The "lesson not available" message
When a student opens a lesson they cannot access, they read this. It is separate from the course's no-access message because it is read in a different situation.
Where it is set
Two places, and the more specific one wins:
| Level | Field |
|---|---|
| Course | Course settings → Lessons → "Lesson not available" text |
| Lesson | Lesson settings → Configuration → "Lesson not available" text |
The course-level text covers every lesson of the course. The lesson-level field overrides it for one lesson, and the editor says so: if it is empty, the content defined for the course is used.
Both are rich-text fields and accept shortcodes.
Why it is separate from the course message
The two are read by students in different states of mind:
| Message | The student |
|---|---|
| Content if no access, on the course | Arrived at the course and cannot open it |
| "Lesson not available" | Was inside the course, or followed a direct link to a lesson |
The second one often has partial access — a preview reader, a student whose subscription lapsed, someone who followed a link a colleague shared. They usually know what the course is; they need to know why this lesson specifically is closed.
What to write
- Say why, in one line: the lesson is part of the full course, or requires an active plan.
- Say what to do, with a link.
- Point back to the course, so the student is not stranded on a single lesson.
This lesson is part of the full course. See the course for details, or sign in if you are already enrolled.
The fallback
If neither field is filled in, the student reads a short built-in line explaining that the lesson they are looking for is not available.
It is safe but says nothing useful. Fill the course-level field once, and every lesson of the course is covered.
When to override per lesson
Rarely. Good reasons:
- a bonus lesson with its own permission rule, requiring something different from the rest of the course;
- a lesson released later, where the message can say when;
- a lesson belonging to a different product or plan.
If every lesson needs a different message, the course probably needs a clearer access model instead.
Where it appears
The message replaces the lesson's content on the lesson page. The rest of the page — the outline, the progress bar, the back link — remains, so the student can still navigate.
That is deliberate: a blocked lesson should not be a dead end when the student has access to other parts of the course.
Verify
- Write the course-level text and update the course.
- Sign in as a student without access and open a lesson URL directly.
- Confirm the message appears and its links work.
- Confirm the outline and the back link are still usable.
- Set a lesson-level override on one lesson and confirm it replaces the course text there only.
- Repeat signed out.