YouTube Video Links not Displaying in Canvas Modules

Environment

Canvas

Issue

Why won't a sharable YouTube link open in Canvas?

Resolution

Shared YouTube links beginning with https://youtu.be/ will not open within the Canvas wrapper because of security settings so instructors must link to the full https://www.youtube.com URL for the link to work.

To fix an insecure module link to YouTube

1. Click the link to play the video
2. Canvas will attempt to open the video, but the video will not display.  In some browsers, the video may display, but with a security warning 
3. Click the URL at the top of the video window to open the video in a new tab. Select the URL in the address bar and copy
4. Return to the Modules page in Canvas
5. Find the YouTube link you just played, click the triple dots  to the right, and select Edit from the drop-down menu 
6. In the URL: text field, delete the original URL, and paste in the full URL you just copied, which looks like https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCSlMckFEdMe
7. To save your changes, click Update
8. Test the new link to make sure the video plays properly

To use a secure module link to YouTube

Select the URL in the address bar while viewing the YouTube video, do not use the shareable link from YouTube.

Youtu.be vs YouTube.com

The sharable link that YouTube provides looks like https://youtu.be/WCSlMckFEdM. Youtu.be is just a shortened URL owned by YouTube. Visiting either Youtu.be or YouTube.com takes you to the same page.​​​​​​ There's no difference between Youtube.com and Youtu.be when it comes to the videos or service. 

Additional Information

• Check out the new Academic Technology@Michigan website for course planning resources from across U-M
• Visit the Canvas @ Michigan site for faculty including the U-M Instructor Guide with links to additional support resources from across campus
• Check out the Canvas and MiVideo tutorials

For additional questions, please contact the ITS Service Center