instructure/canvas-lms · error

Couldn't convert QTI 1.2 to 2.1, see error log: #

Error message

Couldn't convert QTI 1.2 to 2.1, see error log: #{qti_error_file}

What it means

Canvas quiz_converter shells out to a Python QTI conversion utility; run_qti_converter checks $?.exitstatus after the subprocess. A non-zero exit means QTI 1.2 could not be upgraded to QTI 2.1, and the converter raises with the path to the log file where the converter's stdout/stderr was written.

Solutions

1. Open the qti_conversion_error.log path given in the message and fix the QTI XML issue it reports
2. Validate/repair the QTI package with an external QTI validator before importing
3. Confirm the python QTI converter and its dependencies are installed and runnable in the environment
4. Convert the QTI to 2.1 yourself ahead of time (e.g. via a prep step) so the 1.2->2.1 conversion path is not needed

Example fix

// before
# importing a broken qti.zip directly
// after
# pre-validate in a wrapper script
unless system('qti_validator', 'quiz.zip')
  puts 'fix QTI per validator output before import'
end

# pre-check QTI validity before import
raise 'invalid QTI' unless File.exist?(manifest) && xml_valid?(manifest)

begin
  converter.convert_quizzes
rescue RuntimeError => e
  raise unless e.message.start_with?("Couldn't convert QTI 1.2 to 2.1")
  log_file = e.message[/error log: (.+)$/, 1]
  Rails.logger.error(File.read(log_file)) if log_file
end

When it happens

Trigger: Importing a quiz package with malformed or unsupported QTI 1.2 XML; the python converter exits non-zero, python_std_out is dumped to <base_export_dir>/qti_conversion_error.log, and the raise fires from run_qti_converter (invoked via convert_quizzes during course import).

Common situations: Migration imports of quizzes exported by other LMSs or old Canvas exports with QTI quirks; missing/incompatible python QTI converter dependencies in the environment; hand-crafted QTI packages with schema violations.

Related errors

• Can't export QTI without the python converter tool…
• Cannot validate existence for resource type: #
• Couldn't find QTI Migration Tool. See…
• course hasn't been converted
• Course not found

AI-assisted analysis of instructure/canvas-lms@1c9f0bb801 (2026-09-15). Data as JSON: /api/errors/0fb049babd8916be. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at lib/cc/importer/canvas/quiz_converter.rb:54

      assessments
    end

    def run_qti_converter(qti_folder)
      # convert to 2.1
      @dest_dir_2_1 = File.join(qti_folder, "qti_2_1")
      return unless File.exist?(qti_folder)

      command = Qti.get_conversion_command(@dest_dir_2_1, qti_folder)
      logger.debug "Running migration command: #{command}"
      python_std_out = `#{command}`

      if $?.exitstatus == 0
        @converted = true
      else
        make_export_dir
        qti_error_file = File.join(@base_export_dir, "qti_conversion_error.log")
        File.open(qti_error_file, "w") { |f| f << python_std_out }
        raise "Couldn't convert QTI 1.2 to 2.1, see error log: #{qti_error_file}"
      end
    end

    def convert_questions
      raise "The QTI must be converted to 2.1 before converting to JSON" unless @converted

      questions = {}
      begin
        manifest_file = File.join(@dest_dir_2_1, Qti::Converter::MANIFEST_FILE)
        questions[:assessment_questions] = Qti.convert_questions(manifest_file, flavor: Qti::Flavors::CANVAS)
      rescue
        questions[:qti_error] = "#{$!}: #{$!.backtrace.join("\n")}"
      end
      questions
    end

    def convert_assessments
      raise "The QTI must be converted to 2.1 before converting to JSON" unless @converted

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