| description | Introduces vCon, the open IETF format for recording a conversation and what was done with it, and gives a newcomer a short path from first read to running code. |
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Calls, chats, video meetings and agent dialog have had no shared format for recording who took part, what was said, and what has been done with it since, in a form that survives moving between systems.
vCon (virtual conversation) is that format. It is an IETF draft that packages the parties, the dialog, the analysis and related attachments into one portable JSON object. A vCon SHOULD be signed or encrypted when it leaves the system that built it, and extensions add a lawful basis record, a lifecycle log and more. The Conserver is the open source server that creates and processes vCons.
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{% column %} {% embed url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjhpMnvcNds" %} {% endcolumn %} {% endcolumns %}
- Learn what a vCon is. Read A vCon Primer, then keep Concepts and the Field Reference open.
- Run a conserver. The Conserver Quick Start gets a vCon pipeline running on your machine.
- Build with a library or adapter. Use the Python library or the JavaScript library, or wire your platform in with the adapter template.
- Add extensions. Extensions covers lawful basis, lifecycle, WTF transcription, agent sessions and SIP signaling.
- Connect AI agents. The MCP Server lets agents read and search a vCon store.
Compliance and policy readers can go from the primer to the Privacy Primer and the Lawful Basis extension.
{% tabs %} {% tab title="The vCon object" %}
A JSON object that carries parties, dialog (recording or transcript), analysis and attachments. Signed, it is tamper-evident. The same format works for a phone call, a chat session, a video meeting, or a conversation between a person and an AI agent.
{% endtab %}{% tab title="The Conserver" %}
The open source server that creates vCons from business systems, runs them through chains of links (transcribe, redact, analyze, forward) and writes them to storage.
{% endtab %}{% tab title="MCP server and adapters" %}
Applications consume vCons through the Conserver API, the MCP server, or the language libraries. Adapters convert recordings and call data from existing platforms into vCons.
{% endtab %} {% endtabs %}vCon is developed in the IETF VCON working group, where the drafts, mailing list and meeting materials are public. Anyone can read the drafts, join the list and challenge a design decision in writing. As of 2026-10-06 no IPR disclosures had been filed against the core draft, according to the datatracker IPR search. Public talks and articles about vCon are collected in Talks, Articles and Press.
{% embed url="https://github.com/vcon-dev/vcon" %} Open source repository for vCon and the Conserver {% endembed %}
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