|
An IRCd (Internet Relay Chat daemon) is a computer program to create an IRC server on which people can talk to each other via the Internet. IRC redirects here. ...
In Unix and other computer multitasking operating systems, a daemon is a computer program that runs in the background, rather than under the direct control of a user; they are usually instantiated as processes. ...
A computer program is a collection of instructions that describe a task, or set of tasks, to be carried out by a computer. ...
In information technology, a server is a computer system that provides services to other computing systems—called clients—over a network. ...
Running a large (more than a few thousand users) IRC server requires keeping a very large number of connections open for long periods. Very few ircds are multithreaded due to the fact that nearly every action needs to access (at least read and possibly modify) the global state. The result is that the best platforms for ircds are those that offer efficient mechanisms for handling huge numbers of connections in a single thread. Linux offers this ability in the form of epoll, in kernel series newer than 2.4.x. FreeBSD (since 4.1) offers kqueue. Solaris has had /dev/poll since version 7. The difference made by these new interfaces can be dramatic. IRCU coders have mentioned increases in the practical capacity per server from 10,000 users to 20,000 users. A thread in computer science is short for a thread of execution. ...
Linux (also known as GNU/Linux) is a Unix-like computer operating system. ...
FreeBSD is a Unix-like free operating system descended from AT&T UNIX via the Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD) branch through the 386BSD and 4. ...
Solaris is a computer operating system developed by Sun Microsystems. ...
Some IRCd support SSL, for those who don't, it is still possible to use SSL via Stunnel. Some IRCd support IPv6. Transport Layer Security (TLS) and its predecessor, Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), are cryptographic protocols which provide secure communications on the Internet for such things as web browsing, e-mail, Internet faxing, and other data transfers. ...
Stunnel is a free multi-platform computer program, used to provide universal TLS/SSL service. ...
Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is a network layer IP standard used by electronic devices to exchange data across a packet-switched internetwork. ...
History The original IRCd was known as 'ircd', and was authored by Jarkko Oikarinen (WiZ on IRC) around 1989. He received help from a number of others, such as Markku Savela (msa on IRC), who helped with the 2.2+msa release, etc. Jarkko Oikarinen, known on IRC as WiZ, was the developer of the first Internet chat network, called IRC, short for Internet Relay Chat. ...
Around version 2.7, there was a small but notable dispute, which lead to ircu -- the undernet fork of ircd.
Around 2.8 came the concept of nick and channel delay, a system designed to help curb abusive practices such as takeovers and split riding. This was not agreed on by the majority of modern IRC (EFnet, DALnet, Undernet, etc) - and thus, 2.8 was forked into a number of different daemons using an opposing theory known as TS -- or time stamping, which stored a unique time stamp with each channel or nickname on the network to decide which was the 'correct' one to keep. More information on this may be found at http://www.ircd-hybrid.com/history.html. An IRC channel takeover is an acquisition of IRC channel operator status by someone other than the channels owner. ...
Modern times have seen further changes, among which being a number of attempts to write an ircd from scratch, such as ithildin, or inspircd. These attempts have met with mixed success, and large doses of scepticism from the existing IRC development community.
See also IRC services is a common name for a set of features implemented in most modern Internet Relay Chat networks. ...
The following tables compare general and technical information including the differences in feature sets between popular IRCds. ...
Various IRCds |
Feeds |
Contact