SMOWL LIVE is the real-time proctoring feature included in the SMOWL Enterprise plan. It allows supervisors to observe and communicate with students during an exam from a centralised dashboard. This article explains how to prepare and manage a session from start to finish.
⚠️ SMOWL LIVE is only available on the SMOWL Enterprise plan. If your institution is on a different plan and wants access to real-time proctoring, contact your Smowltech account manager.
1. User profiles in SMOWL LIVE
SMOWL LIVE has two distinct user profiles:
Admin: creates and manages live proctoring sessions.
Proctor: accesses the dashboard during the session to monitor and communicate with students.
SMOWL LIVE user accounts are created by the Smowltech team. If you need additional Admin or Proctor users, contact your account manager or the support team before exam day.
2. Prerequisites: configure the activity in your platform
Before creating a session in SMOWL LIVE, the activity you want to proctor must have SMOWL supervision enabled in your e-learning platform (LMS).
3. Access the SMOWL LIVE dashboard
The SMOWL LIVE dashboard is separate from the standard SMOWL administration panel.
You can access it at: https://live.smowltech.net/login
To manage sessions, you must log in with an Admin profile. Only this profile can create and manage live proctoring sessions.
4. Create a session
A session groups students and virtual rooms for a live proctoring event. Create it before the exam starts — never during an ongoing session.
Follow these steps:
In the SMOWL LIVE dashboard, click "New Session".
Fill in the required fields:
Name: use a descriptive name (for example: "Midterm exam - Mathematics - 17/06/2026").
Number of rooms: define how many virtual supervision rooms to open. Students are assigned automatically and evenly across rooms as they start the activity.
Link the activity: enter the numeric ID of the activity in your LMS, or upload a CSV file with the required information. This links the session to the specific exam.
Save the session.
5. Manage rooms during the session
Once the session is underway, students are assigned to rooms automatically as they start the activity.
From the dashboard you can:
See all rooms at once from the general view. Each room displays the active cameras of the students assigned to it.
Access a specific room by clicking on it. This isolates the view and lets you focus exclusively on the students in that room.
6. Monitor and communicate with students in real time
During the session, the monitoring dashboard alerts you to incidents and lets you act immediately.
Automatic alerts
The system notifies you when an incident occurs, such as a student's camera disconnecting. You will receive a visual alert in the dashboard. From there, you can review what is happening and contact the student.
Direct messaging with the student
If you detect a problem, you can send a private message to the student directly from the dashboard. The communication is one-to-one: only the supervisor and the student can see it.
The student will receive an alert within the monitoring block, similar to this:
Frequently asked questions
Is SMOWL LIVE available on all SMOWL plans?
No. SMOWL LIVE is an exclusive feature of the SMOWL Enterprise plan. If your institution is on a different plan and wants access to real-time proctoring, contact your Smowltech account manager.
Can I create a session after it has already started?
No. The session must be created before students start the activity. Creating it while the session is already underway may cause students who have already begun to not be assigned correctly to their rooms.
What happens if there are more students than the rooms can hold?
Each room has a limit of 100 students. If the total number of participants exceeds the combined capacity of the configured rooms, the additional students will not be assigned to any room and will not be able to join the session. Always configure your rooms with enough capacity for the expected number of participants.
How do I request additional Proctor or Admin users?
SMOWL LIVE user accounts are created by the Smowltech team. Contact your account manager or the support team before exam day to request the access you need.
Does the student know when the supervisor has sent a message?
Yes. When the supervisor sends a message during the session, the student receives an audio alert notifying them that there is a new communication.
Can I export the session log (alerts, communications) after it ends?
Exporting the session log is not currently available. This includes the history of alerts and communications between the supervisor and the student.