72 lines
3.1 KiB
Markdown
72 lines
3.1 KiB
Markdown
# MSC1929 Homeserver Admin Contact and Support page
|
|
|
|
Currently, contacting a homeserver admin is difficult because you need to have insider knowledge
|
|
of who the admin actually is. This proposal aims to fix that by specifying a way to add contact details
|
|
of admins, as well as a link to a support page for users who are having issues with the service.
|
|
|
|
This proposal aims to fix https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-doc/issues/484
|
|
|
|
## Proposal
|
|
|
|
The proposal suggests adding a new endpoint: `https://{hostname}/.well-known/matrix/support`,
|
|
where `hostname` is the server name, without the port number. This is the same as what is used
|
|
when performing server discovery.
|
|
|
|
The response format should be:
|
|
|
|
```json5
|
|
{
|
|
"contacts": [
|
|
{
|
|
"matrix_id": "@admin:domain.tld",
|
|
"email_address": "admin@domain.tld",
|
|
"role": "m.role.admin"
|
|
},
|
|
{
|
|
"email_address": "security@domain.tld",
|
|
"role": "m.role.security"
|
|
}
|
|
],
|
|
"support_page": "https://domain.tld/support.html"
|
|
}
|
|
```
|
|
|
|
The `contacts` array is optional, but recommended.
|
|
|
|
The `matrix_id` and `email_address` do NOT need to have the same domain as the homeserver. It is expected that
|
|
an admin will have a "backup" contact address if the server is down, like an email or alternative mxid on a different homeserver.
|
|
|
|
Entries may have a `matrix_id` OR an `email_address`, but at least one MUST be specified.
|
|
|
|
`role` is an informal description of what the address(es) are used for. The only two specified in this
|
|
proposal are `m.role.admin` and `m.role.security`.
|
|
|
|
- `m.role.admin` is a catch-all user for any queries.
|
|
- `m.role.security` is intended for sensitive requests
|
|
|
|
Implementors may use custom values for role for other purposes, but it's suggested
|
|
that the value be namespaced to prevent collisions. A value for `role` MUST be specified.
|
|
|
|
`support_page` is an optional property to specify a affiliated page of the homserver to give users help
|
|
specific to the homeserver, like extra login/registration steps.
|
|
|
|
At least one valid key should be provided. This means `contacts` should have at least one entry, or the `support_page` should be defined. An empty object is not considered valid, however both `contacts `and `support_page` may be specified together.
|
|
|
|
## Alternative solutions
|
|
|
|
Hardcode a given user localpart that should be used as an admin address.
|
|
- The account would need to either internally redirect messages intended for @admin:domain.tld to another account(s)
|
|
- OR require an admin to regularly sign into this special account to check for messages. Neither of which is useful.
|
|
|
|
Specify the same content inside a homeserver endpoint, rather than use `.well-known`.
|
|
- This requires the homeserver to be up or responsive, which might be not very useful if trying to report issues with
|
|
connectivity.
|
|
|
|
Use vCards.
|
|
- vCards would add bloat, as the vast majority of a vcards contents is not useful for contacting an admin.
|
|
|
|
## Security considerations
|
|
|
|
If the host is compromised, any information could be specified in the well known file which may direct users to send
|
|
sensitive information to a malicious user.
|