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Analytics Configuration

This document describes the analytics setup for Gasnet.org and how to manage it.

Overview​

Gasnet.org uses Umami Analytics - a privacy-focused, open-source analytics platform.

Why Umami?​

  • Self-hosted: Data stays on our own servers
  • GDPR/CCPA compliant: No personal data collection
  • No cookies: Uses local storage only
  • Open source: Fully auditable code
  • Lightweight: Minimal performance impact

Configuration​

Analytics behavior is controlled via environment variables in .env.local:

# Enable analytics in production
ANALYTICS_ENABLED=true

# Your Umami website ID (from Umami dashboard)
ANALYTICS_WEBSITE_ID=your-website-id-here

# Umami instance URL (default: self-hosted)
ANALYTICS_HOST=https://analytics.gasnet.org

Development vs Production​

  • Development: Analytics is always disabled, regardless of settings
  • Production: Analytics enabled only when ANALYTICS_ENABLED=true

Setting Up Umami​

Self-Hosted Installation​

For full control, self-host Umami on your own infrastructure:

# Clone Umami repository
git clone https://github.com/umami-software/umami.git
cd umami

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Configure environment
cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env with your database settings

# Build and start
npm build
npm start

Creating a Website​

  1. Access your Umami dashboard at your configured host
  2. Click "Settings" > "Websites" > "Add website"
  3. Enter details:
    • Name: Gasnet.org
    • Domain: gasnet.org
  4. Copy the generated Website ID to your .env.local

Search Analytics​

The local search plugin (@easyops-cn/docusaurus-search-local) runs entirely client-side:

  • No server-side logging of search queries
  • No data transmission to external servers
  • Offline capable: Search index built at build time

Tracking Content Gaps​

To understand what users are searching for, consider:

  1. User Feedback: Add a "Did you find what you were looking for?" option
  2. Issue Template: Create a GitHub issue template for content requests
  3. Search Events (optional): Custom event tracking for failed searches

Privacy Compliance​

GDPR Compliance​

  • No personal data collection
  • No cross-site tracking
  • Data stored on own servers
  • 90-day data retention
  • Users can opt-out via DNT

Do Not Track Support​

The analytics script respects browser DNT settings:

// Automatic DNT detection built into Umami
if (navigator.doNotTrack === '1') {
  // Analytics disabled automatically
}

Viewing Analytics​

Access your analytics dashboard at https://analytics.gasnet.org (or your configured host).

Key Metrics​

  • Pageviews: Total page visits
  • Unique Visitors: Approximate unique visits
  • Bounce Rate: Single-page sessions
  • Referrers: Where traffic comes from
  • Pages: Most viewed content
  • Locations: Country-level data

Troubleshooting​

Analytics Not Recording​

  1. Check ANALYTICS_ENABLED=true in production
  2. Verify ANALYTICS_WEBSITE_ID is correct
  3. Check browser console for script loading errors
  4. Confirm analytics host is accessible

Local Development​

Analytics is intentionally disabled in development. To test:

# Force enable for testing (not recommended for commits)
NODE_ENV=production ANALYTICS_ENABLED=true npm start

Disabling Analytics​

To completely disable analytics:

# In .env.local
ANALYTICS_ENABLED=false

Or simply unset the environment variables - analytics defaults to off.

Alternative: Simple Page Counter​

If you prefer an even simpler approach, consider:

  • GoatCounter: Privacy-focused alternative to Umami
  • Cloudflare Web Analytics: Privacy-focused, no JavaScript required
  • No analytics: Remove entirely - rely on server logs for basic metrics

Resources​

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