diff --git a/internal/db/db.go b/internal/db/db.go
index 5539b0d..11eaa8d 100644
--- a/internal/db/db.go
+++ b/internal/db/db.go
@@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ import (
 	"sort"
 	"strconv"
 	"strings"
-	"time"
 
 	"git.eeqj.de/sneak/chat/internal/config"
 	"git.eeqj.de/sneak/chat/internal/logger"
@@ -51,19 +50,9 @@ func (s *Database) GetDB() *sql.DB {
 	return s.db
 }
 
-// NewChannel creates a Channel model instance with the db reference injected.
-func (s *Database) NewChannel(id int64, name, topic, modes string, createdAt, updatedAt time.Time) *models.Channel {
-	c := &models.Channel{
-		ID:        id,
-		Name:      name,
-		Topic:     topic,
-		Modes:     modes,
-		CreatedAt: createdAt,
-		UpdatedAt: updatedAt,
-	}
-	c.SetDB(s)
-
-	return c
+// Hydrate injects the database reference into any model that embeds Base.
+func (s *Database) Hydrate(m interface{ SetDB(d models.DB) }) {
+	m.SetDB(s)
 }
 
 // New creates a new Database instance and registers lifecycle hooks.
diff --git a/internal/db/schema/002_tables.sql b/internal/db/schema/002_tables.sql
index 91f91c8..37fd1a4 100644
--- a/internal/db/schema/002_tables.sql
+++ b/internal/db/schema/002_tables.sql
@@ -1,8 +1,85 @@
-CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS channels (
-    id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
-    name TEXT NOT NULL UNIQUE,
-    topic TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT '',
-    modes TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT '',
-    created_at DATETIME DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
-    updated_at DATETIME DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+-- Users: accounts and authentication
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS users (
+    id TEXT PRIMARY KEY,                           -- UUID
+    nick TEXT NOT NULL UNIQUE,
+    password_hash TEXT NOT NULL,
+    created_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+    updated_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+    last_seen_at DATETIME
+);
+
+-- Auth tokens: one user can have multiple active tokens (multiple devices)
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS auth_tokens (
+    token TEXT PRIMARY KEY,                        -- random token string
+    user_id TEXT NOT NULL REFERENCES users(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+    created_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+    expires_at DATETIME,                           -- NULL = no expiry
+    last_used_at DATETIME
+);
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_auth_tokens_user_id ON auth_tokens(user_id);
+
+-- Channels: chat rooms
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS channels (
+    id TEXT PRIMARY KEY,                           -- UUID
+    name TEXT NOT NULL UNIQUE,                     -- #general, etc.
+    topic TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT '',
+    modes TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT '',                -- +i, +m, +s, +t, +n
+    created_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+    updated_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+);
+
+-- Channel members: who is in which channel, with per-user modes
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS channel_members (
+    channel_id TEXT NOT NULL REFERENCES channels(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+    user_id TEXT NOT NULL REFERENCES users(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+    modes TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT '',                -- +o (operator), +v (voice)
+    joined_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+    PRIMARY KEY (channel_id, user_id)
+);
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_channel_members_user_id ON channel_members(user_id);
+
+-- Messages: channel and DM history (rotated per MAX_HISTORY)
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS messages (
+    id TEXT PRIMARY KEY,                           -- UUID
+    ts DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+    from_user_id TEXT NOT NULL REFERENCES users(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+    from_nick TEXT NOT NULL,                       -- denormalized for history
+    target TEXT NOT NULL,                          -- #channel name or user UUID for DMs
+    type TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT 'message',          -- message, action, notice, join, part, quit, topic, mode, nick, system
+    body TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT '',
+    meta TEXT NOT NULL DEFAULT '{}',               -- JSON extensible metadata
+    created_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
+);
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_messages_target_ts ON messages(target, ts);
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_messages_from_user ON messages(from_user_id);
+
+-- Message queue: per-user pending delivery (unread messages)
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS message_queue (
+    id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
+    user_id TEXT NOT NULL REFERENCES users(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+    message_id TEXT NOT NULL REFERENCES messages(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+    queued_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+    UNIQUE(user_id, message_id)
+);
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_message_queue_user_id ON message_queue(user_id, queued_at);
+
+-- Sessions: server-held session state
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS sessions (
+    id TEXT PRIMARY KEY,                           -- UUID
+    user_id TEXT NOT NULL REFERENCES users(id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+    created_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+    last_active_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+    expires_at DATETIME                            -- idle timeout
+);
+CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_sessions_user_id ON sessions(user_id);
+
+-- Server links: federation peer configuration
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS server_links (
+    id TEXT PRIMARY KEY,                           -- UUID
+    name TEXT NOT NULL UNIQUE,                     -- human-readable peer name
+    url TEXT NOT NULL,                             -- base URL of peer server
+    shared_key_hash TEXT NOT NULL,                 -- hashed shared secret
+    is_active INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 1,
+    created_at DATETIME NOT NULL DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
+    last_seen_at DATETIME
 );
diff --git a/internal/models/auth_token.go b/internal/models/auth_token.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5f6bc4e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/models/auth_token.go
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+package models
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// AuthToken represents an authentication token for a user session.
+type AuthToken struct {
+	Base
+
+	Token      string     `json:"-"`
+	UserID     string     `json:"userId"`
+	CreatedAt  time.Time  `json:"createdAt"`
+	ExpiresAt  *time.Time `json:"expiresAt,omitempty"`
+	LastUsedAt *time.Time `json:"lastUsedAt,omitempty"`
+}
+
+// User returns the user who owns this token.
+func (t *AuthToken) User(ctx context.Context) (*User, error) {
+	u := &User{}
+	u.SetDB(t.db)
+
+	err := t.GetDB().QueryRowContext(ctx, `
+		SELECT id, nick, password_hash, created_at, updated_at, last_seen_at
+		FROM users WHERE id = ?`,
+		t.UserID,
+	).Scan(
+		&u.ID, &u.Nick, &u.PasswordHash,
+		&u.CreatedAt, &u.UpdatedAt, &u.LastSeenAt,
+	)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	return u, nil
+}
diff --git a/internal/models/channel.go b/internal/models/channel.go
index 2ad401e..a6ecea2 100644
--- a/internal/models/channel.go
+++ b/internal/models/channel.go
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package models
 
 import (
+	"context"
 	"time"
 )
 
@@ -8,10 +9,88 @@ import (
 type Channel struct {
 	Base
 
-	ID        int64     `json:"id"`
+	ID        string    `json:"id"`
 	Name      string    `json:"name"`
 	Topic     string    `json:"topic"`
 	Modes     string    `json:"modes"`
 	CreatedAt time.Time `json:"createdAt"`
 	UpdatedAt time.Time `json:"updatedAt"`
 }
+
+// Members returns all users who are members of this channel.
+func (c *Channel) Members(ctx context.Context) ([]*ChannelMember, error) {
+	rows, err := c.GetDB().QueryContext(ctx, `
+		SELECT cm.channel_id, cm.user_id, cm.modes, cm.joined_at,
+		       u.nick
+		FROM channel_members cm
+		JOIN users u ON u.id = cm.user_id
+		WHERE cm.channel_id = ?
+		ORDER BY cm.joined_at`,
+		c.ID,
+	)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	defer func() { _ = rows.Close() }()
+
+	var members []*ChannelMember
+
+	for rows.Next() {
+		m := &ChannelMember{}
+		m.SetDB(c.db)
+
+		err = rows.Scan(
+			&m.ChannelID, &m.UserID, &m.Modes,
+			&m.JoinedAt, &m.Nick,
+		)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+
+		members = append(members, m)
+	}
+
+	return members, rows.Err()
+}
+
+// RecentMessages returns the most recent messages in this channel.
+func (c *Channel) RecentMessages(
+	ctx context.Context,
+	limit int,
+) ([]*Message, error) {
+	rows, err := c.GetDB().QueryContext(ctx, `
+		SELECT id, ts, from_user_id, from_nick,
+		       target, type, body, meta, created_at
+		FROM messages
+		WHERE target = ?
+		ORDER BY ts DESC
+		LIMIT ?`,
+		c.Name, limit,
+	)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	defer func() { _ = rows.Close() }()
+
+	var messages []*Message
+
+	for rows.Next() {
+		msg := &Message{}
+		msg.SetDB(c.db)
+
+		err = rows.Scan(
+			&msg.ID, &msg.Timestamp, &msg.FromUserID,
+			&msg.FromNick, &msg.Target, &msg.Type,
+			&msg.Body, &msg.Meta, &msg.CreatedAt,
+		)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+
+		messages = append(messages, msg)
+	}
+
+	return messages, rows.Err()
+}
diff --git a/internal/models/channel_member.go b/internal/models/channel_member.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c2d5e4d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/models/channel_member.go
@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
+package models
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// ChannelMember represents a user's membership in a channel.
+type ChannelMember struct {
+	Base
+
+	ChannelID string    `json:"channelId"`
+	UserID    string    `json:"userId"`
+	Modes     string    `json:"modes"`
+	JoinedAt  time.Time `json:"joinedAt"`
+	Nick      string    `json:"nick"` // denormalized from users table
+}
+
+// User returns the full User for this membership.
+func (cm *ChannelMember) User(ctx context.Context) (*User, error) {
+	u := &User{}
+	u.SetDB(cm.db)
+
+	err := cm.GetDB().QueryRowContext(ctx, `
+		SELECT id, nick, password_hash, created_at, updated_at, last_seen_at
+		FROM users WHERE id = ?`,
+		cm.UserID,
+	).Scan(
+		&u.ID, &u.Nick, &u.PasswordHash,
+		&u.CreatedAt, &u.UpdatedAt, &u.LastSeenAt,
+	)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	return u, nil
+}
+
+// Channel returns the full Channel for this membership.
+func (cm *ChannelMember) Channel(ctx context.Context) (*Channel, error) {
+	c := &Channel{}
+	c.SetDB(cm.db)
+
+	err := cm.GetDB().QueryRowContext(ctx, `
+		SELECT id, name, topic, modes, created_at, updated_at
+		FROM channels WHERE id = ?`,
+		cm.ChannelID,
+	).Scan(
+		&c.ID, &c.Name, &c.Topic, &c.Modes,
+		&c.CreatedAt, &c.UpdatedAt,
+	)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	return c, nil
+}
diff --git a/internal/models/message.go b/internal/models/message.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..652ae0d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/models/message.go
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+package models
+
+import (
+	"time"
+)
+
+// Message represents a chat message (channel or DM).
+type Message struct {
+	Base
+
+	ID         string    `json:"id"`
+	Timestamp  time.Time `json:"ts"`
+	FromUserID string    `json:"fromUserId"`
+	FromNick   string    `json:"from"`
+	Target     string    `json:"to"`
+	Type       string    `json:"type"`
+	Body       string    `json:"body"`
+	Meta       string    `json:"meta"`
+	CreatedAt  time.Time `json:"createdAt"`
+}
diff --git a/internal/models/message_queue.go b/internal/models/message_queue.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..616cbc3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/models/message_queue.go
@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+package models
+
+import (
+	"time"
+)
+
+// MessageQueueEntry represents a pending message delivery for a user.
+type MessageQueueEntry struct {
+	Base
+
+	ID        int64     `json:"id"`
+	UserID    string    `json:"userId"`
+	MessageID string    `json:"messageId"`
+	QueuedAt  time.Time `json:"queuedAt"`
+}
diff --git a/internal/models/model.go b/internal/models/model.go
index 89be8d4..40ee96d 100644
--- a/internal/models/model.go
+++ b/internal/models/model.go
@@ -1,9 +1,11 @@
 // Package models defines the data models used by the chat application.
+// All model structs embed Base, which provides database access for
+// relation-fetching methods directly on model instances.
 package models
 
 import "database/sql"
 
-// DB is the interface that models use to query relations.
+// DB is the interface that models use to query the database.
 // This avoids a circular import with the db package.
 type DB interface {
 	GetDB() *sql.DB
@@ -18,3 +20,8 @@ type Base struct {
 func (b *Base) SetDB(d DB) {
 	b.db = d
 }
+
+// GetDB returns the database interface for use in model methods.
+func (b *Base) GetDB() *sql.DB {
+	return b.db.GetDB()
+}
diff --git a/internal/models/server_link.go b/internal/models/server_link.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..004ef67
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/models/server_link.go
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+package models
+
+import (
+	"time"
+)
+
+// ServerLink represents a federation peer server configuration.
+type ServerLink struct {
+	Base
+
+	ID            string     `json:"id"`
+	Name          string     `json:"name"`
+	URL           string     `json:"url"`
+	SharedKeyHash string     `json:"-"`
+	IsActive      bool       `json:"isActive"`
+	CreatedAt     time.Time  `json:"createdAt"`
+	LastSeenAt    *time.Time `json:"lastSeenAt,omitempty"`
+}
diff --git a/internal/models/session.go b/internal/models/session.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4b495f2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/models/session.go
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+package models
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// Session represents a server-held user session.
+type Session struct {
+	Base
+
+	ID           string     `json:"id"`
+	UserID       string     `json:"userId"`
+	CreatedAt    time.Time  `json:"createdAt"`
+	LastActiveAt time.Time  `json:"lastActiveAt"`
+	ExpiresAt    *time.Time `json:"expiresAt,omitempty"`
+}
+
+// User returns the user who owns this session.
+func (s *Session) User(ctx context.Context) (*User, error) {
+	u := &User{}
+	u.SetDB(s.db)
+
+	err := s.GetDB().QueryRowContext(ctx, `
+		SELECT id, nick, password_hash, created_at, updated_at, last_seen_at
+		FROM users WHERE id = ?`,
+		s.UserID,
+	).Scan(
+		&u.ID, &u.Nick, &u.PasswordHash,
+		&u.CreatedAt, &u.UpdatedAt, &u.LastSeenAt,
+	)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	return u, nil
+}
diff --git a/internal/models/user.go b/internal/models/user.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..214ea9b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/models/user.go
@@ -0,0 +1,92 @@
+package models
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// User represents a registered user account.
+type User struct {
+	Base
+
+	ID           string     `json:"id"`
+	Nick         string     `json:"nick"`
+	PasswordHash string     `json:"-"`
+	CreatedAt    time.Time  `json:"createdAt"`
+	UpdatedAt    time.Time  `json:"updatedAt"`
+	LastSeenAt   *time.Time `json:"lastSeenAt,omitempty"`
+}
+
+// Channels returns all channels the user is a member of.
+func (u *User) Channels(ctx context.Context) ([]*Channel, error) {
+	rows, err := u.GetDB().QueryContext(ctx, `
+		SELECT c.id, c.name, c.topic, c.modes, c.created_at, c.updated_at
+		FROM channels c
+		JOIN channel_members cm ON cm.channel_id = c.id
+		WHERE cm.user_id = ?
+		ORDER BY c.name`,
+		u.ID,
+	)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	defer func() { _ = rows.Close() }()
+
+	var channels []*Channel
+
+	for rows.Next() {
+		c := &Channel{}
+		c.SetDB(u.db)
+
+		err = rows.Scan(
+			&c.ID, &c.Name, &c.Topic, &c.Modes,
+			&c.CreatedAt, &c.UpdatedAt,
+		)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+
+		channels = append(channels, c)
+	}
+
+	return channels, rows.Err()
+}
+
+// QueuedMessages returns undelivered messages for this user.
+func (u *User) QueuedMessages(ctx context.Context) ([]*Message, error) {
+	rows, err := u.GetDB().QueryContext(ctx, `
+		SELECT m.id, m.ts, m.from_user_id, m.from_nick,
+		       m.target, m.type, m.body, m.meta, m.created_at
+		FROM messages m
+		JOIN message_queue mq ON mq.message_id = m.id
+		WHERE mq.user_id = ?
+		ORDER BY mq.queued_at ASC`,
+		u.ID,
+	)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
+	defer func() { _ = rows.Close() }()
+
+	var messages []*Message
+
+	for rows.Next() {
+		msg := &Message{}
+		msg.SetDB(u.db)
+
+		err = rows.Scan(
+			&msg.ID, &msg.Timestamp, &msg.FromUserID,
+			&msg.FromNick, &msg.Target, &msg.Type,
+			&msg.Body, &msg.Meta, &msg.CreatedAt,
+		)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+
+		messages = append(messages, msg)
+	}
+
+	return messages, rows.Err()
+}