IRC Connection Guide

IRC is old technology. Given this, it's increasingly likely as time goes on that you have never used IRC. Thus, you may have many questions about IRC. This article attempts to answer them.

IRC Connection Details

Hostname/Address:	irc.hullseals.space
Port:	6697 (or +6697 in some clients)
SSL:	Yes
Nickname:	Your Registered IRC Name
Username:	Your Registered Seal Account Name
Password:	Your Seal Account Password

You may use as your Nickname any registered name in our IRC Management portal.

How do I authenticate with the server?

The Hull Seals IRC server supports a number of different ways to authenticate with our server. Authentication insures that you are able to log in, and you are who you say you are. If you attempt to log in to a registered nickname, and don't provide authentication information, you will not be able to successfully log in.

[Recommended] SASL

SASL is the preferred method to authenticate with our IRC network. Every client is different and may have its own implementation of SASL, so we encourage you refer to Freenode's guide on SASL and clients.

In General, however, you can log in with SASL by using your Seal username and password, and setting your "Nickname" to any registered IRC Name. Refer to your Client's documentation for more details

/msg NickServ IDENTIFY

If you can't use SASL, the alternative is using /msg Nick Serv IDENTIFY. In this method, after connection you will be challenged to run the NickServ IDENTIFY command, in which you will provide your useraccount password in the format /msg nickserv identify <your password>. On a successful authentication, you will receive the +r flag and your vhost. If you don't, contact a CyberSeal.

Don't use /msg NickServ Register!

NickServ on many IRC networks is completely standalone and allows registration in the IRC network. We do not support that. All accounts must be registered on the website to be recognized.

Do I have to use SSL?

Technically, No. However, why wouldn't you?

The Seals strongly encourage connections to be made with SSL on port 6697. As such, a guide of how to connect in a less-secure mode will not be provided here. If for some reason SSL does not work for you, please contact the Cyberseals.

What are hullse.al links?

We have our own URL shortener! .al is the top-level domain of Albania. Several of these links are displayed for reference at https://hullse.al/FantasticShortlinksAndWhereTheyLead. These links can generally be trusted, but as always, think before you click.

I forgot my Password!

To reset your IRC password, reset your User Account's password on our website.

What do the markers in IRC mean?

The markers in IRC are rather complicated, and we understand that. The symbol you will see most commonly is the + symbol, which is the icon for a "Voiced" seal. This is assigned to an authenticated user who has been drilled. If you think you should have this, and do not, doublecheck your status with NickServ. Each client may display symbols differently, but often you will see Admins, Moderators, Cyberseals, and other higher-level Seals and Staff with special symbols.

The order of symbols is as follows:

+ for Voiced users, authenticated and Drilled Seals.
% for Half Operators, generally our Bots.
@ for Channel Operators. These users generally have most administrative commands.
& for Channel Admins. These users have most administrative commands, as well as certain exemptions from spamfilters.
~ for Server Owners. This is probably Rixxan.