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> So if I understand correctly, I could declaratively specify my workstation, say I want vim, podman, codium, kubectl, curl, tmux, firefox, zettlr. I could put

> So if I understand correctly, I could declaratively specify my workstation, say I want vim, podman, codium, kubectl, curl, tmux, firefox, zettlr. I could put this in a configuration and have my workstation anywhere I can grab that from? Kind of. It works very well if you own multiple computers that you want to be configured similarly (like a dotfiles repo on steroids). It doesn't work so well for I borrowed my coworker's computer for 5 minutes and want to use my own Vim configuration. However, Nix does also supply the "nix run" command, which allows you to use software without installing it permanently (but without NixOS' configuration support). > Is there some way I can boot-to-git-configuration? So I could do this in RAM on someone else's hardware, like a network boot? Yes. You could either build an image with a service that git clones your configuration and switches to it, or you could build an image containing a prebuilt snapshot of your configuration. Either approach should be possible for basically any medium (USB drive, DVD, netboot, whatever). That said, for the build-and-switch setup I'd recommend something that can give at least /nix/store a writable partition (to avoid having to rebuild/redownload the whole world on every reboot).

Sleepytime 5y ago
>It doesn't work so well for I borrowed my coworker's computer for 5 minutes and want to use my own Vim configuration You could use something like nixos-shell[1] to spin up a headless VM of your machine into your current shell. [1]https://github.com/Mic92/nixos-shell https://github.com/Mic92/nixos-shell
- gmfawcett 5y ago
  Well that is pretty neat. Thanks for the mention of nixos-shell. I've been a NixOS daily-driver for the past 6 months or so, but I am still picking up new ideas on a daily basis. :)
  - Sleepytime 5y ago
    It's been my daily for not much longer than that, and almost every time I play with NixOS itself I get the sense of wonder and possibility in computers that I haven't had since I was a teenager. It's definitely a force multiplier.
kaba0 5y ago
> However, Nix does also supply the "nix run" command, which allows you to use software without installing it permanently (but without NixOS' configuration support). What do you mean without config support? It runs a nix derivation which can be arbitrarily complex. Do you mean your /etc/nixos/configuration.nix file? Because you are not really using it either, only for creating a derivation that will become your system. A nix-shell of a user will by default use the user’s channel and may not do anything with the global config.
- pxc 5y ago
  Yeah, I think they just mean without the conveniences of the NixOS module system. You can definitely bundle config with an app and store it in a repository's shell.nix or a flake or whatever.
alias_neo 5y ago
Ive seen mention to "switching" to a configuration a few times now, what does that mean technically? Is it a reboot and select a different grub option, does it take time/have to download things? What really is "switching"?
- Nullabillity 5y ago
  Building the new configuration (and downloading or building dependencies), adding the bootloader entry, and activating the new configuration (stopping removed services, starting new services, reloading changed services, that kind of thing). You don't need to do all three: you can skip the bootloader if you want to try something temporarily, and you can skip activation if you want to wait with that until the next reboot. There are also some changes that can't be activated without a reboot, such as changing the kernel. > Does it take time/have to download things? Building has to download or build stuff that isn't in the cache. But contrary to, say, Docker it understands the build graph, so it only rebuilds actual dependees. Activation depends on how many services you've changed, and how quickly they restart. Updating the bootloader is nearly instant.
  - alias_neo 5y ago
    Thats pretty incredible. So I can work on configs, switch back and forth until it's exactly right and then switch to it permanently. Where's a good place to start? Some of the configs people are throwing about are quite involved and look like they need a bunch of specialist knowledge. Thanks for taking the time to explain. Can't wait to start trying this out.
    - pxc 5y ago
      Just take a few minutes to skim the NixOS manual, then keep it in front of you on another device while you do an install. Enable a web browser, a desktop environment, and NetworkManager in your initial configuration.nix. Then just start adding software that you want to be able to use. Search for it first in the NixOS options[1]. If you see it there, enable it and configure it using the options that make sense to you. If you don't see it there, search for it in the package collection[2], then use the name you find for it there to add it to `environment.systemPackages` in your `configuration.nix` file. Just kinda take it easy and continue with that process until you have an environment that's more or less comfy. Then you're free to revisit your config and think about stuff like tying it in with your dotfiles, using Nix to manage your home directory, services you might want to run, etc. — 1: https://search.nixos.org/options?channel=21.05& https://search.nixos.org/options?channel=21.05& 2: https://search.nixos.org/packages?channel=21.05& https://search.nixos.org/packages?channel=21.05&

Sleepytime 5y ago

>It doesn't work so well for I borrowed my coworker's computer for 5 minutes and want to use my own Vim configuration You could use something like nixos-shell[1] to spin up a headless VM of your machine into your current shell. [1]https://github.com/Mic92/nixos-shell https://github.com/Mic92/nixos-shell

gmfawcett 5y ago
Well that is pretty neat. Thanks for the mention of nixos-shell. I've been a NixOS daily-driver for the past 6 months or so, but I am still picking up new ideas on a daily basis. :)
- Sleepytime 5y ago
  It's been my daily for not much longer than that, and almost every time I play with NixOS itself I get the sense of wonder and possibility in computers that I haven't had since I was a teenager. It's definitely a force multiplier.

kaba0 5y ago

> However, Nix does also supply the "nix run" command, which allows you to use software without installing it permanently (but without NixOS' configuration support). What do you mean without config support? It runs a nix derivation which can be arbitrarily complex. Do you mean your /etc/nixos/configuration.nix file? Because you are not really using it either, only for creating a derivation that will become your system. A nix-shell of a user will by default use the user’s channel and may not do anything with the global config.

pxc 5y ago
Yeah, I think they just mean without the conveniences of the NixOS module system. You can definitely bundle config with an app and store it in a repository's shell.nix or a flake or whatever.

alias_neo 5y ago

Ive seen mention to "switching" to a configuration a few times now, what does that mean technically? Is it a reboot and select a different grub option, does it take time/have to download things? What really is "switching"?

Nullabillity 5y ago
Building the new configuration (and downloading or building dependencies), adding the bootloader entry, and activating the new configuration (stopping removed services, starting new services, reloading changed services, that kind of thing). You don't need to do all three: you can skip the bootloader if you want to try something temporarily, and you can skip activation if you want to wait with that until the next reboot. There are also some changes that can't be activated without a reboot, such as changing the kernel. > Does it take time/have to download things? Building has to download or build stuff that isn't in the cache. But contrary to, say, Docker it understands the build graph, so it only rebuilds actual dependees. Activation depends on how many services you've changed, and how quickly they restart. Updating the bootloader is nearly instant.
- alias_neo 5y ago
  Thats pretty incredible. So I can work on configs, switch back and forth until it's exactly right and then switch to it permanently. Where's a good place to start? Some of the configs people are throwing about are quite involved and look like they need a bunch of specialist knowledge. Thanks for taking the time to explain. Can't wait to start trying this out.
  - pxc 5y ago
    Just take a few minutes to skim the NixOS manual, then keep it in front of you on another device while you do an install. Enable a web browser, a desktop environment, and NetworkManager in your initial configuration.nix. Then just start adding software that you want to be able to use. Search for it first in the NixOS options[1]. If you see it there, enable it and configure it using the options that make sense to you. If you don't see it there, search for it in the package collection[2], then use the name you find for it there to add it to `environment.systemPackages` in your `configuration.nix` file. Just kinda take it easy and continue with that process until you have an environment that's more or less comfy. Then you're free to revisit your config and think about stuff like tying it in with your dotfiles, using Nix to manage your home directory, services you might want to run, etc. — 1: https://search.nixos.org/options?channel=21.05& https://search.nixos.org/options?channel=21.05& 2: https://search.nixos.org/packages?channel=21.05& https://search.nixos.org/packages?channel=21.05&