TRANSITIONING TO CANVAS CLOUD ONLINE WORKSHOP
Center for Educational Excellence (CEE) is offering online workshops to the SFU teaching community to explore new features in Canvas Cloud and its overall structure and interface.
See CEE’s workshop and events page for available dates.
OVERVIEW
SFU is transitioning from a locally hosted (on-premise) version of Canvas to a cloud-based version (Canvas Cloud). This means that instead of being managed on SFU’s own servers, Canvas will now be hosted on Instructure’s cloud platform.
Starting in Spring 2026, all courses at SFU will be hosted on the new Canvas Cloud platform, which is based in Canada.
WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?
SFU currently uses an on-premise version of Canvas that is becoming obsolete. As a result, the on-premise version is facing growing performance challenges, as well as falling behind in features and functionality compared to the vendor-supported Canvas Cloud.
Transitioning to Canvas Cloud will provide a more reliable platform and access to new tools and capabilities, including enhanced quiz functionality, annotation features in SpeedGrader, and advanced analytics.
This change aligns with What’s Next: The SFU Strategy and reflects SFU IT Services’ commitment to leveraging technology to enhance the university experience for students, instructors and staff.
WHO IS AFFECTED?
Anyone who uses Canvas at SFU. For example, students, instructors, lifelong learners and staff.
WHAT DO INSTRUCTORS NEED TO DO?
For all instructors teaching courses in Spring 2026, we suggest taking the following steps starting in the Fall:
Scenario 1: I am building a new course for Spring 2026
If you are teaching a course in Spring 2026 and plan to build your course from scratch, you will be able to begin building your course in Canvas Cloud today. To access Canvas Cloud, visit canvas-new.sfu.ca.
Scenario 2: I want to reuse content from a previous course for Spring 2026
If you are teaching a course in Spring 2026 and wish to use content from a previous course taught in the on-premise version of Canvas, you will be able to migrate that course content to the new Canvas Cloud platform. IT Services has a course migration tool to support this process, along with guides to support its use: How to migrate a Credit Course.
Note: Instructors teaching in Spring 2026 can find their credit course shell on the Canvas Cloud Dashboard starting September 2025. Credit course shells will now appear automatically on their Canvas Cloud Dashboard once assigned in goSFU/eTRACS — instructors don’t need to request one using the 'Start a New Course' tool. For details, see Changes to Credit Course Shell Creation.
HOW WILL THIS IMPACT STUDENTS?
Students will access and navigate Canvas Cloud much like the on-premise version of Canvas, with a modernized interface and enhanced user experience. This change will allow them to experience a more innovative and reliable platform.
Students who wish to retain customizations to their profile will need to manually re-configure them. This includes personal files, biography information, profile photo, inbox messages, ePortfolio and any other profile customizations.
HOW WILL I ACCESS CANVAS CLOUD?
To access to Canvas Cloud:
VISIT CANVAS-NEW.SFU.CA
Note: Starting January 2026, canvas.sfu.ca will be directed to Canvas Cloud. The web link, canvas-new.sfu.ca is only temporary during this transition.
RESOURCES & LINKS
COURSE MIGRATION TOOL
HOW TO GUIDES
CANVAS CLOUD & CHANGES
FAQs
MIGRATION AND TIMELINE
When is the transition to Canvas Cloud happening?
Starting in Spring 2026, all courses will be delivered through Canvas Cloud and canvas.sfu.ca will be directed to Canvas Cloud.
Instructors can begin building or migrating courses to the new Canvas Cloud platform in September 2025.
A small group of volunteer instructors will have early access to Canvas Cloud for testing and trial purposes.
If I am not teaching in Spring 2026 do I still need to move my courses from the current version of Canvas to the new cloud version by January?
We recommend that instructors move as many courses as they wish to keep to Canvas Cloud by January 2026. However, if you’re unable to migrate all your courses by that date, please note that you will not lose access to your remaining courses.
The current Canvas platform will eventually be retired, but the retirement date has not yet been determined. Once a date is set, we will communicate it to all instructors well in advance.
Reminder that after January 2026, you can continue to access courses on the current platform using the following link:
canvas-old.sfu.ca (accessible after January 2026)
Which of my past courses will be migrated to Canvas Cloud?
As instructors are the experts on what courses and course content they wish to maintain, they are responsible for migrating courses from the on-premise version of Canvas to Canvas Cloud. IT Services will provide a course migration tool to support this process. Visit
How to Migrate a Credit Course for step-by-step instructions.
If your course is non-academic, such as courses that facilitate training, orientation or other activities, visit
How to migrate a Non-Academic Course for step-by-step instructions.
How long will it take me to complete the course migration process?
Course migrations with the course migration tool should only take a few minutes to complete, subject to possible system delays during peak periods.
After migration, instructors will need to review the course for any issues and make necessary adjustments. In rare cases, links to media files or third-party tools (LTIs) may not transfer correctly and may need to be manually updated.
What content can’t be migrated to Canvas Cloud? Will I need to rebuild anything?
COURSE
All course materials, or content created by instructors, can be migrated using the course migration tool. In rare cases, links to media files or third-party tools (LTIs) may not transfer correctly and may need to be manually updated. Student work and enrolment-related data also cannot be migrated. Visit How to Migrate a Credit Course for a detailed list.
PROFILE
Profile content cannot be migrated and will need to be rebuilt. This includes personal files, biography information, profile photo, inbox messages, ePortfolio and any other profile customizations.
Can I continue to teach courses in the on-premise version of Canvas after Spring 2026?
No, starting Spring 2026, all credit and non-credit courses should be taught in Canvas Cloud. Instructors can start developing their Spring 2026 courses in Canvas Cloud during the Fall 2025 semester.
I am new to Canvas Cloud. Where can I go to learn more?
CEE will provide sessions on new features in Canvas Cloud starting in Fall 2025. See CEE’s
workshop and events page for more details.
Where do I go for help if the migration didn’t work correctly?
If the migration tool is not working as expected, submit a support ticket with
our Canvas administrators (select '
Migration' as the area of help).
NAVIGATION AND ACCESS
What is the difference between our current, on-premise version of Canvas and Canvas Cloud?
FOR STUDENTS
Access and navigation for Canvas Cloud will be much like the on-premise version, with only minimal differences in the user experience.
FOR INSTRUCTORS
The new platform will offer new features, including enhanced quiz functionality, new annotation capabilities in SpeedGrader, and more advanced analytic tools. Learn more about feature differences between Canvas On-Premise and Canvas Cloud.
Can I create sandbox courses on Canvas Cloud to experiment with content, tools and design?
Yes, instructors can create practice course spaces, or sandbox courses, starting October 2025 on Canvas Cloud. CEE will provide support on how to create sandbox courses in Fall 2025. See CEE’s
workshop and events page for more details.
I can’t find my Spring 2026 course shell on Canvas Cloud. What do I do?
Spring 2026 course shells will be automatically created and assigned to instructors. Instructors should see their course shells on the Canvas Cloud dashboard by early September.
If your course does not appear on your dashboard you can request the course as you normally would using 'Start a New Course' starting October 2025 on Canvas Cloud. You may also want to check with your department’s administrative staff to confirm your course assignment on goSFU or eTRACS.
COURSE RETENTION AND RETIREMENT
I am an instructor. what happens to past courses I have taught in the on-premise version of Canvas after we transition to Canvas Cloud?
After the transition to Canvas Cloud, Canvas On-premise will be accessible using canvas-old.sfu.ca starting in January 2026. More information about the eventual retirement of the on-premise Canvas courses will be shared at a later date.
I am concerned about losing access to student content in past courses. What if I want to refer to past student materials to write a reference letter, such as assessments, individual grades, assignments?
Instructors who would like to keep student-generated content will need to download this content. Instructors can download the Gradebook for a record of student grades.
Canvas On-premise will be accessible using canvas-old.sfu.ca starting in January 2026. More information about the eventual retirement of the on-premise Canvas courses will be shared at a later date.
Canvas also provides a way to download student submissions, but this must be done for each assignment. More information on this is available through Canvas’s Instructor Guide.
Will content on Canvas on-premise be permanently deleted in the future?
SFU's Archives and Records Management Department is currently updating the course data retention schedule based on community feedback. The updated schedule will undergo broad consultation and is likely to be completed in 2026 to ensure accuracy and completeness.
Until the new schedule is finalized, nothing will be permanently deleted from Canvas Cloud or Canvas On-Prem.
Will the retention period for courses in Canvas be long enough to satisfy departmental and instructor requirements?
As with all RRSDAS, ARMD consults with key stakeholders to ensure that records retention periods reflect the administrative, fiscal, and/or legal value of the information, the historic or archival value of the information while balancing the privacy rights of information subjects, and the cost associated with maintaining the information over-time. Information stored in Canvas (regardless of where it is hosted - Cloud or on-premises) includes the intellectual property of instructors as well as the personal information of students.
The RRSDA will consider all factors and establish a retention period that is long enough to satisfy departmental/university needs (such as ensuring information is available for accreditation processes, academic integrity, student performance monitoring programs, etc.), instructor needs (such as ensuring information is available for repurposing in future courses, completing reference letters, etc.), while ensuring requirements of the Copyright Act and Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act are met.
DATA PRIVACY
Where are the servers for the new Canvas Cloud located?
The servers hosting SFU’s Canvas Cloud are located in Canada.
How secure is my content on Canvas Cloud? Where can I find privacy and compliance information on Instructure?
Will my content be used to train artificial intelligence models and tools?
No, Instructure has a strong statement on the protection of customer data. Canvas Cloud will provide AI features on its platform where no customer data will be used to train any AI feature model.
Data will only be shared to AI models when you choose to use Canvas Cloud AI features to generate prompts. These models are housed internally by Instructure and no data ever leaves their data center in Canada. For further details, visit
AI Nutrition Facts on Canvas Discussion Summaries.
Note: At this time, AI features on Canvas are disabled globally.
NEED ADDITIONAL SUPPORT?
For pedagogical or instructional design questions:
For additional assistance or technical support: