Contents
- Introduction
- About Matrix
- Synapse Installation
- Running Synapse
- Connecting to Synapse from a client
- Security Note
- Platform-Specific Instructions
- Troubleshooting
- Upgrading an existing Synapse
- Setting up Federation
- Using PostgreSQL
- Using a reverse proxy with Synapse
- Identity Servers
- URL Previews
- Password reset
- Synapse Development
- Building Internal API Documentation
- Help!! Synapse eats all my RAM!
Introduction
Matrix is an ambitious new ecosystem for open federated Instant Messaging and VoIP. The basics you need to know to get up and running are:
- Everything in Matrix happens in a room. Rooms are distributed and do not
exist on any single server. Rooms can be located using convenience aliases
like
#matrix:matrix.orgor#test:localhost:8448. - Matrix user IDs look like
@matthew:matrix.org(although in the future you will normally refer to yourself and others using a third party identifier (3PID): email address, phone number, etc rather than manipulating Matrix user IDs)
The overall architecture is:
client <----> homeserver <=====================> homeserver <----> client
https://somewhere.org/_matrix https://elsewhere.net/_matrix#matrix:matrix.org is the official support room for Matrix, and can be
accessed by any client from https://matrix.org/docs/projects/try-matrix-now or
via IRC bridge at irc://irc.freenode.net/matrix.
Synapse is currently in rapid development, but as of version 0.5 we believe it is sufficiently stable to be run as an internet-facing service for real usage!
About Matrix
Matrix specifies a set of pragmatic RESTful HTTP JSON APIs as an open standard, which handle:
- Creating and managing fully distributed chat rooms with no single points of control or failure
- Eventually-consistent cryptographically secure synchronisation of room state across a global open network of federated servers and services
- Sending and receiving extensible messages in a room with (optional) end-to-end encryption[1]
- Inviting, joining, leaving, kicking, banning room members
- Managing user accounts (registration, login, logout)
- Using 3rd Party IDs (3PIDs) such as email addresses, phone numbers, Facebook accounts to authenticate, identify and discover users on Matrix.
- Placing 1:1 VoIP and Video calls
These APIs are intended to be implemented on a wide range of servers, services and clients, letting developers build messaging and VoIP functionality on top of the entirely open Matrix ecosystem rather than using closed or proprietary solutions. The hope is for Matrix to act as the building blocks for a new generation of fully open and interoperable messaging and VoIP apps for the internet.
Synapse is a reference "homeserver" implementation of Matrix from the core development team at matrix.org, written in Python/Twisted. It is intended to showcase the concept of Matrix and let folks see the spec in the context of a codebase and let you run your own homeserver and generally help bootstrap the ecosystem.
In Matrix, every user runs one or more Matrix clients, which connect through to a Matrix homeserver. The homeserver stores all their personal chat history and user account information - much as a mail client connects through to an IMAP/SMTP server. Just like email, you can either run your own Matrix homeserver and control and own your own communications and history or use one hosted by someone else (e.g. matrix.org) - there is no single point of control or mandatory service provider in Matrix, unlike WhatsApp, Facebook, Hangouts, etc.
We'd like to invite you to join #matrix:matrix.org (via https://matrix.org/docs/projects/try-matrix-now), run a homeserver, take a look at the Matrix spec, and experiment with the APIs and Client SDKs.
Thanks for using Matrix!
[1] End-to-end encryption is currently in beta: blog post.