Internal Instant Messaging Client / Server Combo?

strongmantim writes "I manage an internal help desk (25-30 people) for a medium-large company in the healthcare industry. We're looking for an internal, secure, FOSS (if possible) instant messaging / presence awareness client and server combo. Transmission of Protected Health Information is a sensitive issue, so the server has to be able to log any conversations that occur. It is preferred that the client not support outside protocols such as AIM, MSN, Yahoo, etc.; if it does, I will have to promulgate and enforce yet one more policy that my techs not connect to them. All of the computers that will connect run Windows XP. The system should be scalable up to ~100 people (in case we decide to include our entire office in the roll-out). Hardware and OS for the server are not an issue. Oh, and one more thing: It has to be free. Suggestions?"

Comments

Jabber is what you need

[osssmkatz]

The question is which client and which server, and that I don't know. You should be able to lock it down by not allowing anyone to change its preferences.

--Sam

Re:Jabber is what you need

[Tweezer]

What the hell are you smoking? I find answers like this to be way over simplified. Just setup a Debian box in an hour. Really? That is a bit naive. I have to ask you. Do you actually get your production servers setup in an hour? I don't know about you, but it takes me at least an hour or two to rack mount a new server, get it cabled, verify the redundant power is done correctly and get everything labeled properly. Then you have to get the OS loaded, app loaded etc. After all that, you need to be sure backups are setup and working properly, do some tests. After all this is HIPPA related and he needs to make sure it's working correctly, not to mention something like this will become a mission critical app in short period of time, because other people will come to rely on it . I could easily see after the release of something like this, other departments putting the use of the IM system into policy and procedures, because it's all logged. For example some manager says he will approve purchase requisitions over the IM system as it's all logged. I assume you've tested the log recovery from a backup and are confident you will be able to restore yesterday's log 7 years from now. And then document the whole thing. You do document things I hope. Even if you are the only admin, you need to document in case you are unavailable during an emergency. If you don't you aren't doing the job properly. I find a proper server takes more like 16-24 man hours.

Re:Jabber is what you need

[johnkzin]

The problem with Jabber/XMPP is that ... it doesn't satisfy the "not used externally" part. Jabber is the basis of GoogleTalk, and several individual IM services.

But, that's a questionable goal of the request anyway. Any one of his coworkers can connect to AIM/Yahoo/GoogleTalk right now. If he doesn't want that happening, he can't just say "we said 'no no bad coworker'" and expect that this makes things all good and happy. If he wants to ensure that coworkers aren't going to connect to external IM services, he needs to block those IM services at the border (firewalls and/or routers).

In my opinion, he should block all IM traffic (Yahoo, AIM, MSN, IRC, ICB, ICQ, XMPP/Jabber, Simple, and the others (look at what pidgin supports, find out what ports those chat/IM services use, block all of them)) at the border, and then require legitimate external users to use a VPN to access the internal Jabber server. If there are remote offices, then either those workers would need to VPN in to the site that hosts the Jabber server ... or each site should have its own Jabber server, and then the Jabber servers would all talk to each other via VPN.

That's how I'd set it up. Block every chat/IM protocol/port at the border (and at the border of each remote office). Set up a Jabber server at the central and at each remote office. Link the Jabber servers to each other via VPN/tunnel/etc.. Go from there.

You're doing it wrong

[SoapBox17]

It is preferred that the client not support outside protocols such as AIM, MSN, Yahoo, etc.; if it does, I will have to promulgate and enforce yet one more policy that my techs not connect to them.

It sounds like your network, which contains confidential medical records, is connected to the internet.
So I have just one question: Dear God, why?

Go easy on the "should" will you?

[golodh]

@Anonymous Coward

As to where the parent post "should" have asked his question, the parent post asked an intelligent question on a forum that harbours a lot of people who can provide a good answer in under a minute. Slashdot.

There are lots and lots of applications like Jabber, Openfire and whatnot about. And yes, if you want you can create a great big (useless) list of them by Googling for a few minutes. And then what? What are the pros and cons of each app? Where can you find comparative tests? Are those tests any good? Has anyone got practical experience with the app? Any show-stoppers that aren't immediately apparent?

The point about most questions like this is that people who already know the answer consider them "easy". People who don't know the answer consider them hard, and will have to expend a lot of time finding out. Time that's wasted if you could simply have eliminated 90% of the options by asking. That's why you ask. At least if you'd rather get some useful work done instead of being the umpteeth person researching the same wheel.

It's a compliment to Slashdot that people ask such questions, and they do that because they even tend to get useful answers. It shows that Slashdot has value apart from serving as a forum for inane bickering.

Re:Go easy on the "should" will you?

[damona]

... And for those of us who already know the answer, this is a good opportunity to find out whether there's something new we should be looking at too.

Re:Not another one

[LoadWB]

This is the exact attitude that pushes people away from FOSS in the first place.

It is almost impossible to get a real answer from people with experience when all you get in return is "RTFM n00b."

R'ing TFM does not always give you practical information or experience. Especially since there are quite a lot of people out there who are great at writing software but cannot write a manual to save their life. Either it is too technical and boasts about all of the incredible feats of writing the program with very little usability information, or overly verbose about how the program works with very little usability information.

Google does not have all of the answers. It has a wealth of information, but sometimes no answers.

Re:Not another one

[Skylinux]

You will find plenty of testimonials if you Google for them.

So why not take it a step further and close down Slashdot.org?
After all, the articles on slashdot are not written by slashdot staff but borrowed of the web so anything on here can be found via Google. Most websites also have a comment section so the trollish comments can be found not only on Slashdot.org

So get over yourself, some people here may actually try to learn from the experience of others.

Don't like a story? Don't fucking reply!