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Revision as of 02:00, 8 October 2014 view sourceZziccardi (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers7,985 editsm →When to use rollback: I've capitalized the name of the Arbitration Committee.← Previous edit Latest revision as of 20:14, 31 October 2024 view source Queen of Hearts (talk | contribs)Edit filter managers, Autopatrolled, Administrators32,726 edits WP:INTDABLINKTag: Disambiguation links added 
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{{Short description|Guideline on the rollback user right}}
{{distinguish|text=]'s "rollback" feature or ]'s "rollback-like" feature, which can be used by any ] user with ] or ] enabled}}
<noinclude>{{pp-semi-indef}}{{pp-move-indef}}</noinclude> <noinclude>{{pp-semi-indef}}{{pp-move-indef}}</noinclude>
{{subcat guideline|behavioral guideline|Rollback feature|WP:RBK|WP:ROLLBACK|WP:ROLL}} {{subcat guideline|behavioral guideline|Rollback feature|WP:RBK|WP:ROLLBACK|WP:ROLL}}
{{tool warning|access=yes}}
{{Misplaced Pages:Rollback/right place notice}}
] ]


'''Rollback''' is a feature of the ] software that runs Misplaced Pages. It allows the last user's consecutive edits on a given page to be undone with a single mouse click. On Misplaced Pages, rollback is used to undo problematic edits such as ]. The MediaWiki '''rollback''' ] provides users with a button that will ], with a single click, the last edit to a given page, along with any ''consecutive'' previous edits made by the same editor to that page. It is used to undo problematic edits such as ]. Some counter-vandalism tools also require the user to possess the rollback user right to use the tool.


An editor with rollback rights sees a ''rollback'' button next to relevant revisions on their ], in ] and in certain other places. A single click on this button reverses the edit in question, as well as any other consecutive preceding edits made by the same user. An editor with rollback user rights will see a button {{kbd|rollback ''n'' edits}} next to relevant revisions on pages such as their ], on ] (including their own), and on the ] of pages.


Rollback is available to all ] and can be given to other users upon request, subject to the approval of an administrator. A user who has been assigned this right explicitly is called a '''rollbacker'''. There are currently ] administrators and ] rollbackers ({{formatnum:{{#expr:{{NUMBEROFADMINS:R}}+{{NUMBERINGROUP:Rollbacker|R}}}}}} total), not including ] who have been assigned the right across all ] projects. MediaWiki rollback is enabled and available to all ] automatically and can be given to other users upon request, subject to the approval of an administrator. A user who has been assigned this right explicitly is called a '''rollbacker'''. There are currently ] administrators and ] rollbackers ({{formatnum:{{#expr:{{NUMBEROFADMINS:R}}+{{NUMBERINGROUP:Rollbacker|R}}}}}} total; however, most of these accounts haven't edited for years), not including ] and ] who have been assigned the right across all ] projects.


] – editors who misuse standard rollback (for example, by using it to reverse ] edits in situations where an explanatory ] would normally be expected) may have their rollback rights removed. Since rollback is part of the core administrator tools, an admin could be ] entirely to remove those tools. Where the following text refers to MediaWiki rollback, it means the form of rollback built in to the ] editing software. ]. As with any other tool, editors who misuse MediaWiki rollback (for example, by using it to make ''unexplained'' reversions of ] edits in situations where an explanatory ] or talk page note would normally be expected) may have their rollback rights removed. Since rollback is part of the core administrator tools, theoretically an admin could be ] entirely to remove those tools.


== How it works == ==How it works==


Users with rollback have extra "rollback" links next to revisions on the ], ], ]s, ], and their ]: Users with the MediaWiki rollback permission have extra "rollback" links next to revisions on the ], ], ]s, ], and their ]:


* ] (] | ]) ] (] | ]) ] ({{NUMBEROFEDITS}} bytes) ''(this is an example)'' '''(current)''' ]­] *] (] | ]) ] (] | ]) .. ({{NUMBEROFEDITS}} bytes) (+1) .. ] ''(this is an example)'' '''(current)''' (] | ]) ]­]


Clicking one of these links restores the page to the most recent revision that is ''not'' made by the revision's author. This appears in the page history with a generic summary that looks like this: Clicking one of these links restores the page to the most recent revision that is ''not'' made by the revision's author. This appears in the page history with a generic summary that looks like this:


:'''<abbr class="minor" title="{{MediaWiki:recentchanges-label-minor}}">{{MediaWiki:Minoreditletter}}</abbr>''' ''Reverted edits by ] (]) to last version by User B {{Block indent|1='''<abbr class="minor" title="{{MediaWiki:recentchanges-label-minor}}">{{MediaWiki:Minoreditletter}}</abbr>''' {{int:revertpage|Helpful contributor|Vandal}} }}


A link to the reverted user's contribution history is provided, so that it may be easily checked for further problematic edits. It does not appear if you are reverting contributions done by a user whose ], the result being: A link to the reverted user's contribution history is provided, so that it may be easily checked for further problematic edits. The link on the user's name does not appear if you are reverting contributions done by a user whose username is not visible, previously having been ] or ] ''prior'' to the reversion, the result being "a hidden user":


:'''<abbr class="minor" title="{{MediaWiki:recentchanges-label-minor}}">{{MediaWiki:Minoreditletter}}</abbr>''' ''Reverted edits by (username removed) to last version by User B {{Block indent|1='''<abbr class="minor" title="{{MediaWiki:recentchanges-label-minor}}">{{MediaWiki:Minoreditletter}}</abbr>''' {{int:revertpage-nouser|Helpful contributor}} }}


If the username is removed ''after'' reversion, the default edit summary remains and will need to be deleted separately in its entirety:
Note the following:
{{Block indent|1='''<abbr class="minor" title="{{MediaWiki:recentchanges-label-minor}}">{{MediaWiki:Minoreditletter}}</abbr>''' {{int:revertpage|Helpful contributor|Grossly offensive or libellous username}} }}


All edits using the MediaWiki rollback feature are ] with the "{{int:tag-mw-rollback}}" tag in ] and ].
* The rollback button appears only next to the most recent revision of a page.
* If the page is edited again before you click the rollback link, you will get an error message instead.
* You cannot choose which revision will be restored. It is always the last revision ''not'' made by the author of the most recent revision. This revision may be problematic too, so be careful.
* If there are multiple consecutive edits to the page by the same author, they will ''all'' be reverted. To remove only some of them, you must revert the changes manually.
* You cannot use rollback on a page which has only been edited by one person, as there would be nothing to revert to.
* You cannot use rollback to restore a ]. Attempting to do so will display an error message.
* Rollback happens immediately; there is no confirmation or preview (although a page is displayed allowing you to see the changes you have made).
* Rollbacks are automatically marked as a "]".


Technical limitations:
Note that methods exist for performing rollback with non-generic edit summaries – see the ] section below.


*The rollback button only appears next to the most recent revision of a page.
== When to use rollback ==
*You cannot choose which revision will be restored. It is always the last revision ''not'' made by the author of the most recent revision. This revision may be problematic too, so be careful.
Standard rollback is a fast way of undoing problematic edits, but it has the disadvantage that only a generic ] is generated, with no explanation of the reason for the change. For this reason, it is considered inappropriate to use it in situations where an explanatory edit summary would normally be expected. Rollback ''may'' be used:
*If there are multiple consecutive edits to the page by the same author, they will {{em|all}} be reverted. To remove only some of them (or part of each edit), you must revert the changes manually or ] them separately.
*To revert obvious ] and other edits where the reason for reverting is absolutely clear
*You cannot use rollback on a page which has only been edited by one person, as there would be nothing to revert to.
*To revert edits in your own ]
*You cannot use rollback to restore a ] or ]. Attempting to do so will display an error message.
*To revert edits that you have made (for example, edits that you accidentally made)
*Rollback happens immediately; there is no confirmation or preview on the desktop site (although a page is displayed, allowing you to see the changes you have made).
*To revert edits by ] users who are not allowed to edit (but be prepared to explain this use of rollback when asked to)
*Rollbacks are automatically marked as a "]".
*To revert widespread edits (by a misguided editor or malfunctioning bot) which are judged to be unhelpful to the encyclopedia, provided that an explanation is supplied in an appropriate location, such as at the relevant talk page<ref>See also ].</ref>


Other tools can perform similar edits with non-generic edit summaries; see the ] section below.
Use of standard rollback for any other purposes{{snd}} such as reverting good-faith changes which you happen to disagree with{{snd}} is likely to be considered misuse of the tool. When in doubt, use another method of reversion and supply an edit summary to explain your reasoning.


===Mobile===
The above restrictions apply to ''standard'' rollback, using the generic edit summary. If a tool or manual method is used to add an appropriate explanatory edit summary (as described in the ] section below), then rollback may be freely used as with any other method of ].


For the standard mobile interface, MediaWiki rollback links are only available on the ] page. Users may want to enable the advanced mode in settings to be able to access rollback links on the recent changes page, page histories, and their watchlist. There are no rollback links on diffs. Another way is to click ] below any Misplaced Pages page. It will redirect you to the desktop interface, which allows you to access rollback links in all of the usual places on Misplaced Pages pages.
As with other methods of reverting, when using rollback to ''restore'' text to a page, ensure that the text restored does not violate Misplaced Pages policies.


By default, each click on the MediaWiki rollback link requires confirmation, to prevent misclicks on mobile.
Administrators may revoke the rollback feature or issue a block in response to a persistent failure to explain reverts, regardless of the means used. However, they should allow the editor an opportunity to explain their use of rollback before taking any action{{snd}} there may be justification of which the administrator is not aware (such as reversion of a banned user). Similarly, editors who ] may lose the privilege regardless of the means used to edit war. Administrators who persistently misuse rollback may have their administrator access revoked, although in practice such would require the intervention of the ].


==When to use rollback==
== Requesting rollback ==
{{hatnote|"Misplaced Pages:Rollback policy" redirects here (although this is a ], not a policy). For the content previously at that title, see ].}}
{{shortcut|WP:ROLLBACKUSE}}
MediaWiki rollback is a fast way of undoing problematic edits, but it has the disadvantage that special tools are required to provide a custom ]. MediaWiki rollback {{em|may}} be used:
#{{anchors|RB1|vandalism}}To revert obvious ] and other edits where the reason for reverting is absolutely clear
#{{anchors|RB2|user}}To revert edits in your own ]
#{{anchors|RB3|self}}To revert edits that you have made (for example, edits that you accidentally made)
#{{anchors|RB4|banned}}To revert edits by ] or ] users in defiance of their block or ban (but be prepared to explain this use of rollback when asked to)
#{{anchors|RB5|misguided}}To revert widespread edits (by a misguided editor or malfunctioning bot) unhelpful to the encyclopedia, provided that you supply an explanation in an appropriate location, such as at the relevant talk page<ref>See also ].</ref>
#{{anchors|RB6|withsummary}}With a custom edit summary explaining the ''reason'' for reverting the changes.


As with any other methods of reverting, when using rollback to ''restore'' text to a page, ensure that the content being restored does not violate any ].
To request rollback rights, ask at ''']''' or ask one of the administrators listed ]. Any ] may grant or revoke rollback rights, using the ].


=== MediaWiki rollback and edit summaries ===
While there is no fixed requirement, a request is unlikely to be successful without a contribution history that demonstrates an ability to distinguish well intentioned edits with minor issues from unconstructive vandalism. Also, it is unlikely that editors with under 400 mainspace edits will have their request granted.
The built-in MediaWiki rollback link does not provide an option to provide a custom edit summary, though some ] allow this. Use of MediaWiki rollback with the default summary for any other purposes (such as reverting good-faith changes which you happen to disagree with) is likely to be considered misuse of the tool because those edits should be explained. When in doubt, use another method of reversion, supply a custom edit summary to explain your reasoning, or start a discussion on the talk page.


Also, do not use the default rollback edit summary when it will contain disruptive text which may need to be ]. For example, avoid use of the default edit summary to revert edits made by an account with an unambiguously offensive, insulting, or egregious username that maliciously violates Misplaced Pages's ]. MediaWiki rollback automatically includes the username of the editor who made the edits you are removing.
If you have been granted rollback rights and are not sure how it works, you may wish to test it out ].


{{shortcut|WP:RBREVOKE|WP:ROLLBACKREVOKE}}
== Accidental use of rollback ==
{{anchor|Revocation}}Editors must take full responsibility for any action they perform, regardless of the tools they are using. Regardless of the methods or means that are used to perform the actual reversions, Administrators may revoke the MediaWiki rollback user right, remove other tools, or impose a block in response to any editor who is ''persistently'' failing to provide needed explanations for their reverts. However, admins should normally notify or warn the editor sufficiently first, and allow the editor the time and opportunity to respond and explain their reversions before taking any action, as there may be justification of which the administrator is not aware (such as reversion of edits made by a banned user), and because the edits may have been explained in another location.
Because rollback only takes a single click, without asking for confirmation, even experienced users may sometimes accidentally click rollback when (for example) merely attempting to click on the page to scroll up or down. If this occurs, simply revert your edit manually, with an edit summary like "Self-revert accidental use of rollback".


Similarly, editors who persistently engage in ]{{snd}} {{em|especially}} those who have a repeated history of doing so{{snd}} may have their MediaWiki rollback permissions revoked as a precaution, regardless of the methods or means that were used to engage in the behavior. Additionally, administrators who persistently misuse MediaWiki rollback may theoretically have their administrator permissions revoked by the ], solely in order to remove the rollback user rights from them.<ref>Although theoretically possible, as of 2024, it is unclear whether anyone has ever been de-sysopped primarily for misuse of MediaWiki Rollback.</ref>
If rollback is used accidentally instead of undo to revert a good faith edit, simply follow it with a ], with an edit summary like "Accidental use of rollback - ''reason for reversion''". The ''reason for reversion'', i.e., the reason for undoing the good faith edit, will then appear in the edit summary for the dummy edit instead of the edit summary for the rollback.


==Requesting rollback rights==
Note: it is possible to hide the <code></code> links at ], which is the source of most accidental uses, while leaving <code></code> links available in other locations (e.g., ]). See ] for instructions.


To request MediaWiki rollback rights, ask at ''']''' or ask one of the administrators listed ]. Any ] may grant or revoke rollback rights, using the ].
== Additional tools ==
It is also possible to use rollback with an explanatory edit summary (instead of the default or standard generic edit summary). Various editing tools let you do this; for example, see this ]. To do it manually, copy the URL of the rollback link, paste it into your browser's address bar, and append <code>&summary=</code> followed by your desired summary to the end of the URL.


While there is no fixed requirement, a request is unlikely to be successful without a contribution history that demonstrates an ability to distinguish well-intentioned edits with minor issues from unconstructive vandalism. '''Rollback is not for very new users:''' it is unlikely that editors with under {{/Mainspace count}} ] edits will have their request granted. In addition, editors with a recent history of edit warring will often not be granted rollback given concerns of abuse.
]


If you have been granted rollback rights, you may wish to test it out ].
The patrolling tool ] adds links in similar places to the "rollback" links, and also calls them "rollback". Anyone using both will see both types of "rollback" link, which can be a little confusing. Unlike rollback, Twinkle may be used by any ] user. Other than this, the links are functionally the same, but differ in their choice of edit summaries. Twinkle also offers additional options.


== See also == ==Accidental use of rollback==
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ] on allowing non-administrators to use rollback
* ]
* {{tl|Rollback topicon}} a ] template to indicate you have rollback permission.
* {{tl|User wikipedia/rollback}} a ] template to indicate you have rollback permission.


=== What to do with accidental rollbacks ===
==Notes==
Because MediaWiki rollback only takes a single click, without asking for confirmation, even experienced users may sometimes accidentally click rollback when attempting to click somewhere else. If this occurs, simply revert your edit manually, with an edit summary like "Self-revert accidental use of rollback". You could rollback the rollback, but this can cause confusion for others who look at the page history.
{{reflist}}


If MediaWiki rollback is used accidentally instead of undo to revert a good-faith edit, you could take a quick look to see if there is anything in the article you could improve (like a typo), and while making that edit also add the reason for the earlier reversion. You could also explain the reason for reversion on the talk page of the user who made the edit or on the article talk page, if appropriate. Alternatively you can follow the rollback with a ] (not a ]), with an edit summary like "Accidental use of rollback – ''your reason for the original reversion''". This won't change the edit summary for the original rollback edit, but it will help people understand why you reverted the original edit.

=== Ways to reduce the risk of accidental misclicks ===
Editors have the option of installing any of the multiple ] that enable mandatory confirmation from the user before rolling back an edit. This is enabled by default on mobile devices via the "Require confirmation before performing rollback on mobile devices" ].

It is possible to hide the <code></code> links at ] (where most accidental clicks happen) while leaving <code></code> links available in other locations (e.g., ]). See ] for instructions.

==Additional tools==
It is also possible to make rollback and rollback-like edits with an explanatory edit summary (instead of the default edit summary). Various editing tools let you do this; for example, see this ].

=== Custom edit summaries for MediaWiki rollback ===
To manually add a custom edit summary with MediaWiki rollback, you can hand-edit the URL. First, copy the URL of the rollback link. Depending on your browser, this might be done by control-clicking on the link on a history page so you can copy the URL. Then paste the URL into your browser's address bar, and append <code>&summary=</code> followed by your desired summary to the end of the URL.

===Twinkle and RedWarn/Ultraviolet ===
] (top line: ], ], and ]) and MediaWiki rollback (third line)]]

The patrolling tools ] and ]/] have rollback-like features in similar places to the MediaWiki rollback links, and (as of 2024) they also call them "rollback". Unlike MediaWiki rollback, these scripts may be used by any ] user. The scripts do basically the same thing as MediaWiki rollback, but they differ in their choice of edit summaries, and, in some small but significant ways, in their behavior.<ref>Namely:
* Rollback customization scripts, including ], only work on MediaWiki rollback.
* ]/]/] rollback is slightly slower than MediaWiki rollback and uses two ] calls instead of one. (RedWarn/Ultraviolet will conduct its rollbacks using MediaWiki rollback if the user is a rollbacker. Twinkle will still use the slower form even if the user is a rollbacker.)
* MediaWiki rollback is subject to a slightly more forgiving rate limit (as of April 2022, 100 per minute, versus 90 per minute for all other kinds of edits, including Twinkle/RedWarn/Ultraviolet rollback).
* MediaWiki rollback edits are ], while Twinkle/RedWarn/Ultraviolet rollback is not (although some edit filters manually exempt it).</ref> Twinkle and RedWarn/Ultraviolet also offer additional options.

Users with the MediaWiki rollback user right and these scripts installed will see multiple "rollback" links, which can be confusing (see the picture). Twinkle's rollback feature can be disabled by unticking every box in the option <code>Show rollback links on these pages:</code> at ].

Twinkle and RedWarn/Ultraviolet don't have an official version for the ]. A mobile user can use those tools in full access by switching to ].

===User scripts===
For further customization, you can use the following user scripts:

*] – highly configurable rollback confirmation/hiding script; adjust rollback link behaviour by page and device type
*] – scripts to add rollback confirmation dialogs, available in mobile and desktop versions
*] — for reverting all or some of a user's contributions in one click, with support for custom summaries

==See also==
*]
*]
*]
* ] – blatant vandalism
*] that led to separate rollback permission for non-administrators
*]
*{{tl|Rollback topicon}} a ] template to indicate you have rollback permission – adds category to page automatically
*{{tl|User wikipedia/rollback}} a ] template to indicate you have rollback permission
*{{tl|User rollbacker since}} a userbox to indicate having rollback permission and period of time

==Notes==
{{reflist}}
{{Misplaced Pages accounts|collapsed}}
] ]
] ]

Latest revision as of 20:14, 31 October 2024

Guideline on the rollback user right Not to be confused with Twinkle's "rollback" feature or RedWarn's "rollback-like" feature, which can be used by any autoconfirmed user with Twinkle or RedWarn enabled.

Blue tickThis page documents an English Misplaced Pages behavioral guideline.
Editors should generally follow it, though exceptions may apply. Substantive edits to this page should reflect consensus. When in doubt, discuss first on this guideline's talk page.		Shortcuts
Warning: You take full responsibility for any actions taken using Rollback. You must read and understand all relevant Misplaced Pages policies and abide by them when using this tool; failure to do so may result in you losing access to the tool or being blocked from editing.
Are you in the right place?

This page is for explaining the technical details of a Misplaced Pages user permission, and the policies involving its use.


The MediaWiki rollback user right provides users with a button that will revert, with a single click, the last edit to a given page, along with any consecutive previous edits made by the same editor to that page. It is used to undo problematic edits such as vandalism. Some counter-vandalism tools also require the user to possess the rollback user right to use the tool.

An editor with rollback user rights will see a button rollback n edits next to relevant revisions on pages such as their watchlist, on user contributions pages (including their own), and on the edit history of pages.

MediaWiki rollback is enabled and available to all administrators automatically and can be given to other users upon request, subject to the approval of an administrator. A user who has been assigned this right explicitly is called a rollbacker. There are currently 848 administrators and 6,880 rollbackers (7,728 total; however, most of these accounts haven't edited for years), not including global rollbackers and stewards who have been assigned the right across all Wikimedia projects.

Where the following text refers to MediaWiki rollback, it means the form of rollback built in to the MediaWiki editing software. MediaWiki rollback may only be used in certain situations. As with any other tool, editors who misuse MediaWiki rollback (for example, by using it to make unexplained reversions of good-faith edits in situations where an explanatory edit summary or talk page note would normally be expected) may have their rollback rights removed. Since rollback is part of the core administrator tools, theoretically an admin could be stripped of their administrative privileges entirely to remove those tools.

How it works

Users with the MediaWiki rollback permission have extra "rollback" links next to revisions on the recent changes page, page histories, diffs, user contribution pages, and their watchlist:

Clicking one of these links restores the page to the most recent revision that is not made by the revision's author. This appears in the page history with a generic summary that looks like this:

m Reverted edits by Vandal (talk) to last version by Helpful contributor

A link to the reverted user's contribution history is provided, so that it may be easily checked for further problematic edits. The link on the user's name does not appear if you are reverting contributions done by a user whose username is not visible, previously having been removed or suppressed prior to the reversion, the result being "a hidden user":

m Reverted edits by a hidden user to last version by Helpful contributor

If the username is removed after reversion, the default edit summary remains and will need to be deleted separately in its entirety:

m Reverted edits by Grossly offensive or libellous username (talk) to last version by Helpful contributor

All edits using the MediaWiki rollback feature are tagged with the "Rollback" tag in recent changes and page histories.

Technical limitations:

  • The rollback button only appears next to the most recent revision of a page.
  • You cannot choose which revision will be restored. It is always the last revision not made by the author of the most recent revision. This revision may be problematic too, so be careful.
  • If there are multiple consecutive edits to the page by the same author, they will all be reverted. To remove only some of them (or part of each edit), you must revert the changes manually or undo them separately.
  • You cannot use rollback on a page which has only been edited by one person, as there would be nothing to revert to.
  • You cannot use rollback to restore a revision that has been deleted or suppressed. Attempting to do so will display an error message.
  • Rollback happens immediately; there is no confirmation or preview on the desktop site (although a page is displayed, allowing you to see the changes you have made).
  • Rollbacks are automatically marked as a "minor edit".

Other tools can perform similar edits with non-generic edit summaries; see the Additional tools section below.

Mobile

For the standard mobile interface, MediaWiki rollback links are only available on the Special:Contributions page. Users may want to enable the advanced mode in settings to be able to access rollback links on the recent changes page, page histories, and their watchlist. There are no rollback links on diffs. Another way is to click desktop view below any Misplaced Pages page. It will redirect you to the desktop interface, which allows you to access rollback links in all of the usual places on Misplaced Pages pages.

By default, each click on the MediaWiki rollback link requires confirmation, to prevent misclicks on mobile.

When to use rollback

"Misplaced Pages:Rollback policy" redirects here (although this is a guideline, not a policy). For the content previously at that title, see Misplaced Pages:Rollback policy (failed proposal). Shortcut

MediaWiki rollback is a fast way of undoing problematic edits, but it has the disadvantage that special tools are required to provide a custom edit summary. MediaWiki rollback may be used:

  1. To revert obvious vandalism and other edits where the reason for reverting is absolutely clear
  2. To revert edits in your own userspace
  3. To revert edits that you have made (for example, edits that you accidentally made)
  4. To revert edits by banned or blocked users in defiance of their block or ban (but be prepared to explain this use of rollback when asked to)
  5. To revert widespread edits (by a misguided editor or malfunctioning bot) unhelpful to the encyclopedia, provided that you supply an explanation in an appropriate location, such as at the relevant talk page
  6. With a custom edit summary explaining the reason for reverting the changes.

As with any other methods of reverting, when using rollback to restore text to a page, ensure that the content being restored does not violate any Misplaced Pages policies.

MediaWiki rollback and edit summaries

The built-in MediaWiki rollback link does not provide an option to provide a custom edit summary, though some user scripts and tools allow this. Use of MediaWiki rollback with the default summary for any other purposes (such as reverting good-faith changes which you happen to disagree with) is likely to be considered misuse of the tool because those edits should be explained. When in doubt, use another method of reversion, supply a custom edit summary to explain your reasoning, or start a discussion on the talk page.

Also, do not use the default rollback edit summary when it will contain disruptive text which may need to be revision-deleted. For example, avoid use of the default edit summary to revert edits made by an account with an unambiguously offensive, insulting, or egregious username that maliciously violates Misplaced Pages's username policy. MediaWiki rollback automatically includes the username of the editor who made the edits you are removing.

Shortcuts

Editors must take full responsibility for any action they perform, regardless of the tools they are using. Regardless of the methods or means that are used to perform the actual reversions, Administrators may revoke the MediaWiki rollback user right, remove other tools, or impose a block in response to any editor who is persistently failing to provide needed explanations for their reverts. However, admins should normally notify or warn the editor sufficiently first, and allow the editor the time and opportunity to respond and explain their reversions before taking any action, as there may be justification of which the administrator is not aware (such as reversion of edits made by a banned user), and because the edits may have been explained in another location.

Similarly, editors who persistently engage in edit warring – especially those who have a repeated history of doing so – may have their MediaWiki rollback permissions revoked as a precaution, regardless of the methods or means that were used to engage in the behavior. Additionally, administrators who persistently misuse MediaWiki rollback may theoretically have their administrator permissions revoked by the Arbitration Committee, solely in order to remove the rollback user rights from them.

Requesting rollback rights

To request MediaWiki rollback rights, ask at Misplaced Pages:Requests for permissions/Rollback or ask one of the administrators listed here. Any administrator may grant or revoke rollback rights, using the user rights page.

While there is no fixed requirement, a request is unlikely to be successful without a contribution history that demonstrates an ability to distinguish well-intentioned edits with minor issues from unconstructive vandalism. Rollback is not for very new users: it is unlikely that editors with under 200 mainspace edits will have their request granted. In addition, editors with a recent history of edit warring will often not be granted rollback given concerns of abuse.

If you have been granted rollback rights, you may wish to test it out here.

Accidental use of rollback

What to do with accidental rollbacks

Because MediaWiki rollback only takes a single click, without asking for confirmation, even experienced users may sometimes accidentally click rollback when attempting to click somewhere else. If this occurs, simply revert your edit manually, with an edit summary like "Self-revert accidental use of rollback". You could rollback the rollback, but this can cause confusion for others who look at the page history.

If MediaWiki rollback is used accidentally instead of undo to revert a good-faith edit, you could take a quick look to see if there is anything in the article you could improve (like a typo), and while making that edit also add the reason for the earlier reversion. You could also explain the reason for reversion on the talk page of the user who made the edit or on the article talk page, if appropriate. Alternatively you can follow the rollback with a dummy edit (not a null edit), with an edit summary like "Accidental use of rollback – your reason for the original reversion". This won't change the edit summary for the original rollback edit, but it will help people understand why you reverted the original edit.

Ways to reduce the risk of accidental misclicks

Editors have the option of installing any of the multiple user scripts that enable mandatory confirmation from the user before rolling back an edit. This is enabled by default on mobile devices via the "Require confirmation before performing rollback on mobile devices" gadget.

It is possible to hide the links at Special:Watchlist (where most accidental clicks happen) while leaving links available in other locations (e.g., diffs). See WP:Customizing watchlists for instructions.

Additional tools

It is also possible to make rollback and rollback-like edits with an explanatory edit summary (instead of the default edit summary). Various editing tools let you do this; for example, see this list of tools.

Custom edit summaries for MediaWiki rollback

To manually add a custom edit summary with MediaWiki rollback, you can hand-edit the URL. First, copy the URL of the rollback link. Depending on your browser, this might be done by control-clicking on the link on a history page so you can copy the URL. Then paste the URL into your browser's address bar, and append &summary= followed by your desired summary to the end of the URL.

Twinkle and RedWarn/Ultraviolet

Example diff showing both Twinkle (top line: AGF, rollback, and vandal) and MediaWiki rollback (third line)

The patrolling tools Twinkle and RedWarn/Ultraviolet have rollback-like features in similar places to the MediaWiki rollback links, and (as of 2024) they also call them "rollback". Unlike MediaWiki rollback, these scripts may be used by any autoconfirmed user. The scripts do basically the same thing as MediaWiki rollback, but they differ in their choice of edit summaries, and, in some small but significant ways, in their behavior. Twinkle and RedWarn/Ultraviolet also offer additional options.

Users with the MediaWiki rollback user right and these scripts installed will see multiple "rollback" links, which can be confusing (see the picture). Twinkle's rollback feature can be disabled by unticking every box in the option Show rollback links on these pages: at Twinkle preferences.

Twinkle and RedWarn/Ultraviolet don't have an official version for the standard mobile interface. A mobile user can use those tools in full access by switching to desktop view.

User scripts

For further customization, you can use the following user scripts:

See also

Notes

  1. See also WP:Requests for arbitration/Ryulong#Rollback.
  2. Although theoretically possible, as of 2024, it is unclear whether anyone has ever been de-sysopped primarily for misuse of MediaWiki Rollback.
  3. Namely:
    • Rollback customization scripts, including massRollback, only work on MediaWiki rollback.
    • Twinkle/RedWarn/Ultraviolet rollback is slightly slower than MediaWiki rollback and uses two API calls instead of one. (RedWarn/Ultraviolet will conduct its rollbacks using MediaWiki rollback if the user is a rollbacker. Twinkle will still use the slower form even if the user is a rollbacker.)
    • MediaWiki rollback is subject to a slightly more forgiving rate limit (as of April 2022, 100 per minute, versus 90 per minute for all other kinds of edits, including Twinkle/RedWarn/Ultraviolet rollback).
    • MediaWiki rollback edits are exempt from the edit filter, while Twinkle/RedWarn/Ultraviolet rollback is not (although some edit filters manually exempt it).
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