System Reset – Files and Asset Namespace

This document defines the **standard, repeatable procedure** to fully clean the system during Asset v2.x development.

It is intended for **development and testing environments only**. All data (Assets and files) is assumed to be disposable.

This procedure MAY be executed multiple times during development.

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1. Preconditions

Before starting:

You have shell access to the MediaWiki server
You have phpMyAdmin access to the MariaDB/Cargo database
MediaWiki is NOT in active use by other users
Any files that must be preserved have been downloaded locally

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2. Safeguard Files to Keep (if any)

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

Open each File page
Download the original file locally
Verify the local copy opens correctly

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

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3. Delete ALL Files (Filesystem Level)

On the MediaWiki server, remove all stored files.

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

Notes:

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

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4. Clean File Metadata (Database Level)

Using phpMyAdmin on the MariaDB server, execute the following SQL commands on the MediaWiki database:

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

Result:

Special:FileList becomes empty
File history is forgotten
Re-uploading previously used filenames is allowed

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5. Run MediaWiki File Cleanup Script

On the MediaWiki server, run:

php maintenance/cleanupImages.php

Purpose:

Removes residual inconsistencies
Ensures MediaWiki state matches filesystem and database

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6. Delete ALL Asset Pages (Namespace Cleanup)

6.1 Determine Asset Namespace ID

In phpMyAdmin, run:

SELECT ns_id, ns_name FROM mw_namespace;

Note the numeric ns_id corresponding to Asset. (Example: 300 – actual value may differ.)

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6.2 Generate List of Asset Pages

On the MediaWiki server:

php maintenance/getAllPages.php --namespace=3014 > /tmp/asset_pages.txt

Replace NS_ID with the Asset namespace ID.

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6.3 Delete Asset Pages in Bulk

Run:

php maintenance/deleteBatch.php /tmp/asset_pages.txt

Result:

All pages in the Asset namespace are deleted
Revisions and logs are handled correctly
No UI interaction required

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7. Clean Cargo Asset Data

Using phpMyAdmin on the Cargo database, execute:

TRUNCATE TABLE Assets;

Result:

No Asset data remains
Dashboards return empty
Sequence numbers reset cleanly

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8. Optional Hygiene Step

After large deletions, optionally run:

php maintenance/refreshLinks.php

This is not mandatory but recommended after repeated resets.

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9. Verification Checklist

After completing all steps:

Special:FileList → empty
Special:AllPages (File namespace) → empty
Special:AllPages (Asset namespace) → empty
Asset dashboards → empty
Uploading a previously used filename → allowed

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

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10. Usage Policy

This reset procedure is:

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

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End of document