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Running a Direct Connect hub: the basics

A hub is the meeting point that ties a Direct Connect community together. Running one means you provide that space: people connect to your hub to chat, search, and find each other for transfers. This section walks through choosing software, setting it up, moderating, and listing your hub.

What you need​

  • A machine that stays on: a home server, a spare PC, or a VPS.
  • A reachable address: an open port (with port forwarding if you are behind a router), or a server with a public IP.
  • A name and short description for your hub.
  • Basic comfort administering your operating system.
Be ready for the upkeep

Hub software is easy to install, and a small hub is running in minutes. The work grows with the hub: moderation, configuration, and the right security settings take more time as your hub gets bigger. Running a hub well needs basic IT-security knowledge for your platform (Windows or Linux).

Next steps​