Frequently Asked Questions & Reference
Where can I find the EsperNet Charter / Terms of Use?
Here.
Does EsperNet provide cloaking/vhosts?
Espernet does not support cloaking or other methods of hiding of IP addresses. If you wish to 'hide' your IP, you might consider an IRC bouncer (BNC). Do note that on occasion abusive users of a BNC service may be banned from the network, and as a side effect, you may be banned as well.
How do I reclaim my channel after it becomes unregistered?
This applies to UNREGISTERED channels only: If you no longer have any operators in your channel and are unable to clear the channel to gain operator status, you may request that network staff grant you channel operator status. In most cases, the first person to request channel operator status for an unregistered channel gets it. To gain channel operator status in an op-less, uregistered channel, seek assistance in #dragonweyr.
Do you allow adult-oriented channels?
Yes, as long as they are set to secret.
How do I make my channel secret?
Setting a channel 'secret' (mode +s) prevents the channel from showing up in /list and /whois. If you /whois yourself or /list while you yourself are in the +s channel, it will appear, but only to you and others in the secret channel. To anyone outside the channel, it is invisible.
To set a channel to secret, use:
/mode #mychannel +s
Note: You need to be operator to do this. Additionally, to have the +s mode persist, a ChanServ mode-lock can be enabled by issuing:
/msg chanserv SET #mychannel MLOCK +s
For more info; see
/msg chanserv HELP SET MLOCK
Connectivity Issues
Does EsperNet support IPv6?
Yes. You can use the ipv6.irc.esper.net hostname to be connected to a random IPv6-supporting server. The primary irc.esper.net round-robin also includes IPv6 servers.
Do you provide SSL encrypted connections?
Yes, all servers support SSL on port 6697.
Verizon Wireless
Verizon appears to have blocked EsperNet (and other well known IRC networks) from their wireless internet service. Symptoms: Unable to connect (or sporadic connection) to EsperNet using Verizon's wireless service and/or traceroute fails at the last hop. To circumvent this restriction, connect to EsperNet indirectly using a (private) proxy, IRC bouncer, shell account or a web service such as Mibbit.com.
I only get the MOTD (or part of it), then get disconnected. What's wrong?
It is likely that your firewall software/router/antivirus is detecting the proxy scan from our servers, interpreting it as malicious and forcefully closing the connection. You either need to investigate whether you can 'whitelist' the IRC connection or disable the 'DOS protection', 'Intrusion Detection' or 'SPF firewall' on your router. Belkin routers are known to be culprits in many of these cases.
Mibbit users are not affected by this because Mibbit.com is proxying your connection to Espernet via the WEBIRC protocol, not using a direct connection.