Proposal:10 - Remaining on MediaWiki 1.39

Proposal Details

Proposer: Ampera

Initial proposal date: July 8th, 2023

Last update: August 5th, 2023

Status: Proposed

Preamble

Since the creation of OpenWiki and for a while before, the general practice for member sites has been to update the sites to the latest stable version of MediaWiki. At the time of writing this proposal, MediaWiki 1.40 has been released, for which we'd normally begin work to update the sites.

However, since we are presently on MediaWiki 1.39, which is an LTS version, we now have the option of remaining on this version until the release of the next LTS version. This, however, does not have to apply to all sites. Maintaining multiple versions of MediaWiki is not much more work than keeping everything the same, and as such, this proposal exists to establish a choice for sites.

S1. Course of Action

1. Upon passing, no effort shall be made to update the MediaWiki version of all OpenWiki member sites until the release of the next LTS version of MediaWiki.
2. Regular effort to update and maintain necessary security patches shall continue to be made as normal
3. In the event a site wishes to track the most recent stable version of MediaWiki, a request can be made to the contracted host to do so.
4. Sites will not be able to return to LTS versions once upgraded
5. Sites which track most recent stable will not be allowed to stay on old versions. Only LTS or most recent stable will be supported.

S2. Benefits of LTS

1. Remaining on LTS requires, in general, less effort on the part of sysadmins to keep the sites up to date
2. Fewer software changes and less invasive updates means more uptime, and more stability for sites
3. Software functionality remains consistent for a longer time, with at least two years between version turnover
4. Deprecated extensions and features, such as Variables, will be available for a potentially longer period of time
5. Custom skins are less likely to break as often

S3. Detriments of LTS

1. Newer features in MediaWiki will take significantly longer to be available on OpenWiki sites
2. Newer versions/features in MediaWiki extensions may not be available until a later LTS version
3. Bigger jump when updating to the next version (may break more all at once, than a bit over time)

Voting

This proposal requires a simple majority to pass.

Votes in favor

1. Certainly helps sysadmins, and I think most people are fine with LTS versions. Ampera (talk) 01:17, 6 August 2023 (UTC)
2. We should take these updates as slowly as possible, so sticking with 1.39 will be fair game. Trying to stay up to date means certain function could break per each MediaWiki update. -- PanchamBro (talk • contributions) 01:20, 6 August 2023 (UTC)