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DarkMode should automatically set the mode based on user's preferred colour scheme
Open, Needs TriagePublic

Description

Background
In T328850 we made dark mode tri-state in Vector 2022 and Minerva skins.
We should copy the approach here in the third party dark mode extension.

Feature summary:
Browsers report the user’s preferred color scheme (dark/light) via media query.

  • The behavior should be changed to allow for deriving the color scheme from that media query instead of choosing an option manually.
  • The UI should be changed to allow switching between three options: “automatic”, “light”, and “dark”. Options for the UX are e.g. the “Theme” dropdown on https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/, three radio buttons, or a button cycling through the three options.
  • The default should be “automatic” to follow the system wide setting (available in Windows 11, macOS, and most Linux desktop environments).

Use case(s):

  • I have my system set up to sync color scheme with daylight. I want all websites with dark/light toggles to honor this automatic switch at sundown/sunrise.
  • People with sensitive eyes need dark mode. Following the system scheme by default prevents a flash of light hurting them.

Benefits:

  • Less clicking around and searching for UX for users who have set a preference globally.
  • Less pain for people relying on dark mode for health reasons.
  • Only way to support daylight dependent dark/light mode.

Event Timeline

Redmin renamed this task from Dark mode toggle needs to be tri state in Extension:DarkMode to DarkMode should automatically set the mode based on user's preferred colour scheme.Aug 31 2025, 11:36 AM
Redmin updated the task description. (Show Details)

Change #1184041 had a related patch set uploaded (by R4356thwiki; author: R4356thwiki):

[mediawiki/extensions/DarkMode@master] Set the mode based on user's preferred colour scheme

https://gerrit.wikimedia.org/r/1184041