gist/matrix/m.room.power_levels/README.md

Template power levels event for quick copy-pasting

The main point I do this for is users users

{
    "users": {
      "@Ciblia:matrix.org": 100,
      "@aminda:matrix.org": 100,
      "@aminda:mozilla.org": 100,
      "@aminda:pikaviestin.fi": 100,
      "@aminda:tedomum.net": 100,
      "@mikaela:pirateriot.net": 100,
      "@mikaela:tchncs.de": 100,
      "@mkaysi:fedora.im": 100,
      "@aminda:the-apothecary.club": 100,
      "@mikaela.suomalainen:matrix.org": 100,
      "@mikaela.matterbridge:converser.eu": 100,
      "@mikaela.matterbridge:tedomum.net": 100,
      "@aminda.matterbridge:jae.fi": 100,
      "@leon:the-apothecary.club": 100,
      "@fidino:artemislena.eu": 100
    }
},

Completeish event

This has the rest event in two forms, but doesn’t duplicate the above.

Generic notes:

• Don’t have anything in events {} as 0 or otherwise users will be able to send state events with that name including gigabytes of data breaking the room.
  • Refer to security considerations of MSC 3779.

Reasonable version

This is not the Element/Synapse default as that would be pointless to list.

{
    "ban": 50,
    "events": {
        "im.vector.modular.widgets": 50,
        "m.room.avatar": 50,
        "m.room.canonical_alias": 13,
        "m.room.encryption": 100,
        "m.room.history_visibility": 99,
        "m.room.join_rules": 50,
        "m.room.name": 50,
        "m.room.pinned_events": 25,
        "m.room.power_levels": 50,
        "m.room.retention": 100,
        "m.room.server_acl": 100,
        "m.room.tombstone": 100,
        "m.room.topic": 25,
        "m.space.child": 50
    },
    "events_default": 0,
    "historical": 100,
    "invite": 0,
    "kick": 25,
    "redact": 25,
    "state_default": 50,
    "users": {
        // READ THE BEGINNING OF THE FILE FOR THIS SECTION AND PROPER FORMAT! OR SEE YOUR CURRENT EVENT!
    },
    "users_default": 0
}

• m.room.history_visibility is lowered to 99 as it’s a less permanent action than many of the others. I am not sure on my initial logic, but it’s documented in PPFI repo as PL100 vs PL99.
• m.room.power_levels is set to 50 so moderators can raise others to moderators for example matrix-appservice-irc, which I would then give PL51 for ops syncing. On matrix side immune mods, could be PL52.
• invite commonly defaults to 50, but I haven’t seen abuse through it
• PL25, half-moderator is introduced (inspired from Ergo/IRC halfop), with powers to: change room topic, pinned messages, remove messages and kick users (but not ban).
  • Maybe this could be used e.g. in an association where a secretary/someone unwilling to be a full moderator wants to update room topic for next meeting time or update a version number? 🤷 Alternatively someone not wanting full moderator responsibility could remove spam while not participating in banning discussions.
• PL13 gets access to change main alias and add/remove published room aliases alongside (at least on Synapse) un/publish the room in the room directory.
  • This can be used with e.g. altalias maubot plugin. I don’t care about room directory or the main alias as it doesn’t affect ctrl-k that much anyway, rooms are generally discovered through Spaces and I use Matrix URI scheme which takes room internal ID and servers to find it from instead of caring about the alias. Most importantly don’t give permissions to entirely untrusted users.

Medium version

{
    "ban": 50,
    "events": {
        "im.vector.modular.widgets": 50,
        "m.room.avatar": 50,
        "m.room.canonical_alias": 13,
        "m.room.encryption": 100,
        "m.room.history_visibility": 99,
        "m.room.join_rules": 50,
        "m.room.name": 50,
        "m.room.pinned_events": 25,
        "m.room.power_levels": 50,
        "m.room.retention": 100,
        "m.room.server_acl": 100,
        "m.room.tombstone": 100,
        "m.room.topic": 25,
        "m.space.child": 50
    },
    "events_default": 0,
    "historical": 100,
    "invite": 50,
    "kick": 25,
    "redact": 25,
    "state_default": 50,
    "users": {
        // READ THE BEGINNING OF THE FILE FOR THIS SECTION AND PROPER FORMAT! OR SEE YOUR CURRENT EVENT!
    },
    "users_default": 0
}

• Otherwise “Reasonable version”, but
• Only moderators can invite

Paranoid version

{
    "ban": 50,
    "events": {
        "im.vector.modular.widgets": 100,
        "m.room.avatar": 100,
        "m.room.canonical_alias": 100,
        "m.room.encryption": 100,
        "m.room.history_visibility": 100,
        "m.room.join_rules": 100,
        "m.room.name": 100,
        "m.room.pinned_events": 100,
        "m.room.power_levels": 100,
        "m.room.retention": 100,
        "m.room.server_acl": 100,
        "m.room.tombstone": 100,
        "m.room.topic": 100,
        "m.space.child": 100
    },
    "events_default": 0,
    "historical": 100,
    "invite": 100,
    "kick": 50,
    "redact": 50,
    "state_default": 100,
    "users": {
        // READ THE BEGINNING OF THE FILE FOR THIS SECTION AND PROPER FORMAT! OR SEE YOUR CURRENT EVENT!
    },
    "users_default": 0
}