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This page or section is an official policy on Wookieepedia.

It has wide acceptance among editors and is considered a standard that everyone must follow. Please use the Consensus track to propose changes to this policy.

Blocking is the means by which users are prevented from contributing to both the wiki and the Discussions forum. Block lengths may vary, depending on the severity of the disruption, but in most cases a block may be lifted if the offending user agrees to stop the disruptive behavior. Elected by the Wookieepedia community, administrators are users who are responsible for issuing blocks in order to enforce site policies. Disruptive behavior can be reported to administrators through several means, as listed below.

When considering issuing a block, administrators should remember the principle of assuming good faith. For example, article blanking or the addition of fanon may simply be a user's well-meaning, if misguided, attempt to improve Wookieepedia. Blocking is the last-resort option when alternatives, such as talking with the relevant user, cannot diffuse a situation. Always assume good faith, but remember that all site policies and the consequences of violating them apply to everyone.

How blocks work

Usage

Except in cases of malicious or continuous vandalism, warnings are generally issued before a potential block, which should be considered a last resort; it is always a preventative measure, and never a substitute for failing to communicate. This is based on the principle of treating everyone with good faith and assuming good faith on their part until proven otherwise. Warnings are crucial—their purpose is to educate offending users by pointing out what should not be done (e.g. violating a specific rule documented on a policy page), offer what the user could do instead (e.g. direct them to the newcomers' portal), and clarify the consequences of disruptive actions (e.g. a block). Any user can give warnings, but they are advised to use the default warning templates and should keep in mind that their purpose is to help fellow users rather than to tell them off.

For example, if a user adds fanon to an article, their edits should be reverted and they should immediately be warned on their talk page with the {{Msg-fanon}} template. If they ignore the warning and continue to add fanon, they may be blocked in accordance with Wookieepedia's policy against fanon.

The length of a block should be dependent on the severity of the disruption caused by the user: a newcomer edit-warring might need a time off for a couple days; a newcomer continuously adding speculation should be warned and, if warnings are ignored, be blocked for a week or two so that they might familiarize themselves with Wookieepedia's policies; anyone directing personal attacks at fellow users deserve a longer block. If the offending user returns after a block and continues to violate the same policies, successive blocks are typically issued with incremental increases in block duration.

Technical process

As enforcers of site policies, Wookieepedia administrators are responsible for issuing blocks to registered user accounts and IP addresses via Special:Block, which is only accessible to administrators and Fandom staff. This page allows administrators to select the username or IP address of the user, the duration of the block, and the reason for the block. There are options to exclusively block a user from the Discussions forum or editing specific pages—however, full sitewide blocks should be used instead of partial blocks. A block's duration can be changed at any time using Special:Block and can be temporary or permanent.

Autoblocks are enabled by default, meaning that a block of 1 day would be automatically issued upon an attempt to contribute using either the blocked user's last-used IP address or any IP addresses that the blocked user subsequently logs in with. All blocked users would encounter the MediaWiki:Blockedtext error page if they attempt to contribute to Wookieepedia.

The {{Blocked}} template is the standard talk page message to inform blocked users of their block, specifying its reason and duration. A user may ask for further clarification regarding their own block and possibly appeal for it to be overturned or shortened in length. Blocks may be removed via Special:Unblock.

Alternatively, administrators may issue preemptive blocks through the AbuseFilter MediaWiki extension, which allows for certain actions to be taken in response to edits that match defined criteria. For example, new users moving other users' userpages may be automatically warned and, if they try to submit the edit again, blocked. Such blocks will appear in the Block log as having been performed by User:Abuse filter. Administrators should periodically check the log for potential false positives to remove blocks on innocent users and examine edits that have been disallowed by the filter to identify further bad faith behavior from blocked users, for whom longer blocks may be more appropriate.

Special:BlockList lists all currently blocked users on Wookieepedia, while the Block log tracks the site's complete blocking history. Any individual user's blocking history can also be accessed via the "block log" link on their contributions page.

Grounds for blocking

Some of the most common reasons for which a block may be issued on Wookieepedia are provided below. The list is by no means comprehensive, but blocks may only be issued for violations of site policies.

  1. Disruption — Behavior that violates policies and damages Wookieepedia and its community. This could range from deliberate vandalism to edit-warring and uncivil behavior (see the linked policy pages for specific rules). It should be noted that users raising concerns or voicing differing opinions is not "disruption" unless the content of their comments are harmful, such as repeating allegations in bad faith or showing a pattern of discriminatory behavior.
  2. Sockpuppetry — An attempt by a user to evade an existing block in order to continue editing the wiki or posting on the Discussions forum.
    • Proxies: Proxy servers and web hosting services are typically banned on sight due to their potential for abuse. Public access ports such as schools, libraries, and restaurants may also be banned if suspected of abuse.

Rules

  1. An initial warning is generally recommended before issuing a block.
  2. Due to the dynamic nature of IP addresses, administrators should not block an IP address permanently, with the exception of proxy servers and web hosting services. Administrators may also apply range blocks to a specific group of IP addresses.
  3. False positive blocks issued by the AbuseFilter may be reversed by any administrator.
  4. Discussions Moderators do not have blocking authority on Wookieepedia and must request the intervention of an administrator in cases of disruption. However, administrators may grant limited blocking authority to certain Discussions Moderators if deemed necessary.
  5. Full sitewide blocks should be issued instead of partial blocks, which only restrict specific actions.
  6. The Wookieepedia administration is responsible for blocking on Wookieepedia, but global blocks issued by Fandom staff will prevent users from contributing across the Fandom platform, including Wookieepedia.
  7. Any authorities and permissions will be revoked at the time of blocking, including review board membership, user rights, social media accesses, and Discord server privileges.
  8. All blocked users are subject to the voting eligibility restrictions as outlined in the Voting eligibility policy.
  9. Each administrator may overturn blocks that they decided to issue themselves, for example following an appeal from a blocked user. Pursuant to the Administrative autonomy policy, blocks cannot be overturned by another administrator without a group consensus from the rest of the administration.

Requesting administrative intervention

Any user may report abusive behavior to administrators for consideration for blocking, but keep in mind that blocking is a serious matter. Administrators will review the situation and give warnings or indeed blocks where appropriate. Requesting a user to be considered for a block is generally inadvisable unless the user in question has already been warned and is clearly acting in bad faith, such as doing simple vandalism or trolling. Even then, remember to keep level-headed and never make personal attacks. For first-time vandals, consider putting one of the warning templates on the user's talk page before reporting them.

  • On the wiki, administrators can be reached via the vandalism in progress page and the administrators' noticeboard forum. You may also reach out to individual administrators on their personal talk pages.
  • On the Discussions forum, reach out to Discussions Moderators first in the Ask A Mod A Question thread. They can communicate with the administration where necessary.
  • On Discord, use the public #admin-help channel on Wookieepedia's Discord server, or share in confidence with administrators via Direct Messages.
    • Per our Discord rules, you may share Direct Messages involving other users with administrators in order to report behavior clearly violating Wookieepedia policies, but this must be done privately, such as in a private consultation channel with administrators. Keep in mind the Privacy policy's general guidance against sharing Direct Messages without explicit consent; information should be shared only when necessary for making administrators aware of the situation and for them to take appropriate action in preventing harm to Wookieepedians.

Appealing blocks

If you are blocked on Wookieepedia, you can appeal your block or seek clarification by contacting the blocking administrator via their Message Wall on Community Central. Links to each administrator's Message Wall are provided on the administrators' page.

If you were blocked by the Abuse filter and believe it was made in error, please feel free to contact any member of the administration.

See Fandom's "I have been blocked" help page for more information and advice. Additionally, Fandom regulates blocking on their platform via their Wiki Rules and Blocking Policy and Terms of Use.

See also

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