Currently, for-credit course sites in Canvas have a file quota of 1GB. While this is a good amount of storage space, instructors can avoid potential issues in their Canvas course sites by understanding available solutions to curate their larger video, audio, PowerPoint, and media files.

Instructors are advised to utilize the options below to manage their Canvas course files to remain within the set file quota:

Host Audio and Video Files in Studio or Panopto

Audio and video files should not be stored within a Canvas course site’s files area. To help you determine the best software to use when recording and hosting your lectures and classes, review the features included in these UT-supported systems (Zoom, Panopto, and Studio).

Save PowerPoint and PDF Files at the Right Resolution

• Microsoft provides several options to reduce your PowerPoint’s file size without sacrificing quality
• The process of converting a PPT into a PDF is a little different. The Print Quality is set to High by default in PowerPoint — the optimal choice for printing a PDF. For sharing PDFs in Canvas, Print Quality using the Low or Medium settings is more than adequate.

Use External Storage Such as OneDrive

UT contracts with Microsoft to offer instructors, staff, and students large storage options external to Canvas. Consider storing files externally and sharing them with a private link within a chosen Canvas course site. Review UT file storage options.

Clean Out Course Files as Part of Each Semester’s Transition Period

Just as regular maintenance can be good for a car or truck, a quick tune-up of your course site files can be preventative maintenance to avoid problems once they’re deep into the semester. Briefly survey your course’s files at the beginning and end of each semester, paying special attention to old, unused, or duplicate files. Deleting these unnecessary files frees up storage quota and will make the course more manageable.