word “Settings” in the body. Remove this if you decide to reuse these announcements.
- Assignments
Assignments from Sakai were placed in a separate Assignment group in Canvas. You can drag them into another Canvas Assignment group as needed.
- Dates
Due dates need to be updated. Even if you choose to “Shift Dates” during the course import, always review all course dates in Canvas to confirm the correct dates are listed and items are published to students.
Sort order in Canvas:
Announcements: Oldest to newest
Discussions: Most recent to oldest
Files: Alphabetical order
Pages: Alphabetical order
Quizzes: Oldest to newest by due date
Make sure to update all course dates and confirm items are hidden that you may not want students to access.
Review the guides and instructional videos on the Canvas Documentation page.