Research Title

Version

Research Iteration: v1.0
Wiki.js: 2.5.312
Date: 2026-04-04

Previous Versions

none

Author

Samuel

Context

MediaWiki is old and prooven, has a solid maintenance basis and we can be sure it will still be there in a decade or two (unless some global collapse happens), but it is also visibly old. Maybe the time has come to evaluate more modern Wiki sollutions?

Problem

Evaluating other options for the Wiki backend before fully committing to MediaWiki

Options

Findings

While Wiki.js has for sure some really nice and fancy features, it also lacks in the core area of what we need from our Wiki:

long-term stability: It seems that the transition from Wiki.js 1.xx to 2.xx was not without having to migrate the old Wikis. Not a deal-breaker, but still an effort we are not looking for to have to do in the future. MediaWiki has millions of pages to be compatible with, so they will most likely not go for breaking changes, unless unavoidable.

features:
- Markdown: It is nice for the stuff it is suitable and made for. For example nice Readme files like on GitHub, or other lightweight applications. A fullblown Wiki is however quite different. WikiText is so heavy because people did need those features. Markdown immediately looses its fancyness when you bump into basic features it lacks. This starts even with images: You can add simple images, but no control about alignment or even just scale. You have to go with an HTML image tag for that already. Being able to click on an image to enlarge? Even a simple gallery view? Apparently you are already out of luck
- Templates: MediaWiki has quite a solid template system. Wiki.js not so much.

Conclusion

Just stick with MediaWiki. It might not be as fancy, but it is rock solid and proven, and it has a lot of features and a mature ecosystem with additional plugins.

Implementation Notes

Open Questions