• Course Manager by Skytap overview
  • Instructor-led training overview
  • On-demand labs overview
• Preparing a template
  • Installing CMHelper on a VM
  • Installing CMSysHelper on a VM
• Creating a course
  • Adding learning content to a course
    • Editing a Manual
  • Adding lab actions to a course
  • Adding script packages to a course
  • Adding lifecycle scripts to a course
  • Editing a course
  • Deleting a course
  • Previewing the Learning Console
• Creating and managing instructor-led training events
  • Creating and scheduling an event
    • Adding learning content to an event
    • Customizing email messages for an event
    • Editing an event
    • Deleting an event
  • Preparing for the event
  • Delivering the event
  • Viewing the event activity summary
  • Using event scheduling
    • Scheduling a recurrent event
    • Scheduling a non-recurrent event
    • Viewing event schedules
    • Using delayed provisioning
• Creating and managing on-demand labs
  • Using consumption control measures
  • Creating a lab
    • Adding learning content to a lab
    • Deleting a lab
  • Managing labs
  • Using the request portal – a guide for Lab and Event Manager users
• Using the Learning Console – a guide for lab end users
  • Using the Manual in the Learning Console
  • Using Resources in the Learning Console
  • Using File Drop in the Learning Console
• Viewing Learning Console activity
• Managing your user account
• Administering Course Manager by Skytap
  • Managing users
  • Managing account settings
    • Editing an email body
  • Using tags with Course Manager
  • Using commands, scripts, and the Virtual Browser
  • Using custom data attributes
  • Using metadata attributes
  • Using the Course Manager API
  • Course Manager Reporting
  • Using Course Manager fields for Skytap reporting
• Course Manager FAQ

Using metadata attributes

Use metadata attributes to create sensitive and non-sensitive key-value pairs that can be used for lab automation. Sensitive metadata values are exposed only to VMs with access to the Course Manager control endpoint.

About metadata attributes

• You can add metadata attributes at the feature, user, course, event, event participant, and on-demand lab levels.
  • Feature metadata attributes apply to all event participants or all on-demand labs created in a Course Manager account.

  • User metadata attributes apply to all on-demand labs created by a Course Manager user through the request portal.

    If you use Course Manager with a single sign-on (SSO) integration, user metadata attributes may also include metadata attributes from the SSO provider.

  • Course metadata attributes apply to all event participants or on-demand labs created from a course.
  • Event metadata attributes apply to all event participants in an event.
  • Event participant metadata attributes apply to a single event participant.

  • On-demand lab metadata attributes apply to a single on-demand lab.

    If you use Course Manager with a single sign-on (SSO) integration, a user’s SSO metadata is inherited by all labs created by the user at the time of lab creation.

• When you update metadata attributes that apply to an end user, the user’s Manual automatically refreshes in open instances of the Learning Console and Content Pane.
• Metadata attributes are case-sensitive.
• Metadata attributes have the following limits:
  • You can’t add more than 100 metadata attributes for a particular feature, user, course, event, event participant, or on-demand lab.
  • The size of a metadata attribute key can’t be more than 512 bytes (512 characters).
  • The size of a metadata attribute value can’t be more than 1 MiB (1,048,576 characters).
• You can display event, event participant, and on-demand lab metadata attributes in Course Manager reporting.
  • In your account settings, find the Reports category.
    • To display an event participant or on-demand lab metadata attribute, add the attribute key in the Participant and lab metadata and custom data attributes setting.
    • To display an event metadata attribute, add the attribute key in the Event metadata and custom data attributes setting.

    Only Admin users can access account settings.

• You can insert metadata attributes as placeholders in course Manuals and confirmation emails sent by Course Manager. To insert a placeholder for a metadata attribute that isn’t listed in the placeholder drop-down menu or doesn’t yet exist, select one of the following generic placeholders and replace key_name in the placeholder code with the attribute key.

  		Applies to
  Placeholder name	Placeholder code	Event participants	On-demand labs
  Feature Metadata	%{feature_metadata:key_name}	✔	✔
  User Metadata	%{user_metadata:key_name}		✔
  Course Metadata	%{course_metadata:key_name}	✔	✔
  Event Metadata	%{event_metadata:key_name}	✔
  Metadata	%{metadata:key_name}	✔	✔

• VMs with access to the Course Manager control endpoint can access all metadata attributes that apply to a lab end user. The control endpoint URL displays in the VM’s metadata in the end user’s Skytap environment.

  Notes

  • For more information about how scripts access the Course Manager control endpoint, see the Course Manager script templates.
  • Sensitive metadata values display only when accessed through the Course Manager control endpoint.
  • You can allow only scripts to access the control endpoint using your account settings.

• VMs without access to the Course Manager control endpoint can view all metadata attributes that apply to a lab end user through the Course Manager metadata URL. The metadata URL displays in the end user’s Skytap environment metadata.

  The Course Manager metadata URL doesn’t display sensitive metadata values.

• You can use event participant and on-demand lab metadata attributes to collect a lab end user’s answers to questions in a Manual.
• You can use metadata attributes to allow the Virtual Browser to display a custom page or ingest an SSH key when it is started in a lab end user’s Skytap environment.

Viewing metadata attributes

Viewing user metadata attributes

To view a user’s metadata attributes

1. From the Course Manager navigation bar, click Admin > Users. The Users page displays.
2. Click the user you want to view. The details page for the user displays.
3. Click User actions > Metadata. The Metadata page for the user displays.

Only Admin users can view and edit user metadata attributes.

Viewing course metadata attributes

To view a course’s metadata attributes

1. From the Course Manager navigation bar, click Courses. The Courses page displays.
2. Click the course that you want to view. The details page for the course displays.
3. Click Course actions > Metadata. The Metadata page for the course displays.

Only Admin and Staff users can view and edit course metadata attributes.

Viewing event metadata attributes

To view an event’s metadata attributes

1. From the Course Manager navigation bar, click Events. The Events page displays.

2. Click one of the following tabs:

   • In Progress – For an event currently in progress.
   • Upcoming – For an event in the future.
   • Past – For an event that has ended.
3. Click the event that you want to view. The details page for the event displays.
4. Click Event actions > Metadata. The Metadata page for the event displays.

Viewing event participant metadata attributes

To view an event participant’s metadata attributes

1. From the Course Manager navigation bar, click Events. The Events page displays.

2. Click one of the following tabs:

   • In Progress – For an event currently in progress.
   • Upcoming – For an event in the future.
   • Past – For an event that has ended.
3. Click the event that you want to view. The details page for the event displays.
4. From the event details page, click the Participants tab.
5. Click the drop-down menu next to the participant name in the Instructors or Students section.
6. Click Metadata. The Metadata page for the event participant displays.

Viewing on-demand lab metadata attributes

To view an on-demand lab’s metadata attributes

1. From the Course Manager navigation bar, click All Labs. The Labs page displays.

   The term Lab in the Course Manager interface is configurable for your account and may be replaced by another term such as Demo.

2. Click one of the following tabs:

   • Active – If the lab hasn’t been consumed.
   • Consumed – If the lab has been consumed.

3. Click the drop-down menu next to the lab name, and then click Metadata. The Metadata page for the lab displays.

   You can also view the lab’s Metadata from the Lab actions drop-down menu on the lab details page.

Only Admin and Staff users can view and edit on-demand lab metadata attributes.

Sorting metadata attributes

To sort metadata attributes

1. From a user, course, event, event participant, or on-demand lab Metadata page, click the name of the column you want to sort. The page updates with the column values sorted in ascending order.
2. To sort in descending order, click the name of the column again.

Adding metadata attributes

Adding user, course, event, event participant, and on-demand lab metadata attributes

To add user, course, event, event participant, and on-demand lab metadata attributes

1. From a user, course, event, event participant, or on-demand lab Metadata page, click Edit metadata. The Edit Metadata page displays.

   Notes

   • You can't edit:
     • Event metadata attributes after the event has ended.
     • Event participant metadata attributes after the participant's end time has passed.
     • On-demand lab metadata attributes after the lab has been consumed.
2. Click (Add) on the right side of the page to add a metadata attribute. The metadata attribute properties display.
3. (Optional) Click (Add) again to add additional metadata attributes. The metadata attribute properties display for each one.

4. Configure the properties for each metadata attribute.

   Notes

   • To delete an attribute, click (Delete) next to the attribute.
   • To move an attribute one earlier in a list of attributes, click (Move earlier) next to the attribute.
   • To move an attribute one later in a list of attributes, click (Move later) next to the attribute.
   • Click (Edit) next to an attribute to hide the attribute properties, or to display them if they are hidden.
5. Click Update metadata. The Metadata page displays.

Adding feature metadata attributes

You can add metadata attributes that apply to all event participants or on-demand labs created in your Course Manager account. For more information, see Managing account settings.

Only Admin users can add feature metadata attributes.

Metadata attribute properties

When you add a metadata attribute, configure its properties.