Import / Export / Copy Components from Site to Site

Owned by Alisa Cunnington (Unlicensed)
Last updated: Feb 01, 2024 by Gareth Seymour
4 min read

Moving course content from one site to another is quick and painless in Brightspace. It is managed entirely within the Import/Export/Copy Components tool found in Course Admin and can be performed by anyone with Instructor-level access.

While it is possible to export and compress entire site contents as files or import from other sources, CPI recommends that instructors use the recommended method of copying components through Brightspace, which will circumvent potential file issues that may occur with exporting/importing course packages.

 

Recommended Method: Copying Components from One Site to Another

While working in the new or upcoming course site:

  1. Go to Course Tools [1] → Course Admin [2] → Import/Export/Copy Components.

    screenshot of the navbar with the Course Admin option
    Courser Admin in the default navbar.

  2. Choose Copy Components from another Org Unit then Search for offering.

    The options for Copy Components.

  3. Search for the exact name of the originating site. Pay close attention to the “Offering Name” and “Semester”, especially if it is a migrated site or only uses the course code.

  4. Choose between the options Copy All Components or Select Components. The latter will allow you to find specific items from the original site (e.g. a single quiz).

  5. You will be presented with options to Offset Dates at this time, which may be useful in certain situations.

  6. The process may take a minute or two for a large site.

Alternate Method: File-based export and import

Copying content from one site to another can also be facilitated by the importing and exporting. This method provides a more thorough breakdown of component files and an alternative should the results of the previously described Copy Components from another Org Unit be unsatisfactory.

External Brightspace course content and certain other learning material file types can also be added to a Brock Brightspace site in this way.

Export Steps

  1. Access the course site from which you wish to export content.

  2. Select Course Tools in the navigation bar, choose Course Admin, and then select Import/Export/Copy Components.

  3. Choose the Export as Brightspace Package radio button and then click the Start button.

  4. On the Select Course Material page, choose the pieces of the course to be exported (Select All Components for everything or pick specific items by checking their respective boxes. When finished, click Continue.

  5. On the Confirm Components to Export page, review the items to be exported. Select Include course files in the export package to include any course files in the export package you are creating.

  6. Click Export to begin the export process. A page indicating that the export has started will appear. Click the Done button to exit the page.

  7. Once it finishes you will receive an Update Alert notification (an orange dot will appear on the bell icon near the top right of the screen). Click on the Update Alert notification and select the Export finished notification.

  8. On the Export Summary page, click the blue Click here to download the export Zip package link to download the exported package to your device.

  9. Once you have downloaded the file, click Done. The file you downloaded can now be imported into a different course page using the steps in the import section above.

Import Steps

  1. In the destination course site, Select Course Tools in the navigation bar, choose Course Admin, and then select Import/Export/Copy Components.

  2. Scroll down and select Import Components. You can then choose whether to add components from the Learning Object Repository on Brightspace or from a course package (usually a .zip file on your device).

  3. Click Start.

  4. Select the file to upload and import. Find the exported Zip from the previous site.

  5. Choose either Import All Components to import all file content or choose Advanced Options to choose specific components.

    • If you selected Advanced Options, choose the components you want to import by checking the relevant boxes and then select Continue twice.

  6. Once your content has imported, you can select View Content to see the items, import another course package using the Import Another Package button, or review and manage course dates by clicking Review and Manage Dates.

Note on duplicate items and file

  • If certain course components already exist in a site, or the import includes items with duplicate names, those will all appear and will not be overwritten.

  • Advanced Options (in step 5) will offer the choice to change this behaviour and overwrite existing files: find the “When an existing file is encountered” setting and choose the “Overwrite the existing file” button, then click Continue.

Video guide

Please contact CPI at edtech@brocku.ca with any questions or comments about the contents of this site.