Block concurrent connections quiz access rule

Overview

The Block Concurrent Sessions quiz access rule prevents students from accessing the same quiz attempt from multiple devices, browsers, or locations simultaneously. This plugin is essential for maintaining exam integrity in digital assessment environments by ensuring each quiz attempt remains bound to the original device and session.

The Problem

In standard Moodle, students can access their quiz attempts from multiple devices concurrently, which creates opportunities for:

• Unauthorized assistance (ghostwriting)
• Credential sharing during exams
• Compromised exam integrity in high-stakes assessments

How It Works

When a student starts a quiz attempt, the plugin records a secure fingerprint of their session (Moodle session ID, user-agent, and IP address) using SHA-256 hashing. Any subsequent attempt to access the same quiz from a different device, browser, or connection is automatically blocked with a clear message to contact the exam supervisor.

Key Features

Exam Management & Monitoring:

• Dedicated management interface accessible from the quiz Results tab
• Bulk unlock actions - Allow connection changes for multiple students simultaneously (essential for exam room technical issues)
• Advanced filtering - Filter by enrollment status, attempt state, and user groups
• Comprehensive audit logging - Every connection change is permanently recorded with timestamp and authorizing user
• Export functionality - Export audit data as CSV or Excel for compliance and reporting

Access Control:

• Role-based permissions control who can manage connection changes
• Separate capability to restrict who can enable/disable the rule in quiz settings
• Configurable defaults for new quizzes

User Experience:

• Pagination, sorting, and initials bar for managing large courses
• Proactive unlocking - Allow changes before students switch devices
• Clear messaging for blocked students
• Individual or bulk unlock operations

Localization:

• Full English and German translations
• AMOS translation toolkit support for community contributions

Use Cases

Digital Examinations
Perfect for online and computer-based exams where students must remain on their assigned workstation throughout the assessment.

Proctored Assessments
Provides an additional security layer for proctored exams, whether remote or in-person.

Emergency Scenarios
Bulk unlock functionality handles situations where multiple students need to switch devices (e.g., exam room computer failures, network issues, facility changes).

Compliance & Auditing
Complete audit trail meets institutional requirements for exam security documentation and compliance reporting.

Technical Details

• Requirements: Moodle 5.0 or later (tested with 5.0 and 5.1)
• License: GNU GPL v3 or later
• Privacy: GDPR compliant with full privacy provider implementation
• Backup/Restore: Full support for Moodle's backup and restore functionality
• Security: SHA-256 hashing with salt for session fingerprints

Development History

Originally created by Vadim Dvorovenko in 2016, this plugin has been extensively enhanced and is now maintained by lern.link GmbH. Version 5.0+ features were developed based on specifications from ETH Zürich (Marco Lehre, ID Educational IT Services) to meet requirements for large-scale digital examination environments.

Getting Started

1. Install the plugin in mod/quiz/accessrule/oneconnection
2. Enable "Block concurrent connections" in your quiz settings
3. During exams, access the management page via Results ' "Allow connection changes"
4. Use bulk actions to handle technical issues affecting multiple students
5. Export audit logs for compliance and record-keeping

For detailed documentation, installation instructions, and support, visit the plugin's GitHub repository.