Behaviors of practice sessions in webinars

Webex Webinars are currently available on version 41.4 and later sites.

You can use a Practice Session in webinars to allow the production team (host, cohosts, and panelists) to practice a webinar. Practice sessions have the following feature behaviors.

  • Only the host or cohost can start and end a practice session. The production team members in the webinar or entering the webinar automatically join the practice session.

  • The host can schedule a webinar to automatically open a practice session when the webinar starts.

  • The production team members can't rejoin the main webinar while a practice session is open.

  • The host can upload an image, text, and music before the webinar starts. The attendees can view that image or text, and listen to the music, when the practice session starts.

    These features aren’t available in webinars in webcast view.

  • The attendees in a webinar can't see or hear what's happening in the practice session, but they can chat with everyone as well as ask questions of the host and panelists, depending on how the host has set up their privileges.

  • Attendees stay in the webinar while a practice session is open.

  • If a production team member is sharing content in the main webinar when joining a practice session, the shared content migrates into the practice session.

  • If a practice session ends while a production team member is sharing content, the attendees can now view that shared content in the main webinar.

  • The production team can send chat messages to attendees by selecting All Attendees or Everyone in the To: drop-down list.

  • The production team can receive and answer Q&A panel questions and chat messages sent by attendees.

  • The production team can prepare polls, and test opening and closing poll questionnaires.

  • The attendees can't view any polls opened in the practice session.

Host practice sessions in webinars

The webinar must be started, and only the host or cohost can start, stop, and restart a practice session.
1

In the webinar window, select More options > Start Practice Session.

A banner appears in the webinar window indicating You're in the practice session. The production team members automatically join the practice session. Attendees see a message in the webinar window that the production team is currently in a practice session. They can also see an image, if you have uploaded one when you scheduled the webinar.

2

Conduct the practice session. Open and share presentations, or prepare a poll questionnaire that the production team can use during the actual webinar.

Before you end a practice session, close any shared documents, presentations, whiteboards, web content, and polls that you don't want to share with attendees. If you don’t close shared items before ending a practice session, attendees can view the shared items once you end the practice session.

3

In the webinar window, select More options > Stop Practice Session.

From the Webex Meetings desktop application, select End from within the You're in the practice session banner.

To restart a practice session, More options > Start Practice Session.