 | This template may have no transclusions, because it is substituted by a tool or script, it is used as part of a short-term or less active Wikipedia process, or for some other reason. |
 | This template is used on approximately 4,700 pages and changes may be widely noticed. Test changes in the template's /sandbox or /testcases subpages, or in your own user subpage. Consider discussing changes on the talk page before implementing them. |
This template can be added to templates' {{documentation}} pages or nested within <noinclude>...</noinclude> tags for templates that are used occasionally but may often have zero transclusions or orphaned. Adding this template will prevent the template on which it is transcluded from appearing on reports of unused templates for the Unused Templates Task Force, like Wikipedia:Database reports/Unused templates/1, which in turn will limit misguided TfD nominations.
Reasons why useful templates may not have any transclusions include, but are not limited to:
- The template is applied to speedy deletion candidates, which are subsequently deleted, leaving no transclusions of a template.
- The template is substituted or otherwise applied by a script or tool like Twinkle or the page curation tools. (Also see below for a note about {{Always substitute}}.)
- The template is applied to
File:namespace pages to tag them when they are not used anywhere but they are under discussion regarding copyright-related concerns, and are then removed when those concerns are addressed or when the file is deleted. - The template is boilerplate code or made of page fragments that are used to build new pages.
- The template is currently undergoing a merger after discussion.
Usage
| Do not use this on templates that must be substituted. {{Always substitute}} is for that. |
Parameters
|should=yes can be used if the template should not be transcluded, i.e. an error will be shown if the template is transcluded. It will replace the "may" with "should" in "This template may have no transclusions."
|reason= can be used to customize the message within the template. The default reason, which will be replaced by your custom text, is "it is substituted by a tool or script, it is used as part of a short-term or less active Wikipedia process, or for some other reason".
TemplateData
This template can be added to the documentation pages of templates that are used occasionally but may often have zero transclusions, hiding them from reports of unused templates.
| Parameter | Description | Type | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| should | should | Replaces "may" with "should" in the notice | Boolean | optional |
| reason | reason | Customizes the message within the template
| String | optional |
List of subst helper templates
- {{require substitution}} – Prints an error unless substituted.
- {{substituted or transcluded}} – if-then-else metatemplate that checks if a template is currently being substituted or transcluded
- {{always substitute}} – For the doc of the above templates; prints a message asking for it be substituted.
- {{never substitute}} – The reverse of {{always substitute}}. For the doc of templates which should not be substituted; prints a message asking for it not to be substituted.
- {{may be substituted}} – For the doc of templates whose substitution is optional.
- {{substitution}} – Allows free-fill description of whether the template should be substituted and under what conditions.
- {{ifsubst}} – Forks if substituted or not.
- {{issubst}} – Returns "yes" if substituted.
- {{HTML comment}} – To sign substitutions with comments that contain wikitext expansions
- Module:Unsubst – Prevents substitution.
- Module:Unsubst-infobox – Prevents substitution for infoboxes, cleans up parameters.