starter
$1.99 /mo
$19.99/yr. One nick, a bot, maybe a bouncer. 1 background process.
Order$./irc-shell
IRC shell
An IRC shell is a Linux account you SSH into, leave a process running, and log out. The nick stays. The bot stays. The bouncer stays. Your client can disconnect.
That is the product. It is not a VPS brochure, not a free BNC with a waiting list, and not a managed bot unless you ask for one.
KIRE has sold these since 1997. identd on. Vanity vhosts. IPv4 and IPv6. DDoS Defense Systems in front of the server. You run Eggdrop, ZNC or psyBNC, irssi or weechat in screen/tmux. We keep the box up.
Order a shell · managed egg is gid=8 if you do not want to compile anything.
$cat what.txt
People search irc shell, linux shell account, and znc hosting for the same job: stay on IRC without leaving a client open at home.
Three honest ways to do that:
- IRC shell (self-managed). SSH. You build or unpack Eggdrop. You run ZNC. You own the config and the blame. This is Starter / Standard / Heavy on shells.php.
- Managed Eggdrop. We put the bot in the channel. You remote-control it. Linux experience optional. Cart: gid=8.
- Bouncer as the product. ZNC (or psyBNC if you still have a reason). Client connects here; we hold the nick. Order ZNC.
A generic VPS can do (1) if you enjoy spending a weekend on ident, reverse DNS, and the first syn flood. A free BNC can do a thin version of (3) until it cannot. We are the boring middle: IRC-friendly Linux, on purpose.
Who it is not for: miners, mass scanners, open proxies. Keep it light, keep it on IRC.
$./compare
Live public pages, late August 2026. Cart prices move.
| KIRE IRC shell | Managed Eggdrop | Free BNC (bnc4free class) | Generic VPS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What you get | SSH account on our network | A bot in the channel | A shared bouncer slot | A VM you harden |
| You compile Eggdrop? | Yes, if you want one | No | No | Yes, plus the firewall |
| ZNC | Run it on the shell, or order it as the product | Not the product | Sometimes, shared | DIY |
| identd / vhosts | Yes | N/A (we run the bot) | Shared hostname lottery | You file the rDNS ticket |
| DDoS | DDoS Defense Systems in front of the server | In front | Unknown | Your problem |
| Stays up when you disconnect | Yes | Yes | Until they idle-out the slot | If you configured it |
| Price this week | $1.99 / $2.99 / $4.99 per month | Cart gid=8 | $0, with the usual caveats | Whatever the VPS bill is |
$./plans
From kirenet.com/shells.php. Setup free. Old Starter/Bronze/Golden accounts stay on those products; these are the ones you order now.
standard
$2.99 /mo
$29.99/yr. Bot + bouncer + a couple of extra processes. vhosts included. Most people want this.
Orderheavy
$4.99 /mo
$49.99/yr. Unlimited processes. IRC daemons (Unreal et al.) on this plan only.
OrderStorage is unlimited on all three. SSH on all three. IRCD is Heavy, not a separate SKU.
Need the bot and none of the Tcl? Skip the shell. Managed Eggdrop, gid=8.
$man znc
A bouncer sits here, holds the nick, playback when you attach. ZNC unless you have a reason for psyBNC. Dedicated IPs where it matters. DDoS in front of the listener, not “somewhere on the LAN.”
You can run ZNC on a shell. You can also just order ZNC. Either is fine. A public open proxy is not.
$man irc-shell
Is this a USA-made server?
We do not sell “USA-made servers.” We sell IRC-friendly Linux shells, bouncers, and managed Eggdrop. Since 1997.
Do I need to know Eggdrop?
For a shell: enough to SSH and leave screen running. For managed: no. gid=8.
Can I run an IRCD?
Heavy only.
IPv6?
Yes. Shared on Starter, dedicated counts on Standard and Heavy. Pick what the network you idle on actually accepts.