Data sources (DSKs) help us organize different elements in Blackboard according to where they come from. Every user, course, node, enrollment, etc. in the system is always associated with a DSK. If we create them from the administrator panel, they will use SYSTEM as their DSK.

What happens when we want to move one of these elements to a different DSK? Is it possible? Yes, it is possible and also simple to do.

We have two methods: either by using a file uploaded through a SIS integration or manually from the administrator panel. If there are only a few, we recommend doing them manually, but if there are many, using the file is faster.

Changing the DSK manually

To change the DSK manually, we first need to list the elements we want to change (users, courses, enrollments). You can see the DSK they belong to in the lists.

Select the records to edit by checking their boxes and click Integration > Modify data source. Next, in the pop-up window, select the new DSK and click Submit.

Changing the DSK using an integration

To make this change using an integration file, we will need to upload a file with the necessary data. For our step-by-step example, we will move a user.

First, we will prepare the file to upload. The necessary data is:

• EXTERNAL_PERSON_KEY: External key. This value comes from the student information system. If the record was created from the administrator panel, it will be the same as the username.
• USER_ID: Username to change.
• FIRSTNAME: First name
• LASTNAME: Last name
• DATA_SOURCE_KEY: Original data source to which the user belonged
• NEW_DATA_SOURCE_KEY: New data source. If it does not exist, it will be created automatically.

Therefore, the file will have the headers and one line for each record we want to modify:

EXTERNAL_PERSON_KEY|USER_ID|FIRSTNAME|LASTNAME|DATA_SOURCE_KEY|NEW_DATA_SOURCE_KEY
123456|emunoz|Ester|Muñoz|SYSTEM|MI-DSK

This example will change the DSK of the user with the username emunoz from the SYSTEM data source to the MI-DSK data source.

You are now ready to create a new integration where you can upload the file to modify the records.

Upload the file you created, and remember to select Person as the Data type.

If you search for one of the users you changed again, the DSK will appear modified.

To change a course, organization, or enrollment to another DSK, the file will be similar, but the minimum required data and the data type selected during the upload (or the endpoint) will be changed.