If you have a document or media file that you want a subset of employees to review, but you do not want all of your users to be able to access, it is possible to create a “hidden” resource within the LMS.
Adding a Resource with an end date in the past renders the record inactive, making it unsearchable and inaccessible through the Resource Catalog options provided in the left navigation menu. Using the unique resource link (URL) as Self-Study course content, you can create an approval-required course to ensure that only targeted learners with approved enrollment can access the resource material.
Tip: If you would like to link authorized users to a resource hosted outside of the LMS cloud, please have the resource URL handy and skip to Step Two.
Step One: Create a “Hidden” Resource
Create a Resource record as you normally would, paying special attention to the fields described below. For detailed instructions on this topic, see the linked document: Create Resources to Support Learners and Enhance Training Programs.
- Owner Organization: Select one or more Business Units that need access to the resource. The organizations you select here should be the same as those you will associate with the course that houses the hidden resource, as described in Step Two.
- Type: Select Document and Media.
- Start Date: Enter a date in the past that will allow you to use yesterday’s date as the End Date.
- End Date: Enter a date in the past that is at least one day after the Start Date. Remember that Inactivating a resource makes it unavailable to all LMS users, except those with Portal Administrator rights.
- When you have entered all required information and uploaded the document, click Submit to finish the process.
- Open the Details tab, and in the “File Information” section, click the Copy URL link.
- In the pop-up window, press [Ctrl+C] to copy the unique Resource URL to your clipboard for use in Step Two.
Example: https://lms.latitudelearning.com/resource/user/downloadbinary.aspx?iResource_DocumentID={resource ID}
Step Two: Create an “Approval Required” Course
Create a new Self-Study Course to house the link to your hidden resource. By making this an “Approval Required” course, you can then restrict resource visibility to users with manager-approved enrollments only.
- Follow the standard procedure for course creation, as detailed here: Add a New Course to the LMS.
- Choose Organizations: The course must be associated with the same Business Units tied to the hidden resource.
- Delivery Method: Select Self-Study.
- To restrict enrollment in the course, select Approval Required: Yes.
- In the Link to Content field, paste [Ctrl+V] the copied Resource URL (or other desired link).
- Provide all other required information, and then click Submit to save the course.
Your resource content is now only accessible via an approval-required direct URL, restricting resource visibility exclusively to authorized users. Only approved personnel can then click the “Launch Content” button to view or download the file.
Note: Do not use the “Resources” field and its Choose Resource picker to associate your hidden resource to a course. Configuring the course in this manner would allow all users with access to the associated Resource Catalog to open the Course Details page, click the linked resource to open the Resource Details page, and then click the linked Document or Media file again to download content. Ultimately, your “hidden” resource would still remain accessible, if not searchable, to all users within the Business Units to which the resource has been shared.
Alternative Course Setup Options
There are multiple ways to restrict course visibility and access rights. Using an approval-required course to house sensitive content is the most restrictive, ensuring that a supervisor has manually approved every user’s access.
However, you could utilize other LMS features to automate the approval process and enforce a more “hands off” restriction. For examples and instructions on configuring alternative enrollment eligibility rules, see related document: Restrict Course Visibility and Open Enrollment Dates.
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