View source for Scratchpad:Three-revert rule

{{policy}}__NOWYSIWYG__ __NOEDITSECTION__
{{shortcut|SP:3RR|SP:WAR}}
{{nutshell box|If you revert an article three times within 24 hours, '''you will be [[Project:Blocking policy|blocked]]'''.}}<br>
<span style="margin-left: 24px; color: red; font-size: 125%; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">The following is official policy at Scratchpad.</span><br>
Editors who engage in '''edit warring''' are liable to be [[SP:BLOCK|blocked]] from editing to prevent further disruption. While any edit warring may lead to sanctions, there is a [[wikipedia:bright-line rule|bright-line rule]] called the '''three-revert rule''' ('''3RR'''), the violation of which often leads to a block. The three-revert rule states:
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{{divbox|blue|radius=1em||An editor must not perform '''more than three reverts''' on a '''single page''' — whether involving the same or different material — within a '''24-hour period'''. An edit or a series of consecutive edits that undoes other editors’ actions — whether in whole or in part — counts as a revert. Violations of the rule normally attract blocks of at least 24 hours. Any appearance of gaming the system by reverting a fourth time just outside the 24-hour slot is likely to be treated as an edit-warring violation.&nbsp;<small><b>[[#3RR exemptions|&darr;&nbsp;See below for exemptions&nbsp;&darr;]]</b></small>}}
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A ''page'' means any page on {{SITENAME}}, including talk and project space. A ''revert'' means any edit (or administrative action) that reverses the actions of other editors, in whole or in part, whether involving the same or different material. A series of consecutively saved, reverted edits by one user with no intervening edits by another user counts as one revert. 

The three-revert rule applies per person, not per account; reverts made by [[Project:Sock puppetry|multiple accounts]] operated by one editor count together. Editors violating 3RR will usually be blocked for 24 hours for a first incident. {{anchor|Not an entitlement|Is not an entitlement}} Even without a 3RR violation, an [[Help:Administrator|Administrator]] may still act if they believe a user’s behavior constitutes edit warring, and any user may [[Project:Requests for page protection|report edit warring]] with or without 3RR being breached. The rule is '''not an entitlement''' to revert a page a specific number of times.

If an editor violates 3RR by mistake, they should [[SP:UNDO|reverse]] their own most recent reversion. Administrators may take this into account and decide not to block in such cases — for example, if the user is not a habitual edit warrior and is genuinely trying to rectify their own mistake.

====3RR exemptions====
{{anchor|Exceptions|Reverting potentially libellous material}}<!--- pls don't change sec title without adding old title to anchor --->
{{shortcut|SP:3RRNO|SP:NOT3RR}}

The following actions are ''not'' counted as reverts for the purposes of 3RR:

# {{anchors|1}}Reverting your own actions (“self-reverting”). 
# {{anchors|2}}Reverting edits to pages in your own user space, so long as you are respecting the [[Help:User page|user page]] guidelines.
# {{anchors|3}}Reverting actions performed by banned users, and [[Project:Sock puppetry|sockpuppets]] of [[Project:Banning policy|banned]] and [[Project:Blocking policy|block]]ed users.
# {{anchors|4}}Reverting '''obvious''' [[Project:Vandalism|vandalism]] — edits that any well-intentioned user would agree constitute vandalism, such as page blanking and adding offensive language.
# {{anchors|5}}Removal of clear [[Help:Copyright|copyright violations]] or content that '''unquestionably''' violates [[wikipedia:Wikipedia:Non-free content criteria|the non-free content policy]] (NFCC). What counts as exempt under NFCC can be controversial, and should be established as a violation first. Consider reporting to an [[Project:Administrator|Administrator]] instead of relying on this exemption.
# {{anchors|6}}Removal of other content that is clearly illegal under US law, such as [[wikipedia:child pornography|child pornography]] and [[wikipedia:pirated software|pirated software]].
# {{anchors|7}}Removal of [[wikipedia:libel|libel]]ous, biased, unsourced, or poorly sourced contentious material that violates the policy on [[wikipedia:Wikipedia:Biographies of living persons|biographies of living persons]] (BLP). What counts as exempt under BLP can be controversial. Consider reporting to an [[Project:Administrator|Administrator]] instead of relying on this exemption.

{{important}} If you are claiming an exemption, make sure there is a clearly visible edit summary or separate section of the talk page that explains the exemption. When in doubt, do not revert. Instead, engage in dispute resolution, and in particular ask for help from an [[Project:Administrator|Administrator]].

=== Other revert rules ===
{{policy shortcut|SP:0RR|SP:1RR}}
Additional restrictions on reverting are sometimes imposed on particular editors and/or particular pages, by [[Project:Administrator|{{SITENAME}} Administrators]], or by the community (see [[Project:Editing restrictions|Editing restrictions]]). These may be phrased using such terms as '''1RR''' (“one-revert rule”), or '''0RR''' (“zero-revert rule”). A ''one-revert rule'' is often analogous to the three-revert rule as described above, with the words “more than three reverts” replaced by “more than one revert”. Often there is also a requirement to discuss each of the reversions on the [[Help:Talk pages|article talk page]], and sometimes the words “24-hour period” are also replaced by “1 week”. A ''zero-revert rule'' means a complete prohibition on reverts (as defined for the purposes of the three-revert rule, above). Editors can also voluntarily agree to abide by a stricter standard on reverting such as 1RR or 0RR, either in response to problems in a particular area, or as a general editing philosophy. For more details, see [[{{ns:Project}}:Revert only when necessary]].
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{{wikipedia|WP:3RR}}