Warning templates are standard notices placed on a user's talk page when their editing causes a problem, so that the user is told clearly what is wrong and what may happen if it continues. Most warnings are issued with Twinkle or Bharat Mitra, but every template on this page can also be placed by hand. This page explains the level system, the rules for choosing a level, and the main template series in use on Bharatpedia.
The level system
Warning templates come in series of up to four levels, and the level is a record of how far the matter has already gone with that user. It is not a measure of how strongly the person issuing the warning feels, and it is never chosen because one template's wording happens to read better than another's.
| Level | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | General note | For a first occurrence. It assumes good faith, points out the problem and links to the relevant guideline, in case the user simply did not know. |
| 2 | Caution | For a repeat of the same conduct after a level 1 note, within the same month. The conduct is now treated as something the user has already been told about. |
| 3 | Warning | For a further repeat after level 2. The user is told plainly that the behaviour must stop and that a block may follow. |
| 4 | Final warning | The last step. If the conduct is repeated after a level 4 warning, the user may be blocked without a further warning. |
| 4im | Only warning | A single template that is both the first and the final warning, kept for the most serious single incidents, such as an obvious vandalism spree. "im" stands for immediate. It is not a shortcut around the level system for ordinary conduct. |
Some series have only one template, with no level number in its name. Such a template is used once, on its own, and there is nothing to escalate within that series.
Choosing the level
- Start at level 1. Before warning a user, read the warnings already on their talk page. If the user has not been warned about this conduct before, the warning is a level 1, whatever the template series is.
- Escalate only on repetition. Move to level 2, 3 and then 4 only when the same conduct is repeated after the previous level was issued, within the same month.
- Levels reset each month. At the start of a new month, begin again from level 1. Earlier warnings and blocks stay in the page history, and administrators may still look at them when judging a pattern of behaviour.
- One series per conduct. Do not stack two different series for the same edits to reach a higher total. Pick the series that matches the conduct and follow its levels.
- If no template fits, write a note instead. The wording of a template is a reason to improve that template or to leave a personal message in your own words. It is never a reason to jump a level: a first approach does not become a level 2 warning because the level 1 text did not suit the case.
What a warning must contain
- The article or the diff. Almost every warning template takes the article name as its first parameter, for example
{{subst:uw-vandalism1|Article name}}. Give it, or add a diff link in your own words after the template. A warning that identifies no edit gives the user nothing to answer and nothing to correct. - Substitution. Warning templates are always substituted, never transcluded, so that the text stays on the talk page even if the template is later changed.
- Your signature. Sign after the template, as with any other talk page message. Tools such as Twinkle and Bharat Mitra add the signature for you.
- Conduct, not content. Warnings are for behaviour that breaks a policy or guideline. A disagreement over what an article should say is a content dispute and is settled on the article's talk page, not with a warning template.
Main template series
The table lists the series that cover most day to day work. "Levels" shows which templates of the series exist on Bharatpedia. Every template is used in the same way, for example {{subst:uw-unsourced1|Article name}} at level 1 and {{subst:uw-unsourced2|Article name}} at level 2.
| Series | For | Levels |
|---|---|---|
| {{uw-vandalism}} | Vandalism | 1, 2, 3, 4, 4im |
| {{uw-unsourced}} | Adding or changing content without a reliable source | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-test}} | Test edits in articles | 1, 2, 3 |
| {{uw-delete}} | Removing content from pages without explanation | 1, 2, 3, 4, 4im |
| {{uw-error}} | Repeated factual errors in articles | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-generic}} | General disruptive conduct not covered by a specific series | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-disruptive}} | Disruptive editing | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-subtle}} | Subtle vandalism, hard to spot changes | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-attempt}} | Attempted disruption that did not succeed | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-joke}} | Joke edits and hoax style humour in articles | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-create}} | Creating inappropriate pages | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-speedy}} | Repeatedly nominating pages for speedy deletion in error | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-afd}} | Misuse of deletion discussions | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-tdel}} | Removing deletion tags from pages | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-tpv}} | Tampering with other users' talk page posts | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-spam}} | Spamming links and promotional material | 1, 2, 3, 4, 4im |
| {{uw-advert}} | Advertising and promotion written like an article | 1, 2, 3, 4, 4im |
| {{uw-coi}} | Editing with an undisclosed conflict of interest | 1, 2, 3 |
| {{uw-paid}} | Undisclosed paid editing | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-npov}} | Repeatedly pushing a point of view into articles | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-nor}} | Adding original research | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-biog}} | Violations of the policy on biographies of living persons | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-defamatory}} | Defamatory content | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-agf}} | Repeated failure to assume good faith | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-npa}} | Personal attacks | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-harass}} | Harassment of other users | 1, 2, 3, 4, 4im |
| {{uw-chat}} | Excessive off topic talk page discussion | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-mos}} | Persistent breaches of the Manual of Style | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-genre}} | Unsourced or repeated genre changes in infoboxes | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-idt}} | Changing image display or identity related fields without sources | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-notcensored}} | Removing content on the ground that it is offensive, against what Bharatpedia is not | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-move}} | Moving pages against naming conventions or consensus | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-upload}} | Problem uploads, including missing licence or source | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-image}} | Image use that breaks the image use policy | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-tempabuse}} | Abuse of templates | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| {{uw-own}} | Claiming ownership of articles | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
Other templates
Besides the levelled series there are many single purpose notices, for example {{uw-copyright}} for copyright problems, {{uw-hoax}} for hoaxes, {{uw-3rr}} for breaking the three revert rule, {{uw-editwar}} for edit warring, {{uw-notability}} for creating articles on subjects that may not be notable, {{uw-preview}} for not using the preview button, {{uw-sign}} and {{uw-tilde}} for unsigned talk page posts, {{uw-username}} for a username problem, and a large set of block notices. The full set is kept in Category:User warning templates and can also be browsed at Special:PrefixIndex/Template:Uw-.