diaspora* is a decentralised social network that runs on independent servers called pods. Users choose a pod or host their own and can stay in contact with users on other pods. They do not need to use a real name, and they use 'aspects' to decide who sees which posts. The network offers hashtags, mentions, resharing and reactions. The software is written in Ruby on Rails and distributed as free software under the AGPL-3.0 licence; the code is on GitHub.
diaspora* is not the product of a single vendor. The founders handed the project to the community in 2012, and it is managed by the Diaspora Foundation, which operates under the Free Software Support Network. Each pod is run by an independent administrator, who decides where data is stored. An organisation that hosts its own pod in the EU keeps control over storage and jurisdiction. With a third-party pod, hosting location and policies depend on that administrator. Posts shared with other pods are also stored on those servers.