Forum Discussion
Revision of a course : how to keep the same Manifest ?
Since it says "The upload was unsuccessful because there are differences between the current and replacement files in the SCORM manifest structure", it sounds to me like it did not replace the manifest file so the original is probably still there.
It would be located in the root of the directory where you course content lives on the LMS server. Ask your tech people to see if they can grab a copy of it for you.
But I have to ask what it is you are trying to do exactly? Version your course? Replace your course? Or simply update individual assets (e.g. image, text) and leave the course intact?
Any proper LMS will block you from simply overwriting the manifest file for a course that has already been imported. Otherwise, you can really mess up a course, especially one that people are already taking.
You have different options depending on whether the course has people enrolled and the type of impact you are trying to make to the course with regards to assets or structure.
So, what is it you are trying to do exactly and is the course already live with user history?
Hey Russel,
So we're using SumTotal LMS for our ILT courses and self-paced courses. Similar to others on this thread, I updated a few Knowledge Checks and some spelling errors on a course and after exporting in on Rise, attempted to just simply replace the course in SumTotal, instead of cancelling/deleting the course (with all of it's attached settings) and create a completely new course (btw, having to recreate all of the LMS settings for a course is a pain, just simply replacing the course on the LMS would be pain-free). But unfortunately, since the manifest files are not the same since Rise changes them with any updates when exporting, the LMS spits out the upload saying basically they aren't the same so you are SOL basically. Unless you go through the whole course creation process all over again. Oh, to answer your other questions... we didn't change any images, just some text in the course and two Knowledge Check spelling errors. The other reason we would like to retain the LMS course "template" is because as you've mentioned, yes, people have already taken this course and to pull the course and create a new one due to a few spelling errors, is incredibly inconvenient and also messes with the users transcript especially with job-essential courses and compliance as I work for a government agency.
Sadig,
That is a little bit of a touchy scenario. The "proper" answer is that for courses with current learners you should always prepare a full new package and version in accordance with the guidelines that your LMS admin or vendor has probably set.
A new manifest is generated because it's the safest way to prepare a course for an LMS and not break it. Most, if not all, course tools will do that by default. The tool doesn't know you are only updating a course already uploaded. It is doing as it is supposed to, generating a unique manifest.
With proper versioning, you would include a new manifest file and full content. And all the previous uploads would remain in the LMS but would be unavailable for new enrollees. If following the guidelines properly, most of the enterprise LMS solutions have options for designating that in-progress enrollees continue on without interruption, or are required to begin again on the new version. The default though on most LMSs, because it's the safest, is to bump everyone out and start them over. But it would be between you and your admin to decide if an option is appropriate.
Versioning is the proper way. But it isn't always required in simple cases. An LMS treats the manifest as a packing list and needs it ONLY when you are first uploading a course, or when you are versioning the course (the exception to this is if you are on an LCMS).
If you try to upload a new manifest without going through versioning, an LMS is supposed to block it.
However, for a simple swap out of an asset, that does not impact navigation, tracking or logic, I have found the easiest solution is just to drop the asset into the exact directory on the server so it overwrites just that file. This goes for images as well as html (as long as changes to the html are only cosmetic).
As long as you are only changing flat assets, and not disrupting the flow of the course (which would mess up bookmarking), it should be transparent to learners.
The LMS, in this case, doesn't care that you replace a static file. it simply points to it. I have often used this method for simple changes without issue on SumTotal, Oracle, Scorm cloud and others.
Mind you, sometimes versioning is a necessity and this is not a substitute for that. Versioning is imperative on a course when you are changing the navigation/logic in a course, changing ids for interactions that you are reporting on (corrupt reports are a nightmare) or adding/removing pages. For that, you should upload the whole package with new manifest. This shortcut is only for simple asset replacement or text changes where there is no impact to the course flow.
I have been at companies where IT (or whoever admins the course server) will push back on dropping a file into a directory. But I can usually get cooperation when I compare it to updating an image or text on a simple webpage.
But I would only consider dropping in a new version of a file if you and your admin understand the impacts and are comfortable doing so. If not, don't do it. It's not worth risking the learner experience or corrupting your reports. And if I were you, I would be especially careful to make sure the knowledge check identifiers (i.e. interaction ids) are unchanged or you will blow up your reports. Again, if you are not 100% comfortable, then go the full versioning route.
I hope that helps.