The D2L Replicator application has been created to allow for course components from a source D2L course offering to be configured to be copied to the sections of a destination course.
Starting the Application
Click on the Start menu button and then type D2L Replicator.
Click on the D2L Replicator option which appears in your Start menu.
Once the application loads a Login prompt will be displayed.
Click on the Select User link and login with a user account which has been granted permissions to access the D2L Replicator application.
Once you have logged in with a user account click on the OK button on the Login prompt to open the D2L Replicator application.
Main Interface Overview
The main window for the D2L Replicator application consists of the 5 main sections.
Menu Bar - The menu bar contains access to all of the functions available within the application.
Tool Bar - The tool bar contains buttons for accessing the most commonly used functions within the application.
Filter Tasks - The filter tasks field allows for the filtering of the tasks list by a given value.
Tasks List - The tasks list contains a list of all of the tasks which are currently available.
Status Bar - The status bar shows the current status of the application including the currently authenticated user.
Menu Bar
The menu options under the Task menu which are active or visible at a given time will depend on whether a task is currently selected in the Tasks list and the current status of the selected task.
File - The File menu contains access to main functions of the application.
Quit - Allows the user to exit the application.
Task - The Task menu contains access to the functions related to managing tasks.
New Task - Opens up the New Task Wizard for creating a new task.
Modify Task - Opens up the Task Details window allowing you to modify the details of the selected task.
View Task - Opens up the Task Details window in a read only mode allowing you to view the details of the selected task.
Delete Task - Deletes the selected task after confirming with the user that the task should be deleted.
Disable Task - Disables the selected task after confirming with the user that the task should be disabled.
Enable Task - Enables the selected task after confirming with the user that the task should be enabled.
Duplicate Task - Opens up the Duplicate Task Wizard allowing the user to create a new task using the same source D2L course and selected course components.
Refresh - Refreshes the list of tasks from the database.
Filter - The Filter menu contains access to the functions related to filtering the tasks list.
Show Filter - Toggles the Filter Tasks part of the interface on or off.
Include Task Name - Toggles whether the task name is included in the search when using the Filter Tasks option.
Include Task Description - Toggles whether the task description is included in the search when using the Filter Tasks option.
Include Source Course Code - Toggles whether the source course code is included in the search when using the Filter Tasks option.
Include Source Course Name - Toggles whether the source course name is included in the search when using the Filter Tasks option.
Include Destination Course Term - Toggles whether the destination course term is included in the search when using the Filter Tasks option.
Include Destination Course Name - Toggles whether the destination course name is included in the search when using the Filter Tasks option.
Include Destination Course Title - Toggles whether the destination course title is included in the search when using the Filter Tasks option.
View - The View menu contains access to the functions related to showing/hiding tasks of different types within the tasks list.
Show Disabled Tasks - Toggles whether tasks which have been disabled are shown within the Tasks list.
Show Completed Tasks - Toggles whether tasks which have been completed are shown within the Tasks list.
Help - The Help menu contains access to the application documentation and support.
Help - Opens this document.
Support - Opens a new web browser to create a new Jira support ticket.
About - Displays information about the application.
Tool Bar
The tool bar buttons which are active or visible at a given time will depend on whether a task is currently selected in the Tasks list and the current status of the selected task.
New Task - Opens up the new Task Wizard for creating a new task.
Modify Task - Opens up the Task Details window allowing you to modify the details of the selected task.
View Task - Opens up the Task Details window in a read only mode allowing you to view the details of the selected task.
Delete Task - Deletes the selected task after confirming with the user that the task should be deleted.
Disable Task - Disables the selected task after confirming with the user that the task should be disabled.
Enable Task - Enables the selected task after confirming with the user that the task should be enabled.
Duplicate Task - Opens up the Duplicate Task Wizard allowing the user to create a new task using the same source D2L course and selected course components.
Help - Opens this document.
Filter Tasks
The filter tasks field allows for the filtering of the tasks list by a given value. The fields which are used when filtering the tasks lists are controlled by the Include options listed under the Filter menu.
Tasks List
The Tasks list contains a list of all of the tasks which are currently available. Tasks can be hidden from the Tasks List if filter tasks option has been used.
Tasks within the Tasks list will be different colours depending on the current status of the task.
Black - The task is currently enabled and will be processed.
Grey - The task is currently disabled and will not be processed. The showing/hiding of the disabled tasks is controlled through the Show Disabled Tasks option from the View menu.
Green - The task has been completed and will not be processed. The showing/hiding of the completed tasks is controlled through the Show Completed Tasks option from the View menu.
Status Bar
The status bar shows the name of the currently authenticated user on the left hand side and the current D2L environment the application is connected to on the right hand side.
Creating a New Task
From the main interface of the D2L Replicator application either click on the New Task button on the tool bar or select New Task from the Task menu on the menu bar.
On the D2L Course Selection Method page of the wizard select how you would like to select the source D2L course offering and click on the Next button.
If you want to enter a URL for the course offering continue to step 3.
If you want to search for the course offering skip to step 5.
On the Enter D2L Course URL page of the wizard paste the URL of the D2L course offering into the D2L Course Offering URL field and click on the Verify button.
If the URL is valid for the current D2L environment the course offering code and course offering name for the course associated with the URL will be displayed.
If the URL is not valid a message will be displayed stating that the a course offering could not be found for the entered URL.
Once you have the correct course offering selected click on the Next button and skip to step 7.
On the Search for D2L Course Offering page of the wizard select the source course offering from the D2L Course Offering list. You can filter the list of course offerings by entering a value into the Filter field.
Once you have selected the course offering you would like to use click on the Next button.
On the Source Course Offering Components page of the wizard place a checkmark next to the course components you would like to have copied from the source course offering the destination course sections. You can select/deselect all of the course components by clicking on the column header for the checkmark column.
Once done click on the Next button to continue.
On the Destination Course page of the wizard select the term which contains the course you would like to use as the destination from the Term dropdown list.
Next select the course from the Course list. You can filter the list of courses by entering a value into the Filter field.
Once you have selected the destination course click on the Next button.
On the Destination Sections page of the wizard select which sections of the destination course are to be used.
If you would like the task to copy the selected course components from the source course offering to all sections of the destination course including those that are added at a later date select the I would like the content from the source D2L course offering to be copied to all sections of the selected course in the specified term option.
If you would like to specify the sections which will be used select the I would like the content from the source D2L course offering to be copied to the below list of sections of the selected course in the specified term option and enter the list of sections into the Specified Sections field.
Once you have selected the destination sections click on the Next button.
On the Select Schedule page of the wizard select when the task should stop running.
If you want the task to stop running at the end of the term select the I would like the task to stop running at the end of the term option. The end date of the currently selected destination term is displayed below this option.
If you would like to specify an end date select the I would like the task to end on the specified date option and then enter the date you would like to use in the The date the task should end is field.
Once you have specified the end date of the task click on the Next button.
On the Review page of the wizard enter a name for your new task into the Task Name field. Optionally you can also enter a description into the Task Description field.
Review the details of your new task in the Task Details section to ensure everything is correct.
Once done reviewing the details of the new task click on the Finish button to have your new task created.
Selecting a Task
From the main interface of the D2L Replicator application locate the task in the Tasks list.
You can filter the Tasks list by entering a value into the Filter Tasks field and any tasks which match the enter value will be shown. The fields associated with the tasks which are used when filtering are controlled by the Include options listed under the Filter menu.
Modifying a Task
Removing selected course components from a task will not remove those course components from any destination course offerings in D2L where the components have already been copied.
A task can only be modified if the task is currently enabled and has not been completed.
From the main interface of the D2L Replicator application locate the task you would like to modify in the Tasks list and select it.
Next either click on the Modify Task button on the tool bar, select Modify Task from the Task menu on the menu bar or double click on the selected task from the Tasks list.
On the Task Overview tab update the name of the task in the Task Name field and the description of the task in the Task Description field as required.
On the Course Components tab update the selected course components to be copied by placing a checkmark next to the component to be copied.
On the Destination Sections tab select which sections of the destination course are to be used.
On the Schedule tab select the date when the task should stop running.
Once done click on the OK button to have the changes to the task saved.
Viewing a Task
A task can only be viewed if the task is currently disabled or has been completed.
From the main interface of the D2L Replicator application locate the task you would like to modify in the Tasks list and select it.
Next either click on the View Task button on the tool bar, select View Task from the Task menu on the menu bar or double click on the selected task from the Tasks list.
The Task Overview tab will show the details of the task.
The Course Components tab will show which course components were selected to be copied by the task.
The Destination Sections tab will show how the destination sections are configured for the task.
The Schedule tab will show when the task is scheduled to end.
The Jobs tab will show a list of the copy jobs that have been submitted to D2L for the task.
Once done click on the Close button.
Viewing the Jobs For a Task
From the main interface of the D2L Replicator application locate the task you would like to view the jobs for in the Tasks list and select it.
Next either click on the Modify Task/View Task button on the tool bar, select Modify Task/View Task from the Task menu on the menu bar or double click on the selected task from the Tasks list.
In the Task Details window click on the Jobs tab.
The list of jobs which have been submitted to D2L for the selected task will be shown.
Double clicking on a job entry will open the Job Details window which will show more information regarding the copy job including links to the source and destination D2L course offerings.
A job can have one of the following statuses.
Checking - D2L is checking the job to ensure it is valid.
Pending - The job is currently waiting to be processed by D2L.
Processing - The job is currently being processed by D2L.
Complete - The job has been completed by D2L.
Failed - The job has encountered an error which caused the job to fail.
Cancelled - The job has been cancelled.
Once done click on the Cancel/Close button on the Task Details window.
Disabling a Task
From the main interface of the D2L Replicator application locate the task you would like to disable in the Tasks list and select it.
Next either click on the Disable Task button on the tool bar or select Disable Task from the Task menu on the menu bar.
A prompt will be displayed asking you to confirm that you are sure you want to disable the selected task.
Click on the Yes button to have the task disabled.
Enabling a Task
If you do not see disabled tasks in the Tasks list ensure that the Show Disabled Tasks option from the View menu is selected.
From the main interface of the D2L Replicator application locate the task you would like to enable in the Tasks list and select it.
Next either click on the Enable Task button on the tool bar or select Enable Task from the Task menu on the menu bar.
A prompt will be displayed asking you to confirm that you are sure you want to enable the selected task.
Click on the Yes button to have the task enabled.
Deleting a Task
Deleting a task will not remove any content which has already been copied to a destination course offering in D2L.
From the main interface of the D2L Replicator application locate the task you would like to delete in the Tasks list and select it.
Next either click on the Delete Task button on the tool bar or select Delete Task from the Task menu on the menu bar.
A prompt will be displayed asking you to confirm that you are sure you want to delete the selected task.
Click on the Yes button to have the task deleted.
Duplicating a Task
From the main interface of the D2L Replicator application locate the task you would like to duplicate in the Tasks list and select it.
Next either click on the Duplicate Task button on the tool bar or select Duplicate Task from the Task menu on the menu bar.
On the Destination Course page of the wizard select the term which contains the course you would like to use as the destination from the Term dropdown list.
Next select the course from the Course list. You can filter the list of courses by entering a value into the Filter field.
Once you have selected the destination course click on the Next button.
On the Destination Sections page of the wizard select which sections of the destination course are to be used.
If you would like the task to copy the selected course components from the source course offering to all sections of the destination course including those that are added at a later date select the I would like the content from the source D2L course offering to be copied to all sections of the selected course in the specified term option.
If you would like to specify the sections which will be used select the I would like the content from the source D2L course offering to be copied to the below list of sections of the selected course in the specified term option and enter the list of sections into the Specified Sections field.
Once you have selected the destination sections click on the Next button.
On the Select Schedule page of the wizard select when the task should stop running.
If you want the task to stop running at the end of the term select the I would like the task to stop running at the end of the term option. The end date of the currently selected destination term is displayed below this option.
If you would like to specify an end date select the I would like the task to end on the specified date option and then enter the date you would like to use in the The date the task should end is field.
Once you have specified the end date of the task click on the Next button.
On the Review page of the wizard enter a name for your new task into the Task Name field. Optionally you can also enter a description into the Task Description field.
Review the details of your new duplicate task in the Task Details section to ensure everything is correct.
Once done reviewing the details of the new duplicate task click on the Finish button to have your new task created.
Common Question/Issues
Creating Tasks
I am trying to create a new task and the course offering I would like to use is not listed in the list of course offerings?
If you are filtering the list of course offerings verify that you are entering the correct value.
If the course offering was just created it may have not yet been picked up by the sync process which runs twice daily at 12:00 PM (noon) and 8:00 PM. Please wait until after the runs have completed and check to see if your course offering is showing up in the list.
I am trying to save my new task and I am getting an error stating the name I have entered for the task is already been used?
Task names have to be unique. You will need to enter a different name for your new task.
I am trying to save my new task and I am getting an error stating that another task is using the destination course?
The destination course for a task must be unique per term. You will need to select either a different destination term or a different destination course.
Content Jobs
A new section of a course I have selected to be used for task has been created but the task has not copied the content yet?
If the section was just created in Colleague it may not have been created yet within D2L.
If the section has been created in D2L it may have not been picked up by the sync process which runs twice daily at 12:00 PM (noon) and 8:00 PM. Please wait until after the process has completed and check to see if the task has processed the new section.
If the task was created with only specific sections specified the new section may not be included. Verify that the new section is within the list of specified sections.
If the task is currently disabled the task will not be run and the content will not be copied to the new section of the destination course. Enable the task and wait for the next sync process to complete before checking the new section again.
If the task has been completed the task will not be run and the content will not be copied to the new section of the destination course.