Reducing Your Blackboard Course Storage (Best Practices)

Follow the steps below to help reduce your Blackboard course storage footprint. 

  • Use Panopto to distribute your audio/video files.
  • Allow for student audio/video submissions via Panopto.
  • Remove old files or files with multiple versions from your Blackboard course.

What are the Impacts of Large Courses?

You have more control over your content and can archive a course and maintain it locally on your own computer when your course is less than 2GB in size. A course that is larger than 1GB requires assistance to archive - your LMS Administrator has the ability to help with courses between 0-2 GB. Please submit a Blackboard Ultra Request and choose the "Consultation" option for further assistance.

Once a course is removed from the LMS you will no longer have easy access to the course content and will require a  Blackboard Ultra Request to restore content and/or student interactions to access this data which takes approximately of 5 working days post-request. To request a course restoration, you will need to provide the specific term, course number, and CRN in order to find the archive in our repository.

Distribution of Audio/Video Files

To use Panopto to distribute your audio/video files:

  1. Configure your course to use Panopto.
  2. Upload your audio/video files to Panopto or create lecture captures using Panopto software.
  3. Link/Embed your audio/video files in the content area of your Blackboard Learn course:
    • In Course Content, click/tap on the + on the divider where you would like to put your audio/video file.
    • Select Content Market from the menu.
    • Find and click/tap on Panopto Video Embed.
    • Select the audio/video file you would like to use.
    • If needed, edit the Video Embed Options at the bottom of the list of audio/video files.
    • Click on the Insert button.

Student Audio/Video Creation and Submissions

No additional steps are required by instructors to setup for student audio/video submissions via Panopto. Instructions for student content creation can be completed using the Submit a Panopto Video Assignment in Blackboard instructions. 

Removing Old/Unused Files from your Blackboard Learn Course

Go to your Course Content page:

  1. Click on the three horizontal dots (...) menu next to the Search icon at the top right.
  2. In the dropdown menu, select Unused Files.
  3. Use the checkboxes to the left of the items to select the unused or duplicate file(s). (Files that are used in the course will not be able to be selected.)
  4. Click on the Delete Files button at the bottom.

If you have any further questions, please schedule a consultation through the Blackboard Ultra Request.

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