Observer Access to LTI Tools (Nearpod, Teachermade, etc.)

[ZainabAdeel]

I'm working with a Canvas course and I'm curious about the Observer role's access to LTI tools. Currently, observers can view most course content, but I'm wondering if there's a way to restrict their ability to launch external LTI tools like Nearpod or Teachermade.

These tools often contain interactive elements or quizzes that might not be relevant for observers. Ideally, I'd like to find a way to:

• Prevent observers from clicking and opening LTI tool links altogether.
• Potentially, display a message informing them they cannot access the tool.

Is there a built-in functionality within Canvas to achieve this, or perhaps a workaround? Any insights or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

[chriscas]

Hi @ZainabAdeel,

You could try setting the visibility parameter to "members" as described at https://canvas.instructure.com/doc/api/file.navigation_tools.html#course_navigation, but I honestly don't know if that would work since observers are technically enrolled in the course.

I think the more common flow is for the tool itself to check roles and act appropriately (display its own "access denied" for roles where the tool doesn't make sense to use.  This is based off my experience as a higher-ed Canavs admin.

I'll move this question over to the Developers Group, where there are some more coding experts that could chime in on this.

-Chris

[ZainabAdeel]

I'm developing an LTI tool for Canvas LMS and I'm curious about observer access. I've configured my tool with the URL, client ID, and secret, and set privacy to public for testing. However, I noticed observers can also access my LTI link.

My question is: Is there a way to restrict observers from launching LTI tools within Canvas courses? Ideally, I'd like my tool (and potentially other tools like Nearpod or Teachermade) to be accessible only to instructors and students, not observers.

Any insights or workarounds on this would be greatly appreciated!