Diaspora is a federated social networking platform that allows users to run and manage self-hosted community servers, known as pods. It operates as a distributed network where independent server nodes exchange content and users using open protocols and standardized communication schemas.
The platform is distinguished by its focus on decentralized identity management and privacy-preserving communication. It includes a privacy-focused media proxy that routes external assets through a local server to protect user identity and supports cross-instance account migration, allowing users to move their profiles and social history between different network nodes.
The system provides a comprehensive set of social tools, including markdown publishing, multi-language support with right-to-left text direction, and private messaging. Administrative capabilities cover content moderation, role-based access control, and automated account maintenance, while security is handled through two-factor authentication and OpenID identity integration.
The platform provides a public JSON endpoint for monitoring pod statistics and versioning.