Canvas File Storage Guide

Every Canvas course at UIW has file storage limits that affect what instructors and students can upload. Understanding how storage works helps avoid upload errors, course copy issues, or quota overages that lead to issues.

Default Storage Quotas at UIW

Course Storage Group Storage Personal Storage 2 GB 50 MB 200 MB

Note: KB, MB, and GB are units to measure digital storage capacity. The average Word document is around 50 KB. To understand digital storage capacity measurements, watch or listen to this overview video.

What Counts Against Course Quota

Files uploaded to the course Files area
Files added via the Rich Content Editor (found in pages, modules, assignments, quizzes, announcements)
Course card image on the Dashboard
Content imported from Canvas export packages (.imscc files.) [This is different than a traditional course copy]

What Does Not Count

Student assignment submissions
Files copied from previous course shells
Media or files embedded from OneDrive or third-party tools like Hypothesis
Graded discussion attachments

Understanding Each Storage Type

Course File Storage

The main storage space for a course is the Files menu. Files uploaded here are visible to instructors and can be made available to students.

Media files uploaded via the Upload/Record Media tool do not count against storage
To upload more than 50 files at once, compress them into a .zip file first

To view current usage, go to Files and look under the folder list, or visit Settings > Course Statistics. Learn more about managing Files in a Canvas course.

Group File Storage

Each group has a 50 MB quota. Group members and instructors can upload files for collaboration. Group files are only visible to members of that group, TAs, Librarians, and Instructors.

Personal File Storage

Each user has 200 MB of personal storage, visible only to them. It’s ideal for keeping files used across multiple courses, and is different than the Files menu of a course that the instructors see.

To access it:

Select Account in the Global Navigation area
Select Files from the slide-out menu
Use the folder panel to organize or move files between courses and groups

Learn more about how to use Files in Canvas.

Managing Your Storage

If your course is nearing its 2 GB limit, contact canvas@uiwtx.edu for consultation and troubleshooting on cleaning up course storage or alternative options. Before reaching out, try these strategies first:

Review your course files. Download and store files elsewhere (locally or via OneDrive) if they are not in use
Embed or share files from OneDrive instead of uploading directly
Use Hypothesis for collaborative reading rather than uploading PDFs

Frequently Asked Questions

Do student submissions count against the course quota?

No. Student submissions (including graded discussions and assignments) do not count against the course or user quotas, though files may appear in their personal file areas.

Can I increase the course quota?

At UIW, we do not offer increased course quotas outside special circumstances. This is partially due to increased course quotas causing issues during a course copy with a course that doesn't match the quota. However, we recommend using OneDrive or other strategies before requesting an increase. Contact canvas@uiwtx.edu to discuss options.

Will copying a course bring old files into the new quota?

No. Files copied from a previous Canvas course shell do not count again toward the new course's quota. The original usage is inherited.

What about media files?

Media files uploaded via the Media Recorder tool (Upload/Record Media) do not count against any quota. However, uploading media using the "Upload Files" option will count against your quota.

Do profile pictures or comments count?

Profile pictures count against user quota. Submission comments with attachments do not count against any quota.

What happens if my user quota is full?

You won’t be able to upload files, including profile pictures or content for ungraded assignments or discussions. Clean up older files in your personal file area to resolve this.