Wikipedia:Proposed deletion of drafts

Proposed deletion of drafts (DRAFTPROD) is a way to remove drafts which are no longer being actively edited and to avoid web host issues. It replaced the WP:G13 speedy deletion criteria. An article must be in the Draft namespace, Userspace with an {{AFC submission}} template, or in Userspace with no content except the article wizard placeholder text to be eligible for DRAFTPROD. Unlike Proposed deletion and Biography of living people proposed deletion an article may be nominated for DRAFTPROD multiple times.

A nominated page is marked for at least seven days; if nobody objects, it is considered by an uninvolved administrator, who reviews the page and may delete it or may remove the DRAFTPROD tag. The first objection kills the DRAFTPROD for at least six months, and anyone may object as long as the DRAFTPROD tag is present. Even after it has been deleted, anyone may have a DRAFTPRODed article or file restored through a request for undeletion.

There are four steps to the DRAFTPROD process:

1. Check that the draft meets the eligibity requirements
2. To nominate a page, place the {{subst:Proposed draft deletion}} tag at the top of the page. This is automatically converted to a {{proposed draft deletion/dated}} which lists the page in Category:Proposed draft deletion. You should notify the article's creator or other significant contributors by adding the {{subst:Proposed draft deletion notify|Name of page}} tag or other appropriate text to contributor talk pages.
3. If anybody objects to the deletion (usually by removing the {{proposed draft deletion/dated}} tag—see full instructions below), the proposal is aborted and may not be re-proposed for a minimum of six months.
4. The page is first checked and then deleted by an administrator seven days after nomination (or any time after seven days that an administrator reviews the page). It may be undeleted upon request. If the reviewing administrator does not agree with the deletion they may remove the DRAFTPROD tag instead of deleting the page.

Nominating

Before nomination

1. Confirm that if this article were nominated for deletion at Articles for deletion, it would likely not survive? If the article would likely survive, move it to mainspace and apply appropriate categories and tags. If you are an Articles for Creation participant the helper script can be used. If the article is on a notable topic consider but is not yet ready to be published, consider improving the article rather than proceeding with deletion.
2. Review the article history to confirm that there have been no human edits in the last six months.
3. Note: To be eligible the article must not have been edited by a human in six months and must be found in:

• Draft namespace,
• Userspace with an {{AFC submission}} template
• Userspace with no content except the article wizard placeholder text.

During nomination

1. Add the {{proposed draft deletion}} tag to the top of the page to nominate it
2. Provide a clear edit summary indicating the draft has been proposed for deletion. Do not mark the edit as minor.
3. Consider adding the page to your watchlist.
4. The draft's creator or other significant contributors should ideally be left a message at their talk page(s) informing them of the proposed deletion. This should be done by adding the {{subst:Proposed draft deletion notify|Name of page}} tag, or other appropriate text.

Objecting

To object to and therefore prevent a proposed deletion, remove the {{proposed draft deletion/dated}} tag from the article. You are strongly encouraged, but not required, to also:

1. Explain why you disagree with the proposed deletion, either in the edit summary or on the talk page.
2. Consider notifying the editors who placed or seconded the PROD by placing a {{subst:Deprod draft}} tag on their user talk page.
3. Consider improving the article.

If anyone, including the creator, removes a proposed draft deletion tag from a page, do not replace it for six months, even if the tag was apparently removed in bad faith. This excludes removals that are clearly not an objection to deletion, such as page blanking or obvious vandalism. In addition, a tag may be restored if removed by a banned user or blocked user evading a block. If you still believe that the page should be deleted, or that a discussion is necessary, list it on Miscellany for deletion.

If the page has already been deleted, please go to Requests for undeletion. Any page which has been deleted as a result of a proposed draft deletion can be undeleted upon request (unless there are other reasons for keeping it deleted, such as a copyright infringement), but it may then be nominated for a deletion discussion. A person requesting undeletion must comply with WMF's Terms of Use (especially in the context of the required paid-contribution disclosure) and the username policy.

Patrolling or checking

Pages that are proposed for deletion are listed in the subcategories of Category:Proposed draft deletion by date of tagging. Any editor may patrol the category to check that pages are correctly nominated or to remove the prod tag. It is strongly encouraged that when removing a prod to give an explanation. This may be placed in the edit summary and/or on the talkpage.

Pages that have been tagged for at least seven days are listed in Category:Expired proposed draft deletions. Administrators should check the pages in this category, and follow the deletion advice below.

Procedure for administrators

Deletion

Before deletion, administrators should check the page, its history, and deletion log to confirm that:

1. The draft is eligible for proposed draft deletion: it is in draft space, Userspace with an {{AFC submission}} template, or Userspace with no content except the article wizard placeholder text and before the tag had not been edited for at least six months by a human.
2. The {{proposed deletion}} tag has been visible on the page for at least 7 continuous days.
3. No objections have been raised on the talk page.

If you decide to delete the page, provide an informative deletion reason, such as "Expired DRAFTPROD".

If you decide not to delete the page, consider editing it to improve the article or move it to mainspace.

Undeletion

An administrator may decide on their own to restore a page that has been deleted after a proposed deletion without having to make the request at Requests for undeletion.