Archiving a course creates a ZIP package that preserves the course content and all user interactions (submissions, grades, discussion posts). Course archives are intended recordkeeping, not for reuse.
Automatic course archives
Blackboard LMS automatically backs up all courses with activity each day. The server creates these course archives automatically at 2 AM system time. Courses without activity aren't archived. Automatic archives are retained for 30 days. It is recommended administrators create and copy archives to external storage for long-term retrieval needs.
Manually archive a course
Administrators can also run a manual archive at any time. These are often used to preserve a complete snapshot of a course for records, certification, or potential restoration. The package is immediately available for download.
From the administrator panel, select Courses.
Search for the course to archive.
From the Backup Actions menu, select Archive Course.
Enter the Source Course ID (or browse to find it).
Optionally select Include the Grade Center History.
Choose whether to include only links to course files or copies of the files themselves.
Select Submit.
Blackboard emails you when the archive package is ready. Archive packages you create manually expire and are auto-deleted 30 days after creation, so download and store them externally if you need them long-term.
For more information, visit Archive Courses