Canvas Discord Bot

A Discord bot that fetches and displays your upcoming Canvas assignments from the University of Alberta's Canvas LMS directly in Discord.

Features

• 📚 Fetches assignments from all your active Canvas courses
• 📅 Shows only assignments due within the next 3 days
• 🔗 Provides direct links to each assignment
• ⏰ Displays formatted due dates and times
• 🎨 Clean Discord embed formatting
• ✅ Automatically sorts assignments by due date
• 🔔 Automatic daily reminders at 7 AM and 5 PM (Mountain Time)
• 💬 Manual commands - check assignments anytime with !assignments

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v16.9.0 or higher)
• A Discord account and server where you have permission to add bots
• A University of Alberta Canvas account

Installation

1. Clone or Download the Project

Create a new folder and add the following files:

• index.js (main bot code)
• package.json (dependencies)
• .env (configuration - create this yourself)

2. Install Dependencies

Open a terminal in the project folder and run:

npm install

This will install:

• discord.js - Discord bot framework
• axios - HTTP client for Canvas API
• dotenv - Environment variable management
• node-cron - Task scheduler for automatic reminders

3. Get Your Canvas API Token

1. Log in to canvas.ualberta.ca
2. Click on Account (left sidebar) → Settings
3. Scroll down to "Approved Integrations"
4. Click "+ New Access Token"
5. Give it a purpose name (e.g., "Discord Bot")
6. Click "Generate Token"
7. Copy and save this token immediately - you won't be able to see it again!

4. Create a Discord Bot

1. Go to the Discord Developer Portal
2. Click "New Application" and give it a name
3. Go to the "Bot" section in the left sidebar
4. Click "Add Bot" and confirm
5. Under the bot's username, click "Reset Token" and copy it
6. Scroll down to "Privileged Gateway Intents"
7. Enable "MESSAGE CONTENT INTENT"
8. Click "Save Changes"

5. Invite the Bot to Your Server

1. In the Discord Developer Portal, go to OAuth2 → URL Generator
2. Select the following scopes:
   • ✅ bot
3. Select the following bot permissions:
   • ✅ Read Messages/View Channels
   • ✅ Send Messages
   • ✅ Embed Links
4. Copy the generated URL at the bottom
5. Open the URL in your browser and select your server
6. Click "Authorize"

6. Configure Environment Variables

Create a file named .env in your project folder with the following content:

# Discord Bot Token (from Discord Developer Portal)
DISCORD_TOKEN=your_discord_bot_token_here

# Canvas API Token (from canvas.ualberta.ca Account Settings)
CANVAS_TOKEN=your_canvas_api_token_here

# Discord Channel ID where automatic reminders will be sent
REMINDER_CHANNEL_ID=your_channel_id_here

Replace the placeholder values with your actual tokens.

⚠️ Important: Never share your .env file or commit it to version control!

7. Get Your Discord Channel ID (For Automatic Reminders)

To enable automatic daily reminders, you need to get the Channel ID:

Enable Developer Mode:

1. Open Discord and click the gear icon (User Settings)
2. Go to Advanced (under "App Settings")
3. Turn on Developer Mode

Get the Channel ID:

1. Right-click the channel where you want automatic reminders
2. Click "Copy Channel ID"
3. Paste it into your .env file as REMINDER_CHANNEL_ID

Note: If you don't want automatic reminders, you can skip this step or leave REMINDER_CHANNEL_ID empty. The manual !assignments command will still work.

Usage

Starting the Bot

Run the bot with:

npm start

You should see:

✅ Bot logged in as YourBotName#1234
⏰ Automatic reminders enabled for channel: 123456789012345678
📅 Reminders scheduled for 7:00 AM and 5:00 PM (Mountain Time)

The bot is now online and ready to use!

If you didn't set up REMINDER_CHANNEL_ID, you'll see:

✅ Bot logged in as YourBotName#1234
⚠️ No REMINDER_CHANNEL_ID set. Automatic reminders disabled.
💡 Add REMINDER_CHANNEL_ID to .env to enable automatic reminders.

Commands

The bot supports both automatic and manual modes:

Automatic Daily Reminders

• 7:00 AM Mountain Time - Morning reminder with upcoming assignments
• 5:00 PM Mountain Time - Evening reminder with updated assignments
• Posts automatically to the channel specified in REMINDER_CHANNEL_ID
• Includes "Automatic Daily Reminder" footer to distinguish from manual requests

Manual Commands

In any Discord channel where the bot has access, type:

• !assignments - Fetch and display upcoming assignments on demand
• !canvas - Alternative command (same as !assignments)

Both modes show the same information - assignments due within the next 3 days.

Example Output

When you run the command, the bot will display:

📚 Assignments Due in Next 3 Days

1. CMPUT 201 Lab 5
Due: Mon, Oct 7, 11:59 PM
Course: CMPUT 201 - Practical Programming Methodology
https://canvas.ualberta.ca/courses/12345/assignments/67890

2. MATH 125 Assignment 3
Due: Wed, Oct 9, 11:59 PM
Course: MATH 125 - Linear Algebra I
https://canvas.ualberta.ca/courses/23456/assignments/78901

Total: 2 assignments

If there are no assignments due:

📚 Upcoming Assignments
No assignments due in the next 3 days! 🎉

Configuration

Changing the Reminder Times

By default, reminders are sent at 7:00 AM and 5:00 PM Mountain Time. To change these times, edit the cron schedules in index.js around lines 168-180:

// 7 AM MT - Change '0 7' to your desired time
cron.schedule('0 7 * * *', () => {
  sendScheduledReminder();
}, {
  timezone: 'America/Edmonton'
});

// 5 PM MT (17:00) - Change '0 17' to your desired time
cron.schedule('0 17 * * *', () => {
  sendScheduledReminder();
}, {
  timezone: 'America/Edmonton'
});

Cron format: minute hour * * *

• 0 7 = 7:00 AM
• 0 17 = 5:00 PM (17:00)
• 30 9 = 9:30 AM
• 0 12 = 12:00 PM (noon)

Changing the Reminder Channel

Simply update the REMINDER_CHANNEL_ID in your .env file with a different channel ID and restart the bot.

Disabling Automatic Reminders

Remove or comment out the REMINDER_CHANNEL_ID line in your .env file. The manual commands will still work.

Changing the Time Window

By default, the bot shows assignments due within 3 days. To change this, edit line 24 in index.js:

threeDaysFromNow.setDate(threeDaysFromNow.getDate() + 3); // Change 3 to your preferred number

Adding Custom Commands

You can add more command triggers by modifying the message handler around line 195:

if (message.content.toLowerCase() === '!assignments' || 
    message.content.toLowerCase() === '!canvas' ||
    message.content.toLowerCase() === '!homework') { // Add your custom command

Changing Timezone

If you're not in Mountain Time, change the timezone in the cron schedules around lines 168-180:

cron.schedule('0 7 * * *', () => {
  sendScheduledReminder();
}, {
  timezone: 'America/Edmonton' // Change to your timezone
});

Common timezones:

• America/Toronto - Eastern Time
• America/New_York - Eastern Time
• America/Chicago - Central Time
• America/Denver - Mountain Time
• America/Los_Angeles - Pacific Time
• America/Vancouver - Pacific Time

Troubleshooting

Bot doesn't respond to commands

Solution:

1. Make sure MESSAGE CONTENT INTENT is enabled in Discord Developer Portal
2. Click "Save Changes" after enabling
3. Restart the bot
4. Wait a few minutes for Discord to update

"Used disallowed intents" error

Solution: You haven't enabled MESSAGE CONTENT INTENT. See step 4 in the Discord Bot setup above.

Canvas API errors

Solution:

1. Verify your Canvas token is correct and hasn't expired
2. Test the token manually:

   curl -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_TOKEN" https://canvas.ualberta.ca/api/v1/courses

3. Generate a new token if needed

Bot shows offline

Solution:

1. Check that DISCORD_TOKEN in .env is correct
2. Make sure the bot process is running (npm start)
3. Verify the bot is still in your server (check member list)

No assignments showing but you know you have some

Solution:

1. Check that assignments have due dates set in Canvas
2. Verify assignments are due within the 3-day window
3. Make sure you're enrolled in the courses as a student

Automatic reminders not sending

Solution:

1. Verify REMINDER_CHANNEL_ID is set correctly in .env
2. Make sure the bot has permission to send messages in that channel
3. Check the bot console for error messages at 7 AM or 5 PM
4. Verify your server time matches Mountain Time or adjust timezone in code
5. Wait until the scheduled time - reminders only send at 7 AM and 5 PM

Wrong timezone for reminders

Solution: Change the timezone in the cron schedules (see Configuration section above)

Security Notes

⚠️ Important Security Practices:

• Never share your .env file
• Never commit .env to Git (add it to .gitignore)
• Never share your Canvas API token
• Never share your Discord bot token
• Regenerate tokens immediately if they're exposed
• Only run this bot in trusted environments

API Rate Limits

• Canvas API: Generally allows 3000 requests per hour per token
• This bot makes one request per course, so it should be well within limits
• Avoid running the command excessively to prevent rate limiting

File Structure

canvas-discord-bot/
├── index.js          # Main bot code
├── package.json      # Dependencies and scripts
├── .env              # Environment variables (create this)
├── .gitignore        # Git ignore file (recommended)
└── README.md         # This file

Recommended .gitignore

Create a .gitignore file with:

node_modules/
.env
*.log

Support

For issues specific to:

• Canvas API: Canvas API Documentation
• Discord.js: Discord.js Guide
• University of Alberta Canvas: Contact UAlberta IT Support

License

This project is provided as-is for educational purposes. Feel free to modify and use it for your personal needs.

Contributing

Feel free to fork and improve this bot! Some ideas for enhancements:

• ✅ Daily automatic reminders (implemented!)
• Add reminders for specific assignment deadlines (e.g., 1 hour before)
• Filter by specific courses
• Show assignments due this week
• Add task completion tracking
• Support for multiple users with different Canvas tokens
• Quiz and exam reminders
• Grade notifications

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Made with ❤️ for UAlberta students