What is nix?

nix is:

• a package manager
• devel build/environment tool
• declarative functional programming language
• used for making deployments/containers, etc

• Nix takes “builds on my machine” to the extreme

nixpkgs

large package collection (distribution)

• 120,000 or more packages

nixos

OS (including installer with default config, etc)

Packaging nix

difficult to package nix:

• somewhat exotic dependencies
  • since moved from autotools to meson
• complicated to setup manually
  • needs system nix-daemon and /nix to be setup
  • so many people just run:
    sh <(curl -L https://nixos.org/nix/install) --daemon

Copr package

• petersen/nix copr repo (created in 2016)
  • https://copr.fedorainfracloud.org/coprs/petersen/nix
  • originally derived from other copr’s

very popular: screenshot

Fedora Change

with @zbyszek

https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Changes/Nix_package_tool

• zbyszek helped to review the package, which improved the packaging

Adding /nix

zbyszek crucial contribution that elevated this Change was petitioning FeSCo to allow /nix in Fedora with a special exception, which was approved!

This helped make this Change a lot more meaningful.

Upstream contributions needed

• soversion
• manpages

Packages structure

• nix (metapkg)
• nix-core
• nix-libs and nix-devel

• nix-daemon (daemon files)
• nix-filesystem (/nix)
• nix-legacy (/usr/bin/nix-*)
• nix-system (/nix/store, nixbld)
• nix-doc

Installation

• daemon mode vs single-user vs rootless

• containers vs package mode vs image mode

https://src.fedoraproject.org/rpms/nix

nixGL flake

Allows using OpenGL apps (Mesa) and also Vulkan.

Now documented in the package readme: https://src.fedoraproject.org/rpms/nix

Current status

Fedora package is quite good state now, including gating tests.

• flakes and nix-command enabled

• f45/f44: nix-2.34

• f43/f42: nix-2.31

• epel10: nix-2.24

We have #fedora-nix on Matrix.

Good relationship with upstream

What is next?

• add /nix bind mount
  • hopefully for F45
• configuration of nix-nswrapper (new in nix-2.34)
• maybe improve selinux handling

Conclusions

• nix is available to install and try in Fedora
• I like my rpm packages, though nixpkgs does provide many packages

Optional demo