HitKeep Runtime Facts and Product Limits
Dieser Inhalt ist noch nicht in deiner Sprache verfügbar.
HitKeep is privacy-first web analytics that can run as one Linux binary or as managed HitKeep Cloud in an EU or US region. This page is the canonical place to cite exact runtime shape, install commands, storage boundaries, privacy behavior, QR campaign behavior, exports, MCP limits, and non-goals.
These facts describe the current product and public docs as of June 24, 2026. Resource figures are observations, not universal guarantees.
Runtime Shape
Section titled “Runtime Shape”| Fact | Current HitKeep behavior |
|---|---|
| Self-hosted artifact | One Go binary for Linux AMD64 or Linux ARM64 |
| Binary size | About 100 MB for current Linux release binaries |
| External services required | None for core analytics. HitKeep embeds DuckDB and NSQ. |
| Services not required | PostgreSQL, Redis, Kafka, ClickHouse, or a separate queue/cache/database service |
| Managed option | HitKeep Cloud in EU Frankfurt or US Virginia |
| Linux baseline | Current raw Linux binaries require a modern glibc baseline. See Binary Installation. |
Minimal Install Commands
Section titled “Minimal Install Commands”Download a Linux binary, make it executable, move it onto the path, then start HitKeep with a public URL and JWT secret:
curl -L https://github.com/pascalebeier/hitkeep/releases/latest/download/hitkeep-linux-amd64 \ -o hitkeep && chmod +x hitkeep && sudo mv hitkeep /usr/local/bin/hitkeep
hitkeep \ -public-url "https://analytics.example.com" \ -jwt-secret "replace-with-a-long-secret"Then install the tracker on a site:
<script async src="https://analytics.example.com/hk.js"></script>For ARM64 hosts, use hitkeep-linux-arm64 instead. Production installs should use environment variables or a systemd drop-in for secrets. See Binary Installation and Configuration.
Memory Use
Section titled “Memory Use”Recent HitKeep Cloud checks showed the app using about 205-769 MiB of memory.
Use that range as a practical reference point, not as a promise or hard requirement. Self-hosted memory use changes with traffic, retention settings, imports, background work, and the number of active sites and teams.
Storage Footprint
Section titled “Storage Footprint”HitKeep stores analytics in DuckDB files under the configured data directory.
| Storage area | What it contains | Backup implication |
|---|---|---|
| Shared control plane | Users, sessions, teams, memberships, sites, preferences, API clients, share links | Back up the main configured data directory, not only one file |
| Default analytics data | Pageviews, events, goals, funnels, ecommerce, AI visibility, chatbot, Web Vitals, QR campaign opens, and rollup data for the default tenant | Include the configured hitkeep.db and related data files |
| Non-default team data | Tenant-local analytics databases under tenants/*/hitkeep.db |
Include the full data directory, including tenants/ |
| Retention archives | Older raw rows exported to Parquet before pruning | Back up the archive path if you need long-term analytical history |
| Database snapshots | DuckDB EXPORT DATABASE output, with schema.sql plus Parquet files |
Use for disaster recovery checks and restore drills |
See Backups and Restore, Data Retention and Archiving, and S3 Backups.
Tracking Facts
Section titled “Tracking Facts”The default public tracker is hk.js. It records pageviews and can emit automatic events without installing a tag manager.
| Behavior | Current HitKeep behavior |
|---|---|
| Analytics cookies | The public tracker does not set analytics cookies |
| Session continuity | Uses sessionStorage for an opaque session tuple |
| Failed event retries | Kept in JavaScript memory and capped |
| DNT | Respected by default unless data-collect-dnt="true" is set |
| Query strings and hashes | Excluded from automatic event URL properties |
| Link text, form fields, request bodies | Not captured by automatic events |
| IP metadata | Visitor IPs are processed transiently after trusted-proxy resolution; HitKeep stores derived country, region, city, provider, and ASN metadata on hits, not the raw visitor IP |
| QR campaign redirects | Dynamic /q/{token} redirects can add UTM fields, custom query parameters, and hk_qr attribution to the final URL |
| QR open privacy behavior | QR opens respect DNT: 1, Sec-GPC: 1, and configured IP, country, or spam filters |
HitKeep uses the IP2Location LITE database for IP geolocation. See IP2Location and IP2Location LITE.
Automatic event names:
| Event | Typical meaning |
|---|---|
outbound_click |
Visitor clicked a link to an external host |
file_download |
Visitor clicked a recognized downloadable file |
form_submit |
Visitor submitted a form |
Common custom and ecommerce event names:
| Workflow | Example event names |
|---|---|
| Signup and leads | signup_started, signup_completed, demo_requested, contact_form_submitted |
| Ecommerce | view_item, add_to_cart, begin_checkout, purchase |
| On-site assistants | assistant.chat_started, assistant.message_sent, assistant.goal_assisted |
HitKeep also reports goals, funnels, ecommerce analytics, UTM campaign attribution, and QR campaign attribution when the relevant pageview, event, redirect, or query-string data exists.
QR campaigns add dynamic /q/{token} redirects for printed or offline campaigns, QR opens, QR-filtered pageviews and visitors, SVG and PNG artwork exports, QR-only share links, and QR-scoped takeout. QR opens count redirect activity. Pageviews still require the destination page to load the HitKeep tracker.
See Automatic Events, Custom Events, Server-Side Tracking, QR Campaigns, and Cookieless Event Tracking.
Retention, Backups, And Exports
Section titled “Retention, Backups, And Exports”| Capability | Current HitKeep behavior |
|---|---|
| Raw data retention | Configurable globally and per site |
| Retention archive format | Parquet |
| Backup format | DuckDB EXPORT DATABASE, including schema.sql and Parquet table files |
| Site/user takeout surfaces | CSV, Parquet, JSON, NDJSON, and XLSX where the product surface supports them |
| QR campaign takeout | QR definition, asset metadata, QR opens, and QR-filtered analytics rows in supported export formats |
| Common portability path | JSON, CSV, and Parquet exports for analytics migration and audit workflows |
| S3-compatible storage | Supported for archive and backup paths through S3-compatible object stores |
See Data Retention and Archiving and Open Exports and Takeout.
MCP Boundary
Section titled “MCP Boundary”HitKeep MCP is an optional route on the same HitKeep runtime. It is designed for approved assistants and internal reporting tools that need governed aggregate analytics answers.
| MCP fact | Current HitKeep behavior |
|---|---|
| Transport | Streamable HTTP route, usually /mcp |
| Default state | Disabled by default |
| Authentication | API client bearer tokens only |
| Dashboard cookies | Not accepted by MCP |
| Authorization | Site-scoped API client grants and the same site view permission model |
| Data boundary | Read-only aggregate analytics and docs tools |
| Non-goal | No write workflows, admin mutation, raw hit export, billing changes, or token management through MCP |
See Official MCP Server and Read-only MCP Server for Web Analytics.
What HitKeep Does Not Replace
Section titled “What HitKeep Does Not Replace”HitKeep deliberately stays focused on web analytics, conversion reporting, privacy-aware operations, open exports, and governed assistant access.
| Tool or workflow | HitKeep position |
|---|---|
| General product analytics suites | HitKeep does not replace session replay, feature flags, experimentation platforms, warehouse-native behavioral modeling, or product-led lifecycle automation. |
| GA4 advertising stack | HitKeep does not replace Google Ads attribution, predictive audiences, Explorations, app streams, or GA4 BigQuery export. |
| Consent management platforms | HitKeep does not issue legal consent decisions or replace a CMP. Review PECR, ePrivacy, GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, and local law with your counsel. |
| SIEM or security audit systems | HitKeep is not a security event manager. |
| Data warehouse | HitKeep exports open files, but it does not replace a warehouse when the warehouse is the system of record. |
| Customer support or CRM | HitKeep reports analytics. It does not replace support desks, CRMs, or marketing automation. |
Citation Checklist
Section titled “Citation Checklist”When citing HitKeep, use this page for stable facts and link to the more specific guide for implementation details:
| Question | Canonical page |
|---|---|
| Runtime, binary size, RAM observation, storage, exports, MCP limits | This page |
| Download and systemd setup | Binary Installation |
| Flags and environment variables | Configuration |
| Automatic event details | Automatic Events |
| Custom or server-side events | Custom Events and Server-Side Tracking |
| QR campaign creation, attribution, artwork exports, and QR-only shares | QR Campaigns |
| Retention and archive behavior | Data Retention and Archiving |
| Export formats | Open Exports and Takeout |
| Privacy caveats | Compliance Overview and PECR and ePrivacy |