| Requirement | Minimum | Recommended | Notes |
|---|
| Kernel | 4.18+ | 5.4+ | XDP support required for eBPF mode |
| glibc | 2.31+ | 2.35+ | Standard packages. ML (-ml) packages require glibc 2.38+ — see note below |
| Architecture | x86_64 | x86_64, aarch64 | ARM64 supported |
| Memory | 128 MB | 512 MB+ | Depends on traffic volume and rule count |
| Disk | 100 MB | 500 MB+ | For logs and MMDB files |
ML / classifier packages. The optional -ml packages
(synapse-agent-ml, synapse-proxy-ml) compile in the JA4+ ML classifier,
which embeds the ONNX runtime (ort) and requires glibc 2.38+. The
published -ml builds are produced on Ubuntu 24.04 (glibc 2.39). They will
not start on older systems — Ubuntu ≤ 22.04, Debian ≤ 12, RHEL ≤ 9,
Amazon Linux 2023 — which ship glibc 2.34–2.36. On those, install the
standard packages (synapse-agent, synapse-proxy): every feature
except the ML traffic classifier works down to glibc 2.31 / kernel 4.18.
Distributions that satisfy the ML floor: Ubuntu 24.04+, Debian 13+,
RHEL/Rocky/Alma 10+, Fedora 39+.
| Requirement | Minimum | Notes |
|---|
| OS | Server 2022 / Windows 11 | x86_64 only |
| eBPF for Windows | v1.1.0+ | Optional — enables XDP/eBPF packet filtering |
| Test Signing | Enabled | Required for eBPF kernel driver (bcdedit /set testsigning on) |
Note: On Windows, Synapse runs in agent mode only. Proxy mode (HTTP/HTTPS termination) is not available on Windows.
| Dependency | Required | Purpose |
|---|
| libbpf | Linux only | eBPF program loading |
| Redis | Proxy mode | Caching for certs, threat intel, CAPTCHA, content scan results |
| ClamAV | Optional | Content scanning (malware detection) |
| eBPF for Windows | Optional | Windows XDP/eBPF support |
| Distribution | Version | Status | Notes |
|---|
| Ubuntu | 24.04 LTS | ✅ Tested | Recommended |
| Ubuntu | 22.04 LTS | ✅ Tested | Fully supported |
| Ubuntu | 20.04 LTS | ✅ Tested | All features, glibc 2.31 |
| Ubuntu | 18.04 LTS | ✅ Tested | All features, kernel 4.15→5.4 HWE |
| Ubuntu | 16.04 LTS | ⚠️ Limited | iptables backend only (no XDP) |
| Debian | 12 (Bookworm) | ✅ Tested | Fully supported |
| Debian | 11 (Bullseye) | ✅ Compatible | glibc 2.31 |
| RHEL / Rocky / Alma | 9.x | ✅ Tested | Fully supported |
| RHEL / CentOS | 8.x | ⚠️ Compatible | Kernel 4.18 |
| Fedora | 39+ | ✅ Compatible | Latest kernel |
| Amazon Linux | 2023 | ✅ Compatible | AWS optimised |
The Status column above reflects the standard build. The ML
(-ml) packages need glibc 2.38+ and run only on Ubuntu 24.04+, Debian 13+,
RHEL/Rocky/Alma 10+, and Fedora 39+; on every other distribution listed,
only the standard packages are available.
| Platform | Version | Status | Notes |
|---|
| Windows Server | 2022+ | ✅ Tested | Agent mode, Windows Service, eBPF/XDP |
| Windows | 11+ | ✅ Tested | Agent mode, terminal TUI |
| Feature | Required For | Check Command |
|---|
| XDP | Packet filtering | grep XDP /boot/config-$(uname -r) |
| BPF | eBPF programs | grep BPF /boot/config-$(uname -r) |
| BTF | BPF Type Format | ls /sys/kernel/btf/vmlinux |
# Ubuntu / Debian
apt-get install clang llvm libelf-dev libssl-dev zlib1g-dev \
libzstd-dev pkg-config libcap-dev binutils-multiarch-dev cmake
# RHEL / Fedora
dnf install clang llvm elfutils-libelf-devel openssl-devel zlib-devel \
zstd-devel pkgconfig libcap-devel binutils cmake