How do you mass delete users while deleting posts and topics started

[wiiztec]

I can't figure it out

[MotorCookie]

I can't figure it out

Having a spam problem? You can go to admin>members and mass delete them there. Though, not sure if it will delete their posts.

[melanie1986]

You can do it through the Admin panel. There is an option also to delete those users posts as well

[wiiztec]

Do you actually think that the admin panel is not where i've been looking, when you mass delete members it gives you no option to delete their posts and topics created, and it doesn't I've tested it. It only gives you the option to delete posts and topics created when you choose delete user on the users profile page. So am I missing something or is this a huge oversight on the part of the SMF devs?

[Kindred]

wow... rude much?  They are trying to help you...

and I would hardly call it a "huge oversight"
mass delete is not often needed or used.

[wiiztec]

Well I don't like being talked to like I'm stupid, If that makes me rude than something is wrong with this world. Mass delete not often needed? Are you aware of how many small forums that try to start up get swamped with spambots within a few months?

[Kindred]

and most of them figure it out and/or start with some anti-spam methods...

So.. no, it's not frequently needed.

1- mass delete the users.
2- mass delete the spam posts.

problem solved.

[wiiztec]

How do I do 2 after 1?

[Kill Em All]

If you want to mass delete both users and topics? Why not just use a fresh SMF database?

In the admin panel, you can also use forum maintenance for both members and topics. Just make the numbers really low. 0 or 1 should work for both.

As Kindred stated, this is not an overlook. It just simply is rarely need, and also rarely asked for here in the support forums.

[wiiztec]

Forum maintenance for members allows you to reassign guest posts to a user but it's useless to me because it makes you specify a email or username of the guests posts to reassign. Forum maintenance for topics only allows you to delete old topics which isn't even relevant to what I need to do

[Kill Em All]

If you look further down, you will see a title that says "Remove Inactive Members"

In the drop down, select logged in. Then for the days type 1. You can then click on the membergroups and select the membergroup you would like to remove.

Be careful not to select the administrator group or you could possibly delete yourself. Which shouldn't happen since you are logged in but I can't be certain.

Now onto the topics. I'm pretty sure its what you are looking for. It will delete posts within them too. Same process as above pretty much with the users.

[Kindred]

or you can switch to the checkbox moderation option and then just check the threads which you want to delete from the message index and select "remove"

[wiiztec]

Where is that option?

[Kindred]

profile > look and layout > Show quick-moderation as: checkboxes

You could have done a quick check of the wiki
http://wiki.simplemachines.org/smf/Deleting_posts

[wiiztec]

The checkbox topic removal only removes topics on that particular page making things very slow, being able to mass delete users and thier posts and topics created at the same time really is the most sensible way to combat spambots

[wiiztec]

Ok I just found out the same thing applies to deleting members so theirs actually no reasonable way to even mass delete spambots at all. I have 330 pages of spambots and I can only delete them 1 page at a time

[Kindred]

well, I am sorry to hear that.
However, it is generally assumed that Admins pay attention to their site(s) - so 330 pages of spambots and posts is QUITE unusual and unlikely for the normal site.

[wiiztec]

Not posts, just spambots, and they all registered within a few days

is there anyway I can just delete all members above a certain member ID?

[Kindred]

well, you could TRUNCATE the table directly in phpmyadmin...   but I'm not sure what sort of other interaction that might have with other tables.



NOTE: ALWAYS BACKUP FIRST

[wiiztec]

What table?

[Kindred]

the smf_members table......

first, be sure to look up HOW to phrase the truncate command
second, backup

[waris]

Dont blow your top. We are trying to help you.

First is first: You should stop the spam!

To do this you will have to install a few of the right MOD's to your forum and set them.

Follow this links: http://custom.simplemachines.org/mods/index.php?action=search;type=19;bool=and;asc;start=10

Once the Bots are stopped in their tracks, then you can start the Clean up.
Consider starting new [Clean-up category] and [Transit Boards] and salvage your Topics and articles by moving them to the transit boards.

After moving, Delete the old board together with the spam.

Next Add a new Board with the same name as the one you just deleted and move all the Topics and Articles from Transit back in.

If this system is too long winded for you.

I suggest that slowly but surely delete all the spam you find one by one.

I had more than 600 spam in my orchidforum.

Lucky me I had just started the forum, so I just Delete all the Categories together with the Boards and restart again.

I have had no more problem after installing the MOD's linked above.

[wiiztec]

Spam is already stopped, I made registration by admin approval only, and I deleted it all yesterday but I still have 318 pages of banned spambot accounts to delete

[Kindred]

and we've told you several ways to do it.

Yes... it is going to take some work.

[helmar]

My problem is slightly different. I don't want to remove inactive members or spam bot entries, but invalid email addresses that I received after sending out a newsletter. I now have 260 emails in a list, where ideally I'd like to mass delete (mass remove) members in one fell swoop. Is that in any way possible? Couldn't find anyting in the mods section either.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Helmar

[Kindred]

no.... there is no way to do that.

[helmar]

Thanks, Kindred. I've eventually done a simple "delete from members where email_address..." in my SQL frontend, and then run the maintenance tasks within the Forum admin. That got rid of those entries, at least on the surface.

Cheers,

Helmar

PS: My forums are at hxxp:www.mrmasterkey.com/forum [nonactive] (German), and at hxxp:www.masterkeysystem.tv/forum [nonactive], for those interested.

[Kindred]

deleting users from SQL is sure to cause problems if those users have posts, PMs or other settings....

In other words you have left any number of orphaned rows in the various tables of the database

[helmar]

deleting users from SQL is sure to cause problems if those users have posts, PMs or other settings....

Yes, I figured that much.

In other words you have left any number of orphaned rows in the various tables of the database

When I ran the table maintenance, those errors were picked up. I clicked "fix errors", and without knowing what happened in details, they were 'fixed'.

I guess the best is to have added functionality that allows for a clean mass removal of users, because in forums such as mine, it's normal that people get excited at first, register, follow, but then drop out again. And then, when you send out a newsletter, you sit with about 250 invalid emails of a forum totalling 2700 members.

Alternatively, and you are free to pass it on, is a feature that emails the all and/or lapsed members with a reminder link, which they need to click in order to stay on. If they don't click, the system chucks them out, deletes PM, and sets their posts to "guest". In addition, if the email is still valid, they can click on an unsubscribe link, which removes their profile from the forum, and sets the posts to "guest" - or alternatively deletes those too.

Wanna go fancy: have an option to collate the PMs and email them to their current address, before removing them and the profile.

Just thinking out loud here. Feel free to do with it as you please.

Helmar

[Kindred]

well, we've already discussed the ability to mass delete -- it's not actually that common an occurrence as you two seem to think.

As for auto deletion...  no, never.

[helmar]

well, we've already discussed the ability to mass delete -- it's not actually that common an occurrence as you two seem to think.

Not sure how you would know, because as with many other features, some are becoming only popular the moment they are made available.

As for auto deletion...  no, never.

I wasn't talking about auto-delete, but if you click on a link to unsubscribe from a newsletter, you should be able to click on a link to delete a forum profile. One security check, and and then "GO!". One could tighten this to one's heart's content, though, but it should be possible to get lapsed members to remove their profile without first logging in, and one should be able to remove members without calling up each one individually.

That's just my 0.02,

Helmar

[Kindred]

you CAN select multiple users for deletion... and delete them properly, through the admin tools - just not based on email.

And no...   there are dozens if not hundred of issues with accepting email input...
that's one reason why SMF has never made a formal post-by-email feature.
delete account by email would be a nightmare for forum security.


edit - however, it just occurred to me that you could already do that yourself by using the newletter feature.   Send a newsletter to the users with a link to their profile-delete-account action.