Are there any good guides for setting up an IRC server? I'd like to set one up as a place for users to chat. When were at GoDaddy, we used PHP Free Chat, which was a similar browser program, except it didn't reserve names, even for administrator usernames; all admin passwords did was give the admin rights. All malicious users needed to do to prevent op access was to use op names. I don't know much about what IRC servers there are, but I don't need anything complex. Clear directions would be good.

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It's probably not worth bothering; IRC servers are complex, require a fair amount of maintenance, and seem to attract trouble (many hosts ban them, and while Linode doesn't, the Atlanta datacenter does).

It's probably easier to just let somebody else do it for you. Mibbit (http://mibbit.com/) is a web-based client intended for this sort of purpose, and they run their own IRC server for people to use with their websites (you can connect to it using a classical IRC program as well). And best of all, Mibbit is all hosted at Linode.

Something I'd like to add, as a seasoned IRC server administrator - If you want to run an actual IRC server, you need to know how IRC itself works, period. That not only means having at least a basic understanding of the protocol, but also knowing what commands there are, what modes and features there are for whatever IRC daemon you choose to run, how to configure it, etc. It's not for those unwilling or unable to dedicate a large chunk of their free time to it from start to finish. This includes taking the time to properly secure your IRC server as well as maintaining that security (updating it constantly, for example).

And, unfortunately, Guspaz makes a VERY good point here - IRC servers do have a tendency to attract unwanted attention, sometimes even at random. I've had botnets text-flood (or join-flood, or just flood in general) some of my servers in the past and for no real reason other than I just happened to be in the crosshairs.

Bottom line - if you're 200% into it, and can put forth the immense amounts of effort and time in setting up, configuring, securing, and maintaining an IRC server, then go for it. Otherwise, not recommended, just set something up over Mibbit's service.

Ok, it's probably not worth it.

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It's not worth it, but as I said, there are alternatives like Mibbit (which still uses IRC) that can work for you.

I don't hate IRC or anything. I've used it for many years, administered channels on various networks, written (from scratch, raw network sockets here) multiple IRC clients, bots, and even a server once (needed something interesting for a school project). It's just that the DIY approach doesn't seem to fit your needs.

Mibbit allows you to use a web interface? This would be very useful, especially for users who are not familiar with IRC. How flexible is it? I don't know if this is possible with IRC, but can you use your domain name with it?

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ngircd is a very simple IRC server that is simple to setup and admin.
http://ngircd.barton.de/

So this is IRC server software for setting up your own IRC server? If it's simple to install and use, I could use it. Thanks.

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Yes. I use it for an IRC server for a small community website. It's perfect for us. It's easy to configure and setup.

Mibbit is sort of two things; an IRC network, and an IRC client.

The network is just a regular network, although it's intended for use with Mibbit (the client).

Mibbit (the client) has two modes. Regular mode, and widget mode. In regular mode, you can use it as a full blown IRC client. It can do most of the stuff most people care about in an IRC client, with the possible exception of XDCC transfers. In this mode, the end-user goes to mibbit.com and logs in with their account, which stores all their settings (what networks/channels to connect to, how to auth/ident/login/etc., themes, settings, etc)

Widget mode is designed to be embedded in your website. You configure it, theme it to fit your website's design, and stick it on your site (it's in an iframe, I think?). You set it to auto-connect to whatever server/channel you want (doesn't have to be the Mibbit IRC server), and all users have to enter is a username (it defaults to some auto-generated guest name).

Mibbit is probably the best web-based (fully server-side) IRC client available; it's certainly much better than CGI:IRC or qwebirc, and I'm not aware of any other true web-based IRC clients than those. There may be some java-based clients out there that technical run in a web browser, but they're connecting to IRC networks from the user's machine, which doesn't work if the user is behind a firewall or proxy; Mibbit (and CGI:IRC and qwebirc) run entirely on the webserver, and the user interface is entirely HTML/JavaScript/AJAX/etc.

Why not use Jabber? It's not IRC, but there are quite a few free servers out there (ones that others are running) that you and whomever you're chatting with can register on (including Gmail/Gtalk, and quite a few free jabber clients. It also supports Multi-User Chat (the Jabber equivalent of "Chat Rooms" or IRC channels), though you need a Jabber client that supports it.

The nice thing is, most of the IRC networks are inter-connected, so you and whomever you wish to chat with can talk to each other regardless of which chat client or Jabber network you're registered on.

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Multi-user jabber isn't really as robust or mature as IRC, though, and I'm not sure that many (or any) of the web-based widget Jabber clients support multi-user chat.

I wasn't aware there were any web-based clients for Jabber. Personally I wouldn't use one that I personally didn't manage (technological paranoia).

It's true multi-user chat in Jabber isn't very robust compared to IRC, but it is sufficient for most uses and doesn't attract as many attacks. And just like IRC channels, MUC rooms support passwords.

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Kris the Piki Geeker

Running your own jabber server and requiring users to install jabber clients is a heck of a lot more effort on both the server and the client than just slapping a Mibbit widget on a website...

Read my post:


Sure, users need to have their own clients, but I don't see the big issue with that -- most clients are easy to setup, and would allow people to chat with their Gmail friends (Gmail is still popular, right?). Better still, multi-protocol clients exist for those of us using non-Jabber protocols, e.g. Pidgin (though it would be better to just use Jabber since there's full client-side support on all operating systems through easy to use clients).

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