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SPECIFICTION
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Mermin

github.com

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Spec score 7.1 #22 of 29 in eBPF Observability Tools

Spec sheet

Purpose
Mermin captures network traffic with eBPF and exports network flows as OpenTelemetry Flow Traces.Read 8 Oct 2026 · github.com
Deployment
Mermin runs as a Kubernetes DaemonSet with one pod per node, or as a privileged container on bare metal.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Integrations
Its native OTLP output can send Flow Traces to observability platforms such as Tempo, Jaeger, and Elastic.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Support
The project directs users to GitHub Issues, GitHub Discussions, Slack, and documentation, and points to ElastiFlow for commercial support.Read 8 Oct 2026 · github.com
License
Mermin is Apache 2.0 licensed except for its eBPF code, which is GPL-2.0 licensed.Read 8 Oct 2026 · github.com
Maker
ElastiFlow says its project was created by Rob Cowart, who started it on GitHub in May 2017.Read 8 Oct 2026 · elastiflow.com
Bare metal
Mermin can run as a privileged container on bare metal.Read 8 Oct 2026 · github.com
Code changes
Mermin captures traffic without application changes, sidecars, or a service mesh.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Data detail
Mermin aggregates packets into bidirectional flows with connection state tracking and does not capture packet payloads.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Export and integrations
Mermin exports through OTLP to observability backends including Elastic, Grafana Tempo, and Jaeger.Read 8 Oct 2026 · github.com
Filtering
Mermin supports configurable fine-grained filters to control which flows are captured and exported.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Kubernetes enrichment
Flows can include Kubernetes Pod, Service, Deployment, and label metadata.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Layer coverage
The documentation describes Mermin as providing L3/L4 visibility, not L7 visibility.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Licensing
The repository says Mermin is distributed under Apache License 2.0 except for eBPF code, which is under GNU GPL version 2.Read 8 Oct 2026 · github.com
Maker history
ElastiFlow’s About page says founder Rob Cowart started the GitHub project in May 2017.Read 8 Oct 2026 · elastiflow.com
Metadata
Flows can include Kubernetes Pod, Service, Deployment, and label metadata.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Network layer limit
Mermin provides L3/L4 visibility rather than L7 visibility.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
No application changes
Mermin captures traffic without sidecars, application modifications, or a service mesh.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Privileges
Mermin requires privileged mode to load eBPF programs and access network interfaces.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Protocols
Mermin supports TCP, UDP, and ICMP traffic and lists VXLAN, Geneve, and WireGuard as common tunneling protocols.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Requirements
Mermin requires Linux kernel 5.14 or newer with eBPF and BTF support, and Kubernetes 1.20 or newer for Kubernetes deployments.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev
Traffic visibility limit
The documentation says Mermin currently lacks support for tunneled or encapsulated traffic on physical interfaces.Read 8 Oct 2026 · docs.mermin.dev

Where Specifiction places it

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