Charybdis IRCd vs Libervia
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Charybdis IRCd | Libervia |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Status | Archived | Actively maintained |
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | GPL-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | C | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 230 | ★ 50 |
| First released | 2008 | 2009 |
| Replaces | Discord, Slack | Slack, Facebook |
What are Charybdis IRCd and Libervia?
Charybdis IRCd
Charybdis is an IRCv3-capable IRC server daemon descended from ratbox, designed to power large IRC networks. It has been used as the basis for several other IRC server projects and is fully self-hostable.
- IRCv3-capable IRC server
- Designed for large networks
- Basis for other IRC daemons
Libervia
Libervia, formerly Salut a Toi, is a communication ecosystem built on XMPP that offers desktop, web, and command-line frontends. It supports chat, blogging, file sharing, and more over a single decentralized network.
- Multiple frontends on XMPP
- Blogging and file sharing
- End-to-end encryption
- Command-line interface
Charybdis IRCd vs Libervia: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Charybdis IRCd's repository is archived and no longer developed, while Libervia is actively maintained. Charybdis IRCd is written in C, while Libervia is built with Python. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for Charybdis IRCd versus AGPL-3.0 for Libervia. Charybdis IRCd is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Libervia. Charybdis IRCd has the considerably larger community, at 230 GitHub stars versus 50.
Why pick each one
Choose Charybdis IRCd if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Choose Libervia if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Written in Python
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Charybdis IRCd or Libervia better?
Charybdis IRCd is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Charybdis IRCd if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Charybdis IRCd and Libervia free and open-source?
Yes. Charybdis IRCd is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Libervia under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Charybdis IRCd and Libervia with Docker?
Charybdis IRCd: check the project docs for container support. Libervia: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Charybdis IRCd or Libervia?
Charybdis IRCd has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Libervia. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.