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Are there any plans to discontinue older manual methods, where a user manually or semi-automatically re-uploads the file to Commons (without preserving history)? With the FileExporter now live, it is a shame we are still loosing precious old history when doing these manual transfers...Rehman07:24, 22 May 2019 (UTC)[reply]
I'm generallyopposed to this, because a) there is nothing fundamentally wrong with the current methods of transfer and b)mw:Extension:FileImporter is still in beta. If/When the extension leaves beta, I'd be open to revisiting the matter. -FASTILY01:48, 31 May 2019 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for the feedback,Fastily. I was initially having the same thoughts as well but the issue is, as we speak, more and more files are being moved to Commons manually, loosing a lot of valuable edit history in the process. There are also no known plans to "rescue" those lost history in the future. While we don't know when it will move from beta, I believe we can agree that the FileExporter already supersedes all other tools in terms of quality and efficiency. An example from the village pump:
My initial wording may sound a bit drastic, but what I meant is, to mention FileExplorer as the suggested transfer method, and have aseparate section outlining alternative options. What do you think?Rehman03:06, 31 May 2019 (UTC)[reply]
Hi. I have identified thatFile:Dorothy Christian Hare.jpg was incorrectly flagged as non-free as it is the work of a UK government employee prior to 1957. It should have been uploaded to Commons under the same licence asFile:The Women's Royal Naval Service on the Home Front, 1917-1918 Q19705.jpg. I've corrected the licence and sourcing information but File Exporter won't work as an earlier file version has been suppressed. How do I go about fixing that or is it better to abandon the automatic transfer? It would be useful to add a note to the guidance on how to handle these situations.From Hill To Shore (talk)19:46, 2 February 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for fixing that. I should have copied the exact error message I received, but I'm sure that it mentioned "suppressed." I am guessing that the software can't tell the difference and just issues the same error message when it can't find a previous version. For the guidance perhaps the following text can be added:
If a previous version of the image has been deleted orsuppressed, an automatic transfer may not be possible and will generate an error message. After receiving an error message, seek advice from an administrator atWP:AN, who may be able to undelete the previous file version to allow the automatic transfer to proceed. If administrators are unable to restore a previous version then a manual transfer should be completed.
My advice for these situations is to first relicense the file under the appropriate free license and then go toWP:REFUND and ask for the previous file revisions to be undeleted.(I am notwatching this page, so pleaseping me if you want my attention.) — JJMC89 (T·C)23:35, 2 February 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Czar: no. It would perhaps be feasible to create a gadget if we granted users the upload_by_url right and added upload.wikimedia.org to the whitelist for that. I'm not saying it would be impossible otherwise, but it would be a whole lot less messy. Either way page/upload history wouldn't be preserved this way, onlymw:Extension:FileImporter can do that. —Alexis Jazz (talk or ping me)18:56, 3 October 2021 (UTC)[reply]
@Alexis Jazz, thank you. Where would be the best place to request this? I know I would have imported more than a few images over the years if such a tool existed.czar19:59, 3 October 2021 (UTC)[reply]
@Czar: Errr I guess I could try to create such a gadget, but community consensus would be required to create a user group with upload_by_url or to add that right to an existing user group. Perhaps it could be added to the file mover user group which already deals with files. On dewiki there areImporteure who have the "importupload" right, I don't know if that means they could also import from Commons. If they can, that would possibly be a better solution. Either way community consensus is needed for a configuration change, so I'd suggest heading over toWP:VPI. —Alexis Jazz (talk or ping me)20:59, 3 October 2021 (UTC)[reply]
Hi, I came here exactly to ask this question. I found a logo on Commons that would be better hosted on the French Wikipedia, and I really miss something akin tomw:Extension:FileImporter but the other way. Couldn't FileImporter be installed on local wikis and configured to import from Commons (or even other local wikis)?~ nicolas (talk)10:59, 14 December 2021 (UTC)[reply]
Wikipedia:Village pump (idea lab)#Import from Commons(notwatching, please
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