By: Noeka Nimmervoll, Staff Writer
SFU Canvas, the school’s learning management system, is set to fully transition from the locally hosted system to a new cloud-based version in Spring 2026. In recent years, many Canadian universities and colleges have adopted cloud-based learning platforms, as highlighted by SFU.
With support from SFU’s IT Services and Centre for Educational Excellence (CEE), instructors can begin migrating their courses to Canvas Cloud in September 2025. SFU promises the transition will have minimal impact on students due to the pilot program the school is deploying in the fall. Additionally, the access and layout of Canvas Cloud remain similar. Some students are enrolled in fall courses that are part of the pilot program, leading to confusion about how they will access courses hosted on Canvas Cloud. The Peak reached out to the CEE for more information and was redirected to SFU media relations, who provided a statement.
“Our current system is reaching the end of its lifecycle. Cloud platforms are easier to update and maintain, and they offer more stability and new features than on-premise systems,”
— SFU media relations
For instructors and students, Canvas Cloud will provide an upgraded quiz experience, interactive features in SpeedGrader, and more tools for analytics. SFU has so far provided limited details about what these upgrades will include.
Some information will be lost in the move, but SFU stated that “students should not experience disruptions.” In the FAQ section of the Canvas Cloud information page, SFU noted that every Canvas user will need to re-upload profile information, including customized profile pictures and biographies.
Additionally, locally stored student content will be inaccessible to instructors by Spring 2027. As SFU references on the FAQ page, there may be concerns from teachers that a lack of access to students’ previous work will limit their ability to accurately provide reference letters. SFU shared that further information on the retirement of the on-premise Canvas will come later.
Instructure, Canvas’ developer, is a US educational tech company. SFU stated that “just like the current version, the new platform will be securely hosted in Canada.” Instructure states on its website that security is a top priority in its company’s operations. User data will explicitly be protected from use in AI training.
According to Microsoft, on-site storage and cloud storage have key differences. Local storage entails that all data is completely contained and isolated on the on-site server, meaning fewer people can access the data. It does not need any internet connection to provide communication between local computers, and is completely controlled and maintained by IT services. Additionally, the upfront costs of on-site data storage are significant. The setup requires hardware, data backup, installation, ongoing IT support, and physical space designated for storing the on-site system. Upgrading this system is costly and generally ineffective, since it requires major hardware purchases and increased workload for IT employees.
Comparatively, software development, maintenance, and safety features of cloud data all lie in the hands of the cloud operating party, which in this case is Instructure. Instead of upfront investments, the price for cloud services is a monthly fee for the company’s tech experts to monitor the data. This system requires a reliable internet connection, since slow or no internet means no data access. Furthermore, cloud data storage uses integrated features to easily scale up or down, which results in a smooth transition process.
More information for instructors on course migration will be shared in September 2025, and more information about local files on Canvas will be announced afterwards.
