It started like every other morning – until the screen went blank and a slowly moving wheel started to turn. Within minutes, confusion spread through classrooms as Wake Forest University’s online homework and grading system, Canvas, suddenly crashed.
Canvas is the University’s main web-based learning platform, with courses, learning materials and grades easily accessible for all students. It also includes textbooks, study guides, deadline updates and ways to contact professors for students.
Initially marked by a few error messages and a blank white screen spiraled quickly into a full 12-hour outage, starting in the early morning of Monday, Oct. 20.
“What began as a surprise turned quickly into nerves when I realized I might not be able to complete any studying or assignments that day,” sophomore Corinne Miller said.
This crash locked both students and administrators out of the system and away from assignments for the day.
The problem was traced back to a global Amazon Web Services outage on Monday morning. Instructure, the company that developed Canvas, sent updates to users, as well as updates from Wake Forest University Information Systems. They were quick to let the campus know they were closely monitoring the outage and working towards the best solution.
“I understand Wake did not have the power to get Canvas back online, and I appreciated how quick the University was to let us know the situation at hand,” freshman Nicohlas Brown said.
Wake Forest has used Canvas for as long as students can remember, always at the heart of the University’s academic routine. Professors and students were equally affected, with many professors extending deadlines and tests for the students.
“The majority of my professors were very willing to push things back and take the time to make sure everything was okay,” freshman Graeme Cox said. “They were beyond considerate, and that was nice to take some of the pressure off.”
However, some students saw it as a bit of a break from the daily load of work.
“I did find joy in taking a step back from my computer and enjoying more of my day without being stressed about assignments,” Miller said.
Order was restored for Canvas and other affected sites around 7:30 p.m. on Monday. All users were encouraged to stay informed on the issue, as widespread shutdowns are always a possibility due to the providers.
For just one day, the campus community was forced to slow down, look up from their screens and reconnect beyond the constant rush of digital school life.
“The outage served as a reminder that we are so dependent on these technological systems for academic instruction, and it was nice to step away from it and see the bigger picture,” Cox said.
