SHSelfHostIndex

Anope vs InspIRCd

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

Not the right match-up?
AN Anope IRC services suite for nickname and channel registration VS InspIRCd Modular C++ Internet Relay Chat daemon
FeatureAnopeInspIRCd
Deploy effortRead-the-docs projectUnder-an-hour setup
Health score77 · Good84 · Excellent
CategoryChat & CommunicationChat & Communication
LicenseGPL-2.0GPL-2.0
LanguageC++C++
Setup difficultyMediumMedium
Min. RAM64 MB64 MB
Deploymentbare-metal, sourcedocker, bare-metal, source
GitHub stars★ 365★ 1,347
First released20032002
ReplacesSlackSlack, Discord

What are Anope and InspIRCd?

Anope

Anope is a set of IRC services that provides NickServ, ChanServ, and related registration features for IRC networks. It works with most major IRCd implementations and supports SQL and LDAP backends.

  • NickServ and ChanServ
  • Works with many IRCds
  • SQL and LDAP integration
  • Web panel available

InspIRCd

InspIRCd is a modular, high-performance IRC server written in C++. Its plugin-based architecture lets administrators enable only the features they need for their network.

  • Modular plugin architecture
  • Lightweight and fast
  • Supports large IRC networks
  • Cross-platform

Anope vs InspIRCd: key differences

Both projects are written in C++. InspIRCd has the considerably larger community, at 1,347 GitHub stars versus 365. InspIRCd lists first-class Docker deployment; Anope does not.

Why pick each one

Choose Anope if…

  • Released under the GPL-2.0 license
  • Written in C++
  • Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Anope details

Choose InspIRCd if…

  • Released under the GPL-2.0 license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Active community (1.3k GitHub stars)
  • Written in C++

Watch out for

  • Configuration is XML-based
  • IRC-only
InspIRCd details

Frequently asked questions

Is Anope or InspIRCd better?

Neither is universally better. InspIRCd has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are Anope and InspIRCd free and open-source?

Yes. Anope is licensed under GPL-2.0 and InspIRCd under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Anope and InspIRCd with Docker?

Anope: check the project docs for container support. InspIRCd: yes.

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