Features

SMF 2.0.x is a very versatile forum software. It has many features, including the following:

General

 * Uses PHP, and a database system: MySQL, PostgreSQL or SQLite.
 * Comprehensive template system.
 * Advanced permission and user management.
 * Supports multiple languages at once.
 * Open and well-documented source code.
 * Tracking of new and old unread topics, not just from your last visit.
 * Designed for optimal performance and scalability.
 * Multi-media output: XHTML, XML, RSS, WAP.
 * Multi-language support from a large community.
 * Package manager that automatically installs or uninstalls mods (also known as packages).
 * Search:
 * Search the entire forum, a category/board or within a topic.
 * Search within your personal messages.

Security

 * All actions seamlessly require a session based authorization code.
 * Administrative actions require the user's password (and do not rely solely on cookies).
 * Major actions are time and IP locked, preventing 'hammering'.
 * The number of login attempts from a certain IP can be limited and time locked.

Forum Settings

 * Ability to display page creation time and query count per page.
 * Put a board into maintenance mode, allowing only administrators to log in.
 * Word censoring, either full word or partial.
 * Ability to break up long words.

Boards and Categories

 * Group boards into collapsible categories.
 * Set categories as non-collapsible.
 * Reorder boards within categories, or reorder categories.
 * Create child boards under other boards (sub boards).
 * Assign moderators to boards.
 * Allow certain membergroups to access a board, including guests only.
 * Configure permissions for each membergroup on the board level.
 * Ability to indicate new posts to child boards but nothing new in parent.

Member Registration

 * Require registration before forum entrance.
 * Require a user to agree to terms before they register.
 * Disable member registration completely (allowing only administrators, or moderators with the necessary permissions, to register people).
 * Require email authentication by sending an authentication link.
 * Require an administrator, or moderator(s) with the necessary permissions, to approve registration.
 * Register new members from the admin center.

Member Navigation and Authentication

 * Password reminder option, by email with confirmation (doesn't automatically reset your password).
 * Both cookie and session based authentication (works without cookies).
 * Cookies can be set local to a path, global to all subdomains, or normally.
 * Adjustable expiration time for authentication cookies.

Member Tracking and Tracing

 * Sortable and searchable public memberlist (accessible by a permission).
 * Powerful sortable and searchable admin memberlist.
 * Show all (error) messages and IPs made by a member (track user).
 * Show all (error) messages from an IP address or range (track IP).
 * See who's doing what (accessible by permission).

Statistics

 * Several board statistics (accessible by permission).
 * Tracking of member's online time in seconds.
 * Tracking of topics, messages, new members, and hits per day.
 * Individual member statistics accessible from their profile.

News and Announcements

 * Send a Newsletter from the admin center, or post any topic as an Announcement.
 * Member option to disable receiving announcements (and Admin override of this option).
 * Email or private message your members by membergroup.
 * Show a news fader.

Communication

 * Ability to choose sendmail or SMTP (with or without authentication).
 * Ability to send a topic to a friend.
 * Ability to view a "printer friendly" version of topics.

Membergroups

 * Create membergroups to group members on permissions, access rights, and/or appearance.
 * Assign several membergroups to a single member, with one membergroup as the primary group.
 * Define membergroups that are auto-assigned based on the amount of posts a user has.
 * Determine the maximum number of personal messages a membergroup is allowed to have by group.
 * Assign badge or star to a membergroup - by primary group.
 * Determine which membergroups are allowed to access a board.

Banning

 * Ban members based on their username, email address, IP address or hostname.
 * Support of wildcards for email address, IP address, and hostname.
 * Include a ban reason (viewable for the banned user).
 * Include a ban note (only viewable by the administrators).
 * Choose between full ban, 'no post' ban, or registration ban.
 * Include an expiration time for bans.

External integration

 * Integrate parts of the forum software into an existing website using SSI or PHP.
 * Recent topics or posts.
 * Recent news posts in a board.
 * Recent polls.

Export forum data using XML/RSS

 * Latest members.
 * News.
 * Recent posts.

Wireless access

 * Support for WAP, WAP2 and I-mode protocols.
 * Browse through boards/topics/messages with reduced page size.
 * Ability to login and logout.
 * Ability to see new topics/boards with new replies.
 * Ability to jump to first unread reply.
 * Ability to post new messages.

Theming and Templating

 * Ability to allow or disallow your users to select their own theme.
 * Ability to reset all of your members to a certain theme.
 * Ability to install a new theme via your administration center.
 * Admin can add smileys and smiley sets.
 * Members can choose which smiley set they wish to use (or none).
 * SSI can have and show layers and the like from the template system.

Posting Features

 * Spell Check.
 * Quick Reply
 * Members can disable it or collapse it.
 * Can be used with "Quote".
 * Also contains "Spell Check".
 * Vast number of Bulletin Board Codes to use (including rtl, acronym, and others).
 * Optional editing grace period before a post is shown as modified.
 * Insert Quote feature on posting screen to quickly quote previous replies.

Polls

 * Can be added or removed to existing topics.
 * Ability to set expiration date.
 * Ability to hide results till expiration of poll.
 * Ability to hide results until after people have voted.
 * Ability to determine how many votes a user may cast.
 * Polls can have up to 256 options.

Attachments

 * Allowed on a per member group or board basis.
 * The filename is hashed to increase the security (so you can upload .php files).
 * Optional restriction on what filetypes may be uploaded.
 * Ability to restrict such that only registered members can view them (disables hotlinking, mostly).
 * Images can be embedded into posts.

Calendar Support

 * Shows Birthdays, Events and Holidays.
 * Display calendar information on board index.
 * Link an existing topic to the calendar.
 * Allow only certain members/groups to post events.
 * Event poster can edit event.
 * Events can span multiple days.

Moderation Tools

 * Ability to lock and unlock a topic.
 * Topics which are locked by an administrator can not unlocked by anyone else.
 * Ability to allow members to use moderation on just topics they posted.
 * Report to moderator link.
 * Delete or modify posts.
 * Ability to merge/split topics.
 * Move or delete topics.
 * Sticky or unsticky topics.
 * Recycle bin/board for all deleted topics and posts.
 * Moderation log which shows moderation activity and dissallows the removal of log entries until they are at least 24-hours old.
 * AJAX editing:
 * Edit a post without page reloads.
 * Double click to edit topic subjects on message index.

User Profiles and User Options

 * Ability to hide your email address from the public.
 * Select favorite theme among the activated forum themes.
 * Select smiley set from the ones available.
 * Email notification
 * New topics per board.
 * Single topics.
 * Private messages.
 * Login with 'invisible' mode.
 * Options to hide other members' avatars and signatures.
 * Ability to download and resize uploaded avatars.
 * Personal text, avatar, signature, and all the niceties of forums can be used and are kept up to date in all your posts.

User Resources

 * Icons for topics you've posted to.
 * Show new replies to your posts.
 * Collapsible 'Additional Options' on post screen.
 * Ability to view most recent messages.
 * List all topics that have new replies since your last visit.
 * See who is browsing the same boards or topics as you.
 * Topics that span multiple pages have the page numbers listed as well as an "all" link.

Other features

 * Several forum statistics.
 * List of users online.
 * The menu bar.
 * News.
 * Search.
 * Login/logout.
 * Today's events/birthdays/holidays.