Extension:Renameuser

The Renameuser extension provides a special page which allows authorized users to rename user accounts. This will cause page histories, etc. to be updated. If you want to rename an account "into" another, already existing one, you need the User Merge and Delete extension.

Usage

 * 1) As a bureaucrat, access the   page
 * 2) Enter the name of the user to be renamed, and the desired new name, toggle the options to move user/talk pages and their subpages and to create redirects as desired, and click OK

The user will be renamed, and (if the appropriate option was checked) the user page, user talk page and all their subpages will be moved as well.

You can grant other groups the right to rename users, for example:

Technical note
This extension introduces and invokes the RenameUserComplete hook to notify other extensions of user renames.

Frequently asked question
You can't fix the situation by immediately trying again to rename User A to User B, because it will simply say "The user 'User A' does not exist." To fix the situation, rename User B back to User A, after unchecking the box "Move user and talk pages (and their subpages) to new name". Then rename User A to User B again, this time leaving the box "Move user and talk pages (and their subpages) to new name" checked. The page moving will resume where it left off.
 * There were so many userpages that it timed out partway through moving them from User:A/subpage... to User:B/subpage... What do I do now?