ICT:System RESET - FIles and Asset Namespace

System Reset – Assets, Files, and Cargo (DEV)

This document defines the **authoritative cleanup procedure** for the development environment of the Asset system (v2.x).

It reflects **real-world behavior** observed on:

• MediaWiki 1.45
• Cargo extension
• AlmaLinux
• MariaDB
• Development-only data (fully disposable)

This procedure is EXPECTED to be executed multiple times during development.

DO NOT use on production systems.

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0. Scope and Principles

• All Asset data is test data
• No historical preservation is required
• Cleanup must be:
  • deterministic
  • fast
  • repeatable
• SQL-level cleanup is ACCEPTABLE and PREFERRED in development

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1. Enter Maintenance Mode

Edit LocalSettings.php and add near the top:

$wgReadOnly = 'System maintenance in progress';

This prevents user edits and uploads during cleanup.

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2. Safeguard Files to Keep (if any)

If a small number of images must be preserved (e.g. Main Page images):

1. Open each File: page
2. Download the original file locally
3. Verify the local copy

After this step, ALL files on the server may be deleted.

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3. Delete All Files (Filesystem)

On the MediaWiki server:

rm -rf /var/www/mediawiki/images/*

Notes:

• Do NOT delete the images/ directory itself
• This removes originals, thumbnails, archives, and temp files

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4. Clean File Metadata (Database)

Using phpMyAdmin on the MediaWiki database:

TRUNCATE TABLE image;
TRUNCATE TABLE oldimage;
TRUNCATE TABLE filearchive;

Result:

• Special:FileList becomes empty
• Filename history is forgotten
• Re-uploading old filenames is allowed

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5. Delete File Namespace Pages

Deleting files does NOT delete File: pages. These pages must be removed explicitly.

Standard namespace IDs:

• File = 6
• File talk = 7

Using phpMyAdmin (MediaWiki database):

DELETE FROM page WHERE page_namespace = 6;
DELETE FROM page WHERE page_namespace = 7;

Then clean orphaned content:

DELETE FROM revision WHERE rev_page NOT IN (SELECT page_id FROM page);
DELETE FROM text WHERE old_id NOT IN (SELECT rev_text_id FROM revision);

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6. Delete Asset Namespace Pages

Asset namespaces are custom and defined in LocalSettings.php.

In this system:

• Asset namespace ID = 3014
• Asset talk namespace ID = 3015

Using phpMyAdmin (MediaWiki database):

DELETE FROM page WHERE page_namespace = 3014;
DELETE FROM page WHERE page_namespace = 3015;

Then clean orphaned content:

DELETE FROM revision WHERE rev_page NOT IN (SELECT page_id FROM page);
DELETE FROM text WHERE old_id NOT IN (SELECT rev_text_id FROM revision);

Rationale:

• MediaWiki 1.45 maintenance scripts for mass deletion are inconsistent
• SQL cleanup is faster, clearer, and reliable for DEV resets

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7. Clean Cargo Asset Data

Asset dashboards read from Cargo, not from pages.

Using phpMyAdmin on the Cargo database:

TRUNCATE TABLE Assets;

Result:

• Dashboards become empty
• Sequence numbers reset
• No ghost Asset rows remain

The dashboard PAGE itself must NOT be deleted.

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8. Optional Hygiene Step

After large SQL deletions, optionally run:

php maintenance/run.php refreshLinks

This is not mandatory but recommended after repeated resets.

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9. Verification Checklist

All of the following must be true:

• Special:FileList → empty
• Special:AllPages (File) → empty
• Special:AllPages (Asset) → empty
• Asset dashboards → empty (no rows)
• Cargo Assets table → empty

If all checks pass, the system is in a true zero state.

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10. Exit Maintenance Mode

When cleanup is complete:

1. Remove or comment out:

  // $wgReadOnly = 'System maintenance in progress';

1. Reload the wiki
2. Log in
3. Re-upload preserved images (if any)

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11. Usage Policy

This reset procedure is:

• APPROVED for development and testing
• EXPECTED to be reused during Asset v2.x stabilization
• FORBIDDEN on production systems

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End of document