Ban maintenance#

How the bot’s bans actually work on #motorcycles, and why a ban you set sometimes “doesn’t stick.” Linked from the chanop cheat sheet; if you just want to kick someone, start there.

These bots are single-channel on #motorcycles, so the settings below are what’s actually set — not defaults that might vary. Run .chaninfo #motorcycles on the partyline to see them live.

Two kinds of ban#

Use .+ban for anything you want the bot to maintain. A raw /mode +b is a one-off the bot doesn’t track.

The commands#

.+ban <hostmask> [chan] [%Xh] [reason]   add a bot ban (optional duration, e.g. %2h)
.-ban <hostmask|number>                  remove a bot ban (by hostmask or .bans number)
.bans [all]                              list the bot's bans
.stick <hostmask> [chan]                 make an existing ban permanent (sticky)
.unstick <hostmask> [chan]              let a sticky ban expire again
.+exempt <hostmask> [chan] [%Xh] [reason]  whitelist a hostmask so it's never banned
.-exempt <hostmask|number>             remove an exempt
.exempts [all]                           list exempts

<chan> is optional — the bot knows which channel it’s on.

What’s actually set on #motorcycles#

• +enforcebans — when you set a bot ban, the bot kicks anyone currently in the channel who matches it. You don’t need a separate .kick; .+ban removes them too. (Ops are protected — see +dontkickops below.)
• +dynamicbans — the bot only imposes a ban as a channel mode (+b) while the matching user is actually on the channel. When they leave, it lifts the channel +b, but keeps the ban in its internal list. This is why /mode #motorcycles b can show nothing even though .bans shows a ban — the bot is still enforcing it, it’s just not currently imposing the channel mode.
• +userbans — operators (+o) can set bans the bot stores (your .+bans).
• ban-time 300 — a non-sticky ban expires from the bot’s list after 5 hours. Sticky bans don’t expire.
• ban-type 3 — the hostmask pattern the bot generates when it bans someone by nick. For manual .+ban you specify the hostmask yourself, so this only affects bot-generated bans (e.g. flood bans).
• bounce-bans 0 — the bot won’t remove a server ban (/mode +b) it didn’t set. It also won’t maintain one for you — for anything persistent, use .+ban + .stick.
• +dontkickops — the bot won’t kick ops. If a ban matches an op who’s in the channel, the ban is still set, but the bot leaves them in place.

Exempts work the same way bans do:

• +dynamicexempts, +userexempts — ops can set exempts; they’re imposed as a channel mode only while the matching user is present.
• exempt-time 60 — a non-sticky exempt expires after 60 minutes. .stick an exempt to keep it.
• An exempt prevents a hostmask from being banned at all — handy for a regular who keeps matching a broad ban.

Dynamic vs sticky — the “it didn’t stick” problem#

If a ban you set seems to vanish, it’s because it was dynamic, not sticky. With +dynamicbans and ban-time 300, a non-sticky .+ban is only imposed on the channel while the banned user is present, and expires from the bot’s list after 5 hours. To keep a troll out indefinitely, add the ban and then .stick it — a sticky ban never expires and is always imposed on the channel, even when the user isn’t around.

• Dynamic ban (default): imposed on the channel only while the matching user is present; expires from the bot’s list after 5 hours. Good for a quick timeout.
• Sticky ban: .+ban then .stick <hostmask> (or .stick an existing ban). It never expires and is always imposed on the channel — the bot re-applies it. Use this for persistent trolls.

.+ban *!*@*.troll.example.com #motorcycles persistent troll
.stick *!*@*.troll.example.com #motorcycles

The bot won’t undo your /mode +b#

bounce-bans is 0, so a server ban you set with /mode +b stays until you or the channel unset it. The trade-off: the bot also won’t maintain it for you, so if the channel resets or the ban is cleared, the bot won’t put it back. For anything you want kept, use .+ban + .stick.

Quick reference#