My understanding of "Only available to students with link" was not correct. After reading the relevant documentation I now understand that a file, which has "Only available to students with link" attribute set, was actually visible to all students becuase it was posted in a module.
The default restriction option is to make the file only available to students with the link. The Only available to students with link option makes the file available to students who are given a link to the file. The file will be hidden to students in Course Files.
Note: This hidden option only applies to Course Files; if you add this file to another area of Canvas, such as Assignments or Modules, all students can view the file.
I posted the file in a module thinking it was hidden unless I provided the link. The permissions for the file in the module page are
- Publish
- Unpublish
- Only Available to students with link
- Schedule student availabilty
And when viewing the module, all I could see on the module page was Only Available to students with link.
But, of course, my understanding was incorrect and in fact all students could see the file
IMO, this is a Canvas UI issue. In the context of a module Canvas should not display Only Available to students with link when in fact the file is available to EVERYONE.
The display of module page gives me the false belief that the file is not available becuase that is what I see on the module page. But, again, that is not the case.
