Instant Messaging with
Jabber/XMPP
John P. Mulligan @ CPLUG
January 8, 2008

a little history

Proprietary Protocols

Proprietary Protocols
ICQ (1996)

Proprietary Protocols
ICQ (1996)
AOL IM (1997)

Proprietary Protocols
ICQ (1996)
AOL IM (1997)
Yahoo! Messenger (1998)

Proprietary Protocols
ICQ (1996)
AOL IM (1997)
Yahoo! Messenger (1998)
MSN (1999)

Lame.

Lame.
• Can only talk to users on the same system

Lame.
• Can only talk to users on the same system
• Centralized, authoritative server

Lame.
• Can only talk to users on the same system
• Centralized, authoritative server
• No choice of client software

Lame.
• Can only talk to users on the same system
• Centralized, authoritative server
• No choice of client software
• Not nearly enough XML

Jeremie Miller
and Jabber
“...a couple of friends were playing
around with a little Perl script that
would send messages back and forth
between ICQ and AIM -- two clients
could connect to it and it would
rewrite messages. So I thought, ‘Well
heck, it isn't that hard to write an
instant messaging system.’”

XMPP
IETF formalizes Jabber as the
Extensible Messaging and
Presence Protocol (XMPP)
RFC 3920 / RFC 3921
(2004)

Google Talk
Combination VoIP and IM
application using XMPP
(2005)

three years later...

What are people using?
Millions of Active Users
Source: Wikipedia article on Instant Messaging, retrieved January 4, 2008. So who knows if any of it is true.

What are people using?
Millions of Active Users
Source: Wikipedia article on Instant Messaging, retrieved January 4, 2008. So who knows if any of it is true.

Extensible Messaging
and Presence Protocol
(XMPP)

XMPP Features

XMPP Features
• Decentralized

XMPP Features
• Decentralized
• Open standards

XMPP Features
• Decentralized
• Open standards
• Security

XMPP Features
• Decentralized
• Open standards
• Security
• Flexibility

XMPP Features
• Decentralized
• Open standards
• Security
• Flexibility
• Has more XML

Decentralization
• No central, authoritative server
• Anyone can run a server
• Communication is server to server
• Unique Jabber ID (JID) for each user
• Log in from multiple locations (Resources)

XMPP Messaging
Client Client
alice@example.com bob@jabber.org
Server Server
jabber.org jabber.org

Jabber/XMPP
Software

XMPP Clients
• Google Talk
• iChat
• Pidgin (formerly Gaim)
• Psi

XMPP Servers
• ejabberd (Erlang)
• jabberd2 (C)
• Openfire (Java)
• Sun Java System IM (Java)

Ignite Realtime
• Openfire
Java-based cross-platform XMPP server
• Spark
Cross-platform XMPP client
• Smack API
Java XMPP client library
• XIFF API
Flash XMPP client library

Openfire
• Cross-platform (Java)
• Database independent
• Web based admin
• File transfers and group chats
• Gateways to other IM networks

Extend with Plug-ins
• MotD
• Broadcast messages
• Content filtering
• Presence through HTTP
• Asterisk and SIP management

Administration Console

Administration Console

Administration Console

Administration Console

Administration Console

Administration Console

Openfire Enterprise
• Reporting
• Advanced VoIP
• Browser based IM client
• Client control
• Archiving
• Customer chat

XMPP and IRC
• Multi-protocol clients (e.g. Pidgin)
• Application plug-ins (irssi-xmpp)
• Bitlbee

XMPP and IRC
ircd AIM
irssi Openfire
Google
Bitlbee
Talk

So what?

Jabber rocks.
• No more reliance on a single company
• Talk to anyone on any IM system
• You can run a private IM system
• Open, secure, extensible

Openfire rocks.
• XMPP server with lots of features
• Open source version is free
• Amazingly simple to install
• Slick web-based admin console
• Scalable, secure, stable

Instant Messaging with
Jabber/XMPP

Links and References
• The Messenger: An Interview with Jabber’s
Creator, Jeremie Miller (2001)
http://www.linux-mag.com/id/902?r=s
• Wikipedia “XMPP” Article
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XMPP
• Ignite Realtime (Openfire)
http://www.igniterealtime.org/

Links and References
• Jive Software (Openfire)
http://www.jivesoftware.com/
• Psi (XMPP Client)
http://psi-im.org/
• Bitlbee (IRC to IM Gateway)
http://www.bitlbee.org/
• Thinkhole Labs (Presentation Slides)
http://thinkhole.org/gallery/v/slides/