BinktermPHP 1.6.7/1.6.8 released!

[awehttam]

What's New in v1.6.7/1.6.8

Multi-Network Support

• Full multi-network routing for echomail and netmail (FidoNet, FSXNet, etc.)
• Domain-based packet filtering and address resolution
• Network domain badges in UI
• Point address support in routing and INTL kludge parsing

Binkp Protocol Improvements

• Multi-connection support using fork for binkp_server
• Crashmail direct delivery via binkp
• Insecure binkp session handling for nodes without passwords (experimental)
• Fixed handshake failures on Linux (stream timeout handling)
• Improved password validation and debug logging
• Clean signal handling for shutdown
• Disabled web based editing of binkp configuration
• Disabled polling and uplink modification of uplinks in favour of command line management

Nodelist Enhancements

• Automated nodelist download/import script with URL macro support
• Multi-domain nodelist support
• Display INA hostname with telnet links
• Last import date display per domain
• Zone dropdown ordering fix

User Experience

• ANSI terminal renderer for BBS art
• Fullscreen toggle for message modals (with localStorage preference)
• Clickable hyperlinks in messages (XSS-safe)
• Theme fixes for dark, cyberpunk, and greenterm themes
• Wider message reading modal (80% on desktop)

User Management

• User sessions tracking with last_activity for "who's online" feature
• Location field in user profiles and registration
• scripts/who.php CLI tool to show online users
• Automatic default echoarea subscriptions for new users

System Notifications

• SysopNotificationService for netmail notices to sysop
• Email failure notifications

Message Handling

• Enhanced logging for message sending (sender, subject, packet filenames)
• Outbound directory writability check before accepting messages
• Local system message delivery (no spooling needed)

Installation & Maintenance

• Fresh install fixes (migrations after base schema)
• PostgreSQL boolean type fixes
• Standalone binkp test client and packet generator utilities

Miscellaneous

• Check the commit history for a full list of changes

--

Upgrading to BinktermPHP v1.6.7

Version 1.6.7 introduces support for multiple FTN networks (FidoNet, FSXNet, AgoraNet, etc.) running simultaneously. This requires both database schema changes and configuration updates.

WARNING: Before upgrading, back up your database and configuration files. Use scripts/backup_database.php or your preferred backup method.

Step 1: Update binkp.json Configuration

This step can be done before updating the codebase and is recommended. The new configuration format is backward compatible.

Your existing uplink configuration needs new fields. For each uplink, add:

Field	Description
me	Your FTN address as presented to this specific uplink
domain	Network domain identifier (e.g., "fidonet", "fsxnet")
networks	Array of address patterns routed through this uplink

Before (pre-1.6.7):

{
    "uplinks": [
        {
            "address": "1:123/456",
            "hostname": "hub.example.com",
            "port": 24554,
            "password": "secret",
            "default": true,
            "enabled": true
        }
    ]
}

After (1.6.7+):

{
    "uplinks": [
        {
            "me": "1:123/456.57599",
            "address": "1:123/456",
            "domain": "fidonet",
            "networks": ["1:*/*", "2:*/*", "3:*/*", "4:*/*"],
            "hostname": "hub.example.com",
            "port": 24554,
            "password": "secret",
            "default": true,
            "enabled": true
        }
    ]
}

New Configuration Sections

The following new sections should be added to binkp.json:

security - Password and session security settings:

"security": {
    "require_password": true,
    "allow_insecure_sessions": false
}

crashmail - Direct delivery configuration:

"crashmail": {
    "enabled": true,
    "max_attempts": 3,
    "retry_interval": 300
}

transit - Message transit/routing settings:

"transit": {
    "enabled": false,
    "allowed_networks": []
}

See configs/binkp.json.example for the full configuration options and format.

Step 2: Run Database Migration

php scripts/upgrade.php

This migration adds domain fields to the echoareas, nodelist, and nodelist_metadata tables, and updates the unique constraint on echoareas to allow the same tag across different networks. Unique real name enforcement is also implemented.

If you receive the error:

✗ Upgrade failed: Migration 1.7.3 failed: SQLSTATE[23505]: Unique violation: 7 ERROR:  could not create unique index "users_real_name_lower_idx"
DETAIL:  Key (lower(real_name::text))=(foo bar) is duplicated.

you will need to update your users table and ensure all real_name entries are unique. This requirement is in place because of the way FTN handles addressing using persons real names.

Step 3: Update Echoarea Domains (Optional)

If you have existing echoareas, they will be automatically assigned to the "fidonet" domain during migration. To assign echoareas to different networks, use the admin interface or update the database directly:

UPDATE echoareas SET domain = 'fsxnet' WHERE tag LIKE 'FSX_%';
UPDATE echoareas SET domain = 'agoranet' WHERE tag LIKE 'AGN_%';

Step 4: Configure Automated Nodelist Updates

Create config/nodelists.json to configure automatic nodelist downloads:

{
  "sources": [
    {
      "name": "FidoNet",
      "domain": "fidonet",
      "url": "https://example.com/NODELIST.Z|DAY|",
      "enabled": true
    },
    {
      "name": "FSXNet",
      "domain": "fsxnet",
      "url": "https://bbs.nz/fsxnet/FSXNET.ZIP",
      "enabled": true
    }
  ]
}

URL Macros:

• |DAY| - Day of year (1-366)
• |YEAR| - 4-digit year (2026)
• |YY| - 2-digit year (26)
• |MONTH| - 2-digit month (01-12)
• |DATE| - 2-digit day of month (01-31)

Run manually or via cron:

php scripts/update_nodelists.php [--quiet] [--force]

See configs/nodelists.json.example for more examples.

Step 5: Verify File System Permissions

Ensure the web server has write access to the outbound spool directory:

# Check permissions
ls -la data/outbound

# Fix if needed
chmod 1777 data/outbound
# or
chmod a+rwxt data/outbound

The data/outbound directory must be writable by the web server for message spooling to work.

Step 6: Import Network-Specific Nodelists

When importing nodelists manually for different networks, specify the domain as the second argument:

php scripts/import_nodelist.php FSXNET.023 fsxnet
php scripts/import_nodelist.php NODELIST.365 fidonet
php scripts/import_nodelist.php NODELIST.365 fidonet --force

Step 7: Set Up Cron Jobs (Recommended)

Add cron jobs for automated nodelist updates and mail polling:

# Update nodelists daily at 3am
0 3 * * * /usr/bin/php /path/to/binkterm/scripts/update_nodelists.php --quiet

# Poll uplinks every 15 minutes
*/15 * * * * /usr/bin/php /path/to/binkterm/scripts/binkp_poll.php --quiet

Step 7a: Update CLI Script Calls

Several CLI scripts now require a --domain parameter for multi-network support:

# weather_report.php now requires --domain
php scripts/weather_report.php --domain=fidonet

# echomail_maintenance.php now requires --domain
php scripts/echomail_maintenance.php --domain=fidonet --max-age=365

Update any cron jobs or scripts that call these utilities.

Step 8: Update Custom Themes (If Applicable)

If you have custom CSS themes, add the following Bootstrap table variable overrides to support the new unread message styling:

/* Bootstrap table CSS variable overrides */
.table {
    --bs-table-bg: var(--bg-card);
    --bs-table-color: var(--text-color);
    --bs-table-hover-bg: var(--bg-secondary);
    --bs-table-hover-color: var(--text-color);
}

.table-light {
    --bs-table-bg: #3a3a3a;  /* adjust for your theme */
    --bs-table-color: var(--text-color);
    --bs-table-hover-bg: #444444;
    --bs-table-hover-color: var(--text-color);
}

.table-hover > tbody > tr:hover > * {
    --bs-table-bg-state: var(--bg-secondary) !important;
    --bs-table-color-state: var(--text-color) !important;
}

See public_html/css/dark.css for a complete example.

Step 9: Update Custom Templates (If Applicable)

If you have customized any of the following templates, review and merge changes:

• netmail.twig - Removed hardcoded light theme colors, added threading styles
• echomail.twig - Similar theme and threading updates
• register.twig - Added location field
• profile.twig - Added location field
• admin_users.twig - Added location display for pending users

Custom templates in templates/custom/ are not overwritten during upgrades, but may need manual updates to support new features.

Benefits of Multinetwork Support

• Simultaneous Networks: Connect to FidoNet, FSXNet, AgoraNet, and other FTN networks at the same time
• Proper Routing: Messages are routed to the correct uplink based on destination address
• Network Isolation: Echoareas are scoped to their network domain, preventing tag collisions
• Per-Network Nodelists: Each network maintains its own nodelist for proper addressing