Feature #10071

Evaluate Tox for VoIP

Added by coruvar 2015-08-21 09:00:33 . Updated 2020-03-06 12:24:26 .

Status:
Confirmed
Priority:
Low
Assignee:
Category:
Target version:
Start date:
2015-08-20
Due date:
% Done:

0%

Feature Branch:
Type of work:
Research
Blueprint:

https://tails.boum.org/blueprint/mobile_messaging/

Starter:
0
Affected tool:
Instant Messaging
Deliverable for:

Description

Hi,
I would create a discuss about adding Tox to Tails build.

Tox is a peer to peer, distributed, multimedia messenger. It’s only in alpha release now - That is not good, but you may connect to developers and want to add any feature, which may be needed and the feature will be propably add.

It has many feauters, read it on page About Tox.

For Tox is many clients, I recommend to use qTox as GUI client and Toxic as CLI client if you like terminal app.

qTox have many features like chat, groupchat, audio, group audio, video, file transfer and more.

Tox clients can run over Tor by routing.

Info and websites:
Homepage Tox: https://tox.chat/
About Tox: https://wiki.tox.chat/users/faq
Tox clients: https://wiki.tox.chat/users/clients
Reddit discuss: https://www.reddit.com/r/projecttox/

Some tips how to use Tox for Tails channel too.
WebTox is web-based client and if connect with ToxBot, then can be used for groupchat - automaticly accept new friends and auto-invite them to specific group. This maybe solution for live support channel?
WebTox: https://github.com/codedust/WebTox
ToxBot: https://github.com/JFreegman/ToxBot

Thanks for discuss about this.

P.S.: I’m sorry for my english, it’s quite long when I use english on forums..

Subtasks

Related issues

Related to Tails - Feature #14567: Investigate mobile messaging applications Confirmed 2018-01-18

History

#1 Updated by intrigeri 2015-08-25 00:35:13

  • Subject changed from Tox - alternative messenger for Skype and more? to Evaluate Tox for VoIP
  • Category deleted (Build system)
  • Parent task set to Feature #5709
  • Type of work changed from Discuss to Research
  • Starter changed from Yes to No

I think I’ve seen a Debian ITP bug for it.

#2 Updated by emmapeel 2015-09-22 02:56:14

  • Status changed from New to Confirmed
  • Target version set to 2017

I think it is a bit early to think about adding it to Tails.

First, the client should be available in Debian.

Second, it has recently rebooted https://www.facebook.com/toxproject/posts/352018401653696

after some drama https://blog.tox.chat/2015/07/current-situation-3/
and there is a sudden change of server: https://www.facebook.com/toxproject/posts/427493907439478

Although the indiegogo campaign (of one of the toxcore developers) this month got very well supported, so maybe in next months we can see more:

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/toxcore-development#/updates

Also seems the repo is quite healthy: https://github.com/irungentoo/toxcore

There are several different clients (µTox, qTox, Antox, Toxic), apart of toxcore, so we should maybe evaluate them separately.

I propose to leave this ticket open to gather updates or reqs or gossip about it and review it next year.

#3 Updated by intrigeri 2016-08-19 01:53:53

  • Target version deleted (2017)

#4 Updated by Anonymous 2018-01-17 17:10:01

  • related to Feature #14567: Investigate mobile messaging applications added

#5 Updated by Anonymous 2018-01-18 12:48:43

  • Status changed from Confirmed to Rejected

Tox looks nice, however the website still says that it’s “under heavy development” and there is no official Debian package. I will thus reject this ticket for the time being. Once there is a Debian package, we can reopen and rediscuss it.

#6 Updated by DansTorConnard 2018-07-16 17:40:48

Hi.

A custom depo for debian is now provided by qtox dev: https://www.reddit.com/r/projecttox/comments/5a01gs/what_client_can_i_use_on_debian_sid_unstable/d9df9f5

Can you now re-considerate the feature ?

Thanks

#7 Updated by intrigeri 2018-07-27 08:18:54

> A custom depo for debian is now provided by qtox dev: https://www.reddit.com/r/projecttox/comments/5a01gs/what_client_can_i_use_on_debian_sid_unstable/d9df9f5

This will allow users to install it themselves, then: we’ve documented how to persistently add APT sources.

But that’s not sufficient to install Tox by default. As https://tails.boum.org/support/faq/#new_software says we’re installing stuff from Debian proper.

#8 Updated by goupille 2019-01-11 17:55:13

qtox is now in Debian testing: https://tracker.debian.org/pkg/qtox hence I reopen this ticket

they document on their website how it is possible to use in through Tor (https://wiki.tox.chat/users/tox_over_tor_tot) and, according to their FAQ (https://tox.chat/faq.html) it doesn’t seems to use SIP (so maybe no need of UDP and a working VOIP).

also, whonix presents tox as a VOIP solution (https://www.whonix.org/wiki/VoIP#Tox)

I did not try it myself.

#9 Updated by goupille 2019-01-11 18:05:18

  • Status changed from Rejected to Confirmed

#10 Updated by goupille 2019-01-12 13:25:37

I quickly tried to install qtox from unstable in Tails 3.11, and it requires a lot of packages, including libc6, to be upgraded to Testing.

#11 Updated by goupille 2019-10-02 19:43:38

I could install qtox with tails-4.0~beta2, I had to disable IPV6 and enable the use of a SOCKS5 proxy (127.0.0.1:9050) in the advanced settings according to their wiki (https://wiki.tox.chat/users/tox_over_tor_tot).

I could create a user, add a “friend”, call them and be called by them without noticeable errors (except the fact that my hardware doesn’t have a working microphone).

journalctl shows a lot of warnings such as this one, though but it doesn’t seems to prevent it to work:

amnesia io.github.qtox.qTox.desktop[8625]: [19:40:39.372 UTC] core/toxlogger.cpp:57 : Warning: "ERROR:network.c:sendpacket:484: attempted to send message of length 33 on uninitialised socket"

#12 Updated by syster 2020-03-03 15:55:21

I’d like to question tox, not as the protocol it is now, but as the project that seems to have stop maintaining it.

[edit: em, that’s wrong. I must correct myself. Tox is in active development. See here: https://github.com/TokTok/c-toxcore/releases. In whonix it is choosen to be installed by default. I also tested qtox in tails (has a stable candidate in debian), and it works well. :-)]

-Reason for that seem to be found in toxic behaviour, within the dev. team.
here an old github issue from 2014, that is concerned with that.
https://github.com/irungentoo/toxcore/issues/1186-

[edit: there has happend some change, already 4.5 years ago. Quote from their blogpost “For this reason, we have have also been forced to disassociate ourselves with the aforementioned domains and begin again from scratch with a new domain, tox.chat.” source: https://blog.tox.chat/2015/07/current-situation-3/

But I must admit, I don’t know much about tox, and maybe the protocol is just fine. Development of clients at least seems to continue.

Anyone thoughts on that?

#13 Updated by syster 2020-03-06 12:24:26

  • Blueprint set to https://tails.boum.org/blueprint/mobile_messaging/