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IRC Documentation · Beginner

WeeChat: Getting Started with a Terminal IRC Client

WeeChat is a free terminal-based chat client, extensible with plugins and scripts. Its getting started guide explains creating an IRC server, conversation buffers, TLS, and SASL authentication.

Dialova Team · Verified on

Servers and Buffers #

A configured server contains connection parameters. Conversations appear in buffers: a channel, a private exchange, and server messages are not the same space. Reading the server buffer is useful when a connection or authentication fails.

Commands that begin with / in WeeChat may be client commands. For example, managing your servers does not correspond to a command sent as-is on IRC. The official guide presents the syntax to use for your installation.

Preparing the Correct Parameters #

  • Install WeeChat from a source suitable for your system and consult the getting started guide.
  • Add the server with the host and TLS port documented by the network.
  • If an account is required, configure SASL with the account name and mechanism accepted by this network.
  • Connect the server, read any rejections, then join the desired channel.

WeeChat offers secure storage of sensitive data. Follow its documentation rather than keeping a secret in a shared script, a capture, or a command history broadcast.

Example Settings for Dialova #

These commands are entered in WeeChat, not sent as raw IRC messages. dialova is here the local name of the configuration. Replace YourNickname with your account nickname.

WeeChat Client Configuration Commands
/server add dialova irc.dialova.com/6697 -tls
/set irc.server.dialova.nicks "VotrePseudo"
/set irc.server.dialova.sasl_username "VotrePseudo"

Before establishing a connection, also configure the SASL secret with the IRC key created on the site. The official guide explains the /secure data and its reference in sasl_password: follow this procedure for your personal key. The three lines above are therefore not sufficient, on their own, to authenticate an account.

After complete authentication configuration and successful connection
/connect dialova
/join #Dialova

If a local server named dialova already exists, consult its options with /help server instead of blindly recreating its configuration. Never transmit your key to the channel to attempt to correct a refusal.

A terminal is not automatically a bouncer #

Closing the display, closing the WeeChat process, and using a bouncer are different operations. A persistent remote session can keep the process open; a bouncer maintains its own IRC connection. The availability of history depends on this mount and the network, not solely on the choice of a terminal.

Using a Dialova Account #

The IRC address and the key dedicated to the account remain the same regardless of the client. The mIRC tutorial explains the creation of this key on Dialova; the mIRC configuration screens do not apply to WeeChat.

Sources & Verification

Examples use pseudonyms and fictional domains, except for explicitly documented connection points. Network-specific extensions and settings are noted in the text.