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.
For information, after further discussions, the Manjaro team has finally posted a poll. If you're concerned, make your voice count.
Currently, it's roughtly 17% for opt-out and 77% for opt-in.
I do not care about this poll since they could revisit this in the future again regardless of outcome. I have lost all faith in this distro and will never use it no matter what they say or do now and I encourage others to do the same.
What distro have you moved on to, out of curiosity?
I'm not Rick, but I thought I'd chime in here. I moved away from Windows just 3 days ago when CoPilot magically appeared on my Windows 10 PC. I removed it, but there were still vestiges. I said, "Screw this, I'm done." I had Endeavour OS on both of my laptops and it runs very, very well. I put Endeavour on my fancy desktop as well. The only thing that held me back were games, and so far, so good. But I haven't tackled some of the biggest games I play, yet (modded Skyrim/FO4). But I would go with Endeavour over Manjaro any day of the week, IMHO
I like the balance of package versions in Manjaro, and it's a solid distribution with a very good choice of packages, a big community, and a choice of well-preset flavours if you want to install a particular desktop environment. I don't think I'll change only because of a single data-collecting service they'll announce and that I can remove by saying 'no' when it's about to be installed.
If I really had to change, it'd be to trade one advantage for another or to try something a little different, so I'd probably choose CachyOS for the work they've done in the scheduler (among other things). The installation felt much light-weight than Endeavour, too (on a VM). It's hard to judge what it's like in the long term, though. So far, I never had any issue with Manjaro.
I've not used Manjaro long-term, so I cannot comment on that. I'm glad it's doing well for you! 😄 I liked Cachy, but it seemed like it was faster (a bit) than Endeavour, but KDE (my preferred DE) seemed to like to lock up a bit, IIRC. But I LOVED the concept of it! 😀 Then again, that was on bare metal. It didn't give me much headache on a VM either. So YMMV installing onto hardware. Garuda is good, although a tad dark for my taste, and although I'm a huge gamer, I don't need a lot of the stuff they throw into the Gamer edition. Guess I could always have tried the non-gaming KDE version. 😐 I have an RTX 3060 Max-Q in my laptop (and a 3090 in my main desktop) and things have been flawless so far. I've considered Kubuntu, and I have a horrible habit of distro-hopping, but Endeavour may have stopped that. Time will tell.
I agree 300% though, if Manjaro is working well for you – no reason to switch 😉
Copilot, ugh. I never understood the appeal.
The games is one of the very few reasons I'm still using Windows. It seems Linux is more and more able to handle them, which is good to know. I can't imagine having to install Windows 11 one day, and I doubt Microsoft will ever back to something acceptable in the future.
many people want to Turn Off Telemetry in Windows 11, after that, they move to Linux. but now meet telemetry again on Manjaro. Your life is so funny… 🤣
One of the MANY beefs against Windows is the copious telemetry that gets sent to Microsoft, and it is one of many reasons for users to ditch Windows in favour of Linux – and now Manjaro want to implement telemetry. Maybe it starts innocent as they say – just a few system details – but next year it's a few more details, following year some more, and before too long it's like Windows all over again. GTFO.
I agree
As far as I can see from that link, it's a request for testers. There's no plan of using an opt-out method, quite the opposite; users have made it clear that it should be opt-in, and the message seems to have been well received. For new installation, it's pretty easy to do, and for updates of existing installations, it would have to be done with an announcement and a voluntary installation of the service.
Unless you found an announcement that said otherwise?
Considering that this very same question has been asked before in different guises always getting the "opt-in only" response. The indication from Manjaro Devs and on the forum in the recent now locked discussion thread was that they will be moving forward with MDD in spite of user objections. Since this is at least the third time they've asked the question and appear to be overruling community integration it would seem to me that they have no intention of proceeding with an 'opt-in' route, or they would have already confirmed this (as they did the prior two times). That they haven't, speaks volumes
I've seen a few more replies since then, and I think you're right. One post made it quite clear that they don't want to implement opt-in because 99% of users supposedly don't care, and it's not worth annoying them with a pop-up.
The argument is obviously silly or disingenuous – during installation, there are more than enough opportunities to add a simple checkbox, and during updates, there are frequently pop-ups to ask the user permission to proceed with specific actions.
Also, I couldn't find any privacy statement for the distribution, only for the website.
Another argument they put forward was that GDPR only applied to personal data, but since they're collecting data associated with IP addresses and we don't know what they do with it, I'd say that by default, it's personal data.
Currently, it's only under test, but I'm curious to see how they handle it before it becomes mainstream.
should always be opt-in and not opt-out. with so many options for linux there is no reason for me to ever consider manjaro now. I hate opt-in defaults with a passion and that is why i use do not use or trust firefox and prefer librewolf and other options that respect privacy. This is a lame move to just opt people into something with a update. Firefox did the exact same thing with a update not that long ago and i'm guessing most users had no idea since most people probably do not look at settings once they setup the browser how they want it usually.
I suppose you meant you hate opt-out? Either way, check the poll above if it's not already done.