The anonymous id

DataMind Oda keeps one anonymous id for this computer: a random code, with nothing personal in it, that stays the same until you reset it. This page explains what the id is, where Oda uses it, and what keeps it anonymous.

What the id is

• Random. Oda creates the id from a random source the first time it is needed. It is never built from your name, the computer's name, your network, or the folders and projects Oda works with.
• Kept with the home folder. The id lives in Oda's home folder on this computer; Oda's home folder and settings files shows where that folder is.
• Stable. The id stays the same across restarts and through everyday use. It changes only when its file is deleted or replaced.
• Nothing to set up. There is no setting for the id; it appears on its own when it is first needed.

Where Oda uses the id

• Usage reporting. When your company turns reporting on, the events about this installation carry the id and identify the installation, not a person. Reporting is off unless your company turns it on; Usage reporting and the installation id covers what may be sent, and Product telemetry covers the export.
• Feedback acknowledgements. When you leave a remark about a chat, the acknowledgement names the anonymous installation. See Feedback and privacy.
• Model requests. Oda sends the id with its model requests to your company's DataMind OS. It travels as a request header, not as part of your messages, and it is sent whether or not usage reporting is on. See Model calls and failures for how those requests behave.

Reset the id

To give this computer a fresh id:

1. Open Oda's home folder and delete the id file in it. It contains only the id; Oda's home folder and settings files shows where the folder is.
2. Quit DataMind Oda, and start it again.

The next start creates a new id. A running Oda keeps the id it started with until it exits, and once the file is deleted, the old id cannot be recovered.

What keeps the id anonymous

• Anonymous by design. The id stands for an installation, not a person. It holds no account details and nothing about this computer's hardware or network.
• Home-scoped and never joined. Oda keeps one id per home folder, and ids from different computers are never joined together, so records from two computers cannot be linked through the id. The id is not meant to identify anyone.

Questions, answered

What is the anonymous id?

DataMind Oda keeps one anonymous id for this computer: a random code with no personal details in it. Oda creates it the first time a feature that uses it runs, keeps it stable across restarts, and changes it only when its file is deleted or replaced. There is nothing to set up.

Where does Oda send the id?

In three places: usage reporting, when your company turns it on; the acknowledgement after you leave a remark about a chat; and Oda's model requests, where it travels as a request header. With model requests it is sent whether or not usage reporting is on.

Can the id identify me?

No. The id is random and is never built from your name, this computer's name, your network or the folders and projects Oda works with. It stands for an installation, and it is not meant to identify a person.

Is the id linked to my DataMind account?

No. The id is created on this computer from a random source and holds no account details. It is not your account identifier.

What happens to the id if I change Oda's home folder?

Oda keeps one id per home folder, so a different home folder gets its own id; the old folder keeps its file. Oda's home folder and settings files shows how the folder is chosen.

When does the new id take effect?

At the next start. Quit DataMind Oda and open it again: a running Oda keeps the id it started with until it exits, and the old id cannot be recovered afterwards.

What happens if the id file is damaged?

If the file no longer holds a valid id, Oda replaces it with a fresh id the next time it needs the id. You do not need to do anything.

What happens if Oda cannot save the id file?

Oda still uses an id for that run without saving it, so usage reporting, feedback and model requests carry on. A later start creates an id again.