• Starting Up …
  If you've just started I2P, the number of Active Peers indicated under the Peers section in the sidepanel on the left should start to grow over the next few minutes and you'll also see a Local Destination named Shared Clients listed there, and possibly other clients and servers depending on how I2P is configured (if not, see the troubleshooting section below). These Local Destinations provide connections on different ports (and sometimes protocols) to the I2P network, enabling your bittorrent, e-mail, web proxy and other services to function.
• Network integration
  The first time you start I2P it may take a few minutes to bootstrap (integrate) you into the network and find additional peers to optimize your integration, so please be patient. Once green stars are indicated next to your Local Destinations, there is a wide variety of things you can do with I2P, and below we introduce you to some of them.

Services on I2P

• Invisible Internet & Public Web Browsing
  On I2P you can access anonymous websites (aka eepsites) and other services (e.g. ssh over I2p, your own IRC server etc.) in addition to being able to host your own services, and you can also access the normal web anonymously via I2P. Configure your browser to use the HTTP proxy I2P provides at 127.0.0.1 port 4444, then browse to an eepsite or a normal http:// address. There's I2PFox, a custom build of Firefox tailored especially for I2P, which you might like to investigate for locked-down darknet exploration!
  Below we list some of the sites hosted on I2P.
• Anonymous E-Mail
  Postman's I2P-based mail system can be accessed either via I2P's built-in webmail (aka susimail) or using any mail client that supports smtp and pop3. Accounts can send and receive mail from the normal internet. For an account, visit hq.postman.i2p. Additionally, I2P-Bote is a new serverless, end-to-end encrypted e-mail system providing a web interface and an integrated addressbook. It is developed by HungryHobo and can be installed as a plugin.
• Anonymous File Transfer
  I2PSnark is integrated into I2P, providing anonymous, encrypted BitTorrent transfers. In addition, Sponge develops a bittorrent client called Robert written in Python. There is also a port of eMule to I2P called iMule [Needs developers!], an anonymous, secure implementation of a Gnutella network, accessible using I2Phex [maintained by Complication, seeking new developers!], and additional facilities including browser-based file hosting etc.
• Anonymous Chat
  Start your IRC client (e.g. Chatzilla, Pidgin, XChat) and connect to the server at 127.0.0.1 port 6668. Your local I2P IRC proxy on localhost:6668 will direct you to one of two IRC servers hosted on I2P by Postman and Badger, but neither you nor they know where the other is, and your mom, ISP or government is unable to intercept your conversation! Once you're there, #i2p-help, #i2p, #i2p-chat and #i2p-dev are just a few of the available channels you may wish to /join. There's also an I2P-based instant messenger for unmonitorable and uncensorable anonymous chat.
• Forums & Blogging
  Syndie is a distributed forum and blogging platform for I2P [Needs developers!]. There's also an I2P plugin port of the Java-based pebble blogging platform ported to I2P by zzz, available on i2plugins.i2p. And, of course, all normal blogging, forum and cms software will run over I2P, though you're advised to take extra precautions with security when setting up and to keep all associated software (e.g. Php, MySql, Python, Apache) up to date and locked-down! Also, there are quite a few forums running on I2P in various languages; see below for some suggestions.
• Plugins for I2P
  Extend the usefulness of I2P by installing plugins& blogging, chatting, file sharing and other plugins have already been written or ported and await your installation! Browse the plugins and related info at i2plugins.i2p. If you're a developer, a complete language-agnostic framework for writing your own plugins is provided with documentation; I2P plugins can be coded in any language.

Anonymous Encrypted Webserving on I2P

• Ready to Roll!
  I2P comes with a built-in, ready-to-go webserver for hosting your own anonymous website (eepsite) on the I2P network: a Jetty instance listening on http://127.0.0.1:7658/. To host your own content, simply place your files in the eepsite/docroot/ directory (or place any standard JSP/Servlet .war files under eepsite/webapps, or standard CGI scripts under eepsite/cgi-bin) and they'll show up. You can also run any alternative webserver platform over I2P and replace the built-in server, or run it on another tunnel.
• Start Your Tunnel
  After starting up, your pre-configured I2P Webserver Tunnel, your eepsite will be visible (but not discoverable) to others. Detailed instructions for starting your eepsite, registering an .i2p domain and promoting your site to others are accessible via your own I2P websever on http://127.0.0.1:7658/help/.

I2P-Hosted Sites of Interest

• Invisible Internet Project (I2P) Official Website
  www.i2p2.i2p and its mirror i2p-projekt.i2p: Secure and anonymous connections to www.i2p2.de. There's also an official mirror running on geti2p.net. If you want to know more about how I2P works or how you can participate, this is your first port of call!
• I2P Community Forums
  forum.i2p: A secure and anonymous connection to forum.i2p2.de, an online forum community where developers and users alike discuss problems and ideas relating to I2P and associated topics, and zzz's developer forums for both end users and developers.
• I2P Anonymous Pastebin
  paste.i2p2.i2p: Secure and anonymous paste service allowing anonymous text and text-based code sharing over I2P.
• Echelon's I2P Resources
  echelon.i2p: I2P software archive with source code (where permissible), information about I2P, including a beginner's guide & pre-release developer builds of I2P for the adventurous to try.
• Ugha's Wiki
  ugha.i2p: An open wiki that anyone can edit with plenty of information about I2P, help for beginners, additional links into the network etc.
• I2P-to-Freenet Proxy
  fproxy.tino.i2p: Peer into the file sharing world of the Freenet darknet with Tino's I2P-to-Freenet proxy.
• The Planet (on I2P)
  planet.i2p: An RSS aggregator site that takes news and events from around I2P and publishes them all in one place. A good site to visit to see the community at work!
• Eepsite Search Engine
  eepsites.i2p: An anonymously-hosted eepsite search engine.
• I2P Network Health
  stats.i2p: Check out various aspects of network performance with this I2P network monitoring site run by zzz.
• Discover I2P
  There are many more eepsites - just follow the links from the ones you see, bookmark your favourites, and visit them often!
  

Troubleshooting & Further Assistance

• Be Patient!
  I2P may be slow to start the first time, as it searches for peers. If, after 30 minutes, your Active: connected/recent count still has less than 10 connected peers, there are several things you can do to check for problems:
• Check Your Proxy Setttings
  If you cannot see any eepsites at all (not even www.i2p2.i2p), make sure your browser's proxy is set to access http traffic (not https, not socks) via 127.0.0.1 port 4444. If you need some help, there's a guide to configuring your browser for I2P use, also available on the normal web.
• Verify Java is Up to Date and Functioning
  Ensure your java is up to date [version 1.6 recommended and required for some features].
• Check Your Logs
  Logs may help resolve a problem. You may wish to paste excerpts in a forum for help, or perhaps paste it instead and reference the link on IRC for help.
• Problems running on Legacy Hardware
  [Linux/Unix/Solaris] If you can't start the router with i2p/i2prouter start try the runplain.sh script in the same directory. Root privileges are usually not required to run I2P.
• Port Forwarding
  Open I2P's port on your modem, router and/or firewall(s) for better connectivity (ideally both UDP and TCP). More information on how to go about port forwarding can be found at portforward.com, in addition to our forums and IRC channels listed below.
• Enable Universal Plug and Play
  Your modem or router may support Universal Plug & Play (UPnP), which permits automatic port forwarding. Try enabling UPnP on your modem/router and possibly your computer also, and then restarting the I2P router.
• Getting Support Online
  You may also want to review the information on the I2P website, post up messages to the I2P discussion forum, or swing by #i2p-help, #i2p or #i2p-chat on I2P's internal IRC network (irc.postman.i2p or irc.freshcoffee.i2p). These channels are also available outside of I2P's encrypted, anonymous network via Freenode IRC.
• Reporting Bugs
  If you'd like to report a bug, please file a ticket on trac.i2p2.i2p. For developer-related discussions, please visit zzz's developer forums or come and visit the developer channel on I2P's IRC network. Developers can browse source at zzz's mtn repository viewer, Sponge's instance, or via trac.i2p2.i2p.
• Get Involved!
  I2P is developed and maintained mostly through unfunded, voluntary participation by community members. We're happy to accept donations, which go into essential hosting and administrative costs. We have cash bounties for aspects of I2P for developers looking for incentives to participate, and we're always looking for more Java coders, translators, promoters and users to help I2P grow. For further info on how you can help visit the volunteers page on the website. Thanks in advance!