Isolate Course Hides Your Course from Other Users Until You Publish It
Isolate Course is a Canvas setting that keeps your course hidden from students and other people until you explicitly publish it. When you turn on Isolate Course, no one except you and other instructors with editing rights can see the course, enroll in it, or access its content — even if they have the course code or a direct link.
This feature exists so you can build and test your course without students accidentally stumbling into incomplete materials, broken links, or unfinished assignments. Once you finish setting up and are ready for students to start, you publish the course and Isolate Course turns off automatically.
The setting applies to the entire course at once. You cannot isolate individual modules, assignments, or pages — it is all or nothing.
Key Takeaways
- Isolate Course hides your entire course from students and guests until you publish it, preventing accidental access to incomplete materials.
- Only you and other instructors with editing permissions can see an isolated course; students cannot enroll or view anything.
- Publishing the course automatically turns off Isolate Course and makes it visible to enrolled students.
- You can toggle Isolate Course on and off at any time from the course settings, even after students have enrolled.
- Isolate Course is different from unpublishing individual assignments or modules — it affects the entire course at once.
Where to Find and Turn On Isolate Course
To access Isolate Course, go to your course and click the Settings gear icon in the top right corner. Scroll down to the section labeled Course Details. You will see a checkbox next to "Isolate course content for this course."
Check the box to turn it on. Canvas will ask you to confirm. Once you confirm, the course becomes hidden when ready. Students cannot see it in their course list, cannot search for it by code, and cannot access it through any link you share — they will get an error message instead.
The setting stays on until you uncheck it. You do not need to do anything special to turn it off; straightforward return to Settings, uncheck the box, and confirm. The course becomes visible again right away.
When Isolate Course Turns Off Automatically
Canvas automatically unchecks Isolate Course the moment you publish your course. Publishing means clicking the blue Publish button that appears in your course navigation or in the course home page settings. Once you publish, the course is no longer isolated, and enrolled students can see it.
If you unpublish the course later (by clicking Unpublish), Isolate Course does not turn back on. You have to manually re-enable it if you want to hide the course again. This matters if you need to make major changes after students have already started — you can unpublish to prevent them from seeing incomplete work, but you will need to go back to Settings and turn Isolate Course on yourself.
The Difference Between Isolate Course and Unpublishing Assignments
Isolate Course and unpublishing individual items are two separate tools that do different things. Isolate Course hides the entire course from everyone except instructors. Unpublishing an assignment, module, or page hides only that item while the course itself remains visible.
For example: if you isolate your course, students cannot see anything — not the syllabus, not the modules, not the announcements. If you publish the course but leave an assignment unpublished, students can see the course and all other content, but that one assignment stays hidden until you publish it.
Use Isolate Course when you are still building and do not want students to enroll yet. Use unpublishing when the course is live but you want to hide specific items until they are ready.
What Students See When a Course Is Isolated
If a student tries to access an isolated course — whether by clicking a link, entering a course code, or searching for it by name — they see an error message saying they do not have permission to view the course. They cannot see the course title, syllabus, assignments, or any other content.
If you have already enrolled students before isolating the course, they will not be able to access it, but they will still see it listed in their course menu (usually grayed out or marked as unavailable). Once you publish, it becomes accessible again and they can enter normally.
Guests and people without a Canvas account cannot access an isolated course under any circumstances, even if you send them a direct link.
Common Reasons to Use Isolate Course
Instructors use Isolate Course most often when they are copying a course from a previous term and need time to update content before the new term starts. It prevents students from enrolling early and seeing outdated materials.
You might also use it if you are building a course from scratch and want to test the structure, links, and assignments before opening it to students. Isolate Course lets you catch broken links, missing files, and formatting problems without worrying that students will see them.
Some instructors turn on Isolate Course temporarily if they need to make major revisions mid-semester — for example, if they discover a significant error in an assignment or need to reorganize the entire course structure. Isolating prevents students from accessing incomplete or incorrect materials while you work.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I isolate a course after students have already enrolled?
Yes. You can turn on Isolate Course at any time, even if students are already enrolled. They will lose access when ready and see an error if they try to enter. This is useful if you discover a major problem and need time to fix it, but be aware that students will notice they cannot access the course.
Do I have to isolate a course before publishing it?
No. You can publish a course without ever using Isolate Course. Publishing just makes the course visible and available to enrolled students. Isolate Course is optional and only necessary if you want to keep the course hidden while you build it.
What happens to student enrollments when I isolate a course?
Existing enrollments stay in place, but students cannot access the course content. Once you publish and remove the isolation, they can enter again and see everything they saw before, plus any new content you added.
Can I isolate just one module or assignment instead of the whole course?
No. Isolate Course affects the entire course at once. To hide individual items, unpublish them instead. You can unpublish assignments, modules, pages, and discussions separately while keeping the rest of the course visible.
If I copy a course, does the isolation setting copy too?
Yes. If you copy a course that has Isolate Course turned on, the new course will also be isolated. You will need to go to Settings and turn it off when you are ready for students to access the new course.