JABBER-QUERYBOT(1p)

NAME
jabber-querybot - a modular perl jabber bot

DESCRIPTION
jabber-querybot connects a jabber account and wait for messages. If a message comes in, it forward it to your self programmed modul. The return string of your module, jabber-querybot send it back to the jabber sender.

It is designed to be re-usable and to make it easy to write small Jabber bots that do one thing and do it well. A simple concept with a lot of examples and experiences are implemented.

1. Create a jabber account on a jabber-server around

2. Create a bot application:

 cd examples
 cp Querymodule.pm /etc/jabber-querybot/Mybot.pm
 cd /etc/jabber-querybot
 ln -s Mybot.pm Querymodule.pm

Modify login parameters to your jabber-bot-account

vim Mybot.pm

  our $hostname        = "swissjabber.ch";
  our $user            = "";
  our $password        = "";
  our $ident           = "Testbot";
  our $bot_admin       = "\@swissjabber.ch";
  our $port            = "5222";
  our $timeout         = "5";
  our $service_name    = "$user\@$hostname";
  our $bot_description = "Bot help title
  Bot description";

For each jabber message, jabber-querybot will execute sub run_query, that you can write here your application.

You can control how your jabber response will be:

•   error = error message stanza

•   presence = error as presence stanza

•   ignore = ignore message

OPTIONS
jabber-querybot has a lot of variables which you can easy modify for what you need:

  querystatus
$querystatus = [ 0 | 1 ]

•   0 = Bot will not proceed any incoming jabber messages.

•   1 = Bot will proceed incoming messages.

  penalty_status
If the bot has too much workload, it goes to penalty status and wait some time until his status change back to normal.

$timer_reconnect_default = 21600

Every 21600 seconds (6 hours) the bot will shutdown automatically, wait 10 seconds and starting up again.

$timer_auto_query = 0

If you set in your module this variable to 60, the bot will every 60 seconds call the function run_auto_query() which you may use for several things.

  System load
If your systems load is >=6, this bot will shutdown the jabber connection and check every 10 seconds systems load. If load <=2, bot will start over.

EXAMPLES
/usr/share/doc/jabber-querybot/examples/Testbot.pm

FILES
/etc/jabber-querybot/Querymodule.pm

/usr/bin/jabber-querybot

RESOURCES
http://github.com/micressor/jabber-querybot/

METHODS

  InMessage()
An incoming jabber message to the bot will hook this function.

•   Read parameters of incoming stanza

•   Decode utf8 string

•   increment timer overload and do not process message if bot is overloaded.

•   Ignore message if it is from myself

•   Be sure, that it is not a message from another transport

•   Check any systemcommands for the bot

•   If the bot has sleeping status, change it to work

•   We process only normal text or chat type jabber messages

•   And now we give the real text string which was incoming to the bot via run_query().

•   If run_query() say us 'ignore` we do a log entry and do not answer via jabber to the user.

•   If run_query() says 'error` we send a jabber error stanza with the status message from run_query() back to the user.

•   If there was no error, we update the statistic vars and send the answer from run_query() back to the jabber user.

  connect_server()
This function connects to the jabber server with the given credentials from Querymodule.pm.

Set the call back functions. This functions will be executed if a message of the types <message/> <iq/> or <presence/> are incoming.

  Stop()
Shutdown jabber connection and exit main program

  disconnect_server()
Only disconnect from the jabber-server.

  reconnect_server()
Reconnect and create a log entry.

  InIQ()
We do not proceed any iq (information query), this is only for statisic.

  InPresence()

•   Increment timer overload

•   Do not process message if we are overloaded penalty_handler().

We have a problem in Net::Jabber. An incoming message with a ` in resource blocks the bot. We will hotfix that for the moment.

A subscription type `subscribe` is incoming. Send `subscribed` tho the user and say hello ;)

•   Send presence to user

•   Remove subscription if a user remove this bot from his roster

  sendPresence()
Send presence information to user

  systemcommands()

•   If user type '!help` send a help instruction to the user

•   Send statistic information to the user if he types '!status`

•   Is it a bot command?

•   Is the bot command from the bot admin? If not, send "not allowed"

•   '!shutdown` will shutdown your bot via jabber invoke.

•   '!query off` turn off queries

•   '!query on` turn on queries

  get_barejid()
Remove resource id from a jabber id.

  calcualte_stats()
Calculate message statistics

  jabber_set_presence()
Set new presence if we have another presence status or we have set the force flag (for transport presence).

  jabber_send_message()
This function send all jabber messages which are outgoing from the jabber-querybot.

  set_wakeup_mode()
Set jabber presence via jabber_set_presence()

  penalty_handler()
This function checks if the bot is overloaded with incoming messages and reject if it is. Two times that's ok so 2:1 because while in main.

Bot admin got every time an answer.

  jabber_add_footer()
Add footer to the processed message.

  calcualte_elapsed_time()
Calculate elapsed worktime for a query

  sendError()
sendError($message, $from, $to, 404, "text");

  system_load_check()

•   Calculate system load

•   If load is too high shutdown bot.

•   If load is ok, starting up bot

  connect_bot()
Connect bot and initialize all timers.

  check_before_start()
Check configuration variables in Querybotmodule.pm and give answer if anything does not match or is missing.

COPYRIGHT AND LICENSE
Copyright (C) 2009-2012 Marco Balmer <marco@balmer.name>

The Debian packaging is licensed under the GPL, see `/usr/share/common-licenses/GPL-3'.