Google Analytics - Tracker

Create

doc

// Queues a named tracker object for creation.
ga('create', 'UA-XXXXX-Y', 'auto', 'myTracker');

where:

• UA-XXXXX-Y is the tracking id (property id)
• auto defines the cookie domain which specifies how cookies are stored (auto is the recommended value)
• myTracker is the name of the tracker (default to tracker). Seeworking_with_multiple_trackers
• More … see Create field reference

Initialization

• If a cookie does not exist for the specified domain, a client ID is generated and stored in the cookie.
• the tracker will gather the browsing context (page, url, screen,…)

Get

Getting a reference to a tracker object requires waiting until after the create command has been executed with the ready callback

• When using only one tracker (default)

ga(function(tracker) {
  console.log(tracker); 
});

• when using more than one

ga(function() {
  console.log(ga.getByName('myTracker'));
});

Get Name

The default trackers are given the name “t0”.

ga(function(tracker) {
  console.log(tracker.get('name'));
});

Get properties

by name

ga(function(tracker) {
  console.log(tracker.get('name'));
  console.log(tracker.get('clientId'));
  console.log(tracker.get('referrer'));
});

where:

• name is the name of the tracker
• clientId is the client id
• referrer is the HTTP referrer

by id defined in the measurement protocol

ga(function(tracker) {
  console.log(tracker.get('&dt'));
});

// same as
ga(function(tracker) {
  console.log(tracker.get('title'));
});

where:

• & is a prefix that define the type of the properties to a parameter of the protocol
• dt is the document title as you can see kn

Set properties

• On the default tracker

ga('set', {
  page: '/about',
  title: 'About Us'
});
// or
ga(function(tracker) {
  tracker.set('page', '/about');
});

• on a named tracker

ga('myTracker.set', 'page', '/about');

List

ga('create', 'UA-XXXXX-Y', 'auto', 'tracker1');
ga('create', 'UA-XXXXX-Z', 'auto', 'tracker2');

ga(function() {
  // Logs an array of all tracker objects.
  console.log(ga.getAll());
});

Exist

When there is no default tracker, the first argument of the ready callback is undefined

ga(function(tracker) {
  console.log(tracker); // Logs `undefined`.
});

Send

Each time the send command is called, analytics.js executes a sequence of tasks to validate, construct, and send a measurement protocol request from the user's browser to Google Analytics.

See:

• The table that describes each of these tasks, in the order they are executed.
• how to add, abort, set a task