Collaborate Ultra Troubleshooting
If you are experiencing technical difficulties when accessing Collaborate Ultra, see these troubleshooting tips and resources.
Low Network Connectivity
The primary factors in bandwidth consumption for Collaborate Ultra are sharing webcam video and sharing applications. See this guide to troubleshoot network connectivity. If you are using WiFi, get as close as you can to the router or use an ethernet cable connection instead. For sessions where bandwidth is a concern, we recommend not sharing your webcam video unless it is required for instructional purposes. With no webcam sharing, a user with a 128kbps connection should be able to participate fully in a session through microphone and chat. For reference, information about Collaborate Ultra's bandwidth consumption is listed below:
- Webcam bandwidth use ranges from 360kbps down to 20kbps per camera
- Audio always uses 48kbps
- Ability to receive application sharing and audio as low as 88kbps
- Application sharing bandwidth uses ranges from 500kbps down to 70kbps
- A small amount of overhead is also required for chat
Loading Issues in Google Chrome
If Collaborate Ultra will not open in Google Chrome or displays a purple spinning icon that will not go away, make sure that your Google Chrome web browser is up to date and that you have unblocked third-party cookies. See these instructions for Google Chrome.
If Collaborate Ultra will not load in Google Chrome and you have allowed cookies and third-party cookies, Blackboard Client Support suggests adding a specific cookie permission for the Collaborate Ultra website to your Google Chrome browser's "Sites that Can Always Use Cookies" settings through these steps.
- In the Google Chrome browser, click on the menu icon in the top-right corner. Then, select "Settings"
- On the Settings page, search for "Sites that can always use cookies". In the results that appear, click "Cookies and Other Site Data".
- Scroll down to locate the "Sites that can always use cookies" section and click the "Add" button.
- In the “Add Site” form that appears, copy and paste this value into the provided field: >[*.]bbcollab.com
- Then, select the checkbox for "including third-party cookies on this site". Click the "Add" button to save these settings.
- Close the browser down. Then, re-launch the browser to access Collaborate Ultra with this change in place.
If none of these troubleshooting techniques have resolved the issue, uninstall the Chrome browser. Then, downaload and install the lastest version of the Google Chrome browser.
Audio Connection Quality
If you experience difficulty with connecting audio when logged into a session, please see these resources:
Browser Error Message “You’ve blocked permission to access your microphone and camera”
This error may occur with session guest links that open in the same browser window as Blackboard. As a first step in troubleshooting, right-click your mouse on the Collaborate Ultra guest link and in the context menu that appears, choose “Open in New Tab” or “Open in New Window”. If your camera and microphone are still blocked when the session is open in a new browser tab or window, check your browser’s microphone permissions. See these instructions for Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox.
Mac and Safari Audio/Video Sharing Problems
Mac’s Safari browser is not compatible with all of Collaborate Ultra’s screen-sharing features at this time. Furthermore, audio may break up and crack when using Mac OS “Big Sur” or “Catalina” with Safari 14. To avoid these issues, use the Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox browser.
If application sharing, camera, or microphone won’t work on MacOS 10.15 or higher, review the Mac System “Security & Privacy” Preferences to ensure that camera, microphone, and screen sharing are allowed in the specific browser.
Camera Error Message “Uh Oh, Can't Access Camera”
Not all webcams have a resolution that is supported by Collaborate Ultra. Cameras that have a resolution that is higher than what Collaborate Ultra can support will see an error "Uh Oh, Can't Access Camera". Refer to your camera's documentation and make sure that it fits within the Collaborate Ultra's supported webcam resolution criteria. You may need to use another camera if your webcam and Collaborate Ultra are incompatible.
Chromebook Specific Issues
Collaborate Ultra will open in the latest two stable releases of the Google Chrome browser. Make sure that your Chromebook’s operating system and browser are up to date! If you cannot update Google Chrome, go to the Google Play Store and download Mozilla Firefox or Microsoft Edge. You may access Collaborate Ultra through an alternate browser.