Help:User rights


 * See Wikia:Administrators for details on the admins of the Central Wikia.

Different users have access to different functions of the site.

Wiki founders are given administrator and bureaucrat access. They can make any other user on their wiki an administrator, bureaucrat, or give the rollback ability.

What can all users do on a wiki?
Anyone can read the wiki as well as create new pages and edit unprotected pages, including users without a user account. Any non-banned user is free to create a user account.

What can logged-in users do on a wiki?
Users who have created an account and logged in (this is free and only requires a username, password, and birth date) can:


 * customize the appearance and features of the wiki by setting their preferences.
 * maintain an article watchlist.
 * mark their own contributions as minor edits.
 * upload an image or other file to the wiki.
 * mark a page on recent changes as "patrolled" (where this feature is enabled)

Logged in users who have accounts four days old are given the 'autoconfirmed' user right.

Autoconfirmed users can move/rename pages and edit semi-protected pages.

A user with a confirmed email address can enable email messages from other users, and can request lost passwords. Some future social networking oriented extensions at Wikia may also require this.

What is the rollback permission?
Users with the "rollback" permission are able to revert vandalism and bad-faith edits with one click, by using the rollback link on diff pages and user contributions list. They are just like logged-in users, only with one extra button.

It's important to note that sysop's already have this ability. Rollback is designed for users who are not sysop's but could use the tool to combat bad-faith edits.

Bureaucrats can give or revoke users' rollback rights by using Special:Userrights (note that admins have it automatically). See more info below.

What can bots do on a wiki?
Bots can be an automated process, program, or a script that make tedious or repetitive editings or actions easier on a wiki. Bot edits will be hidden by default from recent changes in order to prevent this log from being overtaken by quick and repetitive edits.

On Wikia, bots are added by the Community Team when a wiki's community has determined consensus for such a bot to be flagged. This can be done using discussion pages or forums.

For more information on using and making bots, see AutoWikiBrowser or Pywikipediabot.

What can administrators do on a wiki?
Administrators can:


 * delete pages and page histories. They can also undelete a previously deleted page, or undelete specific revisions of it.
 * delete and undelete uploaded images and other files.
 * lock (protect) a page so it cannot be edited or renamed by users without admin rights.
 * block an IP address or user name from editing.
 * revert bad edits more easily using a "rollback" link which appears on diff pages and user contributions lists.
 * edit the MediaWiki namespace to make changes to the interface.

On Wikipedia, an admin is defined as a "trusted user". You should be aware that this might not be the case on Wikia. The requester of a wiki will be given admin access to that wiki on the Principle of First Trust. If a user later turns out to be irresponsible with the admin access, it may be removed by staff at any time.

For details, see the Help:Administrators' how-to guide.

What can bureaucrats do on a wiki?
A bureaucrat can make other users into bureaucrats or administrators, and grant and revoke users' rollback rights on their wiki. They are not currently able to remove admin access from any user. Please contact a member of the Community Team if you need admin access removed from a user. And, unlike Wikipedia's bureaucrats, Wikia bureaucrats cannot grant and revoke "bot" status or rename user accounts.

How do I grant rollback or admin rights?


A bureaucrat can grant or revoke rollback rights for non-administrators through Special:Userrights. Once the user's name is entered, the form shown at the right will be made available. To grant rollback check "rollback" in "Groups you can change", fill in "Reason for change", and click "Save User Groups". To revoke rollback, uncheck "rollback" in "Groups you can change", fill in "Reason for change", and click "Save User Groups".

Bureaucrats can also turn other users into admins or bureaucrats using Special:Userrights. However, only staff can remove those rights. There is a link to userrights on the list of special pages, which is always available in the toolbox in the sidebar menu. Sysop's have the rollback ability by default, so adding rollback to administrator's adds no extra rights.

First enter the user's name (capitalization matters!) and click "Edit User Groups". Select the appropriate right(s) under "Groups you can change", fill in "Reason for change", and click "Save User Groups". Be sure to make sure you're giving rights to the right person by checking the links to the user page and the contributions!

The user will gain administrator access immediately and the action will be recorded at Special:Log/rights on your wiki.

Who are users in the "helper" group?
Helpers consist of contractors and volunteer interns who are working for Wikia. They have administrator access to all Wikia.

See Wikia Helper Group for more info, or Special:Listusers/helper for a list.

What are the users in "staff" group?
User in staff group are Wikia employees and they have full access to all Wikia wikis. They will be shown in Special:Listusers/staff on any wiki. Please see Help:Contacting Wikia for details on how to contact Wikia staff.