Check Course Size & Cleanup Unused Content in Blackboard - Original & Ultra

Courses in Blackboard should be checked for course size and unused content every semester. This will help to ensure a course copied forward from semester to semester does not include unused files. Regular maintenance will make for a more pleasant experience for everyone using the course (including you as the instructor) and can help prevent issues before they arise.

Check Course Size in Blackboard - Original and Ultra

If courses exceed 1GB size, they can cause errors when archived or copied forward. We have also found that silent copying errors (where some content does not come across, but the logs show a successful copy) happen more frequently in larger courses. It is also easier for you as the faculty member to determine which version of a syllabus or other file to attach if you remove old versions from the content collection of your current course.

To check the size of your course, log in to Blackboard and select "Tools" in the Ultra Base Navigation on the left hand side.

Ultra Base Navigation Side Panel with Tools highlighted

Select Content Collection.
Then select Course Content.
Here you can see the sizes of both your Ultra and Original Courses.

Course Content Menu

Delete Unused Content in Blackboard Course

Original Course

Go to the Course Management area of your course menu. Select Content, and click on the first item, your full course ID (ex. NDSU1-2430-BIOL410-12345).
This brings up all the content of your course. Navigate over to the column entitled Accessibility. Items with a gas gauge or speedometer-looking icon under the Accessibility column are linked/being used in the course and should NOT be deleted.
To double check that an individual item is not active in the course, open the Options Menu drop-down to access 360° View.
A new tab will open that will take you to the 360° View of the content. Scroll down the page until you see the Links section. If something is listed under this section, it is actively being used in the course. If nothing is listed, it is not currently active in the course.
Ensure you view the accessibility column at an individual file level (per file). Any files that do not have the accessibility icon or do not have something listed under Links in the 360° View may be deleted to help clean up the content in the course. Files that are not in use can be moved to the Recycle Bin.
If your course uses YuJa videos, embedded web pages, or interactive simulations check the 360 view. Some content of those types might not correctly reflect being used in the course.
If you have video or audio media files attached as files directly into your course from the content collection rather than using YouTube or NDSU’s YuJa streaming service, check out our YuJa knowledge base page to help with moving the media files into YuJa. Doing so will both free up cloud storage space in Blackboard and get that media into a state easier for students to access and use.
Course archival policy, Blackboard courses are available on production for a one year plus 1 semester and then archived and stored offline for another five years according to our LMS Archive and Retention Process.
If you would like to back up your own courses, please complete either of the following steps. Go to Course Management in your course > Packages and Utilities > Export or Archive. Follow the steps to Export (course content only) or Archive (entire course with student activity submissions). Be sure to download the archive file you create within 30 days, after which Blackboard automatically deletes the files (again, to reduce cloud storage costs) Export and Archive Courses