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What does IRC stand for?
IRC stands for Internet Relay Chat. RFC 2810 defines it as a protocol for text-based conferencing. The name refers to the protocol and the way participating servers relay conversations—not to one universal chat room, company, or application.
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How does IRC work?
IRC uses a client-server model. The client is the software a person uses; it connects to a server, which handles communication with users and other servers. Connected servers form an IRC network and relay messages among its participants. RFC 2810 describes the network as connected servers arranged in a spanning tree; a single server can also form the simplest network.
- Client: The software a user operates to connect and communicate.
- Server: The network component that accepts client connections and exchanges messages.
- Network: One or more connected IRC servers. Separate networks are separate communities.
- Channel: A shared conversation space within a network.
What are IRC channels and private messages?
A channel lets multiple users participate in a group conversation. A user can also address another user directly for a one-to-one conversation. Channels belong to an IRC network, so joining a channel on one network does not put someone in the same conversation on a different network.
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Is IRC a chat app or a protocol?
IRC is a protocol. A chat client is an application that speaks that protocol, while servers provide the infrastructure connecting users and conversations. This differs from a chat service that is itself one provider-controlled application: IRC describes a model used by clients and networks, not a single provider or centrally defined community.
This distinction does not by itself establish that IRC is more private, secure, reliable, or active than any particular hosted chat service. Those characteristics depend on the client, network, configuration, and operating policies involved.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.When was IRC created, and what do its RFCs describe?
RFC 2810 says IRC was developed beginning in 1989, initially to let users on a bulletin board system (BBS) chat. Jarkko Oikarinen and Darren Reed formally documented the protocol in RFC 1459 in May 1993; that memo was labeled experimental. In April 2000, Christophe Kalt published RFC 2810, which updates RFC 1459 and describes IRC architecture. RFC 2810 explicitly states that it “does not specify an Internet standard of any kind.”
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- RFC 2810: Architecture and network model. Read RFC 2810.
- RFC 2811: Channel management.
- RFC 2812: Client protocol. See the RFC Editor record for RFC 2812.
- RFC 2813: Server protocol.
These RFCs are historical protocol documents; an RFC number alone does not mean a document specifies a current Internet Standard. Nor should the documents be taken to mean that all present-day IRC networks implement every detail identically. Networks may use extensions and set different operational policies.
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