Confluence Global "Auto-Watch" Setting?

[Gregory Sudderth]

You know how sometimes you feel like you know something but can't find the actual data...this is one of those times.

I can't find, either in General Configuration, or in any Space Admin, a way to set "don't set Watch=ON when I create a space, or modify one..." etc.

Can't even find it in the docs! Thanks in advance.

G.

[Jeremy Largman · Accepted solution]

You had the right terminology - it's 'autowatch' you're after. It's in your user preferences:

http://confluence.atlassian.com/display/DOC/Editing+User+Settings#EditingUserSettings-email

1. Go to your name (the 'User' menu) at the top of the page and choose Settings.
2. Click Email in the left-hand panel.
3. Click Edit.

[Gregory Sudderth]

WHOA! I have been using Confluence for 6 months and have never seen that menu (set of menus!). I guess that's what I get for being busy! Thanks! I think I'm going to file this as a bug...somehow I have about 80 pages on "watches" tab...and I didn't watch them (I don't generally). I'm a create-content-and-forget kinda guy right now.

Has there been a case of random pages getting set to Watch?

[Gregory Sudderth]

Now this is interesting: its even got me watching a deleted page...and there's no way to delete that watch...not a big problem (never gonna trigger unless the page is restored/replaced) but it looks like a bug to me! I will file it.

[Jeremy Largman]

It's likely that you're getting these as auto-watched because you created or commented on them, I suspect?

Notice the discussion and update from Sherif (our product manager) about a potential global setting for this:

https://jira.atlassian.com/browse/CONF-22070

[David Skreiner]

Atlassian refused to allow a global setting; and unless you enable email, users won't even be able to turn the setting off in their preferences. The argument was, I believe, that users enjoy getting mailbombed. https://jira.atlassian.com/browse/CONF-22070