Lock a Module Until a Certain Date and Time

Last updated on October 19, 2021

In your online course, you may have modules set up for students to progress through sequentially. If you don’t want students to work ahead of your scheduled content, you can lock modules until certain dates, for instance at the start of each week. You could also simply leave all future modules unpublished and publish them as you go, but locking them will automate this process so you won’t have to worry about forgetting to publish modules on time.

This locking process works similarly to the requirement process, but they achieve different objectives. Requirements will require students to complete certain content before gaining access to a module while locking will provide access on a certain date and time, regardless of whether a student has completed any work in the previous module. These can also be used together, if you like. A student would have to complete all prerequisite content and wait until the unlock time to get to a particular module.

Directions

1. Go to MSU Denver’s Faculty and Staff Hub.
2. Click Canvas in the Teaching & Learning section.
3. Log in to your Canvas Account.
4. Select the Course you’d like to work in.
5. Click Modules on the left-hand course navigation menu.
6. Find the Module that you would like to lock until a certain time.
7. Click the More Options Menu (Three Vertical Dots)  to the right of the module title.
8. Click Edit in the drop-down menu.
9. Click the checkbox next to Lock Until.
10. Enter a Date and Time that you would like the module to unlock at.
11. Click Update Module in the bottom right-hand corner.
    • Note: At this point, you should check to make sure that the module and all content within it is published. A module being “locked” and a module being “published” are two distinct states. A module must be both published and unlocked to be accessible to students. A locked, published module will not be available to students until the set unlock date and time.