Quick Tip: Course Link Validator
Canvas gives a great way to share content with our students, but it can be a struggle to keep up with all of the digital resources and weblinks over time. We can leverage the Link Validator tool in Canvas to quickly identify broken links so that we can fix them before they become a problem for students.
Types of broken links we encounter in courses include links to:
- Unpublished content
- External content that has been removed by the creator (e.g., YouTube videos)
- Resources housed in a different Canvas course
- Files or images that are hidden from students or have been deleted from the course files
Run the Course Link Validator
When you run the Course Link Validator tool, it will search for and test links to content in the course as well as links to external websites. It will then generate a report showing a list of broken links, including information about the location and cause of the issue.
NOTE: Some of our Canvas integrations that utilize single sign-on or other authentication may be flagged as unreachable in the report, even though they are not broken. Some examples include the Flash Survey Course Evaluation links or content from the library or a publisher site.
DID YOU KNOW? Canvas can notify you when students click on a broken link!
Go to your Notifications settings and enable “Content Link Error” for either daily or immediate email notification. Then whenever students click on a broken link in one of your courses, Canvas will send you an email to alert you to the issue so that you can fix it. The email will include A) the course information, B) the location in the course, C) the specific link in question, and D) the reason the link is broken.
