Manjaro plans to introduce a new tool called Manjaro Data Donor (MDD) to help it better understand its user base, aiming to improve how usage statistics are gathered. However, with any new telemetry tool, there are always a few concerns that deserve attention.
The motivation behind MDD is clear: Manjaro wants to enhance user counting and collect insightful hardware and environment data. Up until now, Manjaro systems were counted by sending pings to ping.manjaro.org. This method, however, had significant drawbacks.
For instance, individual systems were only distinguished by their IP addresses, which meant that systems behind the same NAT setup were counted as one. Additionally, IP addresses needed to be stored, even if only for a short while. This wasn’t ideal for privacy.
Another challenge was that the previous system used Matomo, a tool designed primarily for website analytics rather than system telemetry. As a result, the entire setup was cumbersome, and the data wasn’t widely accessible to developers or the community.
For this reason, Manjaro developers have created a new tool, namely MDD, designed to address these issues while being explicit and transparent about its data collection goals.
At its core, it is a simple Python script that leverages the hardware information tool inxi. Users can easily install MDD using the command “sudo pacman -S mdd.” The source code is available on GitHub for those curious about what exactly MDD does.
Of course, we have reviewed the script, and here is the information it gathers:
- System Information: Kernel version, form factor, installation date, product name, family, vendor, and board name.
- Boot Information: Whether the system is booted in UEFI mode and uptime.
- CPU Information: CPU architecture, model, core, and thread count.
- Memory Information: Total RAM and swap memory in GB.
- Graphics Information: GPU vendor, model, driver, display resolution, refresh rate, and connected monitors.
- Audio Information: Installed audio servers (e.g., PulseAudio or PipeWire) and their status.
- Disk Information: Root and home partitions, their sizes, encryption status, and presence of a Windows dual boot.
- Locale Information: Region, language, and timezone.
- Package Information: Last update time, total packages, pending updates, installed Flatpaks, and mirror statuses.
- Desktop Environment: GUI and CLI used, window manager, and display server type (Wayland or X11).
- Device ID and Distro Info: A hashed device ID and Manjaro-specific distribution ID and version.
For those concerned about privacy, MDD allows a “dry run” (mdd –dry-run) to see the exact data transmitted before sending anything to the Manjaro team. During the testing phase, the collected data is stored on a ClickHouse database in Nuremberg, Germany, with a promise to delete all test data once this phase concludes.
However, it’s important to note that MDD is currently in the manual installation stage. Users have to install it themselves, and there’s no systemd service for automatic submission—yet. If testing goes well, Manjaro plans to roll out MDD to all systems with a systemd service that would submit data automatically.
And here comes the biggest worry – the plan is for this service to be opt-out rather than opt-in, which might raise eyebrows among privacy-conscious users. For the unfamiliar, this assumes that users are automatically enrolled in a data-sharing agreement unless they actively choose to withdraw.
The developer behind MDD acknowledges the contentious nature of telemetry, stating that while no one likes the idea of being monitored, some data collection is essential for the project’s future planning and sustainability. Opt-in data collection, they argue, would lead to results that are so skewed that they would be of little use.
Yes, the arguments made by the Manjaro developers are reasonable. On the other hand, it should be remembered that Linux users are highly sensitive when it comes to privacy. In fact, exactly the lack of any telemetry tools is one of the main reasons many users turn to Linux.
It’s a sensitive topic, but I believe the Manjaro developers carefully considered all the pros and cons before making this somewhat controversial decision. Anyway, if you’re willing to help improve Manjaro and have some feedback on MDD, the developers encourage you to try it out and report any bugs.
For more information, refer to the announcement in the Manjaro’s forums.
