Moodle Outage – Disruption – Mon 5-Dec-16 –

Block configuration – RESOLVED

Issues Reported:

Starting at about 1:00pm Mon 5-Dec, multiple Moodle users reported a failure after logging into Moodle, receiving a database error message rather than a Moodle view. We were unable to determine the exact severity of the issue immediately, but did not classify the situation as critical since we received only a handful of problem reports at the Service Desk and identified dozens of successful logins during this period.

Our hosting service, eThink, turned on system debugging messages while investigating the issue. These messages were annoying but did not actually prevent users from accessing Moodle functions, however many users might not have understood that the system was still usable since in some views the messages filled a screen, displacing regular page content..

eThink reported the login problems as resolved about 1:50 p.m. and identified the cause as an error resulting from their system reconfiguration of course blocks.  

Additional block problems were identified later in the afternoon by ITS staff, with Administration and Navigation blocks missing for all users.  eThink resolved the missing blocks configuration issue at about 4:30pm. A further block issue with the course listing in the user Dashboard was finally resolved at about 5pm. No user reports were received, but we believe the issue started at about 4:00pm.

Impact:

1-2pm – Not all users were affected by the login issue (we received about 7 total reports of problems), but all were at least inconvenienced by the debugging messages.

4-4:30pm – All users were missing Navigation and Administration blocks. Course listings were misplaced in the user Dashboard.

5pm – All blocks were restored to normal locations

Status:

Resolved

Please report any further Moodle issues to the ITS Service Desk.

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Overview:

Colgate’s Moodle Learning Management System (LMS) will be offline for maintenance from Mon Jun 20 at noon until Thu Jun 23 at 4:00pm.  

During this outage Moodle will be upgraded from version 2.5 to version 3.0 and hosting will be transferred from local servers to eThink Education servers.

Impact:

System Changes:

• Moodle will be upgraded to a new version, 3.0
• The general interface (theme) of Colgate’s Moodle will have a more modern look and feel to enhance navigation and the user experience. Lambda
• Standard logins will be changed to the Colgate CAS single-sign-on used in familiar sites such as the Portal
• Account, course, and enrollments will be fully automated
• File uploads will be limited to 64MB
• Our Moodle servers will be hosted off campus with eThink Education

Not changed:

• All courses and content on the current Moodle server will be transitioned automatically to the new v3.0 server
• CAS logins still use your Colgate network username and password

Time Frame:

Moodle will be removed from service at 12:00pm (noon) Mon June 20. Service will be restored at 12:00pm (noon) Thu Jun 23.  

The Moodle system upgrade will continue throughout the summer as we make final configurations, add features, and adjust settings.

Affected Users:

Faculty, staff and students who use our Moodle LMS.

For more Information:

The new Moodle is documented at our new Moodle Info site at Moodle-Info.Colgate.Edu

If you have questions about this transition please contact the ITS Service Desk (see Colgate.Edu/itshelp) or contact any of the following Academic Technologies staff:

• Doug Higgins (dhiggins@colgate.edu ext 6337)  
• Dan Wheeler (dwheeler@colgate.edu ext 7742)  
• Jeff Nugent (jnugent@colgate.edu ext 6347)
• Kelly Dempsey (kdempsey@colgate.edu ext 7596)  
• Zlatko Grozl (zgrozl@colgate.edu ext 6492)

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Moodle Transition to  v3.0 – Message for Faculty

In June of 2016, ITS will be upgrading Moodle to version 3.0. This upgrade will provide improved functionality, as well as an enhanced look and feel of the Moodle environment. The decision to upgrade Moodle was based, in large part, on feedback and recommendations that emerged from the Faculty Moodle Satisfaction Survey conducted by the Committee on Information Technology(CIT) in 2015. Faculty satisfaction with Moodle was, for the most part positive, and the upgrade will address several of the issues identified in the survey report. Colgate will be partnering with eThink to facilitate and support this upgrade (fully managed hosting, upgrade, data migration, and testing). Additional information about the upgrade is briefly outlined below.

Timeline

Key milestones for the upgrade include the following:

• April & May 2016 – ITS planning and technical preparation.
• June 2016 – Finalize a configuration of a test instance of Moodle v3.0
• End June 2016 – “Go live” with upgraded site.
• July / August 2016 – User education (faculty workshops / support resources)

What will this mean for you?

While the look and feel of Moodle 3.0 will be slightly different, the overall functionality will remain the same.  We have been working to identify and summarize those changes which we think are most relevant for Colgate faculty members. The linked document below, “Transition to Moodle 3.0” presents our analysis to date. In essence, we believe there are many positive changes yet few that change your environment negatively or dramatically.

Transition to Moodle 3.0 (Google Doc) 

Education & Support for Faculty

Faculty can anticipate a range of support opportunities prior to the start of the Fall 2016 term. Specific scheduling details about these opportunities will be made available in follow-up communications.

• Hands-on workshops
• 1:1 consultations
• Self-paced tutorials
• Documentation
• Exploring test site

Contact

Please direct any questions or requests for additional information to our project lead for the transition to Moodle 3.0, Dan Wheeler, in Academic Technologies — via email (dwheeler@colgate.edu) or phone extension 7742.

Ongoing updates and information will be made available on the following web page:

colgate.edu/moodle

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