Cloning and Sharing Courses

Course cloning and sharing capabilities enable administrators to efficiently replicate successful training content while controlling course visibility and access across organizational communities. Cloning creates duplicate courses with options to maintain linked content for synchronized updates or establish independent versions for customization, while sharing options determine which users, groups, or security roles can view and access courses within the learning management system.

These features support scalable training program development, content reuse across different learner audiences, and flexible access control that aligns with organizational security policies and training delivery strategies.

Requirements

To clone and share courses, users must be assigned a security role with the following permissions:

• Administrator System Role

Course Cloning Overview

Course cloning creates a duplicate of an existing course including all course settings such as name, description, status, compliance configuration, and display preferences. Administrators choose whether course content (chapters, lessons, quizzes) should be linked to the original course or fully cloned as independent content.

The Clone a Course dialog appears when selecting Clone from the course Actions menu on the Courses page, presenting two distinct content handling options that determine the relationship between the original and duplicated courses.

When to Clone Courses

Use course cloning to:

• Replicate successful course structures for different learner audiences or organizational segments
• Create course variants with modified content while maintaining the same foundational settings
• Develop versioned courses for testing new content before updating original courses
• Establish localized course versions for different languages or regional requirements
• Support multi-tenant environments where similar courses serve different partner organizations
• Accelerate course development by starting from proven course templates rather than creating from scratch

Clone vs. Link Options

The Clone a Course dialog presents three action options after selecting a course to duplicate:

Link Option

Creates a new course that maintains a dynamic connection to the original course's content structure. Changes made to chapters, lessons, or quizzes in either the original or linked course automatically propagate to all linked versions, ensuring content synchronization across course instances.

Linked courses are ideal for:

• Maintaining curriculum consistency across multiple course assignments with the same core content
• Synchronized learning paths where course updates should apply universally
• Centralized content management where a single source of truth drives multiple course instances
• Training programs requiring guaranteed content alignment across organizational segments
• Situations where course settings differ but content must remain identical

Important Linked Course Behaviors:

• Content structure changes (adding chapters, lessons, quizzes) affect all linked course versions
• Course settings (name, description, status, compliance) remain independent and can differ between linked courses
• Sharing options, user assignments, and certificates remain unique to each course instance
• Breaking the link later requires cloning the content into an independent version

Clone Option

Creates a fully independent duplicate course with all content, chapters, lessons, and quizzes copied at the moment of cloning. The new course operates completely separately from the original, allowing administrators to modify content, structure, and settings without affecting the original course or any other versions.

Cloned courses are ideal for:

• Content versioning where courses evolve independently after initial duplication
• Testing new lesson approaches or quiz structures without impacting active courses
• Delivering similar but customized content to different audiences with unique requirements
• Creating course archives that preserve specific content versions for compliance or historical reference
• Supporting parallel training tracks that start from common foundations but diverge based on learner needs

Important Cloned Course Behaviors:

• Content modifications in the new course do not affect the original course or other clones
• The cloned course receives a duplicate of all chapters, lessons, quizzes, and question content at the time of cloning
• Future updates to either course remain completely independent
• Course settings, sharing options, and user assignments are duplicated but operate independently

Close Option

Cancels the cloning operation and closes the dialog without creating any new course. The original course remains unchanged, and administrators can access the Actions menu to perform other course management tasks.

Cloning Course Content

Accessing the Clone Dialog

1. Navigate to the Training module and select the Courses tab
2. Locate the course you want to clone in the course list
3. Click the Actions dropdown menu (three dots icon) beside the course name
4. Select Clone from the menu options
5. The Clone a Course dialog appears displaying the explanatory message: "This action will create a new course with the same course settings. Should the course contents be linked or cloned?"

Selecting Clone Behavior

Review your intended use case to determine whether linked or cloned content best serves your training objectives:

Select Link when: You need content synchronization across course instances, want centralized content management, or require guaranteed consistency for standardized training programs

Select Clone when: You need content independence for customization, want to test variations without affecting active courses, or require archived versions for compliance documentation

After Cloning

1. The system creates the new course immediately using the selected cloning mode
2. The dialog closes automatically after course creation completes
3. The new course appears in the Courses list with the same name as the original course (append version identifiers or descriptive text to differentiate courses)
4. Access the newly created course to update the course name, reference code, description, and other settings that distinguish it from the original
5. Configure sharing options to control visibility and access for the new course instance
6. Review and adjust user assignments, certificates, and course pictures as needed for the new course version

Post-Cloning Configuration Recommendations

Update course identification fields:

• Modify the course name to clearly indicate version, audience, or purpose (e.g., "Sales Training 2025 - Partner Edition" vs. "Sales Training 2025 - Customer Edition")
• Adjust reference codes to maintain organized course cataloging and reporting
• Update descriptions to reflect any differences from the original course
• Change category assignments if the cloned course serves different organizational segments

Review content appropriateness:

• Verify that all cloned lessons, chapters, and quizzes remain relevant for the target audience
• Update any date-specific or version-specific content that may no longer apply
• Modify compliance settings if certification requirements differ for the new course version
• Adjust quiz passmarks or attempt limits based on audience proficiency levels

Configuring Sharing Options

Course sharing options control course visibility and determine which users can discover, request, or access courses through the learner interface. Sharing settings operate independently from user assignments—sharing determines who can see a course exists, while assignments determine who must or can take the course.

Accessing Sharing Options

From the Courses Page:

1. Navigate to the Training module and select the Courses tab
2. Locate the course you want to configure in the course list
3. Click the Actions dropdown menu (three dots icon) beside the course name
4. Select Sharing Options from the menu
5. The Course Sharing Options dialog appears with visibility configuration options

From the Course Details Page:

1. Open a course by clicking its name in the Courses list
2. Click the Actions dropdown menu in the upper right corner of the page
3. Select Sharing Options from the menu
4. The Course Sharing Options dialog appears with visibility configuration options

Sharing Permission Levels

The Course Sharing Options dialog provides three visibility levels that determine course access scope:

Visible only to owner

Default setting for newly created courses. The course appears only to the course owner and administrators with appropriate management permissions. Learners cannot discover the course through browsing, search, or the course catalog regardless of their security role or organizational affiliation.

Use this option when:

• Developing draft courses that require review and approval before broader visibility
• Creating private training content for specific individuals that requires manual assignment
• Building courses under construction that are not ready for learner discovery
• Maintaining confidential training materials with restricted access requirements
• Testing new course structures before releasing them to wider audiences

Important behaviors:

• The course owner can still assign users directly even when visibility is restricted
• Administrators with appropriate Manage Courses permissions can view and edit the course regardless of sharing settings
• Learners cannot request access to owner-only courses through self-service workflows
• Course appears in the owner's course list but remains hidden from learner-facing course catalogs

Visible to all users

Makes the course visible to all users within the portal regardless of security role, organizational affiliation, or account hierarchy. Learners can discover the course through browsing, search the course catalog, and request enrollment if self-registration is not enabled.

Use this option when:

• Deploying universal training content applicable to all portal users
• Creating foundational courses that serve as prerequisites for advanced training
• Supporting open enrollment training programs that encourage broad participation
• Delivering company-wide compliance training that applies across all organizational segments
• Maximizing course visibility for general interest topics or voluntary professional development

Important behaviors:

• Course appears in all users' course catalogs and search results
• Learners can request course access if self-registration is disabled
• Administrators can still control actual enrollment through assignment workflows
• Visibility does not automatically assign users—it only enables discovery and access requests

Visible to certain groups of users

Limits course visibility to specific user groups, security roles, or organizational segments. Administrators configure which groups have access, enabling targeted training delivery that aligns with job roles, partner tiers, customer segments, or internal departments.

Use this option when:

• Delivering role-specific training content relevant only to certain job functions
• Supporting partner tier programs where advanced content applies only to qualified partners
• Creating customer segment training that varies based on product editions or service levels
• Maintaining departmental training that applies only to specific internal teams
• Implementing tiered certification programs with progressive access to advanced courses

Important behaviors:

• Only users belonging to configured groups can discover and access the course
• Group membership determines visibility—users see the course only while active in permitted groups
• Administrators configure specific groups after selecting this option through group selection interfaces
• Course appears in permitted users' catalogs but remains hidden from users outside designated groups

Configuring Group-Specific Visibility

When selecting "Visible to certain groups of users":

1. The dialog expands to display group selection options
2. Search for and select user groups, security roles, or organizational segments that should have course access
3. Add multiple groups to grant visibility to diverse user populations
4. Remove groups to restrict access when organizational structures or training requirements change
5. Click Done to save group visibility configuration

Saving Sharing Changes

After selecting the appropriate visibility level and configuring any group-specific access:

1. Click Done to save your sharing option selection
2. The Course Sharing Options dialog closes automatically
3. The course's sharing configuration updates immediately
4. The updated visibility setting appears in the course's Security column on the Courses page
5. Learners gain or lose course visibility based on the new sharing configuration

Best Practices and Recommendations

Strategic Cloning Decisions

Choose linked courses when: Content must remain synchronized across multiple course instances, updates need to propagate universally, or maintaining a single source of truth is critical for compliance or regulatory requirements.

Choose cloned courses when: Content will evolve independently, different audiences require customized variations, or you need to preserve specific content versions for historical reference or audit purposes.

Update cloned course names immediately: Avoid confusion by establishing clear naming conventions that distinguish course versions, audiences, or purposes. Include version numbers, dates, or audience identifiers in course names (e.g., "Product Training Q1 2025 - Partners" vs. "Product Training Q1 2025 - Customers").

Document cloning relationships: Maintain records of which courses are linked or cloned from source courses to support future content management decisions and troubleshoot unexpected content changes in linked course networks.

Effective Sharing Configuration

Start restrictive, expand strategically: Begin with owner-only visibility during course development and progressively expand sharing as courses reach appropriate quality and readiness milestones.

Align sharing with organizational structure: Use group-specific visibility to mirror organizational hierarchies, partner tiers, customer segments, or departmental structures for intuitive course access patterns.

Review sharing regularly: Audit course sharing configurations periodically to ensure visibility settings remain aligned with current organizational structures, user populations, and training program objectives.

Consider self-registration implications: Combine sharing options with self-registration settings—broader visibility with self-registration enables autonomous enrollment, while broader visibility without self-registration supports discovery with controlled approval workflows.

Content Management

Break links intentionally: If linked courses need to diverge, clone the linked course into an independent version before making structural changes to avoid unintended propagation across course networks.

Test in cloned courses: Create cloned versions for testing significant content changes, new quiz structures, or experimental lesson approaches before updating active courses assigned to learners.

Archive with cloned versions: Before major course updates, clone the current version as an archive to preserve historical content for compliance documentation or learner reference.

Communicate visibility changes: Inform stakeholders when sharing configurations change, particularly when restricting previously open courses or expanding access to previously restricted content.

Security and Access Control

Respect content sensitivity: Use owner-only or group-specific visibility for confidential, proprietary, or sensitive training content that requires access control beyond user assignments.

Coordinate with permissions: Remember that sharing options work in conjunction with Training Module permissions—users need both course visibility through sharing and appropriate role permissions to access training features.

Monitor group membership: When using group-specific visibility, maintain current group membership to ensure users gain and lose course access appropriately as their roles or organizational affiliations change.

Document access decisions: Maintain clear documentation of why specific sharing configurations were chosen to support future administrators and ensure consistent access control policies.

Jump to Training Module Checklist

<< Managing Course References and Attachments | Recalculating Course Compliance >>