Feb 2026 spec roundup (#592)

Author: jwheare

_posts/2026-02-23-round-up.md

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+layout: post
+title: Feb 2026 round-up
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+---
+
+We missed the November 2025 update, so this is a summary of working group activity since Nov 2024.
+
+### Specs ratified
+
+* Feb 2026 [`reply` client tag](https://ircv3.net/specs/client-tags/reply) - Allows clients to mark messages as being a reply to another message or thread. Also enables the draft `react` client tag [#535](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/pull/535)
+* Feb 2026 [Websockets](https://ircv3.net/specs/extensions/websocket) - Describes conventions for transporting IRC lines over the WebSocket protocol. This is necessary for browser-based clients, which cannot make conventional TCP connections to IRC servers [#548](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/pull/548)
+
+### New drafts
+
+* Apr 2025 [`extended-isupport`](https://ircv3.net/specs/extensions/extended-isupport) - Allows clients to fetch the ISUPPORT metadata prior to connection registration, introduces a new command to fetch ISUPPORT and a new batch type to delimit ISUPPORT bursts [#543](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/pull/543)
+* Nov 2025 [`network-icon`](https://ircv3.net/specs/extensions/network-icon) - Introduces a new ISUPPORT token to advertise a network icon [#563](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/pull/563)
+
+### Specs updated
+
+* Feb 2026 [`react` client tag](https://ircv3.net/specs/client-tags/react) - Added the `+draft/unreact` tag to allow reactions to be removed [#568](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/pull/568)
+* Feb 2026 [Metadata](https://ircv3.net/specs/extensions/metadata) - Loosened the requirement to filter keys from RPL_WHOISKEYVALUE [#575](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/pull/575) and various changes and clarifications to batch types, key names and registration behaviour [#566](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/pull/566)
+* Feb 2026 [`client-batch`](https://ircv3.net/specs/extensions/client-batch) - Added `FAIL` codes: `INVALID_REFTAG` and `UNKNOWN_TYPE` [#573](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/pull/573)
+
+### On the Roadmap
+
+Highlights from our ongoing [roadmap](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/milestone/4) milestone
+
+* FILEHOST [#562](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/pull/562)
+* ratify CHATHISTORY [#437](https://github.com/ircv3/ircv3-specifications/issues/437)
+
+### Other
+
+We recommend you check out the regular series of IRC roundup posts by Ilmari Lauhakangas. Despite our own lack of updates, there's a lot going on in the ecosystem, and Ilmari is always on top of it:
+
+* 2025: [1](https://www.ilmarilauhakangas.fi/irc_technology_news_from_the_first_half_of_2025/) [2](https://www.ilmarilauhakangas.fi/irc_technology_news_from_the_second_half_of_2025/)
+* 2024: [1](https://www.ilmarilauhakangas.fi/irc_technology_news_from_the_first_half_of_2024/) [2](https://www.ilmarilauhakangas.fi/irc_technology_news_from_the_second_half_of_2024/)