Crocodoc to Box View FAQ

Date Published: Aug 11,2017

Category:: Product:Authentication & Security,Grade Center; Version:Learn 9.1 Q2 2017,Learn 9.1 Q4 2016 (3100.0.0-rel.107+401e,Learn April 2014 (9.1.201404.160205),Learn October 2014 (9.1.201410.160373),SaaS,Learn 9.1 Q4 2015 (9.1.201510.1171621),Learn 9.1 Q2 2016 (3000.1.0-rel.52+991d)

Article No.: 000047322

Product: Blackboard Learn Type:Support   Bulletin Bulletin/Advisory  Information:

After the EOL date for Crocodoc, what will happen to data stored in Crocodoc if a Learn instance is not updated to use the New Box View service?

While the Crocodoc service will technically reach “end of life,” the databases containing submitted student data and documents will not be deleted or destroyed – this means that the data will still be available for migrations that occur after the EOL date, as well as for critical situations such as grade challenges. This does not mean that we will be honoring requests to retrieve individual papers on a regular basis, and the data persisting in Crocodoc does not imply the ability to continue using the service in any way beyond Jan 15, 2018.

Blackboard is still working with Box to define a long-term strategy for decommissioning Crocodoc servers permanently, but there is not a current timeline available and no expectation of near-term decommissioning.

 

When Crocodoc is no longer available (after the EOL date or during transition), what will users see in the Learn interface if a Learn instance is not updated to use the New Box View service? Will training will be required for users?

After the EOL date and during the migration, the Crocodoc service will display a user-friendly splash page informing users of the unavailability of the service.

 

The New Box View service will completely replace the Crocodoc feature in exactly the same locations within Learn, with the same general user experience and interface elements. There will be some slight differences in the UI, primarily more streamlined buttons and options.

 

Customers should not expect significant change management for their users, and it is likely some users may not notice the change at all. Screenshots will be provided as a part of formal documentation with the Q4 2017 release and relevant CUs.

 

What will be required of clients and what is the expected workload through the transition from Crocodoc to the New Box View Service?

Blackboard is building proprietary, internal tools to assist clients in the data migration process with the goal of making the transition from Crocodoc to the New Box View service a “one click” activity to make the transition as easy as possible. These internal tools will be transparent to Learn clients and Administrators.

 

This means that Administrators will not need to take on additional work to enable the move between the two services. The switch for initiating the transition from Crocodoc to the New Box View Service will be available within the config settings for the Inline Grading Building Block after the relevant CU or Q4 2017 release.

 

Will there be downtime required for the transition from Crocodoc to the New Box View service?

When the switch mentioned above is triggered, the Crocodoc service will not be available during the migration; however, the Learn instance as a whole and all other functions of the system will be available. The transition between Crocodoc and the New Box View services will vary based on the number of documents submitted to the service by each client, but is not expected to take longer than 3-4 hours.

 

Does Blackboard have a recommendation to clients on when to make the transition between the Crocodoc and New Box View services?

Our guidance to customers will be to perform the transition between the two services during an off-academic period where grading and feedback are not occurring (early morning hours are acceptable); this will help eliminate possible confusion for users when interacting with the Inline Grading workflows. The expected unavailability of the Crocodoc service should be considered immediately after the Learn instance is updated and as an addendum to the planned downtime for the Learn instance.

 

There are a number of complex and nuanced use cases relating to Grades being marked "complete", Anonymous Grading, and Delegated Grading functionality. These exact use cases and the expected behavior of these features based on when a document is submitted (before or after Crocodoc EOL) will be included in the formal documentation provided with the Q4 2017 release and relevant CUs.

 

When will clients have access to a version of Learn that makes the New Box View service available?

As stated in the previous article, Frequently Asked Questions: Inline Grading and the Transition from Crocodoc to the New Box View API (https://blackboard.secure.force.com/apex/btbb_articleview?id=kAC39000000XZBK), CUs for previous versions of Learn will be available in the same timeframe as Q4 2017 which will be October. Given the time between today and October, we cannot provide exact dates for CUs or Q4 2017 yet – however, as soon as we finalize release dates for Q4 2017 and CUs for older Learn versions we will provide an additional update.