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Course Lifecycle

Summary

  • OLAT courses are automatically terminated and deleted after several years.
  • The course end date – or inactivity if no end date is set – determines the lifecycle.
  • Course owners are informed by email about any status change.
  • The end of the course and the course status can be adjusted manually under certain conditions.
  • Permanently deleted courses cannot be restored.

Life phases of a course

An OLAT course goes through the following phases:

Course end

The course end date is the basis for all subsequent automated steps.

  • Campus course (UZH only)
    The end date is automatically taken from the course catalogue.
  • Manually created courses
    • The end date is set by the course owners.
    • Course without end date: If there has been no activity in the course for 6 months, the current date is automatically treated as the course end.

Status „Finished“

6 months after the course end, the status is automatically set to "Finished".

All members still have access to the course, but in ready-only mode. Course participants can find the course under the "Finished Courses" tab.

Move to Trash

4 years after the course end, the course is automatically moved to the trash.

All user data is removed and the course is no longer accessible to participants or coaches.

Course owners with author permissions can find the deleted course in the Author area under the "Deleted learning resources" tab. The course can be restored via the 3-dot menu. The user data will not be restored.

Final deletion

6 months after being moved to the trash, the course is permanently deleted.

This action cannot be undone.

Deadlines

Step Timing
Status “Finished” 6 months after the course end
Move to Trash 4 years after the course end
Final deletion 6 months after being moved to the trash

Notes for course owners

Notifications

With every status change (e.g. “Finished”, “Moved to the trash”), course owners receive an automatic email.

These notifications allow course owners to take action in time.

Options for action

Course owners can intervene in the automated process as long as the course has not been permanently deleted.

Procedure:

  1. Open course

  2. Administration → Settings → Execution

    • Courses with execution period
      • Adjust end date directly
    • Courses without execution period
      • Set Execution Period to "With begin and end date"
      • enter the desired end date
    • Change status (e.g. back to “Published”)

Adjustment of the end date for campus courses

For campus courses, the end date can only be adjusted once the course has been automatically set to "Finished".

Effects on coaches and participants

Participants and coaches do not receive notifications about the course lifecycle.

Once a course is deleted, its content is no longer accessible to participants or coaches.

FAQ

Role: Owner

Can a course with the “Finished” status still be used?

Yes. Course participants can still open courses that have been automatically marked as finished in "read only" mode and can view and download course materials.
However, when a course is in the “Finished” status, participants can no longer take tests or quizzes, upload files, post in forums, or fill out forms.
Course owners can use finished courses as templates when creating Campus courses.

How can I edit a finished course?

To reopen the course for editing, course owners can set the course status to "Published." In addition, the course end date must be set under "Administration > Settings > Execution" to the date until which the course should remain editable.

Do all course participants receive notifications about automatic status changes?

No. Automatic notifications about status changes are sent exclusively to course owners.

I want to conduct assessments in my course, but the course is finished. What should I do?

"Course owners and coaches" can no longer conduct assessments or make other adjustments in the assessment tool for a course with the status "Finished." To use the assessment tool, a course owner must set the course to a status other than "Finished" ("Published" or "Access for coach").

Can a finished course be used as a template when creating a Campus course?

Yes. Your own courses with the status "Finished" can be used as templates when creating Campus courses (Create a Campus course based on one of your own courses).

My course is no longer displayed in the Authoring area. Has it been deleted?

Probably. Courses are automatically moved to the trash four years after their end date (or four years after the last access, if no end date has been defined). They are then displayed in the Authoring area under "Deleted Learning Resources."
After being moved to the trash, the course can be restored by the course owner within six months. After that, it is permanently deleted.
When a course is automatically moved to the trash, participants are removed from the course, and user data, such as test results or form entries, is deleted and cannot be restored.

I often use my course as a template for creating new courses. What do I need to do to prevent this course from being automatically deleted?

Courses that you regularly use as templates can be saved as templates. Templates are excluded from the course lifecycle and are not automatically deleted.

How can I prevent files stored in my course from being automatically deleted?

There are several ways to permanently store files for future use:

  • Save the files to your personal folder (Personal Tools > File Hub > Personal Files)
  • Save the files in the Media Center
  • Create a learning resource of the "Resource Folder" type and store the files there.
  • Save the files outside of OLAT (e.g., OneDrive, SharePoint, on your local computer, or on an external storage device)

Are embedded test learning resources also deleted when courses are deleted through the course lifecycle?

Test learning resources are only deleted through the course lifecycle if the learning resource is embedded in only one course and that course is permanently deleted after four years in the "Finished" status and an additional six months in the trash.
If you want to ensure that a test learning resource is not deleted along with the course, create a copy of the test learning resource in the Authoring area or save the course as a template.

How can I restore a course that was automatically moved to the trash?

Course owners with author rights can restore the learning resource in the Authoring area under "Deleted Learning Resources" for six months after it was moved to the trash:

  • Open the "Authoring" menu
  • Select the "Deleted Learning Resources" tab
  • Check the box next to the course you want to restore and click "Restore," or select "Restore" from the three-dot menu.

User data automatically removed when the course was moved to the trash will not be restored.

Can a permanently deleted course be restored?

No. A course is permanently deleted six months after it is moved to the trash, and this action is irreversible.