| name | canvas |
| description | Canvas LMS integration — fetch enrolled courses and assignments using API token authentication. |
| version | 1.0.0 |
| author | community |
| license | MIT |
| prerequisites | {"env_vars":["CANVAS_API_TOKEN","CANVAS_BASE_URL"]} |
| metadata | {"hermes":{"tags":["Canvas","LMS","Education","Courses","Assignments"]}} |
Canvas LMS — Course & Assignment Access
Read-only access to Canvas LMS for listing courses and assignments.
Scripts
scripts/canvas_api.py — Python CLI for Canvas API calls
Setup
- Log in to your Canvas instance in a browser
- Go to Account → Settings (click your profile icon, then Settings)
- Scroll to Approved Integrations and click + New Access Token
- Name the token (e.g., "Hermes Agent"), set an optional expiry, and click Generate Token
- Copy the token and add to
~/.hermes/.env:
CANVAS_API_TOKEN=your_token_here
CANVAS_BASE_URL=https://yourschool.instructure.com
The base URL is whatever appears in your browser when you're logged into Canvas (no trailing slash).
Usage
CANVAS="python $HERMES_HOME/skills/productivity/canvas/scripts/canvas_api.py"
$CANVAS list_courses --enrollment-state active
$CANVAS list_courses
$CANVAS list_assignments 12345
$CANVAS list_assignments 12345 --order-by due_at
Output Format
list_courses returns:
[{"id": 12345, "name": "Intro to CS", "course_code": "CS101", "workflow_state": "available", "start_at": "...", "end_at": "..."}]
list_assignments returns:
[{"id": 67890, "name": "Homework 1", "due_at": "2025-02-15T23:59:00Z", "points_possible": 100, "submission_types": ["online_upload"], "html_url": "...", "description": "...", "course_id": 12345}]
Note: Assignment descriptions are truncated to 500 characters. The html_url field links to the full assignment page in Canvas.
API Reference (curl)
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $CANVAS_API_TOKEN" \
"$CANVAS_BASE_URL/api/v1/courses?enrollment_state=active&per_page=10"
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $CANVAS_API_TOKEN" \
"$CANVAS_BASE_URL/api/v1/courses/COURSE_ID/assignments?per_page=10&order_by=due_at"
Canvas uses Link headers for pagination. The Python script handles pagination automatically.
Rules
- This skill is read-only — it only fetches data, never modifies courses or assignments
- On first use, verify auth by running
$CANVAS list_courses — if it fails with 401, guide the user through setup
- Canvas rate-limits to ~700 requests per 10 minutes; check
X-Rate-Limit-Remaining header if hitting limits
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Fix |
|---|
| 401 Unauthorized | Token invalid or expired — regenerate in Canvas Settings |
| 403 Forbidden | Token lacks permission for this course |
| Empty course list | Try --enrollment-state active or omit the flag to see all states |
| Wrong institution | Verify CANVAS_BASE_URL matches the URL in your browser |
| Timeout errors | Check network connectivity to your Canvas instance |