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What is Matrix?

Matrix is an open standard for secure, decentralised messaging that puts you in control. Unlike WhatsApp or Discord, you can run your own server, choose who hosts your data, and still chat with anyone on the network.

This open technology powers text messaging, voice and video calls, and can connect to many other platforms - all while keeping your conversations private and under your control.

How it works

graph LR
    BobClient["Bob's Client"] <-->|Sync| BobServer["Bob's Server<br>(example.com)"]
    BobServer <-->|Federation| AliceServer["Alice's Server<br>(matrix.org)"]
    AliceServer <-->|Sync| AliceClient["Alice's Client"]

In this example, Bob and Alice use different servers but can still chat seamlessly. Messages travel from Bob's device to his server (example.com), then to Alice's server (matrix.org), and finally to her device within milliseconds of Bob hitting send.

This approach means:

  • You control your own data
  • No single company owns the entire network
  • You can use your own domain name
  • You choose who can contact you

The communication network

Since 2014, the network has grown organically to include millions of users across the world. It connects many platforms and services, breaking down the walls between traditional communication silos.

What I find most valuable about it:

  • User ownership: Having control over my data, identity and communications
  • Federation: The way servers connect with each other creates resilience
  • End-to-end encryption: Knowing private conversations stay private
  • Open source: The transparency of open code encourages trust and innovation
  • Connections: Being able to chat with people regardless of their platform

There's ongoing work to make everything better, from smoother peer-to-peer messaging to more reliable group calls and broader connections to other services. There's a lot of possibility in the future.

My participation

I help moderate several chat rooms and contribute to projects in this community. In particular, I run the #space:tomfos.tr space, which contains several rooms from technical discussions to jokes and other chat.

You can see my projects on GitHub, and learn about my community is governed on the Community page.

Useful resources

If you're curious to learn more:

The guides in the subsections below cover setting up and configuring server software like Continuwuity and Synapse, as well as LiveKit for voice and video calling.