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Haidi April'25 Monthly report
by haidis＠riseup.net 07 May '25

07 May '25

Hi! Below is my April’25 (Period: 2025-04-01 - 2025-04-30) report! In April, I resolved 92 tickets: * On Telegram (@TorProjectSupportBot) – 88 (from Iran); * On RT (frontdesk@tpo) – 4 (from Iran); * On WhatsApp (+447421000612) - 0; * And on Signal (+17787431312) - 0; I Worked on a forum document for ” Iran : Circumventing Censorship with Tor” to update according to the latest screenshots, translation, instruction and links. Working on some Farsi translations articles and text modules according to the latest Tor version. Thanks, Haidi

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Nina’s Monthly Status Report, April 2025
by Nina 06 May '25

06 May '25

Hi! Below is my April’25 report! In April, I resolved 629 (↓47) tickets: * On Telegram (@TorProjectSupportBot) - 531 (↓40); * On RT (frontdesk@tpo) - 94 (↓8); * On WhatsApp (+447421000612) - 3 (0); * And on Signal (+17787431312) - 1 (↑1). My main focus remains the same: I help Russian-speaking users bypass censorship and troubleshoot any issues with Tor Browser. Idocumentedthe latest internet censorship developments in Russia[1] and how it's affecting Tor users, for example, Tails users connecting over Tele2, Beeline and other mobile providersin Russiaare having a very difficult time to connect to Tor as obfs4 is no longer working for them. Adding Webtunnel support in more Tor powered apps like Orbot and Tails would help Russian users to connect to Tor. In April'25 we had a major release 14.5 [2] - so I worked on updating templates in Russian to reflect the latest changes. I also took part in the translation of the Tor Browser User Survey into Russian[3]. We've received some feedback regarding the changes in how Tor Browser 14.5 handles OS spoofing in the HTTP User-Agent header. There was some misunderstanding, with concerns that certain fingerprinting protections might have been removed. I reassured users that Tor Browser still spoofs the operating system version and architecture, limiting this information to broad categories such as Windows, macOS, Linux, or Android. What’s new in version 14.5 is that this behavior is now consistent across both JavaScript and HTTP headers. *##**Google Play Reviews for Tor Browser**(TBA)**and Tor Browser Alpha**for Android* * Tor Browser for Android had a Google Play rating of *4.416*(↑0.01) stars in April, higher than in March’25. * Tor Browser for Android (TBA) got 625 (↓69) reviews out of 62,020 for the lifetime. * Tor Browser for Android Alpha (TBA-Alpha) app had a rating of 4.213 (↑0.005) starts in April, higher than in March’25. * In April, Tor Browser for Android (TBA-Alpha) got 45 (↓4) reviews out of 8,555 for the lifetime. In April the major complaints we got about Tor Browser for Android were related to Tor Browser speed (15). [1] https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/censorship-analysis/-/iss… [2] https://blog.torproject.org/new-release-tor-browser-145/ [3] https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/community/l10n/-/issues/40152

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Felicia's Monthly Status Report, April 2025
by Priscila 05 May '25

05 May '25

Hi everyone, This is my status report for April 2025. It's a list of all tasks I've been involved with/responsible for. ## Design tasks 1. Allow authentication of Onion Services on Android: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/31672 2. Figure out how to display conflux circuits in Tor Browser’s UI: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/41716 3. Update Connection Assist for Android designs: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/ux/design/-/issues/136 4. Review error prompt shown when Tor exits: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/43186 5. Review new download and support templates: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/web/team/-/issues/59 ## UX support 1. Simplify which circuit we show in the Tor circuit panel: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/43608#n… 2. Create a tor circuits hub: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/43605#n… Best, Priscila (aka Felicia) - UX Team

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ebanam's monthly user support and status report for April 2025
by ebanam 05 May '25

05 May '25

Hello everyone, With the first milestone release of Tor Browser (14.5)[0] in the year, I worked on a few related tasks, namely, updating the Tor Browser User Manual before the release[1], updating the Support Portal[2] and other relevant user support documentation on our support channels and the Tor Forum and user support work post-release. I made progress with writing documentation for the upcoming Tor VPN Android client[3]. Much of my user support related work last month, as is usual, was focused on helping users in regions where Tor is censored. That's it for the summary, following is a more detailed report about the tickets our user support team worked on last month. # Updates We fixed some issues with our Signal user support channel and it should be reachable again[4]. To reach our team on Signal, please contact +17787431312 or @torsupport.89 on Signal. # Frontdesk (email user support channel) * 679(↑) RT tickets created * 691(↑) RT tickets resolved Tickets by topics and numbers: 1. 383(↓) tickets: instructions to circumvent censorship for Chinese speaking users. 2. 102(-) tickets: circumventing censorship in Russian speaking countries. 3. 15(↓) tickets: help with troubleshooting existing Tor Browser install on Desktop (Windows, macOS and Linux). 4. 4(↑) tickets: reports of fake apps on iOS AppStore masquerading as official Tor Browser. 5. 4(↑) tickets: help with troubleshooting existing Tor Browser install on Android. 6. 3(-) tickets: reports of websites blocking Tor connections. 7. 3(↑) tickets: help with installing Tor Browser on Windows. 8. 2(↓) tickets: installing Tor Browser on Linux. 9. 2(↑) tickets: questions about onion services and how to access them. 10. 2(↑) tickets: question about setting up a Tor relay. 11. 2(↑) tickets: users seeing a "proxy refused" error when visiting websites on Tor Browser for Android using Samsung devices.[5] 12. 2(↑) tickets: reports of Tor bug (tor 0.4.8.16): https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/core/tor/-/issues/41040 13. 1(↓) ticket: Unable to login on X.com (formerly Twitter) when using Tor Browser.[6] 14. 1(↓) ticket: circumventing censorship with Tor in Farsi. 15. 1(-) ticket: Websites display in other languages when using Tor Browser. 16. 1(↑) ticket: question about operating system spoofing in Tor Browser. 17. 1(↑) ticket: question about the Tor Browser User Survey. 18. 1(↑) ticket: question about contributing and helping with with localization. 19. 1(↑) ticket: helping users on iOS, using Onion Browser or Orbot, to use censorship circumvention methods. 20. 1(↑) ticket: Bridges website hitting an error while fetching bridges with WebTunnel pluggable transport.[7] # Telegram, WhatsApp and Signal user support channels * 866(↑) tickets resolved Breakdown: * 827(↑) tickets on Telegram * 13(↓) tickets on WhatsApp * 26(↑) tickets on Signal Tickets by topics and numbers: 1. 509(↓) tickets: circumventing censorship in Russian speaking countries. 2. 102(↑) tickets: circumventing censorship with Tor in Farsi. 3. 55(↓) tickets: instructions to circumvent censorship for Chinese speaking users. 4. 14(↓) tickets: helping users on iOS, using Onion Browser or Orbot, to use censorship circumvention methods. 5. 13(↑) tickets: help with using Snowflake with Tor to circumvent censorship. 6. 11(↓) tickets: help with troubleshooting Tor Browser Desktop on Windows, macOS and Linux. 7. 11(↑) tickets: help with troubleshooting Tor Browser Android. 8. 7(↑) tickets: instructions on how to get Tor Browser binaries from GetTor. 9. 5(↓) tickets: help with instructions to use bridges with Tails. 10. 4(-) tickets: questions about onion services and how to access them. 11. 4(↑) tickets: Unable to login on X.com (formerly Twitter) when using Tor Browser. 12. 3(↑) tickets: Bookmarks are failing to load on Tor Browser for Android Alpha. (Issue is resolved.) 13. 2(↑) tickets: instructions to download Tor Browser 13.5 legacy for legacy operating systems. 14. 1(↓) ticket: users seeing a "proxy refused" error when visiting websites on Tor Browser for Android using Samsung devices. 15. 1(↑) ticket: question about operating system spoofing in Tor Browser. # Highlights from the Tor Forum 1. Tor user support now available in Farsi.[8] 2. Canvas fingerprinting protection in Tor Browser.[9] 3. Download protection in Tor Browser.[10] Note: (↑), (↓) and (-) are indicating if the number of tickets we received for these topics have been increasing, decreasing or have been the same from the previous month respectively. best, e. [0]: https://blog.torproject.org/new-release-tor-browser-145/ [1]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/web/manual/-/issues/182 [2]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/web/support/-/issues/390 [3]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/web/support/-/issues/370 [4]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/community/support/-/issues/40188 [5]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/42714 [6]: https://forum.torproject.org/t/x-com-formerly-twitter-issues-with-tor-brows… [7]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/rdsys/-/issues/262 [8]: https://forum.torproject.org/t/tor-user-support-now-available-in-farsi/18520 [9]: https://forum.torproject.org/t/why-website-display-stripes/18281 [10]: https://forum.torproject.org/t/tor-browser-blocking-downloads/18316

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cve's monthly status report -- April 2025
by Clara Engler 05 May '25

05 May '25

Hello tor-project@, the following contains a list of the work I have done for Tor in April 2025. # arti * Assisted gabi in the release of 1.4.2 * Removed a dead code reference in the RPC API * Added a gitignore for Python * Added a CI check for wildcard requirements in Cargo.toml files # onionmasq * Updated arti to 1.4.2 * Fixed rust-clippy CI container failure * Migrated all containers to a common image * Rewrote the integration test suite to a much cleaner implementation that is not using dirty hacks such as nested bash scripts # onionprobe * Began working on a rewrite of this tool in Rust * Rewrite is already capable of many features, with the exports to Prometheus and friends being the notable exception at the moment. # oniux * Worked together with a contributor to make oniux work without capabilities, by using user namespaces! * This is a really cool thing I am pretty proud of. 🙂 * Fixed a bug regarding mounting by studying the mount(2) syscall in depth and re-mounting '/' with MS_PRIVATE | MS_REC everywhere in order to avoid "leaks" outside of the mount namespace * Improved the overall documentation of oniux # misc * I had some time off this month due to two public holidays as well as a sickness from which I had to recover (nothing serious, just a common cold, I am already doing fine again) * There was also some legal stuff regarding my planned switch from a contractor to an employee * I submitted a talk about onion services to the GPN23 in Karlsruhe

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sajolida's report for April 2025
by sajolida 01 May '25

01 May '25

Hi, Tails ===== Misc ---- - Interviewed an activist in struggle against a nuclear project in France who uses Tails and trains others: https://tails.net/contribute/how/user_experience/interviews/robin/ It was the first time we invited for an interview someone who contacted us initially by email on our Help Desk. It proved to be a success! - Explained why and how we've used https://tails.net/home as the homepage of Tor Browser in Tails until now. (#20822) Project 165 ----------- - Submitted for review a huge branch with improvements to the Tails website (#20766), which covers: Navigation: * Add a secondary navigation for the Documentation section. (#20393) * Add a hamburger menu for this navigation on mobile. (#20065) * Move Contribute from our top navigation to the footer only. (#20835) Typography: * Use a bigger font everywhere on our website. (#17665) * Use a variable font on our website. (#16188) * H1 and H2 headings are hard to differentiate. (#20805) Accessibility: * Add H1 heading to the beginning of page content. (#7506) * Add WCAG "skip to main content" quick link. (#7507) Screenshots: https://gitlab.tails.boum.org/tails/tails/-/merge_requests/2046 - Did some follow-up on Tor Browser running as Flatpak: * Updated our documentation. (#20867) https://tails.net/doc/anonymous_internet/Tor_Browser/#confinement * Moved forward removing the GNOME bookmarks for "Tor Browser" and "Tor Browser (persistent)". (#15028) Donate Neo ========== - Proposed improvements to the CAPTCHA. (donate-neo#65) - Documented 11 small issues and proposed solutions. (donate-neo#168) -- sajolida The Tor Project — UX Designer

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Rhatto's Monthly Status Report, April 2025
by rhatto 01 May '25

01 May '25

Hi all :) This is my monthly status report for April 2025 with the main relevant activities I have done, was involved or are related to my work during the period. ## CI Templates * Did a soft fork of TPA's ci-templates repository and added various templates for common procedures such as container management, packaging and spell checking: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/onion-services/ci-templates/-/tree/main/o… * AnCIble (CI and Role templates for Ansible) had it's pipeline cleaned and got custom container images to test Ansible recipes: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/onion-services/ansible/ancible/ https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/onion-services/ansible/ancible/container_… ## Releases * Onionbalance 0.2.4: https://forum.torproject.org/t/onionbalance-release-0-2-4/18541 * With updated release workflow. * Resumed uploading packages to PyPI: https://pypi.org/project/Onionbalance/#history * Onionprobe 1.4.0: https://forum.torproject.org/t/onionprobe-release-1-4-0/18284 ## Other Ongoing sponsored work with deployment, maintenance and monitoring of Onion Services. -- Silvio Rhatto pronouns he/him

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PieroV's Monthly Status Report, April 2025
by Pier Angelo Vendrame 01 May '25

01 May '25

Hi everyone, Here is my status report for April 2025. At the beginning of the month, I helped to do some QA for the 14.5 release (on Linux i686, Android armv7, and Android x86_64). I also did some last-minute fixes, such as the one to actually provide a localized version of region names on Android [tor-browser#43633]. After the big release, I worked on rapid-release rebases (I was an additional reviewer for 133 and did the 134 rebase [tor-browser#43415]). I also started working on the toolchain updates [tor-browser-build#41448]. I've already managed to get Linux and macOS builds with tor-browser-build. But we will have a few problems on Windows because we use the *-pc-windows-gnullvm triples for Rust. I reached out on LLVM's GitHub to see if we can find a solution that will work for everyone [llvm-project#137933]. Finally, I worked on some upstream bugs we would like to fix before Firefox 140 goes beta. Some [Bug 1959147] [Bug 1963354] have been merged. I have some test problems for other ones [Bug 1666613] [Bug 1591337] and one is currently waiting for a review [Bug 1900648]. Best, Pier [Bug 1591337] https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1591337 [Bug 1666613] https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1666613 [Bug 1900648] https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1900648 [Bug 1959147] https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1959147 [Bug 1963354] https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1963354 [llvm-project#137933] https://github.com/llvm/llvm-project/issues/137933 [tor-browser#43415] https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/43415 [tor-browser#43633] https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/43633 [tor-browser-build#41448] https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser-build/-/issues/4…

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Anti-censorship team meeting notes, 2025-04-24
by onyinyang 24 Apr '25

24 Apr '25

Hey everyone! Here are our meeting logs: http://meetbot.debian.net/tor-meeting/2025/tor-meeting.2025-04-24-16.00.html And our meeting pad: Anti-censorship work meeting pad -------------------------------- Anti-censorship -------------------------------- Next meeting: Thursday, May 1 16:00 UTC Facilitator: shelikhoo ^^^(See Facilitator Queue at tail) Weekly meetings, every Thursday at 16:00 UTC, in #tor-meeting at OFTC (channel is logged while meetings are in progress) This week's Facilitator: onyinyang == Goal of this meeting == Weekly check-in about the status of anti-censorship work at Tor. Coordinate collaboration between people/teams on anti-censorship at the Tor Project and Tor community. == Links to Useful documents == * Our anti-censorship roadmap: * Roadmap:https://gitlab.torproject.org/groups/tpo/anti-censorship/-/boards * The anti-censorship team's wiki page: * https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/team/-/wikis/home * Past meeting notes can be found at: * https://lists.torproject.org/pipermail/tor-project/ * Tickets that need reviews: from projects, we are working on: * All needs review tickets: * https://gitlab.torproject.org/groups/tpo/anti-censorship/-/merge_requests?s… * Project 158 <-- meskio working on it * https://gitlab.torproject.org/groups/tpo/anti-censorship/-/issues/?label_na… == Announcements == * == Discussion == - About SnowflakeStaging(https://gitlab.torproject.org/shelikhoo/snowflakestaging) * Please have a trial of the Snowflake Packet Transport Mode! * Relicense as MIT * Anything we wants to modify? * Anything we wants to add? * We will discuss this again next week to get feedback since other snowflake developers were away today == Actions == == Interesting links == == Reading group == * We will discuss "" on * Questions to ask and goals to have: * What aspects of the paper are questionable? * Are there immediate actions we can take based on this work? * Are there long-term actions we can take based on this work? * Is there future work that we want to call out in hopes that others will pick it up? == Updates == Name: This week: - What you worked on this week. Next week: - What you are planning to work on next week. Help with: - Something you need help with. cecylia (cohosh): 2025-04-03 Last week: - fixed caching for snowflake shadow integration tests (snowflake#40457) - fixed rust installation bug in shadow CI tests (snowflake#40456) - added option in conjure pt to switch between three supported transports (conjure#10) - set up a test conjure registration server This week: - support conjure work - follow up on snowflake rendezvous failures - reduce/remove use of mutexes for broker metrics (snowflake#40458) - take a look at potential snowflake orbot bug - https://github.com/guardianproject/orbot-android/issues/1183 dcf: 2025-04-17 Last week: Next week: - open issue to have snowflake-client log whenever KCPInErrors is nonzero https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/snow… - parent: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/snow… Help with: meskio: 2024-04-03 Last week: - create a container for bridgestrap - investigate why email is not going out in gettor/email distributor (tpa/team#42109) - lyrebird: support dual stack IPv4/v6 in non-linux (lyrebird#40023) - update obfs4-bridge docker image (docker-obfs4-bridge#21) Next week: - steps towards a rdsys in containers (rdsys#219) Shelikhoo: 2024-04-24 Last Week: - [Testing] Unreliable+unordered WebRTC data channel transport for Snowflake rev2 (cont.)( https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/snow… ) testing environment setup/research - Snowflake Staging Server (cont.) Discussion(https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/issues/42080) - Snowfalke Staging Server Experiment - [Merge Request] Add updated docker compose file for snowflake( https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/snow… ) - [Invesgate] Dependency proxy is broken: "Error: invalid reference format" (https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/snow…) - [Merge Reqeust] CI: fix invalid group name by removing trail slash ( https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/snow… ) - Write Document for Snowflake Staging Environment - Vantage monitoring - Merge request reviews Next Week/TODO: - Merge request reviews - [Testing] Unreliable+unordered WebRTC data channel transport for Snowflake rev2 (cont.)( https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/snow… ) improvements - Snowfalke Staging Server Experiment(Almost Done ^~^) onyinyang: 2025-04-03 Last week(s): - Continued trying to fix new issues with phantombox setup on fedora (to no avail) - Started looking at turbotunnel implementation for conjure - https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/conj… Next week: - Procure a Ubuntu/Debian system and test things with phantombox As time allows: - review Tor browser Lox integration https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/merge_requests… - add TTL cache to lox MR for duplicate responses: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/lox/-/merge_requests/305 - Work on outstanding milestone issues: - key rotation automation Later: pending decision on abandoning lox wasm in favour of some kind of FFI? https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/43096) - add pref to handle timing for pubkey checks in Tor browser - add trusted invitation logic to tor browser integration: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/42974 - improve metrics collection/think about how to show Lox is working/valuable - sketch out Lox blog post/usage notes for forum (long term things were discussed at the meeting!): - brainstorming grouping strategies for Lox buckets (of bridges) and gathering context on how types of bridges are distributed/use in practice Question: What makes a bridge usable for a given user, and how can we encode that to best ensure we're getting the most appropriate resources to people? 1. Are there some obvious grouping strategies that we can already consider? e.g., by PT, by bandwidth (lower bandwidth bridges sacrificed to open-invitation buckets?), by locale (to be matched with a requesting user's geoip or something?) 2. Does it make sense to group 3 bridges/bucket, so trusted users have access to 3 bridges (and untrusted users have access to 1)? More? Less? theodorsm: 2025-04-10 Last weeks: - fixing bugs in covert-dtls, only mimic DTLS 1.2 - Running proxy with covert-dtls - MR covert-dtls: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/snow… Next weeks: - Write instructions on how to configure covert-dtls with snowflake client (are we going to run a user test?) - Fix merge conflicts in MR (https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/snow…) - Condensing thesis into paper Help with: - Test stability of covert-dtls in snowflake Facilitator Queue: meskio onyinyang shelikhoo 1. First available staff in the Facilitator Queue will be the facilitator for the meeting 2. After facilitating the meeting, the facilitator will be moved to the tail of the queue -- --- onyinyang GPG Fingerprint 3CC3 F8CC E9D0 A92F A108 38EF 156A 6435 430C 2036

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TPA-RFC-80: Debian 13 ("trixie") upgrade schedule
by Antoine Beaupré 23 Apr '25

23 Apr '25

Summary: start upgrading servers during the Debian 13 ("trixie") freeze, if it goes well, complete most of the fleet upgrade in around June 2025, with full completion by the end of 2025, with a 2026 year free of major upgrades entirely. Improve automation, retire old container images. Deadline: 2 weeks, 2025-04-01 # Background Debian 13 ("trixie"), currently "testing", is going into freeze soon, which means we should have a new Debian stable release in 2025. It has been a long-standing tradition at TPA to collaborate in the Debian development process and part of that process is to upgrade our servers during the freeze. Upgrading during the freeze makes it easier for us to fix bugs as we find them and contribute them to the community. The [freeze dates announced by the debian.org release team][] are: 2025-03-15 - Milestone 1 - Transition and toolchain freeze 2025-04-15 - Milestone 2 - Soft Freeze 2025-05-15 - Milestone 3 - Hard Freeze - for key packages and packages without autopkgtests To be announced - Milestone 4 - Full Freeze We have entered the "transition and toolchain freeze" which locks changes on packages like compilers and interpreters unless exceptions. See the [Debian freeze policy][] for an explanation of each step. Even though we've just completed the Debian 11 ("bullseye") and 12 ("bookworm") upgrades in late 2024, we feel it's a good idea to start *and* complete the Debian 13 upgrades in 2025. That way, we can hope of having a year or two (2026-2027?) *without* any major upgrades. This proposal is part of the [Debian 13 trixie upgrade milestone][], itself part of the [2025 TPA roadmap][]. [freeze dates announced by the debian.org release team]: https://lists.debian.org/debian-devel-announce/2025/01/msg00004.html [Debian freeze policy]: https://release.debian.org/testing/freeze_policy.html [Debian 13 trixie upgrade milestone]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/groups/tpo/tpa/-/milestones/12 [2025 TPA roadmap]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/wikis/roadmap/2025 # Proposal As usual, we perform the upgrades in three batches, in increasing order of complexity, starting in 2025Q2, hoping to finish by the end of 2025. Note that, this year, this proposal also includes upgrading the Tails infrastructure as well. To help with merging rotations in the two teams, TPA staff will upgrade Tails machines, with Tails folks assistance, and vice-versa. ## Affected users All service admins are affected by this change. If you have shell access on any TPA server, you want to read this announcement. In the past, TPA has typically kept a page detailing notable changes and a proposal like this one would link against the upstream release notes. Unfortunately, at the time writing, upstream hasn't yet produced release notes (as we're still in testing). We're hoping the documentation will be refined by the time we're ready to coordinate the second batch of updates, around May 2025, when we will send reminders to affected teams. We do expect the Debian 13 upgrade to be less disruptive than bookworm, mainly because Python 2 is already retired. ## Notable changes For now, here are some known changes that are already in Debian 13: | Package | 12 (bookworm) | 13 (trixie) | |--------------------|---------------|-------------| | Ansible | 7.7 | 11.2 | | Apache | 2.4.62 | 2.4.63 | | Bash | 5.2.15 | 5.2.37 | | Emacs | 28.2 | 30.1 | | Fish | 3.6 | 4.0 | | Git | 2.39 | 2.45 | | GCC | 12.2 | 14.2 | | Golang | 1.19 | 1.24 | | Linux kernel image | 6.1 series | 6.12 series | | LLVM | 14 | 19 | | MariaDB | 10.11 | 11.4 | | Nginx | 1.22 | 1.26 | | OpenJDK | 17 | 21 | | OpenLDAP | 2.5.13 | 2.6.9 | | OpenSSL | 3.0 | 3.4 | | PHP | 8.2 | 8.4 | | Podman | 4.3 | 5.4 | | PostgreSQL | 15 | 17 | | Prometheus | 2.42 | 2.53 | | Puppet | 7 | 8 | | Python | 3.11 | 3.13 | | Rustc | 1.63 | 1.85 | | Vim | 9.0 | 9.1 | Most of those, except "tool chains" (e.g. LLVM/GCC) can still change, as we're not in the full freeze yet. ## Upgrade schedule The upgrade is split in multiple batches: - automation and installer changes - low complexity: mostly TPA services and less critical Tails servers - moderate complexity: TPA "service admins" machines and remaining Tails physical servers and VMs running services from the official Debian repositories only - high complexity: Tails VMs running services not from the official Debian repositories - cleanup The free time between the first two batches will also allow us to cover for unplanned contingencies: upgrades that could drag on and other work that will inevitably need to be performed. The objective is to do the batches in collective "upgrade parties" that should be "fun" for the team. This policy has proven to be effective in the previous upgrades and we are eager to repeat it again. ### Upgrade automation and installer changes First, we tweak the installers to deploy Debian 13 by default to avoid installing further "old" systems. This includes the bare-metal installers but also and especially the virtual machine installers and container images. Concretely, we're planning on changing the `latest` container image tag to point to `trixie` in early April. A full *year* later, the `bookworm` container images will be retired. Note that we are already planning the retirement of the "old stable" (`bullseye`) container images, see [tpo/tpa/base-images#19][], for which you may have already been contacted. New `idle` canary servers will be setup in Debian 13 to test integration with the rest of the infrastructure, and future new machine installs will be done in Debian 13. We also want to work on automating the upgrade procedure further. We've had catastrophic errors in the PostgreSQL upgrade procedure in the past, in particular, but the whole procedure is now considered ripe for automation, see [tpo/tpa/team#41485][] for details. [tpo/tpa/base-images#19]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/base-images/-/issues/19 [tpo/tpa/team#41485]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/issues/41485 ### Batch 1: low complexity This is scheduled during two weeks: TPA boxes will be upgraded in the last week of April, and Tails in the first week of May. The idea is to start the upgrade long enough before the vacations to give us plenty of time to recover, and some room to start the second batch. In April, Debian should also be in "soft freeze", not quite a fully "stable" environment, but that should be good enough for simple setups. 35 TPA machines: ``` archive-01.torproject.org cdn-backend-sunet-02.torproject.org chives.torproject.org dal-rescue-01.torproject.org dal-rescue-02.torproject.org gayi.torproject.org hetzner-hel1-02.torproject.org hetzner-hel1-03.torproject.org hetzner-nbg1-01.torproject.org hetzner-nbg1-02.torproject.org idle-dal-02.torproject.org idle-fsn-01.torproject.org lists-01.torproject.org loghost01.torproject.org mandos-01.torproject.org media-01.torproject.org minio-01.torproject.org mta-dal-01.torproject.org mx-dal-01.torproject.org neriniflorum.torproject.org ns3.torproject.org ns5.torproject.org palmeri.torproject.org perdulce.torproject.org srs-dal-01.torproject.org ssh-dal-01.torproject.org static-gitlab-shim.torproject.org staticiforme.torproject.org static-master-fsn.torproject.org submit-01.torproject.org vault-01.torproject.org web-dal-07.torproject.org web-dal-08.torproject.org web-fsn-01.torproject.org web-fsn-02.torproject.org ``` 4 Tails machines: ``` ecours.tails.net puppet.lizard skink.tails.net stone.tails.net ``` In the [first batch of bookworm machines][], we ended up taking 20 minutes per machine, done in a single day, but warned that the second batch took longer. It's probably safe to estimate 20 hours (30 minutes per machine) for this work, in a single week. Feedback and coordination of this batch happens in [issue batch 1][]. [first batch of bookworm machines]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/issues/41251 [issue batch 1]: "https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/issues/42071" ### Batch 2: moderate complexity This is scheduled for the last week of may for TPA machines, and the first week of June for Tails. At this point, Debian testing should be in "hard freeze", which should be more stable. 40 TPA machines: ``` anonticket-01.torproject.org backup-storage-01.torproject.org bacula-director-01.torproject.org btcpayserver-02.torproject.org bungei.torproject.org carinatum.torproject.org check-01.torproject.org ci-runner-x86-02.torproject.org ci-runner-x86-03.torproject.org colchicifolium.torproject.org collector-02.torproject.org crm-int-01.torproject.org dangerzone-01.torproject.org donate-01.torproject.org donate-review-01.torproject.org forum-01.torproject.org gitlab-02.torproject.org henryi.torproject.org materculae.torproject.org meronense.torproject.org metricsdb-01.torproject.org metricsdb-02.torproject.org metrics-store-01.torproject.org onionbalance-02.torproject.org onionoo-backend-03.torproject.org polyanthum.torproject.org probetelemetry-01.torproject.org rdsys-frontend-01.torproject.org rdsys-test-01.torproject.org relay-01.torproject.org rude.torproject.org survey-01.torproject.org tbb-nightlies-master.torproject.org tb-build-02.torproject.org tb-build-03.torproject.org tb-build-06.torproject.org tb-pkgstage-01.torproject.org tb-tester-01.torproject.org telegram-bot-01.torproject.org weather-01.torproject.org ``` 17 Tails machines: ``` apt-proxy.lizard apt.lizard bitcoin.lizard bittorrent.lizard bridge.lizard dns.lizard dragon.tails.net gitlab-runner.iguana iguana.tails.net lizard.tails.net mail.lizard misc.lizard puppet-git.lizard rsync.lizard teels.tails.net whisperback.lizard www.lizard ``` The [second batch of bookworm upgrades][] took 33 hours for 31 machines, so about one hour per box. Here we have 57 machines, so it will likely take us 60 hours (or two weeks) to complete the upgrade. Feedback and coordination of this batch happens in [issue batch 2][]. [second batch of bookworm upgrades]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/issues/41252 [issue batch 2]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/issues/42070 ### Batch 3: high complexity Those machines are harder to upgrade, or more critical. In the case of TPA machines, we typically regroup the Ganeti servers and all the "snowflake" servers that are not properly Puppetized and full of legacy, namely the LDAP, DNS, and Puppet servers. That said, we waited a long time to upgrade the Ganeti cluster for bookworm, and it turned out to be trivial, so perhaps those could eventually be made part of the second batch. 15 TPA machines: ``` - [ ] alberti.torproject.org - [ ] dal-node-01.torproject.org - [ ] dal-node-02.torproject.org - [ ] dal-node-03.torproject.org - [ ] fsn-node-01.torproject.org - [ ] fsn-node-02.torproject.org - [ ] fsn-node-03.torproject.org - [ ] fsn-node-04.torproject.org - [ ] fsn-node-05.torproject.org - [ ] fsn-node-06.torproject.org - [ ] fsn-node-07.torproject.org - [ ] fsn-node-08.torproject.org - [ ] nevii.torproject.org - [ ] pauli.torproject.org - [ ] puppetdb-01.torproject.org ``` It seems like the [bookworm Ganeti upgrade][] took roughly 10h of work. We ballpark the rest of the upgrade to another 10h of work, so possibly 20h. 11 Tails machines: ``` - [ ] isoworker1.dragon - [ ] isoworker2.dragon - [ ] isoworker3.dragon - [ ] isoworker4.dragon - [ ] isoworker5.dragon - [ ] isoworker6.iguana - [ ] isoworker7.iguana - [ ] isoworker8.iguana - [ ] jenkins.dragon - [ ] survey.lizard - [ ] translate.lizard ``` The challenge with Tails upgrades is the coordination with the Tails team, in particular for the Jenkins upgrades. Feedback and coordination of this batch happens in [issue batch 3][]. [bookworm Ganeti upgrade]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/issues/41254 [issue batch 3]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/issues/42069 ### Cleanup work Once the upgrade is completed and the entire fleet is again running a single OS, it's time for cleanup. This involves updating configuration files to the new versions and removing old compatibility code in Puppet, removing old container images, and generally wrapping things up. This process has been historically neglected, but we're hoping to wrap this up, worst case in 2026. ## Timeline - 2025-Q2 - W14 (first week of April): default container image changed to `trixie`, installer defaults changed and first tests in production - W18 (last week of April): Batch 1 upgrades, TPA machines - W19 (first week of May): Batch 1 upgrades, Tails machines - W22 (last week of May): Batch 2 upgrades, TPA machines - W23 (first week of June): Batch 2 upgrades, Tails machines - 2025-Q3 to Q4: Batch 3 upgrades - 2026-Q2: bookworm container image retired ## Deadline The community has until the beginning of the above timeline to manifest concerns or objections. Two weeks before performing the upgrades of each batch, a new announcement will be sent with details of the changes and impacted services. # Alternatives considered ## Retirements or rebuilds We do not plan any major upgrade or retirements in the third phase this time. In the future, we hope to decouple those as much as possible, as the Icinga retirement and Mailman 3 became blockers that slowed down the upgrade significantly for bookworm. In both cases, however, the upgrades *were* challenging and had to be performed one way or another, so it's unclear if we can optimize this any further. We are clear, however, that we will not postpone an upgrade for a server retirement. Dangerzone, for example, is scheduled for retirement ([TPA-RFC-78][]) but is still planned as normal above. [TPA-RFC-78]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/wikis/policy/tpa-rfc-78-danger… # Costs | Task | Estimate | Certainty | Worst case | |-------------------|----------|-----------|------------| | Automation | 20h | extreme | 100h | | Installer changes | 4h | low | 4.4h | | Batch 1 | 20h | low | 22h | | Batch 2 | 60h | medium | 90h | | Batch 3 | 20h | high | 40h | | Cleanup | 20h | medium | 30h | | **Total** | 144h | ~high | ~286h | The entire work here should consist of over 140 hours of work, or 18 days, or about 4 weeks full time. Worst case doubles that. The above is done in "hours" because that's how we estimated batches in the past, but here's an estimate that's based on the [Kaplan-Moss estimation technique][]. [Kaplan-Moss estimation technique]: https://jacobian.org/2021/may/25/my-estimation-technique/ | Task | Estimate | Certainty | Worst case | |-------------------|----------|-----------|------------| | Automation | 3d | extreme | 15d | | Installer changes | 1d | low | 1.1d | | Batch 1 | 3d | low | 3.3d | | Batch 2 | 10d | medium | 20d | | Batch 3 | 3d | high | 6d | | Cleanup | 3d | medium | 4.5d | | **Total** | 23d | ~high | ~50d | This is *roughly* equivalent, if a little higher (23 days instead of 18), for example. It should be noted that automation is not expected to drastically reduce the total time spent in batches (currently 16 days or 100 hours). The main goal of automation is more to reduce the likelihood of catastrophic errors, and make it easier to share our upgrade procedure with the world. We're still hoping to reduce the time spent in batches, hopefully by 10-20%, which would bring the total number of days across batches from 16 days to 14d, or from 100 h to 80 hours. # Approvals required This proposal needs approval from TPA team members, but service admins can request additional delay if they are worried about their service being affected by the upgrade. Comments or feedback can be provided in issues linked above, or the general process can be commented on in issue [tpo/tpa/team#41990][]. # References * [Debian 13 trixie upgrade milestone][] * [discussion ticket][tpo/tpa/team#41990] [TPA bookworm upgrade procedure]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/wikis/howto/upgrades/bookworm [tpo/tpa/team#41990]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/tpa/team/-/issues/41990 -- Antoine Beaupré torproject.org system administration

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