Jared Zimmerman, 19/03/2014 00:29:
Since login requirements could vary from site to site it makes sense for non-WMF wikis to require a local link if they carry a help link on their login page.
for our own sites, I think the current behavior is fine. That page could use some serious cleanup and simplification though.
The patch doesn't change anything for existing wikis, existing local (definitions of) links are kept; only the default link changes.
Nemo