NixOS

NixOS

The NixOS logo, a symbol of the Nix package manager
Release Status	Actively maintained
Release Model	Customizable based on user configuration
Package Manager	Nix package manager
Default Desktops	Enlightenment, GNOME, KDE Plasma, LXQt, Xfce, MATE, Pantheon, Cinnamon
Usage Type	Desktop, Server
Architectures	i686, x86_64, aarch64
Website	nixos.org

A NixOS desktop running GNOME 43.1 with Neofetch displayed.

NixOS is a Linux distribution built around the Nix package manager, offering features such as atomic upgrades, rollbacks, and a declarative configuration model. It was initially developed by Eelco Dolstra.

Home Manager

Home Manager is a NixOS module for configuring user environments in /home, often integrated directly into NixOS to enable unified system and user-level rebuilds. It provides a broad range of options beyond standard NixOS configurations, allowing users to manage dotfiles, install and configure applications, and customize environment settings for a tailored, reproducible setup.

Flakes

Nix Flakes is an experimental feature of the Nix package manager aimed at simplifying dependency and configuration management, making builds more reproducible and shareable across environments.

• Flakes provide a standardized format for specifying dependencies, configurations, and sources, enabling easier integration and consistency across systems.
• Using Flakes, developers can define isolated and reproducible environments, ideal for both development and deployment.

Lix

Lix is a community fork of Nix. It uses the Meson build system, though the Lix team also plans to gradually introduce Rust to the source code. The project also aims to evolve the Nix language into the new Lix language—maintaining general syntactic compatibility with Nix but introducing refinements and new features.

Controversy

Anduril Sponsorship

NixCon 2023, a community conference dedicated to the Nix project, received a sponsorship from Anduril, a U.S.-based military defense contractor. Upon learning of the sponsorship, the event venue, TU Darmstadt, requested additional information from the Nix Foundation to assess whether the sponsorship aligned with its policies. In response, the Nix Foundation ultimately decided to withdraw Anduril's sponsorship.

Change of Leadership

Following an open letter criticizing the Nix Foundation and calling for the resignation of Eelco Dolstra, he eventually stepped down. After his resignation, a new board was established. Their first action was to lift the ban on a controversial user from the Nixpkgs contributor Zulip chat, sparking further debate.

Trivia

• NixOS employs a purely functional approach to package management, ensuring that package installations remain isolated from one another.
• The Nix package manager supports reproducible builds, making it especially suited for consistent and reliable development environments.