README

A Moodle local plugin that stops browsers, browser extensions and translation services from automatically translating a Moodle site. It injects every page-level technique those tools are known to honour into every page of the site. An administrator can switch each technique on or off.

Requires Moodle 5.2 or 5.3 ($plugin->supported = [502, 503]). The CI workflow in .github/workflows/ci.yml tests MOODLE_502_STABLE on PHP 8.3 and 8.4, PostgreSQL and MariaDB; moodle.git main (5.3) as a non-blocking job.

Installation

Copy the plugin to public/local/nevertranslate in your Moodle code.
Run php admin/cli/upgrade.php (or visit Site administration > Notifications).
Configure it at Site administration > Plugins > Local plugins > Never translate.

After installing, purge caches if the markup doesn't appear: Moodle caches the list of hook callbacks.

Techniques

All are on by default except Revert. The settings page has a "Select all/none" toggle.

Technique	What it emits	Who honours it
`htmltranslate`	`<html translate="no">`	The HTML standard's attribute. Google Translate (Chrome's built-in translation and the website widget) and Yandex leave the whole page untranslated, including titles and placeholders. Stops Chrome on iOS from offering to translate. It does not stop Chrome on desktop or Android from offering.
`htmlclass`	`<html class="notranslate">`	Google Translate, the Microsoft Translator service, DeepL, Immersive Translate. It's merged with any class other plugins add.
`metagoogle`	`<meta name="google" content="notranslate">`	The only markup that stops Chrome on desktop and Android from offering to translate or translating automatically. Reportedly also stops Microsoft Edge's offer.
`bodyclass`	`<body class="notranslate">`	Firefox's built-in Translations looks for markers on `<body>`, not on `<html>`. Also Google, DeepL, Immersive Translate.
`bodytranslate`	`<body translate="no">`, set by a one-line script right after `<body>`	Same as above. Moodle has no hook for body attributes, only body classes.
`metarobots`	`<meta name="robots" content="notranslate">`	Google Search only: search results don't offer a translated version of the page.
`xrobotstag`	`X-Robots-Tag: notranslate` header	Google Search only.
`guard`	Inline head script	Puts the markers above back if something removes them. Changes any `translate="yes"` (or empty `translate`) in page content, for example in HTML pasted into the editor, to `translate="no"`.
`revert`	Inline head script (off by default)	When the page has been translated (detected from Google's `translated-ltr`/`translated-rtl` class, a changed `lang`, or Edge's `_msttexthash` markers), it clears the Google widget's `googtrans` cookie and reloads the page. If the translation comes straight back (within 30 seconds, for example because the browser always translates), it gives up for that page view. It never reloads a form submission (POST).

What no markup can do

A user who deliberately chooses "Translate" from the browser menu can still do so. Chrome, Edge and Firefox all allow this. The markers above keep the content untranslated in most translators, but they can't hide the menu item. Revert undoes such a translation by reloading. That overrides the user's choice and loses anything typed into the page, which is why it is opt-in.
To switch translation off in the browsers themselves, use browser policies, for example TranslateEnabled for Chrome and Edge.
Pages Moodle outputs without its theme aren't covered: the static CLI maintenance page, very early error pages, and AJAX or web service responses.

Deliberately not included

These were researched and left out because no evidence was found that anything honours them, or because they're harmful: <meta name="translate" content="no">, <meta name="microsoft" content="notranslate">, style="notranslate", <meta http-equiv="Content-Language">, Bing-specific robots rules, and the skiptranslate class, which is also the Google widget's own UI class and is commonly hidden by CSS. Moodle core already sends Content-Language and sets lang on <html>. Those help language detection but aren't an opt-out.

Privacy

The plugin stores no personal data. The Revert script keeps a timestamp per page in the browser's sessionStorage (keys starting local_nevertranslate_reloaded:) to prevent reload loops.

License

GNU GPL v3 or later. See LICENSE.

adamjenkins / moodle-local_nevertranslate

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