BYU Canvas Email Reconfiguration: Information for Users Skip to main content
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Canvas LMS at BYU

BYU Canvas Email Reconfiguration: Information for Users

Detailed information on the upcoming changes to how user emails in Canvas LMS will be managed on BYU-Provo's primary instance of the LMS (byu.instructure.com).

Canvas Email Reconfiguration

Information for Users (students, faculty, staff and program participants)

Released December 17, 2021 by BYU Office of Information Technology, Enterprise Applications

Overview

At the end of the calendar year, Canvas LMS at BYU (byu.instructure.com) is changing how it sets-up and manages user email addresses. These changes will likely affect you, and how you receive important messages from Canvas LMS. Please take a moment to review the information below.

What changes are coming?

Effective on December 28, 2021, BYU’s Office of Information Technology will change how user email addresses are configured and managed in Canvas LMS at byu.instructure.com. These changes are described as follows:

  • The institution-assigned email address for each user (students, faculty, staff) will change from the email address listed in the user’s BYU Personal Information to the user’s university-hosted email account, [NetID]@byu.edu 
  • Canvas users will no longer have permission to designate another email address as their ‘default’ email address, and will be required to use their [NetID]@byu.edu email inbox to receive Canvas system messages. 

Who will be affected by these changes?

The change to the [NetID]@byu.edu email address as the forced default email address for all user accounts will affect nearly all Canvas users, except for a small number of recently-added users who were assigned that email address initially and do not require a change.

The restriction that blocks users from changing or deleting the NetID email address as the default in Canvas will affect all users, except those with certain admintrative permissions.

What will not change regarding user email addresses in Canvas?

  • Users will still be permitted to add additional email addresses to their ‘Ways to Contact’ list in their user settings 
  • Users will still be permitted to configure course-level notifications for delivery to any of the verified email addresses on their ‘Ways to Contact’ list 

Am I required to do anything?

Your access to Canvas and activity therein will continue, even with no further action on your part. However, you should review how to access messages being sent to your [NetID]@byu.edu email account, so you do not miss important notifications from Canvas LMS / Instructure.

How do students and non-employees with a NetID access their NetID email?

  • On the Web, navigate to outlook.office.com 
  • At the sign-in screen, enter your [NetID]@byu.edu email address. Example: cosmocat@byu.edu 
  • When prompted for your password, enter the password associated with your NetID 

Alternatively, you may access your mail through the Outlook desktop application by adding your NetID account information as directed in Outlook’s instructions.

How do BYU faculty and staff access their NetID email?

Messages to your [NetID]@byu.edu email address will be delivered to your Microsoft Exchange (office / work) email inbox

What is a ‘Default email address’ in Canvas, and how is it different from email accounts listed in ‘Ways to Contact?’

The Default email is used by Canvas to update users on key system-related matters. The topics of such messages may include:

  • Updates and changes to the LMS 
  • Privacy / security notices 
  • Institution-wide messages from BYU to Canvas users 

The addresses managed in the ‘Ways to Contact’ section of user settings are intended primarily to receive notifications on course-related events, such as:

  • Announcements 
  • Due date changes 
  • Submitted assignments 
  • Discussion updates 

These addresses may also be configured to receive “Global announcements” - that is, announcements from BYU Canvas OIT and college or department administrators to users in active courses.

Can I request a different address to be used for my Canvas default email address?

No … This part of an initiative at BYU to standardize email address configuration in many university applications, including and beyond Canvas LMS. If, as a matter of convenience, you wish to view Canvas default email messages elsewhere, we recommend you use Microsoft Outlook’s ‘Rules’ feature to set-up auto-forwarding of messages to the email address(es) you prefer.

Why are users not permitted to select their own default email address?

The default address in Canvas LMS is used to assure a consistent, reliable channel of communication to users. If users configure a custom email address to receive key Canvas messages and later begin using a different account (forgetting to update their Canvas email configuration), users may miss key information. Using the [NetID]@byu.edu account assures that users can always have a consistent channel of email communication during their time of study, employment or participation at BYU.

How do I configure Rules in Microsoft Outlook, to deliver email to my desired mail account?

If you wish to have key Canvas LMS messages delivered elsewhere besides your default Canvas email address, we recommend you set-up Rules to auto-forward email to your desired account(s). As you do so, we recommend you use all the following conditions as possible criteria for configuring your rules:

  • Messages from senders containing “instructure.com” 
  • Messages from the sender “canvas_team@byu.edu” 
  • Messages containing keywords “Canvas” and “Instructure” 

The following instructions are provided to set-up Rules for your Inbox in the Web version of Outlook Begin by logging into the Web version of Outlook at http://outlook.office.com, using your BYU NetID and password. Then, choose one of the following two options:

Method 1: Rules in Settings 

  1. Click on the “Settings” icon (a gear wheel) in the upper-right corner of the window 
  2. Select “View all Outlook settings” 
  3. Select “Rules” from the settings list 
  4. Name your rule 
  5. Use the “Add a condition” drop-down menu to identify messages to which the rule will apply. 
  6. Use the “Add an action” menu to choose “Forward to,” then add the details of the account where you would like targeted messages delivered. 

Method 2: Message-Based Rules 

  1. In your Inbox message list, Right click on the message on which you wish to base a rule. (On a Mac device, Command+click on the message.) 
  2. On the menu, select “Advanced actions” and then “Create rule.” The conditions for applying the rule will target messages from the same sender as the message you have selected.  
  3. Click on the “More options” link. 
  4. On the “Select an action” drop-down menu, select “Forward to” and enter information for the target email address. 

Do these changes apply to other instances of Canvas at BYU, besides byu.instructure.com?

No – Brigham Young University’s English Language Center (byuelc.instructure.com), BYU Independent Study (byuis.instructure.com) are not included in these planned changes.