Wikipedia:Template editor

Wikipedia template editor icon

The template editor user group assigns permissions that allow trusted coders to edit templates and modules that have been protected with the template protection level (usually due to a high transclusion count). It also allows those editors to create and modify editnotices for all pages, not just those in their own user and talk pages, to move subpages, and to change the content model of pages.

There are currently 205 template editors, which makes the total number of users with these permissions 1,012 (the rest are administrators).

Use

Editors are permitted to exercise these permissions to perform maintenance, answer reasonable edit requests, and make any other simple and generally uncontroversial edits to templates, modules, and editnotices. They are also permitted to enact more complex or controversial edits after those edits are first made to a test sandbox, their technical reliability and their consensus among other informed editors having already been established.

Have a strong password

If you are in the template editor user group, please ensure you have a strong password and follow appropriate personal security practices. A compromised template editor account will be blocked and its privileges removed on grounds of site security. In the unlikely event that your account is compromised, notify an administrator immediately, so they can block your account and remove any sensitive privileges to prevent damage.

Wise template editing

The key to wisely editing templates is to thoroughly test your changes in the template's /sandbox page before implementing them. Each template has a default /testcases subpage that should be used for this purpose. It is important to test whether your changes have introduced any errors or not, which can be easy to spot if test cases are extensive enough.

Remember that template-editorship, just like adminship, can never be allowed to become some sort of privileged position within debates among editors. Being a template editor puts you in a complicated position, because any edit you make is at once both a normal edit and a privileged action. Avoid making unilateral decisions if there is reason to think people might object. You can always propose the change on a template's talk page, make the change if there are no objections after a few days, and be willing to revert your own edit if concerns are raised. Use your discretion in determining how potentially controversial your change might be.

Expect to be held accountable for all changes you make. Be receptive to any concerns or complaints that others raise.

Repeated failure to adhere to these restrictions can result in revocation of template editor permissions. If the failure is particularly egregious, any administrator reserves the right to remove your template editor rights, even for a first offense.

Other considerations

Template editors should be aware of what kinds of changes require gathering consensus beforehand and which don't. Remember to be civil when engaging in editing disputes.

It is a plus for editors in general to be aware of the implications of changes to highly transcluded templates. In particular, many small changes to these templates in a short time may backlog the job queue, causing pages using the templates not to be re-updated quickly. (In some circumstances, pages may not be updated for multiple weeks after a change to a very highly transcluded template or module; see T132467 and related feature requests.)

Template protection should not be used to prevent inexperienced editors from trying their hands at template editing per se, nor to guard against repeated changes, nor to shut out editors not acting on consensus. Vandalism or misinformation on a high-risk template would be visible on many pages that transclude them, which is considered the primary reason for preemptive template protection.

When to seek discussion for template changes

Changes that should be made ONLY after substantial discussion

  • Any breaking changes, no matter how small. If it removes a parameter, or changes expected parameter behavior, do not do it without strong consensus, unless your reason for doing so is absolutely critical.
  • Changes that significantly affect a template or module's visual appearance to the reader. "Hey, wouldn't it be cool if {{infobox}} were in shades of pink?" ... Bring it up on the talk page first.

Changes that require at least some discussion, or at least several days passing with no one commenting on your proposal

  • The addition of new parameters, if they'll significantly change the template's usage or display. This includes adding numbered parameters as aliases for named parameters, adding additional numbered parameters to ones already in use, or adding any parameters that allow major, visually noticeable changes (e.g. a {{{color}}} parameter on {{infobox}}).
  • Visual layout changes that are minor but still noticeable, e.g. swapping the order of a few parameters in an infobox, adding or removing readable text or slightly tweaking something's color.
  • Per RFC consensus (2013), it's best to seek consensus before adding Wikidata functionality to a template or module. Discussions in 2016 and 2018 have found that using Wikidata in templates, particularly infoboxes, remains relatively contentious.

Changes that can usually be made unilaterally but that, depending on the circumstances, you may want to discuss first

  • The addition of new parameters that add minor functionality—for instance, an italic=yes or a noprint=yes.
  • Edits that affect a template's appearance, but only slightly, such as the use of the nowrap class on a template that looks better on one line or swapping a few words.
  • Edits that improve a template's compliance with MOS, accessibility, and other guidelines or policies. Note that many guidelines are subject to interpretation.

Changes that can almost always be made unilaterally

  • Fixes of obvious markup errors or typos.
  • Changes that don't affect the result when the template is transcluded.
  • Copy-edits of any sort. (Just be sure you're right!)
  • Non-controversial changes to hidden tracking categories.
  • Changes to CSS classes with no visible effect, or where the visible effect will be an unambiguous improvement (e.g. removing excess whitespace in a template's output in certain browsers).
  • Replacement of deprecated code or templates used within a given template, provided said deprecation is based on a prior consensus. (If possible, provide a link to a page explaining the change that you are making, e.g. Special:LintErrors or a consensus discussion.)

Abuse

Vandalism

If you use these rights for anything even vaguely resembling vandalism, you will be blocked immediately. Wikipedia maintains an active policy of "shoot first, ask questions later" when it comes to anything involving widely transcluded templates. If you hold privileged access on any other projects, you may very well find your account locked by the stewards until you can prove you are in control of it. Even if it is all a misunderstanding, you may lose your template-editor privileges nonetheless if you are found to have behaved recklessly or erratically.

The same goes for vandalism that doesn't involve these rights. These are, fundamentally, administrator-level rights, and you are expected to behave with the accountability and behavior that entails. Administrators have been desysopped for inappropriate behavior, even when that behavior didn't involve their tools, or never affected a single article. Considering that these rights give you some of the abilities that people are most afraid of falling into the hands of a rogue admin, you should not be making any untoward changes.

Editing disputes

These rights should never be used to gain an upper hand in editing disputes. You have a privilege that most people do not have. The normal BOLD, revert, discuss cycle does not apply because those without these rights are unable to perform the "revert" step. Therefore, if your edit is or may be controversial (see the "When to seek discussion" criteria above), avoid making unilateral decisions, and instead propose the change on the template's talk page, and then make the change if there are no objections after a few days. Do not change the template to your preferred version when consensus has not been achieved yet to resolve the dispute.

Dispute with a fellow template editor

A template editor should not revert the edit of their peer on a protected template without good cause, careful thought and (if possible) a prior brief discussion with the template editor whose action is challenged. It is the responsibility of the reverting template editor to demonstrate their revert is not out of sheer reflex. When a template editor's edit is reversed by a peer, the edit (or a similar one) must not be reinstated by the original or another template editor without clear discussion leading to a consensus decision.

Requesting

If you wish to request template editor rights for yourself, please see Wikipedia:Requests for permissions/Template editor. These rights are also automatically part of the administrator tools package. See WP:DYKTPE for a special case applicable to the "Did you know" (DYK) section on the Main Page.

Guidelines for granting

Shortcuts

The template editor user group is granted by administrators. Administrators use their own discretionary assessment of an editor's template contribution value, technical expertise, as well as the following general guidelines:

  1. The editor should be a registered Wikipedia user who has been editing for at least 1 year.
  2. The editor should have made at least 1,000 overall edits.
  3. The editor should have made at least 150 total edits to the Template and Module namespaces.
  4. The editor should have no behavioral blocks (including partial blocks) or 3RR violations for a span of 6 months prior to applying.

Additionally, an editor should have demonstrated a need for the right, as well as a familiarity with the care and responsibility required when dealing with high-risk template modification:

  1. The editor should have worked on the sandbox version of at least three template-protected or fully-protected templates or modules.
  2. The editor should have requested and had successfully enacted at least five significant edits to template-protected or fully-protected templates or modules.

The above items are merely guidelines. An administrator may choose to substitute other proofs of an editor's competence in handling high-risk template responsibilities.

Special case for DYK

Following a discussion at WT:PERM, DYK editors applying for template editor permissions should start a discussion at WT:DYK or ask a DYK administrator to grant the right instead of putting in a request at WP:PERM/TPE. Editors granted this permission for DYK editing should generally not use the permission to edit protected template pages unless they also meet the criteria above. DYK editors who wish to edit non-DYK template-protected pages in template space should apply through WP:PERM/TPE as usual, even if they already have the permission, so that there is a record of a formal review of their editing history.

Criteria for revocation

Shortcuts

The user rights can be revoked at any time by an administrator without any process or prior notice in any of the following circumstances:

  1. The editor demonstrated a pattern of performing obviously controversial edits to protected templates without first determining consensus.
  2. The editor demonstrated a pattern of failing to exercise sufficient care when editing protected templates, resulting in serious errors appearing on pages.
  3. The editor used the permission to gain the upper hand in disputes.
  4. The editor performed any blatant vandalism.
  5. The editor has been inactive for 12 months.
  6. The editor failed to report to an administrator after noticing unauthorized use of their account or otherwise neglected account security practices.

Additionally, the rights may be removed immediately at the request of the editor.

If your template editor rights were revoked and you would like to appeal the decision, first communicate with the revoking administrator. If after such an exchange you still feel the matter is unresolved and requires outside input, or if the administrator is unresponsive, use Wikipedia:Administrators' noticeboard to appeal the decision.

Template protection considerations

Some high-risk templates and modules are protected via full protection, as these templates and modules have become very stable and seen few, if any, necessary changes. Template editors cannot edit these pages, but any administrator may change the protection level for individual templates and modules on request.

See the list of templates and modules currently under "template editor" protection.

Technical details

The template editor user group includes the following rights:

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ From Wikipedia:Editnotice: "All users can create editnotices for their user and talk pages, but editnotices for other namespaces can be created and edited only by administrators, page movers and template editors."
  2. ↑ Copied from Special:ListGroupRights
  3. ↑ New pages can be created with any content model through Special:ChangeContentModel. See T248294
  4. ↑ Added by T393167