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Notis

Turn new Canvas courses into DeskTime projects

A new course can start with its own DeskTime project, ready for setup and time tracking.

Trigger

New Course Created for User

Polls Canvas for newly created courses for a specific user.

Action

Create Project with Optional Task

Tool to create a new project with an optional initial task. use when you need to set up a new desktime project programmatically.

Why this helps

Setting up a project for each new course adds another manual step before course work can begin.

  • Give each new course a dedicated place for tracked work.
  • Add an optional initial setup task when the project is created.
  • Reduce manual project setup when a course appears.

Setup

Build it in a few focused steps.

  • 1Connect Canvas and DeskTime once in the Notis portal.
  • 2Create an automation in Notis and name it for course project setup.
  • 3Describe that Notis should create a DeskTime project for each new Canvas course, using the course name and an optional setup task.
  • 4Pick the New Course Created for User trigger and choose where run reports should go.
  • 5Test with one real course creation event.

Questions about this workflow

What starts this automation?

A new Canvas course created for the connected user.

Can it add a task to the project?

Yes. DeskTime's create project action supports an optional initial task. Say what task you want in the automation instruction.

Will it create a project for older courses?

The listed trigger polls for newly created courses. It does not describe a backfill for existing courses.

When this happens · Trigger

Do this · Action

Supported Triggers and Actions

Notis builds workflows that link Canvas to Desktime. A trigger fires from one place; an action lands in another.

Canvas triggers

Desktime actions

Recurring trigger

Notis starts this workflow on a schedule, such as daily, weekly, or during business hours.

TriggerScheduled

Create Project with Optional Task

Tool to create a new project with an optional initial task. use when you need to set up a new desktime project programmatically.

ActionInstant

Webhook trigger

Notis starts this workflow when an external tool or custom backend sends an HTTP request.

TriggerInstant

Get Account Details

Tool to retrieve detailed information about the authenticated user's company account. use after confirming the api key is valid to fetch company name, work settings, account timezone, and timestamp.

ActionInstant

Canvas Assignment Graded

Polls Canvas for newly graded submissions for a specific assignment.

TriggerPolling

Get All Company Employees

Tool to list all employees in the company, including their roles and statuses. use after confirming valid credentials to fetch the organization’s roster.

ActionInstant

New Canvas Assignment Submission

Polls Canvas for new submissions to a specific assignment.

TriggerPolling

Get Employee Data

Tool to fetch data for all employees within the company. use after verifying the api key is valid.

ActionInstant

New Canvas Discussion Message

Polls Canvas discussion topics for new messages.

TriggerPolling

Get Employee Projects

Tool to retrieve information about projects assigned to employees, including project names, durations, and statuses. use when you need to fetch per-employee project tracking data for a specific date.

ActionInstant

New Canvas Discussion Topic

Polls a Canvas course for new discussion topics.

TriggerPolling

Get Employee Projects and Apps

Tool to retrieve an employee's tracked projects and application usage. use when you need combined project/app time data for a given employee and date (defaults to current user and today). example: "get projects and apps for employee 711867 on 2025-07-28."

ActionInstant

New Course Created for User

Polls Canvas for newly created courses for a specific user.

TriggerPolling

Get Projects List

Tool to retrieve all active projects for the company, including related tasks. use when you need projects overview after authentication.

ActionInstant

New Canvas File Upload

Polls a Canvas course for new file uploads.

TriggerPolling

Ping DeskTime API

Tool to check the api's availability and confirm the service is operational. use when you need to verify that the desktime api is reachable and responsive.

ActionInstant

Connect any two apps with Notis in the middle.

Canvas and Desktime, or any other combination from 1,000+ integrations.

When this happens · Trigger

Do this · Action

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