Just curious, what is the use of 'Replies on this topic are automatically deleted after a month'?

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The discussion explores the purpose of the ā€œReplies on this topic are automatically deleted after a monthā€ feature, which is used to reduce clutter in topics like documentation or game threads by removing old replies. Replies with 5 or more likes are exempt from deletion, and this setting can be adjusted via skip auto delete reply likes. The feature is available on self-hosted instances. Users suggest creative uses, such as maintaining game chains or building FAQ-like content by keeping high-value replies. While replies with enough likes are preserved, users can manually copy useful information to the original post. The auto-delete duration can be set per topic via Topic Timer settings, though the option to set it per category was not confirmed.

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Have seem some topics have this notification at the bottom of replys, what is this used for?

And, is that a function can be enabled on self installed instances?

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Hey,

Its used mostly in topics where you have docs and you want to keep the topic free from old replies / clutter etc. After a set period of time you can automatically delete the replies. If a post has 5 or more likes it does not get deleted. This value can be changed by this setting skip auto delete reply likes

This feature can be used on self installed instance

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At the more frivolous end, it can be used for game topics too. We have some A-Z, Last Letter, etc chain-style games, and having a topic timer allows those to be cleared out automatically so they donā€™t bloat out. :+1:

Weā€™ve even used it as part of the game structure for a couple, where the timer is set for 1 day and the idea is to keep the ā€˜chain streakā€™ going for as long as possible before being wiped out back to the OP/stub post.

Probably not useful to more serious forums, but thought Iā€™d throw it in for good measure. :slightly_smiling_face:

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Can this be enabled in a way that selected replies are kept?
The use case would be to build up a FAQ-like list of useful comments bellow while removing clutter, keeping the question and the answer or something like that.

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The ones with 5+ Likes are kept, as @ondrej explains above. However, you can copy and paste any useful information from the comments/replies and add it to the OP if thatā€™s a better place for it.

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I can only find the setting for skip auto delete reply likes

Where can I turn on and change the # of days for auto deleting replies on a topic? Or, better yet, can it be set per category?

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Nevermind. I found it in the Topic Timer settings on each topic.

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