Canvas LMS integration — fetch enrolled courses and assignments using API token authentication.
Read-only access to Canvas LMS for listing courses and assignments.
scripts/canvas_api.py — Python CLI for Canvas API calls~/.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).
CANVAS="python $HERMES_HOME/skills/productivity/canvas/scripts/canvas_api.py"
# List all active courses
$CANVAS list_courses --enrollment-state active
# List all courses (any state)
$CANVAS list_courses
# List assignments for a specific course
$CANVAS list_assignments 12345
# List assignments ordered by due date
$CANVAS list_assignments 12345 --order-by due_at
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.
# List courses
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $CANVAS_API_TOKEN" \
"$CANVAS_BASE_URL/api/v1/courses?enrollment_state=active&per_page=10"
# List assignments for a course
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.
$CANVAS list_courses — if it fails with 401, guide the user through setupX-Rate-Limit-Remaining header if hitting limits| 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 |