Backup the Seed Lesson
LESSON ACTIVITY IN MOODLE WITH AI · BACKUP AND REUSE
Back up only your seed Lesson
Create a portable Moodle backup containing one working Lesson, its pages and associated files, without learner data.
Where are we in the process?
Before this step: you have created or inspected your seed, reviewed its settings and tested its routes.
Now: package that seed as a .mbz backup. This supports roadmap step 6: back up, restore and verify.
Next: verify a restored copy, then use the backup with your learning brief when collaborating with ChatGPT.
What should the file contain?
The backup should contain one Lesson activity, including its content pages, question pages, answers, feedback, jumps, activity settings and associated uploaded files. It also contains the technical metadata Moodle needs for restoration.
Lesson pages are components inside the activity. You select the whole seed Lesson, not each page separately. Other activities in its course should be excluded.
Follow these six steps
1From anywhere in the course
In course menu select More → Backup. This is the simplest route to a backup of one activity. Menu labels and locations may vary with your Moodle version and theme.
If Backup is missing, ask your administrator to check your permissions. An alternative route is Course → More → Course reuse → Backup; you must then carefully select only the seed in the schema settings.
2Choose the initial settings
Keep Include activities and resources selected. Keep Include files selected where offered, so uploaded images and other files belonging to the Lesson travel with it.
Untick Include enrolled users. Exclude user attempts, completion records, logs, grade history and other user data where those options are offered. Leave unrelated course-wide items, such as blocks, badges, groups and competencies, out of this reusable seed. Some options may be locked or unavailable under your role. Click Next rather than “Jump to final step”.
3Select only the seed in Schema settings
Check that your seed Lesson is the only activity selected. If you used the course-level backup route, deselect all other activities and resources, leaving the seed and its containing section selected.
Do not include this mini-course’s Pages, videos, quizzes or downloadable resources as separate activities. Files embedded in the seed itself are different: those should remain included. Keep User data unticked if it appears beside the Lesson. Click Next.
4Review the selection and filename
On Confirmation and review, confirm that only the seed Lesson is included and enrolled users are excluded. Use Previous to correct a mistake.
Keep the .mbz filename extension. You may use a descriptive name such as seed-lesson-moodle45-no-users.mbz, adjusted for your actual Moodle version. A default filename containing “course” does not mean all activities were included: the selection determines the contents.
5Perform the backup
Select Perform backup and wait for Moodle to report success. If the site queues backups, wait for the job to finish before downloading.
Select Continue when available to reach the backup-file area. Do not upload a partial or failed backup to ChatGPT.
6Download and check your .mbz
Find the new file in the backup area—often the User private backup area for a backup without users—and select Download. Keep the file intact; do not rename its extension.
Restore it into a test course and confirm that exactly one activity is created: your seed Lesson. Check its pages, feedback, jumps, uploaded media and settings. This is the practical confirmation that your backup is reusable.
Prefer to use the supplied seed?
Download the working seed Lesson backup provided as a File resource in this course. You can restore it into your test course, inspect how it works, and use it as your reference for ChatGPT.
If you adapt its content or settings, create a fresh backup of your edited version. The previously downloaded file will not update automatically.
Checkpoint: ready to reuse?
- I have downloaded a file ending in .mbz.
- The backup includes only the seed Lesson as an activity.
- Enrolled users and learner records are excluded.
- The seed’s associated uploaded files are included.
- I have restored a copy and checked its pages, media, navigation and settings.
- I know which Moodle version produced the backup.
Keep this verified file as your Rosetta Stone. Tell ChatGPT the Moodle version of your intended target site, and ask it to preserve your chosen settings unless you request changes.
For reuse across sites, check version compatibility. A backup from a newer Moodle version is not guaranteed to restore into an older version.
Further reading: Moodle documentation: activity backup · Activity restore.