ircd-hybrid vs Solanum
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted chat & communication options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | ircd-hybrid | Solanum |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 69 · Good | 71 · Good |
| Category | Chat & Communication | Chat & Communication |
| License | GPL-2.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | C | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 200 | ★ 262 |
| First released | 1997 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Slack, Discord | Slack, Discord |
What are ircd-hybrid and Solanum?
ircd-hybrid
ircd-hybrid is a long-standing IRC server daemon known for stability and a lightweight footprint. It supports modern IRC features and modular extensions, and can be self-hosted to run an IRC network.
- Stable lightweight IRC daemon
- Modular extensions
- Long-standing project
Solanum
Solanum is an IRCv3 server daemon descended from the Charybdis lineage. It is the software that powers the Libera.Chat IRC network and is suitable for running large IRC infrastructures.
- Powers Libera.Chat
- IRCv3 protocol support
- Scales to large networks
- Charybdis-derived codebase
ircd-hybrid vs Solanum: key differences
Both projects are written in C. Ircd-hybrid is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for Solanum. Ircd-hybrid is the more established project (first released 1997), while Solanum arrived in 2020.
Why pick each one
Choose ircd-hybrid if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Choose Solanum if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is ircd-hybrid or Solanum better?
Neither is universally better. Solanum has the larger community, while ircd-hybrid is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are ircd-hybrid and Solanum free and open-source?
Yes. ircd-hybrid is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Solanum under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run ircd-hybrid and Solanum with Docker?
ircd-hybrid: check the project docs for container support. Solanum: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, ircd-hybrid or Solanum?
ircd-hybrid has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for Solanum. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.