Frequently Asked Questions

General¶

This section focuses on general FAQs related to administration, subscription, etc.

Can I migrate my server or its data to etke.cc?¶

I want to get a new Matrix server from etke.cc based on exported data from my current provider¶

The short answer is: no — we do not support migration.

The long answer has been removed, because it gave a false impression that migration is possible in some cases. We’ve decided to be clear and upfront about this: we do not support migration.

I want to have an existing Matrix server installed with matrix-docker-ansible-deploy to be maintained by etke.cc¶

If you have a relatively up-to-date server installation configured with the matrix-docker-ansible-deploy Ansible playbook, it may be possible to migrate it to us.

However, it will require prior reviewing of your existing configuration, as components offered on etke.cc (which you can check on our Order Form) differ from those offered by the playbook.

Please contact us and send over your vars.yml file after removing credentials (passwords and secrets), so we can analyze it to let you know if:

• immediate migration based on the current configuration is possible
• or, there are services which are yet to be available (whether planned or not) at etke.cc

I want to have existing Matrix servers installed using any other method to be maintained by etke.cc¶

Unfortunately, that is technically impossible.

Can I have one-time setup without a subscription?¶

No, we do not offer one-time setups, as our services are subscription-based. We are committed to providing enhancements and upgrades on a regular basis, and we believe that a subscription model is the best way to ensure that we can continue to provide the best possible service to our customers.

What kind of payment options do you have?¶

Please see this dedicated page with payment guides and instructions.

How can I migrate to “By Complexity” subscription?¶

If you are on the old, deprecated, subscription tier (Maintenance, Maintenance + Email or one of the Turnkeys), you should migrate to the new By Complexity subscription plan. This plan is based on the infrastructure, maintenance, and support complexity of specific components, ensuring fair pricing. Without migration, you will lose access to etke.cc support (more details).

How to verify your current subscription tier:

• Either your server was installed before December 2023 and you have not switched to the new subscription tier yet
• Or your subscription tier on your Ko-Fi account page is not “By Complexity”

How to migrate:

Calculate the price for your specific server by using run price command of the Scheduler and follow the step-by-step guide to update your payment details.

When will old subscriptions (Maintenance and Turnkeys) be deprecated?¶

Since December 2023, we operate on a new pay-by-complexity service model under which customers pay a different monthly subscription fee — based on the services we are providing to them. Customers who order a basic server with few components pay minimally (e.g. $5/mo), while others who order tens of services pay more (e.g. $100/mo). People on this new By Complexity subscription tier are always charged according to the services we run for them and this FAQ entry does not apply to them.

Customers from before December 2023 are on an old subscription tier (Maintenance, Maintenance + Email or Turnkey) which has a fixed price. Such customers can keep their existing subscription under certain conditions.

Until 1st of July 2024, existing customers can remain on their old subscription tier as long as the subscription is active (not overdue) and the services we provide to them remain unchanged. That is:

• if customers subscription is overdue (i.e., inactive), we’ll ask them to switch to the new By Complexity subscription tier
• if customers continue to use the same services, they can remain on the same subscription tier and we won’t charge them differently
• if customers request additional services from us, we’ll need to ask them to switch to the new By Complexity subscription tier, so we can charge them fairly according to our new pricing model

Update: after the 6 months of the grace period, starting from 1st of July 2024, any existing customer who contacts our support will be asked to switch to the new By Complexity subscription plan.

If customers wish to continue using our services without support, they can remain on the same subscription tier for longer. We have not yet established a final date after which we’ll completely remove the old subscription tiers.

Please check the announcement with details and our migration guide above.

Technical¶

This section focues on technical information specific to a Matrix ecosystem, additional components, etc.

What is Federation? Can I disable it?¶

Please see this dedicated page with information and common questions about Matrix Federation.

What are the base Matrix components installed on the server?¶

With a lot of optional Matrix bridges, bots and extra services, we provide a set of common core Matrix components to all Matrix servers:

• the Synapse Matrix homeserver software. At this moment, this is the most complete and compatible homeserver implementation. We currently do not offer alternative homeserver software like Conduit or Dendrite.

• the matrix-synapse-shared-secret-auth module for Synapse, which assists various bridges and bots with authentication

• the synapse_auto_compressor tool, which runs in the background and periodically compresses the database for the Synapse homeserver, so that it runs optimally.

• the Synapse Admin web UI tool for homeserver management

• the Coturn TURN server, to assist audio/video calls

• a PostgreSQL database server, storing the data for Synapse and other services

• (only for Bring-your-own-server types of orders), the docker-postgres-backup-local software which makes periodic local backups of your PostgreSQL database — we store 7 daily database dumps by default. For Turnkey orders (hosted on Hetzner Cloud VPS servers rented by us), we do not enable local Postgres database dumps, because we enable Hetzner’s server backups feature, which stores the last 7 daily full-disk snapshots.

• optionally, the Element web application for chatting on your Matrix server, but we also support some alternative client applications like Cinny and SchildiChat. Regardless of the web application we may install on your server, you can connect to your server via any compatible Matrix client application on any platform.

• a Traefik reverse-proxy server, which obtains free Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates for all domains used in your setup

• a Prometheus Node Exporter agent for basic monitoring and alerting. Metrics data is collected by our own external Prometheus system which also does alerting. In the event of trouble, alerts go out to us and to you via email and Matrix.

• … and a few more components, which are not directly related to the Matrix ecosystem, but are necessary for the proper functioning of the server

What about deprecated components?¶

Please see this dedicated page with information about removed components.

Which ports should be open?¶

Moved to the Ports and Firewalls

Why are .well-known redirects on the base domain important?¶

Moved to the Delegation Redirects

Why does my new Matrix server join new rooms pretty slowly?¶

The Matrix servers set up afresh lack knowledge about other servers.

When you join a room over federation, your server contacts other servers and retrieves data about the room and its members. This process can be slow, especially with large rooms, as each step involves rate limiting and potential network issues.

Over time, your server builds a network of federated servers, and performance of joining to a room will be improved.

Why does a bridge bot not respond to my command?¶

If your bridge bot does not respond, there are two common issues to check:

1. Wrong bridge MXID: Ensure you’re contacting the correct bridge bot associated with your server. Make sure to use the correct Matrix IDs, which are listed in your onboarding materials or bridge documentation pages.

2. Encrypted room: We typically set up bridges with encryption support disabled as it can be unstable. Some client apps may automatically create encrypted rooms when trying to chat with a bridge bot. To avoid this, create a new room and disable encryption. Then invite the bridge bot to the room.

If you encounter other issues, please refer to our additional documentation resources.

Can I have multiple administrator accounts on my server?¶

Yes, you can have multiple administrator accounts on your Matrix server. However, there are some important details to consider:

1. Matrix homeserver administration: By default, our order form on the website configures a single administrator user account. This user has full access to the Synapse Admin tool and various administration APIs of your Matrix server. You can create additional Matrix administrator accounts using the Synapse Admin tool by yourself.
2. etke.cc service management: To manage your server using The Scheduler’s bot for maintenance scheduling and other commands, you need to prepare Matrix accounts for additional administrators. You can create these accounts (e.g., using Synapse Admin) and provide us with their Matrix IDs (e.g., @someone:YOUR_SERVER), so that we will grant them access to the bot. Note that these accounts must be on your server’s domain and not on other Matrix servers across federation.
3. Matrix bridge administration: If you require additional administrators for your Matrix bridges, whether on your server or other servers, provide us with their Matrix IDs (e.g., @someone:YOUR_SERVER or @someone:ANOTHER_SERVER), so that we will grant them administrator access to your bridges.

Can I change the registration (sign-up) flow?¶

By default, we configure invite-based registration on all servers we set up. Enabling completely open registration is generally not recommended due to potential spam and abuse.

Check the supported registration types for your Matrix server below.

(Default) Invite-Based Registration¶

The Matrix protocol supports Token-authenticated registration. This means registration is closed by default, allowing only those with a valid invite token to register. Admins can issue invite tokens using the Synapse Admin tool, and each token can be configured for multiple registrations with various options, including expiration dates.

Closed Registration¶

Closed registration is similar to invite-based registration. Admins can still manually register users using the Synapse Admin tool, but users cannot register themselves with invitation tokens.

Open Registration¶

Completely open registration allows anyone on the internet to register on your server without restrictions. However, this can lead to spam and abuse. To enhance security, you can enable mandatory email verification, ensuring users confirm their email addresses. An SMTP relay is recommended for this setup to prevent emails from landing in spam.

Single Sign-On (SSO)¶

You can use Single Sign-On (SSO) with an OpenID Connect provider to allow registration for specific groups of people. SSO can work alongside other registration types, including invite-based, closed registration, or open registration with or without domain restrictions. For instance, you can link your Matrix server to a provider like Google Workspace for one-click registration for your users while restricting access for others.

Can I modify the server configuration or run additional services?¶

With us, you get a managed Matrix server. Whether it would be on-premises or hosted by us, we take care of the server’s configuration and maintenance, so that you can use the Matrix services without being worried about its upkeep.

In order to assure quality of the Matrix server, it is not allowed to modify Matrix configuration manually on the server by yourself, because:

• it would often cause breakage and increase our support burden
• it would typically be rolled-back by our automation (The Scheduler’s bot)

Please contact us if you need any changes to your server configuration. We’ll be happy to help!

Running other services along our stack is fine. However, please do note:

• it may cause breakage
• it may break at any time in the future due to service upgrades performed by us
• it comes without any support from us