Contents
The content below is likely out of date. For information on the latest policies contact OIT.
Best Practice: Keep Backups
This document describes the file and data retention policies for EEE applications as well as Instructure’s Canvas. While these policies generally provide for reasonable retention periods and both the EEE Team and the third parties our campus contracts with all take reasonable precautions against data loss, it is strongly advised that instructors, TAs, students, and staff take the precaution of keeping backup copies of any files or other content they anticipate they may need in the future. This is a best practice to protect against unforeseen issues.
Last Updated: November 7, 2018
Backups
OIT maintains system backups that can be used to rebuild critical systems in the event of catastrophic data losses.
Canvas
UCI is currently using Canvas as the primary campus learning management system. Canvas-related retention policies below apply only as long as the campus contract for Canvas is in force. Should UCI switch to another learning management system, these policies will no longer apply.
Course Spaces
Instructors
Instructors retain access to their Canvas course spaces for a maximum of 5 years.
TAs
TAs retain access to their course spaces until revoked by instructors or for a maximum of 5 years (whichever comes first).
Students
By default, students retain full access to their course spaces until each term/quarter ends, when it changes to read-only access. “Read-only” access means that students can review course space content, but they can no longer actively participate. However, instructors and TAs have discretion over course space access and may choose to override the default term end date at any time. Instructors and TAs may also choose to remove course content. Students are strongly encouraged to keep their own copies of their assignment submissions and any other information they may need later.
Sandboxes
Canvas sandboxes have no expiration date at this time and will remain available to associated instructors and their collaborators for the foreseeable future.
Logs & systems data
Instructure retains activity logs and systems data for 30 days. Should you need log information that is more than 30 days old, please contact us to learn about your options.
Assignment submissions
Instructure retains assignment submissions indefinitely. If an assignment is deleted, the associated submissions are no longer visible, but can typically be recovered.
Personal files
Files that are uploaded to an individual’s personal file space on Canvas (this does not include any assignment submissions or files placed in a course space’s ‘Files’ area) are retained indefinitely unless the person who owns those files chooses to delete them.
ClassMail
The EEE Team will be building a new version of EEE’s Legacy ClassMail List system and the new system’s activity logs and related data will be retained for one year.
ClassMail message retention varies depending on individual recipients’ email programs and preferences. Recipients who wish to keep an archive of messages are encouraged to create personal email inbox filters/rules to archive their own copies of ClassMail messages as needed.
EEE Legacy
As the campus transitions from EEE Legacy to Canvas, individual EEE tools are retired in phases: first, tools enter an archival or “read-only” state (where old content remains available, but new content cannot be created). After a suitable period of time, archived tools are fully removed from EEE.
By November 2020, all EEE Legacy tools and their contents will be permanently removed.
EEE Legacy Retirement Timelines
Evaluations
Evaluations results and related data are retained for a minimum of 5 years. After 5 years, it may become necessary to remove older content.
Instructors, TAs, and departmental Evaluation administrators are encouraged to download and store their own copies of Evaluations results and any related data they may need later.
RapidReturn
ZIP archives for RapidReturn distribution are retained for one year.
Students may opt out of ScoreShare at any time. ScoreShare student opt-ins are reset periodically. No grade data is deleted when a student opts out of ScoreShare or is reset; ScoreShare admins simply lose access to the student’s data.
Scout
Submissions
Scout submissions are retained for a minimum of one year from the date of the last activity on a given submission. A warning email is sent to Scout form owners on the 1st of the month before deletion, summarizing what will be deleted on the 1st of the following month in order to provide time for administrators to retrieve and store their own copies of data they may need later.
Published forms
Published Scout forms are deleted once the last submission is deleted. See the ‘Submission’ retention policy above for more information.
Form templates
Scout form templates are currently retained indefinitely. This may change in the future and the EEE team will notify Scout administrators of any changes that will impact the retention of their data.
Activity logs
Scout activity logs are retained for one year.
Third Party Tools / Canvas Integrations
Vendors and third party developers set their own policies for the retention of any data stored in within their systems.
While campus agreements with third parties typically include provisions for data retrieval in the event a contract is ended. As a best practice and precautionary measure, students, instructors, and TAs are strongly encouraged to retain personal copies of any files or data they may need later.