NexusChat

Administration Guide Administration Guide

Table of Contents


 

NEXUSCHAT DOCUMENTATION

$Id: install.txt,v 1.12 2004/12/24 05:46:43 haplo Exp $ This document contains installation, configuration and use documentation for the NexusChat telnet chat daemon.

 

INSTALLATION

I am working on an install script, but for now you'll have to install it yourself. There are basically two steps. 1) Decide where you want NexusChat's home directory to be. I suggest creating an `nchat' user and /home/nchat home directory. I would also separate the installation further by creating a data/ subdirectory in /home/nchat. This way you can store all the data files in there and put the nchat and userdb binaries in /home/nchat. Then run 'setup.sh' and answer the questions. Then run 'make' to build your binaries and you're ready to install. 2) Copy your nchat and userdb binaries where you want them. Then copy the everything in the etc/ directory to your data directory if you want to use the default data. Now you can start nchat and log in as 000 with `root' as your password.

 

LICENSE

NexusChat is licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL) and is located in the file COPYING.

 

DATA FILES

There are sample/default datafiles included in the etc/ dir of the source. The following explains their usage: nc_ansi_login Color ANSI screen presented to the user when they connect to nchat. nc_login Login screen presented to users without ANSI color. nc_motd Message of the day. This file is sent to the user after they have successfully logged in. nc_log Not included in the example directory, this will be created when nchat is run and will log various actions. nchatrc This is the resource file for the daemon, there are only a few options that can be set, look at the file for more info. nc_ban_list This file holds a list of ip/mask entries which will be added to the ban list on bootup. Each entry must be on a separate line nc_class This specifies your user classes. NexusChat requires you to have the GUEST and SYSOP classes (NexusChat is case sensitive) To find out more about the class file structure, skip ahead to the User Classes section. nc_register This file is sent to the user when they first enter the self registration process. Here you can put in instructions for the user, such as they must put a valid email address, or the phone field is optional. msg/ This directory is where you can store message files. Any file/directory in this directory can be accessed by users with the /m command. Example, you have a file called 'info' in the directory. A user typing '/minfo' will have the file sent to them.

 

USER CLASSES

User classes allow you to have more control over what your users have access to command-wise, and also allow you to separate them into groups. In versions of NexusChat prior to v3.1, these access restrictions were hardcoded. The Class File The class file 'nc_class' by default, contains the specification for your user classes. NexusChat requires that you have the two classes GUEST and SYSOP, because there is some internal workings that require these basic classes. Also remember that NexusChat is case sensative, a 'User' class is not the same as 'USER'. A very simple class file may look like this: [ GUEST ] handle=? time=15 node_flags=() toggles=e priority=0 CMD_HELP CMD_SUSERS CMD_HANDLE CMD_QUIT [ SYSOP ] time=-1 node_flags={} toggles=e priority=10 (GUEST) CMD_KILL This of course doesn't even allow for 1/10 of the commands nchat has available, but it is only an example. The class name is specified in brackets [] and then default options are specified. These default options are set when a class is selected in the user editor. The default options are as follows: handle This is the default handle for the user time The default time limit for the class node_flags These are parts of the handle that are often used to identify the authority of a user. toggles These are the default toggles, a current list of toggles is: a ANSI color e Echo l Lurking enabled z Input locked priority This is usually a value from 0-MAX_CLASSES, but it can be as as big or small as an int. Priority is used to determine whether or not users may /k each other. In order for someone to /k another user, their priority must be greater than or equal to the victim's. So, for example, there is a sysop whose priority is ten, and a co sysop whose priority is 5. The sysop may /k the co sysop, but the co sysop may not /k the sysop. Okay that's kind of confusing, but its really very simple. If a class's kill priority is set to 0, they may be vote killed by users with access to the command. (Note: in the above explanation and examples, it is assumed that the classes have access to the /k command.) These defaults can be changed in the user editor on a per user basis as desired. Also, you do not have to include entries for all, or any of the defaults. ** The one exception to both of these rules is 'priority' ** Kill priority may not be set on a per user level, and although nchat does ** not explicity require you to set the priority, it is defaulted to 0, which ** is probably NOT what you want (see above) The lines below that are just a space-separated list of the commands that the class is allowed to access. See the section 'COMMAND LIST' for a list of all the command definitions. Inheritance Putting parenthesis around a class name on a line by itself, such as (GUEST) in the example file, tells nchat to make that class inherit the other class' command access. In the example the sysop class will inherit the GUEST class' commands (CMD_HELP CMD_SUSERS CMD_HANDLE CMD_QUIT) and also get CMD_KILL. Note: when using class inheritance, the inherited class must be defined before it is included. In the above example, the GUEST class must come before the sysop. Limitations - The classes are stored in an array, the current max class count is 10, but you can increase it if you need. - Each line in nc_class must be < 200 characters

 

USER MANAGMENT

There are two ways to create and edit users. You can use the user editor in nchat, just type "/ue" to enter the user editor. To create a new user in the editor type "load <user>" where <user> is the user number you would like to create. You will then be presented with a blank user which you can edit. If you set their Class first, it will fill in default data for you. To create a sysop, enter "sysop" as the user"s class. Typing "quit" will then save the user and exit the editor. You can type "help" in the editor for a list of commands. TIP: In the user editor, if you set the Class of the user first, it will automatically fill in default data for them! The second way to edit the user is via the command-line utility called userdb. Run "userdb" by itself for a list of options.

 

RESOURCE FILE

Upon booting, NexusChat reads, by default, a file called 'nchatrc' which contains a set of default values. The resource file's format is <name>=<value> where name is the resource name, and value is it's assigned value. A list of variables is as follows: Name Type Default Description port Integer 4000 Port to listen on locked Boolean false Lock the system on boot staple_time Integer 60 Time given by a /v (staple) guest_kill Boolean true Enable vote killing of guests quiet Boolean false Suppress all output check_dup Boolean false Reset any duplicate users ping_hack Boolean false Sends NULLs to idle sockets chat_name String NexusChat Name of your chat user String none User to run as group String none Group to run as chroot Boolean false chroot() to the data dir sysp_priority Integer 1 Min priority to use /ps broadcast_priority Integer 10 Lowest priority to get log broadcasts flood_count Integer 25 Max number of lines allowed flood_time Integer 3 Exceeding flood_count in flood_time seconds results in a flood kill ask_ansi Boolean false Instead of autodetecting ANSI emulation, it prompts them when they first connect allow_registration Boolean true Whether or not to allow users to register themselves register_reserved Integer 50 IDs above this will be used for self registration user_notify Integer 000 The user to email registration requests to flood_priority Integer 10 Users at and above this priority setting are not affected by flood rules Boolean values are specified by 'true' or 'false' (case matters). You may provide comment lines by placing a # at the beginning of the line. Note: If you are specifying a value with spaces in it, make sure to enclose it in ""'s. These options may also be set and saved while in Nexuschat using the /set command, see the /set help for more details.

 

ADMINISTRATION

Now that you have set up your system with all external values set and classes assigned, you can open your chat. Assuredly, there will be users that break your rules or are otherwise obnoxious. NexusChat provides a series of helpful commands to help administer the system remotelly in order to protect other users and yourself. KILL : The kill command, used in the format /K(node) (msg), will disconnect the specified (node). The optional message may be used as a kill message or some other notification. A blank message will not be sent, so the message itself is totally optional. ZONE/ZOMBIE : A zone or zombie state locks the input of a user. They will be able to see all that is said, but no data that they send will be received by the system--including all commands such as /s and even /q. This is an excellant way to deal with spammers. Use the command /zz(node) to lock a user's input. LOCK : Locking the system prevents anybody who does not have an account from logging in. It is toggled using the /lock (msg) command. Again, the message is an optional lock message to be displayed to any user before it disconnects them (if they do not have an account). DEVALLIDATION: The term devalidation actually dates back to older chats and BBS systems in which a user must have been validated to use their account. Devallidation removes that right and renders the account unusable. To devallidate somebody in nchat, go into the user editor and set their class to something that doesn't exist. You should see their class show up as "DISABLED", and it is just that. (note: you may also permanently by using the command /ud or deleting them from the user editor) IP BAN : An IP ban is a serious way to prevent a user from logging in. Anybody with a given IP (or on a given IP block) will not be able to log in if their IP is banned. IP bans are enacted or removed (or shown) via the /banadd(IP)/(mask), /bandel(IP)/(mask), and /banlist commands. The mask allows the administrator to be anybody from a specific provider's dialup. Examples (and their simplest explanations): 152.167.34.87/32 - This will ban this EXACT IP ADDRESS. You may also leave off the /32 and it will assume it. 152.167.34.0/24 - This will ban anybody with the first three octets matching. 152.167.0.0/16 - ...bans matches to the first two octets. 152.0.0.0/8 - ...bans matches to the first octets. As of the newer 3.2pre releases you can add a timed ban (in minutes) Here is an example: /banadd 152.167.34.0/24 10 This will ban the preceding subnet for 10 minutes. As you can probably see, the masks determine how large a chunk is banned from logging in to nchat. This can be very beneficial, but also very dangerous if you do not know what you're doing. Note also that for /bandel to be successful, it must match exactly to an entry in your banlist. OTHER : There are other ways of punishing users for breaking rules that are not neccesarily truly meant as such. For instance, you can /g a user to a negative time (NOT -1, which is infinate,) to time them out instantly. Similarly, changes through the user editor to time or flags may be used to get your point across.

 

COMMAND LIST

This is a list of all of NexusChat's commands, their function names as needed by the class file, and their descriptions. If you want to look at the table yourself, it is located in commands.c Here is the complete command list: CMD_HELP Displays this command list CMD_QUIT Leaves NexusChat CMD_HANDLE Set your handle CMD_ECHO Toggles local echo CMD_ANSI Toggles ANSI color CMD_ACTION Perform an action CMD_SET Set resource option CMD_SAVE Save your preferences now CMD_SUSERS Display online users (# = extended) CMD_PASSWD Change your password CMD_PRIVATE Send a private message CMD_SQUELCH Disable /p's from user CMD_INFO Display NexusChat info CMD_AFK Set your away message CMD_MESSAGE Display system message CMD_CHANNEL Switch to another channel CMD_LAST Display users call stats CMD_CI Display channel info CMD_CO Toggle channel lock status CMD_CK Kick user from channel CMD_CM Give user channel moderator status CMD_CL Set channel limit CMD_CLS List current channels CMD_VOTEKILL Vote to kill a guest CMD_KILL Disconnected a user CMD_RELOG Send user back to login CMD_LOG Display last ten system log entries CMD_GTIME (+) Give (-) Take (=) Set time to (time) CMD_BANADD Add an IP ban CMD_BANDEL Remove an IP ban (match exactly) CMD_BANLIST Display IP ban list CMD_UE Enter user editor CMD_US Display user info CMD_UD Delete user CMD_LURK Toggle Lurk flag CMD_RESET Reset a node CMD_LOCK Toggles the locked status CMD_STAPLE Give guests extra time CMD_PAGER Page another user CMD_NEWS Add / remove news items CMD_CS Class commands CMD_MAIL View / send email CMD_TALKTO 'Address' someone in a channel CMD_KILLBAN Kill and ban a user/ip for a certain period of time CMD_EHELP Extended help command CMD_ZHANDLE Change another node's handle CMD_ZCLASS Change a user's class CMD_ZTEXT Output raw text CMD_ZFREEZE Toggle a user's input lock CMD_STAMP Toggle time stamps CMD_CLS List all channels with information CMD_USERS List all registered user accounts With maybe some more commands to come :)

 

VOTE KILL

What is vote kill? Well, the vote kill command allows non-administrators to get rid of pesky or annoying guests. The main idea behind vote kill is that the majority can act in place of a sysop. Of course people with power like to use it often, and not always properly. Vote kill is toggleable via a /set command. /set guest_kill (on | off) So "/set guest_kill on" will enable the use of the command for those who's class has access to it. So how does vote kill work? Pretty simple; vote kill counts the number of users online that are NOT guests and do NOT have access to the /k (kill/kick) command. The latter is to disqualify admins from the count, in case they are not around or whatever. Everytime a user votes, it is checked against the current count. NOTE: no user may vote more than once, this is checked by storing the user number. If the current count is *greater* than half of the counted users, the guest is killed*. * This is true in all cases except when there is only one counted user online, if that is the case, the guest will not be able to be killed. So, for example, say there is 1 sysop, 1 guest, and 2 users online. Both users will have to vote to kick the guest. If three users are online, only two of them must vote, and so on. Another thing to note is that votes stick across voters calls. That means that if a couple of users vote and then log out, and another user comes on and votes, it will be calculated with the current online user count and the cummulative vote count, if that makes any sense :) Note: A guest is now defined as any user who's class kill priority is set to 0. This differs from the old way of only counting the GUEST class.

 

TIPS & TRICKS

These are a few tips, tricks, and quirks about nchat that might prove useful. * In the user editor, you can set a user's class to a non-existant class. A user with a non-existant class defined, will be denied a login. You can use this to 'blacklist' users without actually removing their account. * Commands such as /zc /zz /g that modify a user's saveable info, are TEMPORARY. That is, they will get discarded when the user logs off. This is useful if you only want to give them extra time or temporary elevated access for a single call. If you want something to be permanent, you must use the user editor to set it explicitly.

 

CREDITS / THANKS

I'd especially like to thank Jonathan Bravata, who donated much of his time to help debug nchat, and for his countless suggestions and ideas. I'd also like to thank the other users of the Monochrome Chaos who helped to shape nchat into what it is today, thanks guys! I'd also like to thank the following people for submitting bug reports or patches: Ryan Brown (ryan@wabdo.com)

 

CONTACT / INFO

NexusChat is free software, but my college tuition payments aren't free :) So if you've got a little extra cash, I promise I won't turn it down. I can be contaced via email at haplo81@comcast.net, or write me at: Bryan Burns 1417 Challis Dr. Apt #7 Bloomington, IL 61704 Thats all for now, ciao.