Changing how phpBB numbers posts when one is deleted

A change to core behaviour so that deleting a post leaves its number in place instead of renumbering everything after it.

The objective

phpBB works post numbers out from position, so removing a post shifts the numbering of every post after it. On a board where people cite post numbers, that breaks every reference at once.

The client needed a delete to remove the content of a post while keeping the post itself in the sequence, with its number and its author record still there.

No extension setting covers this. It changes how the software counts.

What I did

I read through how phpBB derives post numbers and where deletion touches them.

I changed the deletion path so a delete clears the post's content rather than removing the row, which leaves the numbering of every later post untouched.

I kept the information the client wanted retained on a deleted post, and made author and moderator deletion behave the same way.

The result

Post numbers stayed stable through deletions, so references between posts kept pointing at the right place.