# Rocket.Chat — Open-Source Team Communication Platform

> Rocket.Chat is a self-hostable alternative to Slack and Teams. It bundles messaging, voice/video calls, file sharing, chatbots, and omnichannel customer support — all under one MIT-licensed roof you can run on your own infrastructure.

## Install

Save in your project root:

# Rocket.Chat — Self-Hosted Slack/Teams Alternative

## Quick Use
```bash
# Docker Compose — quick start
mkdir rocketchat && cd rocketchat
curl -L https://go.rocket.chat/i/download-compose -o docker-compose.yml
HOSTNAME=chat.example.com docker compose up -d
# Visit http://localhost:3000
```

## Introduction
Rocket.Chat has been the go-to open-source Slack alternative since 2015. Built on Meteor (Node.js), it offers channels, DMs, threads, reactions, file sharing, voice/video calls (via Jitsi), and a marketplace of apps/integrations. Self-hosted or managed cloud — same software.

With over 45,000 GitHub stars, Rocket.Chat is deployed inside large companies (Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bahn, US Navy), open-source communities, and governments that need data sovereignty. It integrates with LDAP/SSO/SAML, exports to enterprise compliance tooling, and supports omnichannel customer support (WhatsApp, Email, SMS gateway).

## What Rocket.Chat Does
Rocket.Chat provides team chat (channels, private groups, DMs), voice + video calls (Jitsi-based), file sharing, threads, emoji + reactions, custom apps (via its SDK), and an "omnichannel" module that routes WhatsApp/Facebook/Twitter/SMS into the same inbox as internal chat. An Apps SDK + marketplace extend the functionality.

## Architecture Overview
```
[Rocket.Chat Server (Node.js/Meteor)]
        |
  +-----+-----+-----+-----+
  |     |     |     |     |
Chat  Apps  Omni  Webhooks LiveChat
      Engine channel         widget
        |
[MongoDB]        [Redis (for HA clustering)]
        |
[Object Storage]
   FileSystem / S3 / GridFS for file uploads
        |
[Voice/Video]
   Jitsi Meet (default, built-in)
   BigBlueButton / other connectors (optional)
        |
[Integrations]
   LDAP, SAML, OAuth, Zapier,
   GitHub, GitLab, Jira, Microsoft 365
```

## Self-Hosting & Configuration
```yaml
# docker-compose.yml (excerpt)
services:
  rocketchat:
    image: registry.rocket.chat/rocketchat/rocket.chat:latest
    environment:
      - PORT=3000
      - ROOT_URL=https://chat.example.com
      - MONGO_URL=mongodb://mongo:27017/rocketchat?replicaSet=rs0
      - MONGO_OPLOG_URL=mongodb://mongo:27017/local?replicaSet=rs0
      - ACCOUNTS_OAUTH_GOOGLE=true
      - ACCOUNTS_OAUTH_GITHUB=true
    volumes:
      - ./uploads:/app/uploads
    depends_on:
      - mongo

  mongo:
    image: mongo:6.0
    command: ["--replSet", "rs0", "--oplogSize", "128"]

  mongo-init-replica:
    image: mongo:6.0
    depends_on: [mongo]
    entrypoint: [ "bash", "-c", "sleep 10 && mongosh mongo/rocketchat --eval 'rs.initiate({_id:\"rs0\",members:[{_id:0,host:\"mongo:27017\"}]})'"]
```

```bash
# CLI-friendly admin via API
curl -H "X-Auth-Token: TOKEN" -H "X-User-Id: USER" \
  -X POST https://chat.example.com/api/v1/channels.create \
  -d '{"name":"engineering"}'

# Rocket.Chat App SDK — build custom apps
# npm install -g @rocket.chat/apps-cli
# rc-apps create my-app
# rc-apps deploy --url http://chat.example.com --username admin --password ...
```

## Key Features
- **Channels + DMs + threads** — feature parity with Slack basics
- **Voice + video calls** — Jitsi built-in, 3rd-party integrations available
- **File sharing** — local / S3 / GridFS storage, previews, search
- **Apps + integrations marketplace** — hundreds of apps (Jira, GitHub, Zapier, etc.)
- **Omnichannel** — WhatsApp, Facebook, SMS, email into one inbox
- **LiveChat widget** — embed on websites for customer support
- **SSO + LDAP** — enterprise authentication out of the box
- **Federation (Matrix bridge)** — join the Matrix network

## Comparison with Similar Tools
| Feature | Rocket.Chat | Mattermost | Zulip | Element (Matrix) | Slack |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| License | MIT | MIT | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 | Proprietary |
| Voice/video | Built-in (Jitsi) | 3rd party | 3rd party | Via Element Call | Built-in (paid) |
| Threading | Yes | Yes | Yes (primary feature) | Yes | Yes |
| Omnichannel | Yes (focus) | Limited | No | No | Via Slack Connect |
| Federation | Matrix bridge | No | No | Native (Matrix) | No |
| Best For | Team chat + customer support | Team chat (devs) | Threaded discussions | Decentralized chat | Corporate convenience |

## FAQ
**Q: Rocket.Chat vs Mattermost?**
A: Mattermost is more focused on devops team chat (better threading + enterprise features in the paid tier). Rocket.Chat is broader — includes omnichannel customer support, LiveChat widget, and a bigger apps marketplace. Pick by feature set.

**Q: Is self-hosting hard?**
A: Moderate. Docker Compose is straightforward. For production (HA, clustered MongoDB replica set, backups, SSL, email), plan a half-day setup. Managed cloud hosting avoids this.

**Q: What about encryption?**
A: End-to-end encryption is available for DMs and private groups (opt-in). Server admins don't see the content when E2EE is enabled. For most enterprise deployments, server-managed encryption at rest is the norm.

**Q: Can users federate across instances?**
A: Rocket.Chat federation (Matrix bridge) lets your server talk to Matrix-speaking servers. Native Rocket.Chat-to-Rocket.Chat federation is also supported.

## Sources
- GitHub: https://github.com/RocketChat/Rocket.Chat
- Website: https://rocket.chat
- Company: Rocket.Chat Technologies Corp.
- License: MIT

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Author: AI Open Source