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  14    <H1>[IRCServices] Services 5.0pre0 released</H1>
  15     <B>Andrew Church</B>
  16     <A HREF="mailto:ircservices%40ircservices.za.net?Subject=%5BIRCServices%5D%20Services%205.0pre0%20released&In-Reply-To="
  17        TITLE="[IRCServices] Services 5.0pre0 released">achurch at achurch.org
  18        </A><BR>
  19     <I>Sun May 26 14:09:00 PDT 2002</I>
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  34 <PRE>     With thanks for everyone's patience, I am pleased to announce that
  35 Services 5.0pre0 has been released, and can be downloaded from:
  36
  37 <A HREF="ftp://ftp.ircservices.za.net/pub/ircservices/beta/ircservices-5.0pre0.tar.gz">ftp://ftp.ircservices.za.net/pub/ircservices/beta/ircservices-5.0pre0.tar.gz</A>
  38 <A HREF="ftp://ftp.esper.net/ircservices/beta/ircservices-5.0pre0.tar.gz">ftp://ftp.esper.net/ircservices/beta/ircservices-5.0pre0.tar.gz</A>
  39
  40 The other mirrors should have it shortly.  Note that RPM and Debian
  41 packages for Linux are available from the same locations.
  42
  43      As a reminder, this is beta-level software; for those who are unsure,
  44 that means that I've fixed all the bugs that I know about, but the software
  45 hasn't been tested enough for me to recommend it for use on production
  46 networks.  Unlike the alpha versions, I won't complain if you _do_ use this
  47 version on your network, but if you do, please be aware that it may crash
  48 occasionally, and please report any trouble you have with it.
  49
  50      Before getting to the stuff that's in version 5.0, let me start with
  51 the things that _didn't_ make it in:
  52
  53      - SQL support.  I know there were a number of people asking for this,
  54 but I just didn't have enough time to implement SQL support properly.  (For
  55 that matter, I didn't have enough time to implement the new database format
  56 that I'd wanted to.)  I've most certainly _not_ given up on SQL, but it
  57 will have to wait for a while.
  58
  59      - Additional protocol (ircd) support.  Aside from modules for the
  60 trircd and Chunky Monkey IRCD servers provided to me by the protocols'
  61 respective authors, no additional protocols are supported in this version.
  62 In particular, I recall several requests for Hybrid support, but the one
  63 patch I received was combined with an incomplete patch for other
  64 functionality, so I had to discard it.  (Hint: if you've made several
  65 changes to Services, don't send them all as a single patch, as I may not
  66 want to--or be able to--integrate all of them.  Send each change as a
  67 separate patch instead.)
  68
  69      - Extended StatServ support.  One of these days, yes, but again
  70 there just wasn't enough time for me to do this as well.
  71
  72      That's about all that comes to mind at the moment; see the list of
  73 changes and additions below (excerpted from the WhatsNew file) if you're
  74 wondering about any other features.  If you have additional suggestions,
  75 please suggest them--but in order to get 5.0 to stable status as soon as
  76 possible, I do not plan to add many more features to this version of
  77 Services.
  78
  79      Once again, thanks for your patience.
  80
  81 What's New in version 5.0:
  82 --------------------------
  83 The single biggest addition to this version of Services is module support.
  84 This allows the various functions of Services to be added to and modified
  85 without having to touch the main source code itself.  Modules also provide
  86 much more flexibility in configuring Services; IRC server support and
  87 database file format can be selected by simply loading the appropriate
  88 module, and you can even choose which of the pseudoclients (NickServ,
  89 ChanServ, etc.) you want available.  See the example configuration files
  90 in the &quot;data&quot; subdirectory for more information.
  91
  92 Services is now capable of sending E-mail.  Currently, this functionality
  93 is used by:
  94   + The new &quot;authorization&quot; feature of NickServ (in the &quot;nickserv/mail-auth&quot;
  95     module).  This sends a message to a user upon nick registration or
  96     E-mail address change, and requires the user to &quot;authorize&quot; their
  97     nickname with a random numeric code included in the message before it
  98     is recognized as a valid registered nick by Services/
  99   + The new SENDPASS command for NickServ and ChanServ (in the
 100     &quot;nickserv/sendpass&quot; and &quot;chanserv/sendpass&quot; modules, respectively).
 101     which allows a user to send themselves their nick or channel password.
 102   + The new memo forwarding function of Services, which allows users to
 103     have their memos automatically forwarded to their E-mail address.
 104
 105 Services also sports a built-in HTTP server (module &quot;httpd/main&quot;), which
 106 (with the help of additional modules in the &quot;httpd&quot; directory) can be used
 107 for queries about nicknames, channels, and network status.  See the example
 108 configuration files for details on its abilities, and please submit a
 109 feature request if you have any additional ideas for what functionality the
 110 server should provide.
 111
 112 Also, nickname links have been redesigned for simplicity and robustness.
 113 In the new linking system, nicks are organized into &quot;groups&quot; which share
 114 settings the way linked nicks did in previous versions.  The LINK command
 115 has changed as well: instead of creating a link from the current (unlinked
 116 but registered) nick to a registered master nick, the link is made from the
 117 current registered nick to a new (unregistered) nick, to simplify
 118 registration of multiple links at once and to offer slightly better
 119 protection against &quot;rogue links&quot; created by guessing nick passwords (though
 120 as always, the best defense is to use good passwords).  The old behavior of
 121 the LINK command is still available through the &quot;nickserv/oldlink&quot; module,
 122 although this module is deprecated and will be removed in a future version.
 123
 124 Finally, the documentation for Services (what used to be in the README and
 125 FAQ files) has been greatly expanded and rewritten in HTML, and now includes
 126 references for all Services pseudoclient commands and configuration options.
 127 The manual also contains important information for users upgrading from
 128 version 4.x or earlier; if you are already using Services and plan to
 129 upgrade to version 5.0, please read this information before upgrading.
 130
 131 Other changes:
 132   + Nicknames now have an &quot;Information&quot; line, similar to a channel's
 133         description, which can be set freely for each group of nicks.
 134   + The number of nicknames that can be registered per E-mail address can
 135         now be limited (NSRegMaxEmail configuration directive).
 136   + The default options for newly registered channels can now be set in the
 137         configuration file.
 138   + Identifies for nicknames are now recorded, removing the necessity to
 139         re-identify after every nick change.
 140   + The Services stamp of the last user to identify for a nick is now
 141         recorded on disk, removing the need for users to re-identify when
 142         Services is restarted.
 143   + A timezone can be set for each registered nick, to allow users to get
 144         information from Services in their own time zones.
 145   + Nicknames can be listed by E-mail address with the new LISTEMAIL command.
 146   + Users can set channels to automatically join whenever they identify for
 147         their nickname (nickserv/autojoin module) on IRC servers supporting
 148         the SVSJOIN command (such as Unreal or trircd).
 149   + The NickServ and ChanServ REGISTER and GETPASS commands can now be
 150         (separately) disabled via the configuration file.
 151   + Users must now identify for their nickname before registering a channel.
 152   + Users with auto-op access for a channel will now be opped when they
 153         identify for their nickname even if they are already in the channel.
 154   + Channel access levels are now limited to -999..999; default levels have
 155         been rescaled to make better use of the available range (in
 156         particular, levels -25..25 have been multiplied by 10).
 157   + The ChanServ OP, VOICE, etc. commands now default to the person sending
 158         the command if a target nick is not specified (e.g. &quot;OP #channel&quot;).
 159   + ChanServ now has a KICK command.
 160   + Channel information can now be hidden with the new ChanServ SET HIDE
 161         command, similar to the NickServ command of the same name.
 162   + The ChanServ STATUS command is now available to normal (non-admin) users
 163         with sufficient privileges on the target channel.
 164   + Users can prevent certain other users from sending memos to them
 165         (memoserv/ignore module).
 166   + Autokill exclusions (exceptions to autokill masks) are now supported
 167         through the EXCLUDE command (operserv/akill module).
 168   + S-lines (SGLINE/SQLINE/SZLINE) are now supported (operserv/sline
 169         module), and can even be used (except SZLINE) on servers which do
 170         not support S-lines natively.
 171   + Services now records the last time an autokick or autokill was
 172         triggered, as well as the set time for autokicks.
 173   + The maximum expiry time for autokills set by Services operators (as
 174         opposed to Services admins) can now be limited.
 175   + Support for the Chunky Monkey and trircd IRC servers is now available.
 176   + Services can now synchronize the clocks of all servers on the network
 177         for IRC server types which support this feature (Unreal).
 178   + Configuration files can now be re-read (rehashed) while Services is
 179         running, using either an OperServ command or kill -HUP.
 180   + The log file can now be rotated automatically based on the date.
 181   + Databases can now be imported (merged) and exported in XML format.
 182   + A sample crontab script is now included in the distribution.
 183   * The configuration file has been changed to accommodate modules;
 184         ircservices.conf (formerly services.conf) now contains only options
 185         related to core Services functionality, while module-related
 186         options (including NickServ, ChanServ, etc. settings) are in a new
 187         file called &quot;modules.conf&quot;.  Many options have been added, changed,
 188         or removed; see the example configuration files for details.
 189   * The network I/O subsystem has been completely redesigned for robustness
 190         and ease of use; multiple sockets (including listener sockets) can
 191         be used simultaneously via read/write callbacks, and sockets now
 192         have variable buffer sizes, allowing more efficient use of memory.
 193   * Database handling has been improved to avoid database corruption on
 194         power outage or process termination/crash.
 195   * The &quot;do not abuse NickServ&quot; warning in the main NickServ help message
 196         is now optional, to allow networks more freedom in writing their
 197         own policies.
 198   * Passwords, URLs, and E-mail addresses are now shared by each group of
 199         linked nicks.
 200   * NickServ DROP now requires a password to avoid accidental use, and
 201         drops all linked nicks in a group at once.  The command for
 202         Services administrators to drop a nick is now DROPNICK.
 203   * The channel &quot;#&quot;, which has been known to cause problems with both IRC
 204         servers and Services-like programs, is now explicitly not
 205         supported; Services will refuse to register, forbid, or import it.
 206   * Channel autokicks specified by nickname will now work for that nick
 207         only, not for any nicks linked to it.
 208   * The CSRestrictDelay option now works correctly and is enabled by default.
 209   * Newly-registered nicks will now always use the default language set in
 210         config.h, even if that language is changed after registration.
 211   * The database conversion utility (convert-db) now outputs an XML
 212         database file, which can be used with the XML import feature,
 213         rather than writing databases directly.
 214   * The configuration script &quot;configure&quot; now asks fewer questions, and can
 215         be completely automated if the &quot;-prefix&quot; option is used.
 216   * &quot;configure&quot; now understands GNU-style long options, e.g.: --prefix=/usr
 217   - The deprecated CheckClones functionality has been removed in favor of
 218         session limiting.
 219   - The IrcIIHelp pseudoclient (online help for the ircII client) has been
 220         removed.
 221   - The &quot;listnicks&quot; and &quot;listchans&quot; programs have been removed in favor of
 222         the built-in HTTP server.
 223
 224   --Andrew Church
 225     <A HREF="http://www.ircservices.za.net/mailman/listinfo/ircservices">achurch at achurch.org</A>
 226     <A HREF="http://achurch.org/">http://achurch.org/</A>
 227
 228 </PRE>
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