[DEPR]: `scrollToXBlock` scrolling handled by `edx-platform` instead of MFEs

[brian-smith-tcril]

RFC Start Date

N/A -- Already Accepted

Target Plan Accepted Date

N/A -- Already Accepted

Target Transition Unblocked Date

Immediately -- Transition Already Unblocked

Earliest Breaking Changes Unblocked Date

2025-08-18

Rationale

An issue was reported with xblock scrolling openedx/openedx-aspects#316

The fix for this issue involved updating scrollToXBlock to post a message #37152, and having MFEs handle that message and scroll appropriately openedx/frontend-app-authoring#2363

Description

The only use of this throughout the Open edX GitHub org is the use mentioned in the issue (frontend-app-authoring + in-context-metrics).

If you have already deployed a version of frontend-app-authoring that includes openedx/frontend-app-authoring@be82e96, and you don't have any custom MFEs that rely on scrollToXBlock, you are ready for this change.

If you are not using the in context metrics aspects plugin for frontend-app-authoring, and you don't have any custom MFEs that rely on scrollToXBlock, you are ready for this change.

Task List

No response

[kdmccormick]

Thanks @brian-smith-tcril . Because your Earliest Breaking Changes date is today, I'll update the ticket status to Breaking Changes Unblocked.

Would you mind putting another sentence or two in the ticket explaining what the specific "breaking" part is, and how an operator would know if they need to do something? Most operators who read these tickets aren't active core developers themselves so they're unlikely to be familiar with what scrollToXBlock is and whether it affects them.

[brian-smith-tcril]

@kdmccormick I updated the description to include some "If X you are ready for this change" lines. I'd like to get a 👍 on this description from @saraburns1 before landing #37152 to verify we're not missing anything.

[saraburns1]

Looks good to me - thanks @brian-smith-tcril !