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<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//IETF//DTD HTML//EN">
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>RFC 2812 (rfc2812) - Internet Relay Chat: Client Protocol</TITLE>
<META name="description" content="RFC 2812 - Internet Relay Chat: Client Protocol">
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<P ALIGN=CENTER><IMG SRC="/images/library.jpg" HEIGHT=62 WIDTH=150 BORDER="0" ALIGN="MIDDLE" ALT=""></P>
<H1 ALIGN=CENTER>RFC 2812 (RFC2812)</H1>
<P ALIGN=CENTER>Internet RFC/STD/FYI/BCP Archives</P>
<DIV ALIGN=CENTER>[ <a href="/rfcs/">RFC Index</a> | <A HREF="/rfcs/rfcsearch.html">RFC Search</A> | <a href="/faqs/">Usenet FAQs</a> | <a href="/contrib/">Web FAQs</a> | <a href="/docs/">Documents</a> | <a href="http://www.city-data.com/">Cities</a> ]
<P>
<STRONG>Alternate Formats:</STRONG>
<A HREF="/ftp/rfc/rfc2812.txt">rfc2812.txt</A> |
<A HREF="/ftp/rfc/pdf/rfc2812.txt.pdf">rfc2812.txt.pdf</A></DIV>
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<h3 align=center>RFC 2812 - Internet Relay Chat: Client Protocol</h3>
<HR SIZE=2 NOSHADE>
<PRE>
Network Working Group C. Kalt
Request for Comments: 2812 April 2000
Updates: 1459
Category: Informational
Internet Relay Chat: Client Protocol
Status of this Memo
This memo provides information for the Internet community. It does
not specify an Internet standard of any kind. Distribution of this
memo is unlimited.
Copyright Notice
Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2000). All Rights Reserved.
IESG NOTE:
The IRC protocol itself enables several possibilities of transferring
data between clients, and just like with other transfer mechanisms
like email, the receiver of the data has to be careful about how the
data is handled. For more information on security issues with the IRC
protocol, see for example <A HREF="http://www.irchelp.org/irchelp/security/">http://www.irchelp.org/irchelp/security/</A>.
Abstract
The IRC (Internet Relay Chat) protocol is for use with text based
conferencing; the simplest client being any socket program capable of
connecting to the server.
This document defines the Client Protocol, and assumes that the
reader is familiar with the IRC Architecture [IRC-ARCH].
Table of Contents
1. Labels ..................................................... 3
1.1 Servers ................................................ 3
1.2 Clients ................................................ 3
1.2.1 Users ............................................. 4
1.2.1.1 Operators .................................... 4
1.2.2 Services .......................................... 4
1.3 Channels ............................................... 4
2. The IRC Client Specification ............................... 5
2.1 Overview ............................................... 5
2.2 Character codes ........................................ 5
2.3 Messages ............................................... 5
2.3.1 Message format in Augmented BNF ................... 6
2.4 Numeric replies ........................................ 8
2.5 Wildcard expressions ................................... 9
3. Message Details ............................................ 9
3.1 Connection Registration ................................ 10
3.1.1 Password message .................................. 10
3.1.2 Nick message ...................................... 10
3.1.3 User message ...................................... 11
3.1.4 Oper message ...................................... 12
3.1.5 User mode message ................................. 12
3.1.6 Service message ................................... 13
3.1.7 Quit .............................................. 14
3.1.8 Squit ............................................. 15
3.2 Channel operations ..................................... 15
3.2.1 Join message ...................................... 16
3.2.2 Part message ...................................... 17
3.2.3 Channel mode message .............................. 18
3.2.4 Topic message ..................................... 19
3.2.5 Names message ..................................... 20
3.2.6 List message ...................................... 21
3.2.7 Invite message .................................... 21
3.2.8 Kick command ...................................... 22
3.3 Sending messages ....................................... 23
3.3.1 Private messages .................................. 23
3.3.2 Notice ............................................ 24
3.4 Server queries and commands ............................ 25
3.4.1 Motd message ...................................... 25
3.4.2 Lusers message .................................... 25
3.4.3 Version message ................................... 26
3.4.4 Stats message ..................................... 26
3.4.5 Links message ..................................... 27
3.4.6 Time message ...................................... 28
3.4.7 Connect message ................................... 28
3.4.8 Trace message ..................................... 29
3.4.9 Admin command ..................................... 30
3.4.10 Info command ...................................... 31
3.5 Service Query and Commands ............................. 31
3.5.1 Servlist message .................................. 31
3.5.2 Squery ............................................ 32
3.6 User based queries ..................................... 32
3.6.1 Who query ......................................... 32
3.6.2 Whois query ....................................... 33
3.6.3 Whowas ............................................ 34
3.7 Miscellaneous messages ................................. 34
3.7.1 Kill message ...................................... 35
3.7.2 Ping message ...................................... 36
3.7.3 Pong message ...................................... 37
3.7.4 Error ............................................. 37
4. Optional features .......................................... 38
4.1 Away ................................................... 38
4.2 Rehash message ......................................... 39
4.3 Die message ............................................ 39
4.4 Restart message ........................................ 40
4.5 Summon message ......................................... 40
4.6 Users .................................................. 41
4.7 Operwall message ....................................... 41
4.8 Userhost message ....................................... 42
4.9 Ison message ........................................... 42
5. Replies .................................................... 43
5.1 Command responses ...................................... 43
5.2 Error Replies .......................................... 53
5.3 Reserved numerics ...................................... 59
6. Current implementations .................................... 60
7. Current problems ........................................... 60
7.1 Nicknames .............................................. 60
7.2 Limitation of wildcards ................................ 61
7.3 Security considerations ................................ 61
8. Current support and availability ........................... 61
9. Acknowledgements ........................................... 61
10. References ................................................ 62
11. Author's Address .......................................... 62
12. Full Copyright Statement .................................. 63
1. Labels
This section defines the identifiers used for the various components
of the IRC protocol.
1.1 Servers
Servers are uniquely identified by their name, which has a maximum
length of sixty three (63) characters. See the protocol grammar
rules (section 2.3.1) for what may and may not be used in a server
name.
1.2 Clients
For each client all servers MUST have the following information: a
netwide unique identifier (whose format depends on the type of
client) and the server which introduced the client.
1.2.1 Users
Each user is distinguished from other users by a unique nickname
having a maximum length of nine (9) characters. See the protocol
grammar rules (section 2.3.1) for what may and may not be used in a
nickname.
While the maximum length is limited to nine characters, clients
SHOULD accept longer strings as they may become used in future
evolutions of the protocol.
1.2.1.1 Operators
To allow a reasonable amount of order to be kept within the IRC
network, a special class of users (operators) is allowed to perform
general maintenance functions on the network. Although the powers
granted to an operator can be considered as 'dangerous', they are
nonetheless often necessary. Operators SHOULD be able to perform
basic network tasks such as disconnecting and reconnecting servers as
needed. In recognition of this need, the protocol discussed herein
provides for operators only to be able to perform such functions.
See sections 3.1.8 (SQUIT) and 3.4.7 (CONNECT).
A more controversial power of operators is the ability to remove a
user from the connected network by 'force', i.e., operators are able
to close the connection between any client and server. The
justification for this is very delicate since its abuse is both
destructive and annoying, and its benefits close to inexistent. For
further details on this type of action, see section 3.7.1 (KILL).
1.2.2 Services
Each service is distinguished from other services by a service name
composed of a nickname and a server name. As for users, the nickname
has a maximum length of nine (9) characters. See the protocol
grammar rules (section 2.3.1) for what may and may not be used in a
nickname.
1.3 Channels
Channels names are strings (beginning with a '&', '#', '+' or '!'
character) of length up to fifty (50) characters. Apart from the
requirement that the first character is either '&', '#', '+' or '!',
the only restriction on a channel name is that it SHALL NOT contain
any spaces (' '), a control G (^G or ASCII 7), a comma (','). Space
is used as parameter separator and command is used as a list item
separator by the protocol). A colon (':') can also be used as a
delimiter for the channel mask. Channel names are case insensitive.
See the protocol grammar rules (section 2.3.1) for the exact syntax
of a channel name.
Each prefix characterizes a different channel type. The definition
of the channel types is not relevant to the client-server protocol
and thus it is beyond the scope of this document. More details can
be found in "Internet Relay Chat: Channel Management" [IRC-CHAN].
2. The IRC Client Specification
2.1 Overview
The protocol as described herein is for use only with client to
server connections when the client registers as a user.
2.2 Character codes
No specific character set is specified. The protocol is based on a
set of codes which are composed of eight (8) bits, making up an
octet. Each message may be composed of any number of these octets;
however, some octet values are used for control codes, which act as
message delimiters.
Regardless of being an 8-bit protocol, the delimiters and keywords
are such that protocol is mostly usable from US-ASCII terminal and a
telnet connection.
Because of IRC's Scandinavian origin, the characters {}|^ are
considered to be the lower case equivalents of the characters []\~,
respectively. This is a critical issue when determining the
equivalence of two nicknames or channel names.
2.3 Messages
Servers and clients send each other messages, which may or may not
generate a reply. If the message contains a valid command, as
described in later sections, the client should expect a reply as
specified but it is not advised to wait forever for the reply; client
to server and server to server communication is essentially
asynchronous by nature.
Each IRC message may consist of up to three main parts: the prefix
(OPTIONAL), the command, and the command parameters (maximum of
fifteen (15)). The prefix, command, and all parameters are separated
by one ASCII space character (0x20) each.
The presence of a prefix is indicated with a single leading ASCII
colon character (':', 0x3b), which MUST be the first character of the
message itself. There MUST be NO gap (whitespace) between the colon
and the prefix. The prefix is used by servers to indicate the true
origin of the message. If the prefix is missing from the message, it
is assumed to have originated from the connection from which it was
received from. Clients SHOULD NOT use a prefix when sending a
message; if they use one, the only valid prefix is the registered
nickname associated with the client.
The command MUST either be a valid IRC command or a three (3) digit
number represented in ASCII text.
IRC messages are always lines of characters terminated with a CR-LF
(Carriage Return - Line Feed) pair, and these messages SHALL NOT
exceed 512 characters in length, counting all characters including
the trailing CR-LF. Thus, there are 510 characters maximum allowed
for the command and its parameters. There is no provision for
continuation of message lines. See section 6 for more details about
current implementations.
2.3.1 Message format in Augmented BNF
The protocol messages must be extracted from the contiguous stream of
octets. The current solution is to designate two characters, CR and
LF, as message separators. Empty messages are silently ignored,
which permits use of the sequence CR-LF between messages without
extra problems.
The extracted message is parsed into the components <prefix>,
<command> and list of parameters (<params>).
The Augmented BNF representation for this is:
message = [ ":" prefix SPACE ] command [ params ] crlf
prefix = servername / ( nickname [ [ "!" user ] "@" host ] )
command = 1*letter / 3digit
params = *14( SPACE middle ) [ SPACE ":" trailing ]
=/ 14( SPACE middle ) [ SPACE [ ":" ] trailing ]
nospcrlfcl = %x01-09 / %x0B-0C / %x0E-1F / %x21-39 / %x3B-FF
; any octet except NUL, CR, LF, " " and ":"
middle = nospcrlfcl *( ":" / nospcrlfcl )
trailing = *( ":" / " " / nospcrlfcl )
SPACE = %x20 ; space character
crlf = %x0D %x0A ; "carriage return" "linefeed"
NOTES:
1) After extracting the parameter list, all parameters are equal
whether matched by <middle> or <trailing>. <trailing> is just a
syntactic trick to allow SPACE within the parameter.
2) The NUL (%x00) character is not special in message framing, and
basically could end up inside a parameter, but it would cause
extra complexities in normal C string handling. Therefore, NUL
is not allowed within messages.
Most protocol messages specify additional semantics and syntax for
the extracted parameter strings dictated by their position in the
list. For example, many server commands will assume that the first
parameter after the command is the list of targets, which can be
described with:
target = nickname / server
msgtarget = msgto *( "," msgto )
msgto = channel / ( user [ "%" host ] "@" servername )
msgto =/ ( user "%" host ) / targetmask
msgto =/ nickname / ( nickname "!" user "@" host )
channel = ( "#" / "+" / ( "!" channelid ) / "&" ) chanstring
[ ":" chanstring ]
servername = hostname
host = hostname / hostaddr
hostname = shortname *( "." shortname )
shortname = ( letter / digit ) *( letter / digit / "-" )
*( letter / digit )
; as specified in <A HREF="/rfcs/rfc1123.html">RFC 1123</A> [HNAME]
hostaddr = ip4addr / ip6addr
ip4addr = 1*3digit "." 1*3digit "." 1*3digit "." 1*3digit
ip6addr = 1*hexdigit 7( ":" 1*hexdigit )
ip6addr =/ "0:0:0:0:0:" ( "0" / "FFFF" ) ":" ip4addr
nickname = ( letter / special ) *8( letter / digit / special / "-" )
targetmask = ( "$" / "#" ) mask
; see details on allowed masks in section 3.3.1
chanstring = %x01-07 / %x08-09 / %x0B-0C / %x0E-1F / %x21-2B
chanstring =/ %x2D-39 / %x3B-FF
; any octet except NUL, BELL, CR, LF, " ", "," and ":"
channelid = 5( %x41-5A / digit ) ; 5( A-Z / 0-9 )
Other parameter syntaxes are:
user = 1*( %x01-09 / %x0B-0C / %x0E-1F / %x21-3F / %x41-FF )
; any octet except NUL, CR, LF, " " and "@"
key = 1*23( %x01-05 / %x07-08 / %x0C / %x0E-1F / %x21-7F )
; any 7-bit US_ASCII character,
; except NUL, CR, LF, FF, h/v TABs, and " "
letter = %x41-5A / %x61-7A ; A-Z / a-z
digit = %x30-39 ; 0-9
hexdigit = digit / "A" / "B" / "C" / "D" / "E" / "F"
special = %x5B-60 / %x7B-7D
; "[", "]", "\", "`", "_", "^", "{", "|", "}"
NOTES:
1) The <hostaddr> syntax is given here for the sole purpose of
indicating the format to follow for IP addresses. This
reflects the fact that the only available implementations of
this protocol uses TCP/IP as underlying network protocol but is
not meant to prevent other protocols to be used.
2) <hostname> has a maximum length of 63 characters. This is a
limitation of the protocol as internet hostnames (in
particular) can be longer. Such restriction is necessary
because IRC messages are limited to 512 characters in length.
Clients connecting from a host which name is longer than 63
characters are registered using the host (numeric) address
instead of the host name.
3) Some parameters used in the following sections of this
documents are not defined here as there is nothing specific
about them besides the name that is used for convenience.
These parameters follow the general syntax defined for
<params>.
2.4 Numeric replies
Most of the messages sent to the server generate a reply of some
sort. The most common reply is the numeric reply, used for both
errors and normal replies. The numeric reply MUST be sent as one
message consisting of the sender prefix, the three-digit numeric, and
the target of the reply. A numeric reply is not allowed to originate
from a client. In all other respects, a numeric reply is just like a
normal message, except that the keyword is made up of 3 numeric
digits rather than a string of letters. A list of different replies
is supplied in section 5 (Replies).
2.5 Wildcard expressions
When wildcards are allowed in a string, it is referred as a "mask".
For string matching purposes, the protocol allows the use of two
special characters: '?' (%x3F) to match one and only one character,
and '*' (%x2A) to match any number of any characters. These two
characters can be escaped using the character '\' (%x5C).
The Augmented BNF syntax for this is:
mask = *( nowild / noesc wildone / noesc wildmany )
wildone = %x3F
wildmany = %x2A
nowild = %x01-29 / %x2B-3E / %x40-FF
; any octet except NUL, "*", "?"
noesc = %x01-5B / %x5D-FF
; any octet except NUL and "\"
matchone = %x01-FF
; matches wildone
matchmany = *matchone
; matches wildmany
Examples:
a?c ; Matches any string of 3 characters in length starting
with "a" and ending with "c"
a*c ; Matches any string of at least 2 characters in length
starting with "a" and ending with "c"
3. Message Details
On the following pages there are descriptions of each message
recognized by the IRC server and client. All commands described in
this section MUST be implemented by any server for this protocol.
Where the reply ERR_NOSUCHSERVER is returned, it means that the
target of the message could not be found. The server MUST NOT send
any other replies after this error for that command.
The server to which a client is connected is required to parse the
complete message, and return any appropriate errors.
If multiple parameters is presented, then each MUST be checked for
validity and appropriate responses MUST be sent back to the client.
In the case of incorrect messages which use parameter lists with
comma as an item separator, a reply MUST be sent for each item.
3.1 Connection Registration
The commands described here are used to register a connection with an
IRC server as a user as well as to correctly disconnect.
A "PASS" command is not required for a client connection to be
registered, but it MUST precede the latter of the NICK/USER
combination (for a user connection) or the SERVICE command (for a
service connection). The RECOMMENDED order for a client to register
is as follows:
1. Pass message
2. Nick message 2. Service message
3. User message
Upon success, the client will receive an RPL_WELCOME (for users) or
RPL_YOURESERVICE (for services) message indicating that the
connection is now registered and known the to the entire IRC network.
The reply message MUST contain the full client identifier upon which
it was registered.
3.1.1 Password message
Command: PASS
Parameters: <password>
The PASS command is used to set a 'connection password'. The
optional password can and MUST be set before any attempt to register
the connection is made. Currently this requires that user send a
PASS command before sending the NICK/USER combination.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_NEEDMOREPARAMS ERR_ALREADYREGISTRED
Example:
PASS secretpasswordhere
3.1.2 Nick message
Command: NICK
Parameters: <nickname>
NICK command is used to give user a nickname or change the existing
one.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_NONICKNAMEGIVEN ERR_ERRONEUSNICKNAME
ERR_NICKNAMEINUSE ERR_NICKCOLLISION
ERR_UNAVAILRESOURCE ERR_RESTRICTED
Examples:
NICK Wiz ; Introducing new nick "Wiz" if session is
still unregistered, or user changing his
nickname to "Wiz"
:<A HREF="mailto:WiZ!jto@tolsun.oulu.fi">WiZ!jto@tolsun.oulu.fi</A> NICK Kilroy
; Server telling that WiZ changed his
nickname to Kilroy.
3.1.3 User message
Command: USER
Parameters: <user> <mode> <unused> <realname>
The USER command is used at the beginning of connection to specify
the username, hostname and realname of a new user.
The <mode> parameter should be a numeric, and can be used to
automatically set user modes when registering with the server. This
parameter is a bitmask, with only 2 bits having any signification: if
the bit 2 is set, the user mode 'w' will be set and if the bit 3 is
set, the user mode 'i' will be set. (See Section 3.1.5 "User
Modes").
The <realname> may contain space characters.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_NEEDMOREPARAMS ERR_ALREADYREGISTRED
Example:
USER guest 0 * :Ronnie Reagan ; User registering themselves with a
username of "guest" and real name
"Ronnie Reagan".
USER guest 8 * :Ronnie Reagan ; User registering themselves with a
username of "guest" and real name
"Ronnie Reagan", and asking to be set
invisible.
3.1.4 Oper message
Command: OPER
Parameters: <name> <password>
A normal user uses the OPER command to obtain operator privileges.
The combination of <name> and <password> are REQUIRED to gain
Operator privileges. Upon success, the user will receive a MODE
message (see section 3.1.5) indicating the new user modes.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_NEEDMOREPARAMS RPL_YOUREOPER
ERR_NOOPERHOST ERR_PASSWDMISMATCH
Example:
OPER foo bar ; Attempt to register as an operator
using a username of "foo" and "bar"
as the password.
3.1.5 User mode message
Command: MODE
Parameters: <nickname>
*( ( "+" / "-" ) *( "i" / "w" / "o" / "O" / "r" ) )
The user MODE's are typically changes which affect either how the
client is seen by others or what 'extra' messages the client is sent.
A user MODE command MUST only be accepted if both the sender of the
message and the nickname given as a parameter are both the same. If
no other parameter is given, then the server will return the current
settings for the nick.
The available modes are as follows:
a - user is flagged as away;
i - marks a users as invisible;
w - user receives wallops;
r - restricted user connection;
o - operator flag;
O - local operator flag;
s - marks a user for receipt of server notices.
Additional modes may be available later on.
The flag 'a' SHALL NOT be toggled by the user using the MODE command,
instead use of the AWAY command is REQUIRED.
If a user attempts to make themselves an operator using the "+o" or
"+O" flag, the attempt SHOULD be ignored as users could bypass the
authentication mechanisms of the OPER command. There is no
restriction, however, on anyone `deopping' themselves (using "-o" or
"-O").
On the other hand, if a user attempts to make themselves unrestricted
using the "-r" flag, the attempt SHOULD be ignored. There is no
restriction, however, on anyone `deopping' themselves (using "+r").
This flag is typically set by the server upon connection for
administrative reasons. While the restrictions imposed are left up
to the implementation, it is typical that a restricted user not be
allowed to change nicknames, nor make use of the channel operator
status on channels.
The flag 's' is obsolete but MAY still be used.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_NEEDMOREPARAMS ERR_USERSDONTMATCH
ERR_UMODEUNKNOWNFLAG RPL_UMODEIS
Examples:
MODE WiZ -w ; Command by WiZ to turn off
reception of WALLOPS messages.
MODE Angel +i ; Command from Angel to make herself
invisible.
MODE WiZ -o ; WiZ 'deopping' (removing operator
status).
3.1.6 Service message
Command: SERVICE
Parameters: <nickname> <reserved> <distribution> <type>
<reserved> <info>
The SERVICE command to register a new service. Command parameters
specify the service nickname, distribution, type and info of a new
service.
The <distribution> parameter is used to specify the visibility of a
service. The service may only be known to servers which have a name
matching the distribution. For a matching server to have knowledge
of the service, the network path between that server and the server
on which the service is connected MUST be composed of servers which
names all match the mask.
The <type> parameter is currently reserved for future usage.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_ALREADYREGISTRED ERR_NEEDMOREPARAMS
ERR_ERRONEUSNICKNAME
RPL_YOURESERVICE RPL_YOURHOST
RPL_MYINFO
Example:
SERVICE dict * *.fr 0 0 :French Dictionary ; Service registering
itself with a name of "dict". This
service will only be available on
servers which name matches "*.fr".
3.1.7 Quit
Command: QUIT
Parameters: [ <Quit Message> ]
A client session is terminated with a quit message. The server
acknowledges this by sending an ERROR message to the client.
Numeric Replies:
None.
Example:
QUIT :Gone to have lunch ; Preferred message format.
:<A HREF="mailto:syrk!kalt@millennium.stealth.net">syrk!kalt@millennium.stealth.net</A> QUIT :Gone to have lunch ; User
syrk has quit IRC to have lunch.
3.1.8 Squit
Command: SQUIT
Parameters: <server> <comment>
The SQUIT command is available only to operators. It is used to
disconnect server links. Also servers can generate SQUIT messages on
error conditions. A SQUIT message may also target a remote server
connection. In this case, the SQUIT message will simply be sent to
the remote server without affecting the servers in between the
operator and the remote server.
The <comment> SHOULD be supplied by all operators who execute a SQUIT
for a remote server. The server ordered to disconnect its peer
generates a WALLOPS message with <comment> included, so that other
users may be aware of the reason of this action.
Numeric replies:
ERR_NOPRIVILEGES ERR_NOSUCHSERVER
ERR_NEEDMOREPARAMS
Examples:
SQUIT tolsun.oulu.fi :Bad Link ? ; Command to uplink of the server
tolson.oulu.fi to terminate its
connection with comment "Bad Link".
:Trillian SQUIT cm22.eng.umd.edu :Server out of control ; Command
from Trillian from to disconnect
"cm22.eng.umd.edu" from the net with
comment "Server out of control".
3.2 Channel operations
This group of messages is concerned with manipulating channels, their
properties (channel modes), and their contents (typically users).
For this reason, these messages SHALL NOT be made available to
services.
All of these messages are requests which will or will not be granted
by the server. The server MUST send a reply informing the user
whether the request was granted, denied or generated an error. When
the server grants the request, the message is typically sent back
(eventually reformatted) to the user with the prefix set to the user
itself.
The rules governing how channels are managed are enforced by the
servers. These rules are beyond the scope of this document. More
details are found in "Internet Relay Chat: Channel Management" [IRC-
CHAN].
3.2.1 Join message
Command: JOIN
Parameters: ( <channel> *( "," <channel> ) [ <key> *( "," <key> ) ] )
/ "0"
The JOIN command is used by a user to request to start listening to
the specific channel. Servers MUST be able to parse arguments in the
form of a list of target, but SHOULD NOT use lists when sending JOIN
messages to clients.
Once a user has joined a channel, he receives information about
all commands his server receives affecting the channel. This
includes JOIN, MODE, KICK, PART, QUIT and of course PRIVMSG/NOTICE.
This allows channel members to keep track of the other channel
members, as well as channel modes.
If a JOIN is successful, the user receives a JOIN message as
confirmation and is then sent the channel's topic (using RPL_TOPIC) and
the list of users who are on the channel (using RPL_NAMREPLY), which
MUST include the user joining.
Note that this message accepts a special argument ("0"), which is
a special request to leave all channels the user is currently a member
of. The server will process this message as if the user had sent
a PART command (See Section 3.2.2) for each channel he is a member
of.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_NEEDMOREPARAMS ERR_BANNEDFROMCHAN
ERR_INVITEONLYCHAN ERR_BADCHANNELKEY
ERR_CHANNELISFULL ERR_BADCHANMASK
ERR_NOSUCHCHANNEL ERR_TOOMANYCHANNELS
ERR_TOOMANYTARGETS ERR_UNAVAILRESOURCE
RPL_TOPIC
Examples:
JOIN #foobar ; Command to join channel #foobar.
JOIN &foo fubar ; Command to join channel &foo using
key "fubar".
JOIN #foo,&bar fubar ; Command to join channel #foo using
key "fubar" and &bar using no key.
JOIN #foo,#bar fubar,foobar ; Command to join channel #foo using
key "fubar", and channel #bar using
key "foobar".
JOIN #foo,#bar ; Command to join channels #foo and
#bar.
JOIN 0 ; Leave all currently joined
channels.
:<A HREF="mailto:WiZ!jto@tolsun.oulu.fi">WiZ!jto@tolsun.oulu.fi</A> JOIN #Twilight_zone ; JOIN message from WiZ
on channel #Twilight_zone
3.2.2 Part message
Command: PART
Parameters: <channel> *( "," <channel> ) [ <Part Message> ]
The PART command causes the user sending the message to be removed
from the list of active members for all given channels listed in the
parameter string. If a "Part Message" is given, this will be sent
instead of the default message, the nickname. This request is always
granted by the server.
Servers MUST be able to parse arguments in the form of a list of
target, but SHOULD NOT use lists when sending PART messages to
clients.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_NEEDMOREPARAMS ERR_NOSUCHCHANNEL
ERR_NOTONCHANNEL
Examples:
PART #twilight_zone ; Command to leave channel
"#twilight_zone"
PART #oz-ops,&group5 ; Command to leave both channels
"&group5" and "#oz-ops".
:<A HREF="mailto:WiZ!jto@tolsun.oulu.fi">WiZ!jto@tolsun.oulu.fi</A> PART #playzone :I lost
; User WiZ leaving channel
"#playzone" with the message "I
lost".
3.2.3 Channel mode message
Command: MODE
Parameters: <channel> *( ( "-" / "+" ) *<modes> *<modeparams> )
The MODE command is provided so that users may query and change the
characteristics of a channel. For more details on available modes
and their uses, see "Internet Relay Chat: Channel Management" [IRC-
CHAN]. Note that there is a maximum limit of three (3) changes per
command for modes that take a parameter.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_NEEDMOREPARAMS ERR_KEYSET
ERR_NOCHANMODES ERR_CHANOPRIVSNEEDED
ERR_USERNOTINCHANNEL ERR_UNKNOWNMODE
RPL_CHANNELMODEIS
RPL_BANLIST RPL_ENDOFBANLIST
RPL_EXCEPTLIST RPL_ENDOFEXCEPTLIST
RPL_INVITELIST RPL_ENDOFINVITELIST
RPL_UNIQOPIS
The following examples are given to help understanding the syntax of
the MODE command, but refer to modes defined in "Internet Relay Chat:
Channel Management" [IRC-CHAN].
Examples:
MODE #Finnish +imI *!*@*.fi ; Command to make #Finnish channel
moderated and 'invite-only' with user
with a hostname matching *.fi
automatically invited.
MODE #Finnish +o Kilroy ; Command to give 'chanop' privileges
to Kilroy on channel #Finnish.
MODE #Finnish +v Wiz ; Command to allow WiZ to speak on
#Finnish.
MODE #Fins -s ; Command to remove 'secret' flag
from channel #Fins.
MODE #42 +k oulu ; Command to set the channel key to
"oulu".
MODE #42 -k oulu ; Command to remove the "oulu"
channel key on channel "#42".
MODE #eu-opers +l 10 ; Command to set the limit for the
number of users on channel
"#eu-opers" to 10.
:<A HREF="mailto:WiZ!jto@tolsun.oulu.fi">WiZ!jto@tolsun.oulu.fi</A> MODE #eu-opers -l
; User "WiZ" removing the limit for
the number of users on channel "#eu-
opers".
MODE &oulu +b ; Command to list ban masks set for
the channel "&oulu".
MODE &oulu +b *!*@* ; Command to prevent all users from
joining.
MODE &oulu +b *!*@*.edu +e *!*@*.bu.edu
; Command to prevent any user from a
hostname matching *.edu from joining,
except if matching *.bu.edu
MODE #bu +be *!*@*.edu *!*@*.bu.edu
; Comment to prevent any user from a
hostname matching *.edu from joining,
except if matching *.bu.edu
MODE #meditation e ; Command to list exception masks set
for the channel "#meditation".
MODE #meditation I ; Command to list invitations masks
set for the channel "#meditation".
MODE !12345ircd O ; Command to ask who the channel
creator for "!12345ircd" is
3.2.4 Topic message
Command: TOPIC
Parameters: <channel> [ <topic> ]
The TOPIC command is used to change or view the topic of a channel.
The topic for channel <channel> is returned if there is no <topic>
given. If the <topic> parameter is present, the topic for that
channel will be changed, if this action is allowed for the user
requesting it. If the <topic> parameter is an empty string, the
topic for that channel will be removed.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_NEEDMOREPARAMS ERR_NOTONCHANNEL
RPL_NOTOPIC RPL_TOPIC
ERR_CHANOPRIVSNEEDED ERR_NOCHANMODES
Examples:
:<A HREF="mailto:WiZ!jto@tolsun.oulu.fi">WiZ!jto@tolsun.oulu.fi</A> TOPIC #test :New topic ; User Wiz setting the
topic.
TOPIC #test :another topic ; Command to set the topic on #test
to "another topic".
TOPIC #test : ; Command to clear the topic on
#test.
TOPIC #test ; Command to check the topic for
#test.
3.2.5 Names message
Command: NAMES
Parameters: [ <channel> *( "," <channel> ) [ <target> ] ]
By using the NAMES command, a user can list all nicknames that are
visible to him. For more details on what is visible and what is not,
see "Internet Relay Chat: Channel Management" [IRC-CHAN]. The
<channel> parameter specifies which channel(s) to return information
about. There is no error reply for bad channel names.
If no <channel> parameter is given, a list of all channels and their
occupants is returned. At the end of this list, a list of users who
are visible but either not on any channel or not on a visible channel
are listed as being on `channel' "*".
If the <target> parameter is specified, the request is forwarded to
that server which will generate the reply.
Wildcards are allowed in the <target> parameter.
Numerics:
ERR_TOOMANYMATCHES ERR_NOSUCHSERVER
RPL_NAMREPLY RPL_ENDOFNAMES
Examples:
NAMES #twilight_zone,#42 ; Command to list visible users on
#twilight_zone and #42
NAMES ; Command to list all visible
channels and users
3.2.6 List message
Command: LIST
Parameters: [ <channel> *( "," <channel> ) [ <target> ] ]
The list command is used to list channels and their topics. If the
<channel> parameter is used, only the status of that channel is
displayed.
If the <target> parameter is specified, the request is forwarded to
that server which will generate the reply.
Wildcards are allowed in the <target> parameter.
Numeric Replies:
ERR_TOOMANYMATCHES ERR_NOSUCHSERVER
RPL_LIST RPL_LISTEND
Examples:
LIST ; Command to list all channels.
LIST #twilight_zone,#42 ; Command to list channels
#twilight_zone and #42
3.2.7 Invite message
Command: INVITE
Parameters: <nickname> <channel>