OPEN
(US) Welcome to Xtris » You first!
A A You're here: home 
faq services faq
Frequently Asked Questions: Services
1. How do I register an account?
Firstly, in order to register a channel or become a 'registered' user of the network, you will need to create an account with NickServ. When you do so, your nickname will also be registered to your account giving you ownership of it.
To register an account with NickServ, you will firstly need to connect to the network; please view this FAQ for help on how to do so. Once connected, please make sure you are using a nick (/NICK nickname) you wish to register.
Once you are confident that you're using a nickname you wish to register, you have a desired password and a working e-mail address (we prefer ISP e-mails), you may begin the registration process by issuing the following command on IRC:
/ns REGISTER <account> <password> <email>
The NickServ service uses hostmasks (usually provided by your ISP ('Internet Service Provider')) to secure your account. It will automatically add your current user@hostmask to your account during the registration process.
An e-mail will be dispatched to the e-mail address you provide which will contain a cookie that will let you activate your account; please be aware this may take a few moments to arrive, and please ensure it does not end up in your junk/spam mailbox.
2. How do I register a channel?
To register a channel, please join #support on IRC. You will be assisted in the fastest possible time by a member of staff.
Before joining #support, however, please ensure you meet the following criteria:
- You have a channel name in mind (which doesn't already have ChanServ present in it)
- You have a NickServ account and are authenticated to it
- You are in the channel and opped (@)
Please note: Channels must comply with our AUP and Channel Registration Policy (and its related documents).
3. Can I register my nickname?
You certainly can! The process of doing so is detailed in Question 1 of this FAQ section.
4. How do I auth?
Each time you connect to the network, you will need to authenticate yourself with NickServ in order for your account to be used and to use any channel accesses you may have on your account (or channel ownerships).
To do this, firstly connect to the network, and then, issue the following command on IRC:
/AUTH <account> <password>
If the process is successful, NickServ will reply with:
-NickServ- AUTHENTICATION SUCCESSFUL as Account
-NickServ- Please remember that Xtris staff will never ask you for your account password; do not disclose your account credentials to anyone asking for them
It may be of interest to you to know you can hide your hostmask on IRC. Your hostmask is provided by your ISP ('Internet Service Provider') and is best hidden from other users for your protection. Once your hostmask is hidden, users will not be able to see it on /WHOIS data or account information. To do this, you will firstly need to be authed (as above), then type in your IRC client:
/mode your_nickname +x(replacing your_nickname with the nickname you're currently using)- Or if you're using mIRC, you can use
//mode $me +x(with the double //)
This will spoof your host to your_account.user.xtris
Please also note that #support can offer custom hostmasks or titles, please /join #support for further information.
5. I've lost my password! What can I do?
We have a password recovery system in place - you will, however, need access to the e-mail address you used to register your account.
To recover your password, please connect to IRC, and then, issue the following command on IRC:
/ns RESETPASS <account> <newpassword>
A cookie will then be sent to the e-mail address on your account which you must verify by using the COOKIE command before your 'newpassword' will become effective.
6. I'm trying to auth but I get an invalid hostmask error?
We have an automatic way to allow you to reauthenticate to your account using a different user@hostmask than is specified on your account. You will, however, need access to the e-mail address you used to register your account.
To add your current user@hostmask to your account, please connect to IRC, and then, issue the following command on IRC:
/ns AUTHCOOKIE <account>
A cookie will be sent to the e-mail address on your account which you must verify by using the COOKIE command before you will be able to auth.
If you no longer have access to the e-mail address specified on your account, you will need to join #support and speak to a member of staff who will go through some security questions with you before allowing you to authenticate to your account.
7. Can I have more than one channel manager (Level: 500)?
It is possible, yes. It is dealt with on a case-by-case basis, however.
To request a further channel manager, with level 500 access on your channel, please use the Support Form giving a full explanation of why you need a second manager and details of the new manager.
8. I want #channel, but it's already registered, what can I do?
There's nothing you can do if you don't already have access to the user-list of the channel.
If you do have access to the user-list of the channel, read on:
- If the owner (level 500) of a channel has been away for 14 days or more, a member of the user-list may request ownership of a channel. We will only offer ownership to the next highest active operator, of level 300 access or higher (to prevent the channel from naturally expiring)
- The next highest active operator will need to join #support for this change to be actioned
- Definition of 'Highest Active Operator': If the owner has been away for 2 weeks and there is a 499 level operator seen in the last 2 weeks, only that 499 user could receive ownership - or someone else with equal access who is active. If a 498 requests ownership when a 499 has been active, ownership will NOT be given. Everyone ABOVE you must have been away for at least 2 weeks, without them having the
VACATIONmode set on their account - Please note, we will only change ownership under the following circumstances:
- If the owner has not set the
VACATIONflag on their account - If no other operator with higher access than you has been active in the past 2 weeks (1 week and 6 days is not acceptable)
- If the owner has not set the
9. I want #channel. It's already registered but no one uses it; can I have it?
We have measures in place to ensure this is checked regularly.
However, it takes some time (and the channel needs to be consistently unused) before it expires. Until the channel automatically expires due to inactivity, or any other reason, it is unavailable to register.
10. How do I change my language with Services?
Our services currently support the following languages:
- EN (English)
- DE (German)
To change your language, use: /ns SET LANGUAGE <language code>
Are you interested in helping with other translations? Please let us know using our Support Form. Please note: We require fluent translations to ensure professionalism and consistency.
11. Where can I find Services documentation?
We have all commands documented. They can be found by clicking here.
12. Where can I find Services support?
There are a few methods you can follow to find support - both on IRC and through our website.
- We have all commands documented. They can be found by clicking here
- You may join #support on IRC by typing
/join #support. You will be added to the queue and voiced to be assisted in an orderly fashion. Please ensure you have full details of your problem ready to send to your assigned helper - You may contact our Support Department through our Support Form (which has an intended response time of 24 hours)
- At all times, you can use the ChanServ
STAFF, HELPERSorIRCOPScommands.STAFFwill list all helpers and IRC Operators currently online. Nicknames enclosed in parentheses are away, and likely unavailable
Please remember that our staff can be identified through /WHOIS by looking for the following attributes:
| nick is something@account.manager.staff | Network Manager | |
| nick is something@account.operator.staff | IRC Operator | |
| nick is an IRC Operator | IRC Operator | |
| nick is something@account.trainer.staff | Staff Trainer | |
| nick is something@account.network.staff | Network Helper | |
| nick is something@account.support.staff | Support Helper | |
| nick is something@account.trial.staff | Trial Helper |
13. How do I change my account password?
In order to change your NickServ account password, you will need to be connected to the network and authenticated to your account.
/ns PASS <youroldpass> <yournewpass>
Please note: Changing your password has immediate effect. When you next connect to IRC, you will need to auth with your new password.
14. How do I disconnect someone using MY nick?
If you find someone is using your registered nickname, you can remove them from the network for doing so.
In order to do this, you must have an account (see question 1), and be authenticated. To remove the user from the network, issue the following command on IRC:
/ns RECLAIM <nick>
After doing so, you will be able to change to your nickname (/NICK yournick).
15. Can I register any channel I want?
The simple answer to this is no. Channels must comply with our AUP and Channel Registration Policy (and its related documents).
16. Can I register more than one nick to my account?
You may indeed; there is a limit of 2. When you intitally register your account through NickServ's REGISTER command, your current nick is automatically associated with your account. You are then able to register one further nick to the account by changing to the nick (/NICK newnick) and then issuing the following command on IRC:
/ns REGNICK
Please note: To unregister a nickname associated with your account, you may use the UNREGNICK command.
17. What are the expiry times with ChanServ?
If both the owner and level 300+ users are away from IRC for 14 days, your channel will be automatically expired.
If the owner has been away for a long time, please see Question 18 of this FAQ section.
18. The channel owner has been away for ages, can I get ownership?
Ownership changes:
- If the owner (level 500) of a channel has been away for 14 days or more, a member of the user-list may request ownership of a channel. We will only offer ownership to the next highest active operator, of level 300 access or higher (to prevent the channel from naturally expiring)
- The next highest active operator will need to join #support for this change to be actioned
- Definition of 'Highest Active Operator': If the owner has been away for 2 weeks and there is a 499 level operator seen in the last 2 weeks, only that 499 user could receive ownership - or someone else with equal access who is active. If a 498 requests ownership when a 499 has been active, ownership will NOT be given. Everyone ABOVE you must have been away for at least 2 weeks, without them having the
VACATIONmode set on their account - Please note, we will only change ownership under the following circumstances:
- If the owner has not set the
VACATIONflag on their account - If no other operator with higher access than you has been active in the past 2 weeks (1 week and 6 days is not acceptable)
- If the owner has not set the
19. What's the difference between SET's GREETING and USERGREETING?
ChanServ allows you to set GREETINGs and USERGREETINGs on your channel. These notice users joining your channel with the selected text. This FAQ highlights the differences between the two types:
- GREETING is sent to all users joining your channel who do not have access to the channel's user-list
- USERGREETING is sent to users who are present on the channel's user-list
You may set both greetings to the same message if you do not want a separate greeting for users and your user-list staff.
20. How do I setup a TOPICMASK?
You may have been in channels and seen that the operators there type a simple !topic <some text> command and in doing so, their topic is updated, but only part of it changes. This is achieved by setting a TOPICMASK which allows you to have static text along with a dynamic part that changes with information you provide.
For this examle, our static text is:
Welcome to #MyAmazingChannel ~ Our news: Something Goes HereWe want 'I'm going on holiday!' to be our news, and we want to be able to just type !topic I'm going on holiday! which would make ChanServ set the channel topic (along with the static text) to:
Welcome to #MyAmazingChannel ~ Our news: I'm going on holiday!When setting up a TOPICMASK, you need to provide a '*' which is the part of the topic that will change dynamically with the !topic information you provide. You must include this, or the bot will not know which part of your topic to update.
To achieve this, you need access to the SET commands in the channel. You can find out what this is set to by typing !SET in the channel and looking for the access-level next to Setters:
- Firstly, we need to set the ENFTOPIC setting down to your own level by using:
!set ENFTOPIC 400 - To set your TOPICMASK, use:
!set TOPICMASK Welcome to #MyAmazingChannel ~ Our news: * - We now need to LOCK your ENFTOPIC by using:
!set ENFTOPIC 501 - Lastly, now provide some news by using:
!topic <your news>
If you want the topic to have an asterisk appear in it, place a backslash before the asterisk (\*); likewise, if you want the topic to have a backslash appear in it, use two backslashes (\\). This prevents conflicts with your stand-alone '*' to tell the bot where to update your topic.
21. I've been Glined for 'AUTO Excessive connections from a single host'?
The Xtris Network restricts users to no more than three (3) connections per IP address. If this limit is exceeded all clients are glined for one hour. The Abuse Committee reserves the right to increase this limit on a case-by-case basis.
As this is only a one hour gline, it is not worth disputing it via our Disputes Form.
Please note you may be eligible for a 'Trust'; see our Trust Request form for details.
22. I've forgotten my account - how do I find it?
Simply join #support where a member of staff will be pleased to assist you.
23. Why has my nick been changed to Guest****?
If you use a registered nickname and do not authenticate to it within 2 minutes, NickServ will automatically change your nick to a random Guest****.
A warning is sent when you are using a registered nick and are not authenticated to the account that owns it.
One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest. -- Maya Angelou