395 lines
15 KiB
Markdown
395 lines
15 KiB
Markdown
Element
|
||
=======
|
||
|
||
Element (formerly known as Vector and Riot) is a Matrix web client built using the [Matrix
|
||
React SDK](https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-react-sdk).
|
||
|
||
Supported Environments
|
||
======================
|
||
|
||
Element has several tiers of support for different environments:
|
||
|
||
* Supported
|
||
* Definition: Issues **actively triaged**, regressions **block** the release
|
||
* Last 2 major versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge on desktop OSes
|
||
* Latest release of official Element Desktop app on desktop OSes
|
||
* Desktop OSes means macOS, Windows, and Linux versions for desktop devices
|
||
that are actively supported by the OS vendor and receive security updates
|
||
* Experimental
|
||
* Definition: Issues **accepted**, regressions **do not block** the release
|
||
* Element as an installed PWA via current stable version of Chrome, Firefox, and Safari
|
||
* Mobile web for current stable version of Chrome, Firefox, and Safari on Android, iOS, and iPadOS
|
||
* Not supported
|
||
* Definition: Issues only affecting unsupported environments are **closed**
|
||
* Everything else
|
||
|
||
For accessing Element on an Android or iOS device, we currently recommend the
|
||
native apps [element-android](https://github.com/vector-im/element-android)
|
||
and [element-ios](https://github.com/vector-im/element-ios).
|
||
|
||
Getting Started
|
||
===============
|
||
|
||
The easiest way to test Element is to just use the hosted copy at <https://app.element.io>.
|
||
The `develop` branch is continuously deployed to <https://develop.element.io>
|
||
for those who like living dangerously.
|
||
|
||
To host your own copy of Element, the quickest bet is to use a pre-built
|
||
released version of Element:
|
||
|
||
1. Download the latest version from <https://github.com/vector-im/element-web/releases>
|
||
1. Untar the tarball on your web server
|
||
1. Move (or symlink) the `element-x.x.x` directory to an appropriate name
|
||
1. Configure the correct caching headers in your webserver (see below)
|
||
1. If desired, copy `config.sample.json` to `config.json` and edit it
|
||
as desired. See the [configuration docs](docs/config.md) for details.
|
||
1. Enter the URL into your browser and log into Element!
|
||
|
||
Releases are signed using gpg and the OpenPGP standard, and can be checked against the public key located
|
||
at <https://packages.riot.im/element-release-key.asc>.
|
||
|
||
Note that for the security of your chats will need to serve Element
|
||
over HTTPS. Major browsers also do not allow you to use VoIP/video
|
||
chats over HTTP, as WebRTC is only usable over HTTPS.
|
||
There are some exceptions like when using localhost, which is
|
||
considered a [secure context](https://developer.mozilla.org/docs/Web/Security/Secure_Contexts)
|
||
and thus allowed.
|
||
|
||
To install Element as a desktop application, see [Running as a desktop
|
||
app](#running-as-a-desktop-app) below.
|
||
|
||
Important Security Notes
|
||
========================
|
||
|
||
Separate domains
|
||
----------------
|
||
|
||
We do not recommend running Element from the same domain name as your Matrix
|
||
homeserver. The reason is the risk of XSS (cross-site-scripting)
|
||
vulnerabilities that could occur if someone caused Element to load and render
|
||
malicious user generated content from a Matrix API which then had trusted
|
||
access to Element (or other apps) due to sharing the same domain.
|
||
|
||
We have put some coarse mitigations into place to try to protect against this
|
||
situation, but it's still not good practice to do it in the first place. See
|
||
<https://github.com/vector-im/element-web/issues/1977> for more details.
|
||
|
||
Configuration best practices
|
||
----------------------------
|
||
|
||
Unless you have special requirements, you will want to add the following to
|
||
your web server configuration when hosting Element Web:
|
||
|
||
* The `X-Frame-Options: SAMEORIGIN` header, to prevent Element Web from being
|
||
framed and protect from [clickjacking][owasp-clickjacking].
|
||
* The `frame-ancestors 'none'` directive to your `Content-Security-Policy`
|
||
header, as the modern replacement for `X-Frame-Options` (though both should be
|
||
included since not all browsers support it yet, see
|
||
[this][owasp-clickjacking-csp]).
|
||
* The `X-Content-Type-Options: nosniff` header, to [disable MIME
|
||
sniffing][mime-sniffing].
|
||
* The `X-XSS-Protection: 1; mode=block;` header, for basic XSS protection in
|
||
legacy browsers.
|
||
|
||
[mime-sniffing]:
|
||
<https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/HTTP/Basics_of_HTTP/MIME_types#mime_sniffing>
|
||
|
||
[owasp-clickjacking-csp]:
|
||
<https://cheatsheetseries.owasp.org/cheatsheets/Clickjacking_Defense_Cheat_Sheet.html#content-security-policy-frame-ancestors-examples>
|
||
|
||
[owasp-clickjacking]:
|
||
<https://cheatsheetseries.owasp.org/cheatsheets/Clickjacking_Defense_Cheat_Sheet.html>
|
||
|
||
If you are using nginx, this would look something like the following:
|
||
|
||
```
|
||
add_header X-Frame-Options SAMEORIGIN;
|
||
add_header X-Content-Type-Options nosniff;
|
||
add_header X-XSS-Protection "1; mode=block";
|
||
add_header Content-Security-Policy "frame-ancestors 'none'";
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
Note: In case you are already setting a `Content-Security-Policy` header
|
||
elsewhere, you should modify it to include the `frame-ancestors` directive
|
||
instead of adding that last line.
|
||
|
||
Building From Source
|
||
====================
|
||
|
||
Element is a modular webapp built with modern ES6 and uses a Node.js build system.
|
||
Ensure you have the latest LTS version of Node.js installed.
|
||
|
||
Using `yarn` instead of `npm` is recommended. Please see the Yarn [install
|
||
guide](https://classic.yarnpkg.com/en/docs/install) if you do not have it already.
|
||
|
||
1. Install or update `node.js` so that your `node` is at least the current recommended LTS.
|
||
1. Install `yarn` if not present already.
|
||
1. Clone the repo: `git clone https://github.com/vector-im/element-web.git`.
|
||
1. Switch to the element-web directory: `cd element-web`.
|
||
1. Install the prerequisites: `yarn install`.
|
||
* If you're using the `develop` branch, then it is recommended to set up a
|
||
proper development environment (see [Setting up a dev
|
||
environment](#setting-up-a-dev-environment) below). Alternatively, you
|
||
can use <https://develop.element.io> - the continuous integration release of
|
||
the develop branch.
|
||
1. Configure the app by copying `config.sample.json` to `config.json` and
|
||
modifying it. See the [configuration docs](docs/config.md) for details.
|
||
1. `yarn dist` to build a tarball to deploy. Untaring this file will give
|
||
a version-specific directory containing all the files that need to go on your
|
||
web server.
|
||
|
||
Note that `yarn dist` is not supported on Windows, so Windows users can run `yarn build`,
|
||
which will build all the necessary files into the `webapp` directory. The version of Element
|
||
will not appear in Settings without using the dist script. You can then mount the
|
||
`webapp` directory on your web server to actually serve up the app, which is
|
||
entirely static content.
|
||
|
||
Running as a Desktop app
|
||
========================
|
||
|
||
Element can also be run as a desktop app, wrapped in Electron. You can download a
|
||
pre-built version from <https://element.io/get-started> or, if you prefer,
|
||
build it yourself.
|
||
|
||
To build it yourself, follow the instructions at <https://github.com/vector-im/element-desktop>.
|
||
|
||
Many thanks to @aviraldg for the initial work on the Electron integration.
|
||
|
||
Other options for running as a desktop app:
|
||
|
||
* @asdf:matrix.org points out that you can use nativefier and it just works(tm)
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
yarn global add nativefier
|
||
nativefier https://app.element.io/
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
The [configuration docs](docs/config.md#desktop-app-configuration) show how to
|
||
override the desktop app's default settings if desired.
|
||
|
||
Running from Docker
|
||
===================
|
||
|
||
The Docker image can be used to serve element-web as a web server. The easiest way to use
|
||
it is to use the prebuilt image:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
docker run -p 80:80 vectorim/element-web
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
To supply your own custom `config.json`, map a volume to `/app/config.json`. For example,
|
||
if your custom config was located at `/etc/element-web/config.json` then your Docker command
|
||
would be:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
docker run -p 80:80 -v /etc/element-web/config.json:/app/config.json vectorim/element-web
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
To build the image yourself:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
git clone https://github.com/vector-im/element-web.git element-web
|
||
cd element-web
|
||
git checkout master
|
||
docker build .
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
If you're building a custom branch, or want to use the develop branch, check out the appropriate
|
||
element-web branch and then run:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
docker build -t \
|
||
--build-arg USE_CUSTOM_SDKS=true \
|
||
--build-arg REACT_SDK_REPO="https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-react-sdk.git" \
|
||
--build-arg REACT_SDK_BRANCH="develop" \
|
||
--build-arg JS_SDK_REPO="https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-js-sdk.git" \
|
||
--build-arg JS_SDK_BRANCH="develop" \
|
||
.
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
Running in Kubernetes
|
||
=====================
|
||
|
||
The provided element-web docker image can also be run from within a Kubernetes cluster.
|
||
See the [Kubernetes example](docs/kubernetes.md) for more details.
|
||
|
||
config.json
|
||
===========
|
||
|
||
Element supports a variety of settings to configure default servers, behaviour, themes, etc.
|
||
See the [configuration docs](docs/config.md) for more details.
|
||
|
||
Labs Features
|
||
=============
|
||
|
||
Some features of Element may be enabled by flags in the `Labs` section of the settings.
|
||
Some of these features are described in [labs.md](https://github.com/vector-im/element-web/blob/develop/docs/labs.md).
|
||
|
||
Caching requirements
|
||
====================
|
||
|
||
Element requires the following URLs not to be cached, when/if you are serving Element from your own webserver:
|
||
|
||
```
|
||
/config.*.json
|
||
/i18n
|
||
/home
|
||
/sites
|
||
/index.html
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
We also recommend that you force browsers to re-validate any cached copy of Element on page load by configuring your
|
||
webserver to return `Cache-Control: no-cache` for `/`. This ensures the browser will fetch a new version of Element on
|
||
the next page load after it's been deployed. Note that this is already configured for you in the nginx config of our
|
||
Dockerfile.
|
||
|
||
Development
|
||
===========
|
||
|
||
Before attempting to develop on Element you **must** read the [developer guide
|
||
for `matrix-react-sdk`](https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-react-sdk#developer-guide), which
|
||
also defines the design, architecture and style for Element too.
|
||
|
||
Before starting work on a feature, it's best to ensure your plan aligns well
|
||
with our vision for Element. Please chat with the team in
|
||
[#element-dev:matrix.org](https://matrix.to/#/#element-dev:matrix.org) before you
|
||
start so we can ensure it's something we'd be willing to merge.
|
||
|
||
You should also familiarise yourself with the ["Here be Dragons" guide
|
||
](https://docs.google.com/document/d/12jYzvkidrp1h7liEuLIe6BMdU0NUjndUYI971O06ooM)
|
||
to the tame & not-so-tame dragons (gotchas) which exist in the codebase.
|
||
|
||
The idea of Element is to be a relatively lightweight "skin" of customisations on
|
||
top of the underlying `matrix-react-sdk`. `matrix-react-sdk` provides both the
|
||
higher and lower level React components useful for building Matrix communication
|
||
apps using React.
|
||
|
||
Please note that Element is intended to run correctly without access to the public
|
||
internet. So please don't depend on resources (JS libs, CSS, images, fonts)
|
||
hosted by external CDNs or servers but instead please package all dependencies
|
||
into Element itself.
|
||
|
||
CSS hot-reload is available as an opt-in development feature. You can enable it
|
||
by defining a `CSS_HOT_RELOAD` environment variable, in a `.env` file in the root
|
||
of the repository. See `.env.example` for documentation and an example.
|
||
|
||
Setting up a dev environment
|
||
============================
|
||
|
||
Much of the functionality in Element is actually in the `matrix-react-sdk` and
|
||
`matrix-js-sdk` modules. It is possible to set these up in a way that makes it
|
||
easy to track the `develop` branches in git and to make local changes without
|
||
having to manually rebuild each time.
|
||
|
||
First clone and build `matrix-js-sdk`:
|
||
|
||
``` bash
|
||
git clone https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-js-sdk.git
|
||
pushd matrix-js-sdk
|
||
yarn link
|
||
yarn install
|
||
popd
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
Then similarly with `matrix-react-sdk`:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
git clone https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-react-sdk.git
|
||
pushd matrix-react-sdk
|
||
yarn link
|
||
yarn link matrix-js-sdk
|
||
yarn install
|
||
popd
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
Finally, build and start Element itself:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
git clone https://github.com/vector-im/element-web.git
|
||
cd element-web
|
||
yarn link matrix-js-sdk
|
||
yarn link matrix-react-sdk
|
||
yarn install
|
||
yarn start
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
Wait a few seconds for the initial build to finish; you should see something like:
|
||
|
||
```
|
||
[element-js] <s> [webpack.Progress] 100%
|
||
[element-js]
|
||
[element-js] ℹ 「wdm」: 1840 modules
|
||
[element-js] ℹ 「wdm」: Compiled successfully.
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
Remember, the command will not terminate since it runs the web server
|
||
and rebuilds source files when they change. This development server also
|
||
disables caching, so do NOT use it in production.
|
||
|
||
Configure the app by copying `config.sample.json` to `config.json` and
|
||
modifying it. See the [configuration docs](docs/config.md) for details.
|
||
|
||
Open <http://127.0.0.1:8080/> in your browser to see your newly built Element.
|
||
|
||
**Note**: The build script uses inotify by default on Linux to monitor directories
|
||
for changes. If the inotify limits are too low your build will fail silently or with
|
||
`Error: EMFILE: too many open files`. To avoid these issues, we recommend a watch limit
|
||
of at least `128M` and instance limit around `512`.
|
||
|
||
You may be interested in issues [#15750](https://github.com/vector-im/element-web/issues/15750) and
|
||
[#15774](https://github.com/vector-im/element-web/issues/15774) for further details.
|
||
|
||
To set a new inotify watch and instance limit, execute:
|
||
|
||
```
|
||
sudo sysctl fs.inotify.max_user_watches=131072
|
||
sudo sysctl fs.inotify.max_user_instances=512
|
||
sudo sysctl -p
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
If you wish, you can make the new limits permanent, by executing:
|
||
|
||
```
|
||
echo fs.inotify.max_user_watches=131072 | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
|
||
echo fs.inotify.max_user_instances=512 | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
|
||
sudo sysctl -p
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
___
|
||
|
||
When you make changes to `matrix-react-sdk` or `matrix-js-sdk` they should be
|
||
automatically picked up by webpack and built.
|
||
|
||
If any of these steps error with, `file table overflow`, you are probably on a mac
|
||
which has a very low limit on max open files. Run `ulimit -Sn 1024` and try again.
|
||
You'll need to do this in each new terminal you open before building Element.
|
||
|
||
Running the tests
|
||
-----------------
|
||
|
||
There are a number of application-level tests in the `tests` directory; these
|
||
are designed to run with Jest and JSDOM. To run them
|
||
|
||
```
|
||
yarn test
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
### End-to-End tests
|
||
|
||
See [matrix-react-sdk](https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-react-sdk/#end-to-end-tests) for how to run the end-to-end tests.
|
||
|
||
Translations
|
||
============
|
||
|
||
To add a new translation, head to the [translating doc](docs/translating.md).
|
||
|
||
For a developer guide, see the [translating dev doc](docs/translating-dev.md).
|
||
|
||
[<img src="https://translate.element.io/widgets/element-web/-/multi-auto.svg" alt="translationsstatus" width="340">](https://translate.element.io/engage/element-web/?utm_source=widget)
|
||
|
||
Triaging issues
|
||
===============
|
||
|
||
Issues are triaged by community members and the Web App Team, following the [triage process](https://github.com/vector-im/element-meta/wiki/Triage-process).
|
||
|
||
We use [issue labels](https://github.com/vector-im/element-meta/wiki/Issue-labelling) to sort all incoming issues.
|