Help:Extension:CentralAuth/Global rename

As of, CentralAuth provides an interface to rename global users. This depends on the Renameuser extension, and requires the user to have the "centralauth-rename" userright. Global rename will assume that the user has the proper rights to move pages, suppress redirects, etc.



Trusted users should go to "Special:GlobalRenameUser", and will see a form similar to the form used for local renames. Enter the name of the user you wish to rename, what their new name should be, a reason to be used in log entries, and whether to move pages, and if so, whether to leave redirects behind. Before the form is submitted, you will be asked one final time to confirm that you are sure you wish to rename the account.

If chosen, pages will be moved under your username. If you do not have an account on that wiki, or are unable to autocreate an account there due to a conflict, a placeholder name of "Global rename script" will be used. Any protection or restrictions (e.g., TitleBlacklist, AbuseFilter) will be bypassed.

There are some restrictions on what can be renamed:


 * The current user must have a global account.
 * There cannot be a global account at the new name.
 * The new name must be completely unused on all wikis.
 * You cannot rename yourself.

Once you press "Submit", renames will be queued on all wikis using the job queue. At this time, the user will be unable to log in to their account, and any existing sessions will be automatically logged out. They will not be able to login again (using their new username) until the rename finishes. The page "Special:GlobalRenameProgress" is available for users to see the status of their request.

Each wiki where they have an account will be listed, with a status of either "Queued", "In progress", "Done", or "Failed". Queued means the job is still in the queue. In progress means the job is currently running. Done means the job has finished successfully. Failed means the job failed, and the account will remain locked until recovered by a sysadmin.

Recovering a "locked" account

 * This section needs review for accuracy.

Sometimes you'll find that a rename becomes stuck at a project (see for example T137973). In that case, please follow this instructions:


 * Please open a task in Phabricator (direct link with title and projects already added). In there please post a link to the Special:GlobalRenameProgress link to the account whose rename has become stuck.
 * Developers should see if there are exceptions or errors at Logstash before continuing.
 * Any user with access to  can run the fixStuckGlobalRename.php maintenance script to requeue the job. Before running the script, verify if the jobs are running. This is important. That can be done using  . If jobs ain't running, you can proceed with:
 * : the database name of the wiki where the rename job has become stuck, i.e. ptwiki.
 * : the database name of the wiki where the global rename was started and will always be metawiki.
 * : the old username. Should be in quotations.
 * : the new username. Should be in quotations.
 * is a parameter that can be added to fix a global rename when we want the script to ignore any running jobs; use with caution.


 * Log in the Production SAL that you've run the script at #wikimedia-operations. Example:
 * Watch for errors at Logstash
 * In case of doubt, ask Hoo man or Legoktm.
 * In case of doubt, ask Hoo man or Legoktm.