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Signal is having technical difficulties

status.signal.org

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Re: Signal is having technical difficulties

#551

Post by zionic »

topkeks wrote: post #475
Daniel_sk wrote: post #365

"We have been adding new servers and extra capacity at a record pace every single day this week nonstop, but today exceeded even our most optimistic projections. Millions upon millions of new users are sending a message that privacy matters. We appreciate your patience." https://twitter.com/signalapp/status/1350165610936766464

Does anyone outside Signal Foundation know how's their architecture? There are a lot of references to AWS, GCP, and Azure in the source code hosted in GitHub so they probably use them all in one way or another. It would be super interesting know more details about the infrastructure.

If they use any of it at all, Signal needs to get any/all remaining infrastructure off AWS as soon as possible.

Re: Signal is having technical difficulties

#552

Post by notjes »

alan5 wrote: post #71

I just donated to Signal after seeing the error banner in the app. I realised I was more than happy to pay WhatsApp's yearly charge back in the pre-Facebook days (think it was 70p or so?). Figured I could give Signal a few quid every now and then, maybe keep a server up for a few seconds :) Donation link should anyone be interested: https://signal.org/donate/

I just donated, because of your reminder. Ty.

Re: Signal is having technical difficulties

#553

Post by MAGZine »

Aaronn wrote: post #545
pmlnr wrote: post #522

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If matrix.org were to see this level of influx of users, given their constant scaling problems, they would be down in minutes.

The whole point of Matrix is that you don't have to use matrix.org to use Matrix. Anyone can host a server and talk to anyone on any Matrix server.

So you're suggesting grandma connects to a different server when setting up the app?

next you're going to tell me grandma should just use IRC instead.

Re: Signal is having technical difficulties

#554

Post by arendtio »

input_sh wrote: post #378
arendtio wrote: post #352

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just wonder about the process and the results. I mean, it doesn't look to me, as if there is a management behind this, that actually has a goal. It looks more like they are giving funds to projects who apply for them. IMO, they should state 3 clear goals and sponsor specific projects which reach those goals. To give some example how those could look like: - create a decentralized, federated instant messaging platfo…

I disagree. I believe the governments should fund existing open source software that are considered to be "critical" infrastructure (as in lots and lots of people rely on it) instead of chasing some random goals and adding bureaucracy on top that would slow down lead developers. Just give them money and trust them that they'll do whatever it is they've done so far that many people recognised and started relying on th…

I am not so sure that we disagree. I would consider instant messaging services 'critical infrastructure'. The difference seems to be, that you want to support projects that are large already, while I would certainly put more focus on smaller projects as those are the ones which can initiate change.

I find it heartbreaking, that we still depend on WhatsApp and Zoom. Neither service owner is particular trustworthy. Communication is definitely critical infrastructure and yet, the open-source alternatives are very limited (in quality, not in quantity). So investing in this kind of functionality is key.

Re: Signal is having technical difficulties

#555

Post by ketamine__ »

MAGZine wrote: post #553
Aaronn wrote: post #545

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The whole point of Matrix is that you don't have to use matrix.org to use Matrix. Anyone can host a server and talk to anyone on any Matrix server.

So you're suggesting grandma connects to a different server when setting up the app? next you're going to tell me grandma should just use IRC instead.

Grandma's hate IRC. The text is just too damn small! How can ya see anything?!

Re: Signal is having technical difficulties

#556

Post by Aeolun »

too_pricey wrote: post #137
olah_1 wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We have no info as to how much money they need or how much they currently have. For all we know, this was just an area of oversight and not related to funding at all. I’d prefer to pay yearly than to feel the spectre of guilt for using a “free” app.

They're a non-profit, so their financials are publicly disclosed. ProPublica only has it as recently as 2018, but here was the financials then: https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/82450...

I just get stuck in an infinite cloudflare loop :(

Re: Signal is having technical difficulties

#557

Post by Marsymars »

bilal4hmed wrote: post #531
Marsymars wrote: post #473

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Good to know! But your link now leads to a “The charity you're looking for isn't available right now” page?

Interesting, I just clicked that link and it worked for me Try searching for Signal Tech Foundation here https://www.paypal.com/fundraiser/hub

Ah, PayPal URLs without a country code specified defaults to only showing or returning search results for the country they geolocate you to.

Non-American users can access the Signal PayPal page at Paypal’s US site: https://www.paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/3675786

Not sure what the logistics of sending money to the USA PayPal Giving Fund are for non-Americans.

Re: Signal is having technical difficulties

#558

Post by zamadatix »

UFOFlyer wrote: post #515
eins1234 wrote: post #510

One thing on my wishlist for Signal that's curiously still missing is the lack of a Web app. On desktop at least, I'm generally of the position that messaging apps should need no capability outside of what's available in my browser (i.e. sending notifications), so when the option is available that's the one I tend to go for (usually have my commonly used ones sitting around in a pinned tab). Pretty much every chat ap…

IIRC Signal doesn't have a web app for security reasons. With a iOS/Android/Desktop app, you can verify the checksum of the binary against what signal provides. But with a web app you redownload the application everytime which means you'd have to recheck that checksum every time you use the app. I guess that WhatsApp, Discord, et al have decided that this is a reasonable risk. But the privacy oriented Signal team dis…

Something being Electron doesn't mean it's ready to be a web app it means the UI is web and the rest of the app is somewhere between "the standard web sandbox" and "a native app" in terms of what it has access to do.

Re: Signal is having technical difficulties

#559

Post by Aeolun »

How does this happen? You can kind of see your usage quickly run to 100% right? I’d think this is one of those moments that someone is permanently observing the usage to increase capacity when necessary.

Also, why can’t I send a message any time, instead of just sometimes?

Re: Signal is having technical difficulties

#560

Post by [deleted] »

olah_1 wrote: post #386
bilal4hmed wrote: post #258

Earlier quoted context omitted.

$100 million given current growth wont last as long. Telegram 4 years had a run rate of $1 million per month for servers and dev costs. At that time they had about 200 million users. Signal is using AWS & GCP ( for cloud fronting ), they could be approaching that spend level.

> $100 million given current growth wont last as long. That is 100% their problem, though. I trust that they will develop a sustainable business model when it becomes necessary. Otherwise, look at their tax info shared above. Sporadic donations won't even make a small dent. I mean, shoot, they won't even give us a hint at how much to donate to cover our own costs. That would be a start.

[deleted]
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