[ARCHIVED] File Links Break - Copy Course

[cdhar]

When I copy a course from Canvas to Canvas, all of the uploaded files (document) from original course copy into the new course, but every link in to those files breaks. Is there a way to prevent this?

[mzimmerman · Accepted solution]

Hi Crystal,

That should not happen, but occasionally it does with some of our courses.  

How are you crating the links to those files in your course? The best we can figure out, when there's been a problem, the instructor was doing something like cutting and pasting a link to the file, rather than the "correct" method as described in 

How do I create a file link in a page in a course?  

https://community.canvaslms.com/docs/DOC-12689-415241427 

The other possibility is that there's some other hidden formatting code in the page or module that is interfering with the course copy process correctly recognizing and "translating" the file link.

I don't think we've ever found out for sure, but the problem usually seems to go away when we fix the file link by creating a new link using the steps in those articles.

Mike

[nr2522]

Hello, cdhar.

‌To me it sounds like these documents (MS Word, PDF, or similar, I take it) have hard-coded links to materials in the original course. I would not expect Canvas to magically update these links when the files are copied to a new course. The links to the old course would remain and students in the new course likely do not have enrollments in the old course.

In addition to  @mzimmerman 's advice above, I recommend using Pages (or other Canvas tools) instead and putting the links there using Canvas's tools so that they update upon course copy. Please see the https://community.canvaslms.com/docs/DOC-12985-415265828 article in the Canvas Guides.

I hope that my hunch is correct and that my advice will save you annoyance in the future.

Best regards,

Nelson