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Once a test exists, the Settings screen controls when students can take it, how they reach it, and what they see before and after the exam. This page covers scheduling, the share link, the student experience, and the danger zone.

Test status

A test’s status is derived from whether it’s still a draft and from its schedule — you don’t set it directly.
StatusMeaning
draftNot yet published; students can’t start.
scheduledPublished, but the open time is in the future.
openLive and accepting students (now is within the window, or no window is set).
closedPast the close time.
archivedRetired by the teacher; no new sessions.

Schedule

You can bound when students may start with an opens at and a closes at time. Outside that window, students don’t see the exam — they see one of these messages instead:
This exam is not available yet. It opens at {time}.
If you’ve archived the test, students see an archived notice instead (for example, “This test has been archived by your teacher…”).
If you don’t set a window, a published test is simply open and accepting students.
Each test has a single student-facing share link (its secure_token URL). It looks like:
https://www.proctorly.co/t/<link>
Share this one link with your class — by email, your LMS, or a class message. Students don’t need a Proctorly account, and they don’t log in. They open the link, enter their name and email on the consent screen, and go through setup. The same link works for everyone you share it with.
There’s no separate per-student login or password. Identity is collected once on the consent screen (students can also use Sign in with Google / Microsoft to auto-fill their name and mark identity as “Verified” — this confirms who they are but does not create a Proctorly account).

Student experience

This part of Settings is introduced with:
“Control what students see before they start and after they submit.”

Student instructions

A free-text field (up to 2000 characters) shown on the setup screen, before the exam begins. Use it for anything students should know going in — for example:
“You may use a calculator. Keep your camera on throughout the test.”

Completion behavior

What a student sees after they submit. Choose one:
The standard message — “Your test has been submitted.”

Danger zone

The danger zone holds the archive and delete actions for a test.
Archiving stops new sessions. Once a test is archived, students who open the link see the archived notice and can’t start. Archiving is how you retire a test without deleting it.
Last modified on June 24, 2026