# Freenode IRC Administration Guidelines and Tips This is not meant to be a general "Here's how to IRC" document, so if you're looking for that, check Google instead. ♥ If you've been charged with helping maintain one of Docker's now many IRC channels, this might turn out to be useful. If there's information that you wish you'd known about how a particular channel is organized, you should add deets here! :) ## `ChanServ` Most channel maintenance happens by talking to Freenode's `ChanServ` bot. For example, `/msg ChanServ ACCESS <channel> LIST` will show you a list of everyone with "access" privileges for a particular channel. A similar command is used to give someone a particular access level. For example, to add a new maintainer to the `#docker-maintainers` access list so that they can contribute to the discussions (after they've been merged appropriately in a `MAINTAINERS` file, of course), one would use `/msg ChanServ ACCESS #docker-maintainers ADD <nick> maintainer`. To setup a new channel with a similar `maintainer` access template, use a command like `/msg ChanServ TEMPLATE <channel> maintainer +AV` (`+A` for letting them view the `ACCESS LIST`, `+V` for auto-voice; see `/msg ChanServ HELP FLAGS` for more details). ## Troubleshooting The most common cause of not-getting-auto-`+v` woes is people not being `IDENTIFY`ed with `NickServ` (or their current nickname not being `GROUP`ed with their main nickname) -- often manifested by `ChanServ` responding to an `ACCESS ADD` request with something like `xyz is not registered.`. This is easily fixed by doing `/msg NickServ IDENTIFY OldNick SecretPassword` followed by `/msg NickServ GROUP` to group the two nicknames together. See `/msg NickServ HELP GROUP` for more information.