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Blackboard API Integration - Roster Exchange Setup

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Stephanie Smith
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The Roster Exchange API Integration allows Barnes & Noble College (BNC) to pull course information to proactively map LMS courses to their corresponding SIS course(s). This ensures a seamless experience for faculty and students.

Set Up the API Roster Exchange

  1. Navigate to the System Admin panel in Blackboard.
  2. Under Users, click System Roles > Create Constituency. Enter the following role properties:
    • Role Name: Barnes & Noble College API
    • Role ID: BNCAPI
  1. Click Submit.
  2. Locate the Barnes & Noble College API role. Hover over the name to view the gray options menu icon. Click the icon and select Privileges.
  3. In the Manage Privileges menu, add the following privileges. Check the box for each privilege and then select Privileges > Permit Privileges. A green check will appear by each privilege when it has been permitted:
    • Course/Department Control Panel (Users and Groups) > Users
      • Allows API to sync course rosters
        • Necessary for SIS to LMS user matching
        • Necessary for distributing licenses to content after census period
    • Administrator Panel (Users) > Users
      • Allows API to sync course rosters
        • Necessary for SIS to LMS user matching
        • Necessary for distributing licenses to content after census period
    • Administrator Panel (Courses) > Courses
        • Allows API to sync Blackboard course details such as Start/End dates and which term the course belongs to.
        • Allows VST to sync all the courses in a term.
          • Necessary for SIS to LMS course matching
    • Administrator Panel (Courses) > Courses > Edit > Course Properties
      • Allows API to sync Blackboard sections (parent/child courses)
        • Necessary for managing cross-listed courses
    • Administrator Panel (Courses) > Terms
      • Allows API to sync Blackboard term details such as Start/End dates, name, and description.
  1. Return to the System Admin panel.
  2. Navigate to Users and click Create User.
  3. Enter the required personal and account information*:
    • First Name: BNC
    • Last Name: API
    • Username: BNCAPI
    • Password: (enter a secure password)
      * Leave all other fields blank
  1. Select the following institution and system roles:
    • Institution Roles: Observer
    • System Roles: Barnes & Noble College API
  1. Click Submit to create the user.
  2. Request an OAuth Application ID from ltisupport@bncollege.com.
  3. Once received, return to the Admin Panel in Blackboard.
  4. Click on REST API Integrations from the Integrations sub-menu.
  5. Click on Create Integration.
  6. On the Create Integration page, enter the following in the fields:
    • Application ID: enter the application ID provided by Barnes & Noble College
    • Learn User: BNCAPI
      • Locate a user ID by clicking Browse and searching by username
    • End User Access: Yes
    • Authorized to Act As User: No
      • This option might not appear in your system
  1. Click Submit.
  2. You will be returned to the listing of REST API Integrations, and VitalSource will appear among the listed integrations.
  3. Notify your Implementation contact when the Rest API setup is complete. Once they have confirmed that the setup was successful, please click on the Course Material link in a course (real or test course) in your upcoming term.
    • If there are no courses with the Course Material link currently installed for the upcoming term, please add to a course and click.

For Each New Term

Each term sync is initiated with a click on the BNC Course Material link within a course associated to the upcoming term. In order to pull course and roster information for each new term, please be sure to click on the Course Material link in a course in the upcoming term to initiate the new term sync.

Note

Let us know if any staff or test user accounts are commonly enrolled in Blackboard courses (specifically, under the student role), and we will make note to omit them from course roster counts.

 

Remove the Roster Exchange API Configuration

Stop

If you currently have First Day, DO NOT remove this API until your current term courses have fully completed, or students will lose access to their materials.

You must only complete this step if you had a First Day program prior to the upcoming term. Otherwise, continue to the first step, Setting Up API Roster Exchange.

  1. Return to the Administrator Panel main menu.
  2. Locate and select REST API Integrations.
  3. Locate and hover over the Roster Exchange integration.
  4. Click the gray arrow to reveal the Options Menu.
  5. Click Delete.
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