Basic Steps to Install Minimal NixOS

What is NixOS?#

NixOS

Reference: Wikipedia, NixOS Homepage

Nix is a tool that uses a unique approach to package management and system configuration. It enables the creation of reproducible, declarative, and reliable systems.

NixOS is a Linux distribution built on top of the Nix package manager. It uses declarative configuration and allows for reliable system upgrades. Nix provides several official software package "channels," including the current stable version and an unstable version that follows the latest developments. NixOS also has tools specifically designed for DevOps and deployment tasks.

Why NixOS?#

Now, let's say you have a requirement: you want to test a project on a local test server and then deploy it on a cloud server (such as AWS) after testing. How can you ensure that your tests are valid?

In other words, how can you ensure that the environments of the two servers are consistent? You might think of using Docker, but the downside of Docker is that its images are immutable, and updating an image requires rebuilding it, which can be cumbersome. So, is there a way to maintain environment consistency without sacrificing flexibility? The answer is NixOS.

NixOS has a unique package manager. It is declarative, and all packages are located in /etc/nixos/configuration.nix. You can declare the packages you need in this file and then run nixos-rebuild switch to install them. If you want to maintain environment consistency, you just need to copy /etc/nixos/configuration.nix to another server and then run nixos-rebuild switch.

Using NixOS to deploy open-source projects is a great practice for DevOps. This article explains how to install a minimal NixOS for servers.

DevOps Wikipedia

Preparation#

Since it is a server, a desktop environment is not needed, so we will use the minimal version of NixOS. The download link for the NixOS image is available at https://nixos.org/download.html.

The author's test server uses ESXi (ESX) as the virtualization platform, and the NixOS version used is 22.11.

The virtual machine is configured as follows:

CPU: 4vCPU (EPYC 7302)
RAM: 8GB
Disk: 50GB (HDD)
UEFI boot

Installation#

The installation of the minimal image does not have a graphical interface, only a command-line interface, which may be challenging for Linux beginners. However, as long as you follow the steps below, there should be no major issues.

Power on the virtual machine, enter the UEFI interface, select NixOS 22.11.4426 Installer (default option), and enter the installation environment.

Due to version differences, the options may vary.

If everything goes smoothly, you should enter the command-line interface after <<< NixOS Stage 1 >>> and <<< NixOS Stage 2 >>>.

Enter sudo su to switch to the root user for subsequent operations.

Partitioning#

Enter cfdisk to enter the partitioning interface and follow the partitioning scheme below:

Use GPT partition table.
First, create a /boot partition with a size of at least 512MB and a file system of EFI System.
If the memory is small, create a swap partition with a size twice that of the memory and a file system of Linux swap.
Create a / partition using the remaining space and a file system of Linux filesystem.

The first partition must be EFI System because NixOS requires an EFI partition for booting.

Here is an example partitioning:

Partitioning Example

After partitioning, be sure to write the changes and then quit, otherwise the partitioning will not take effect.

You can use the lsblk command to check the partitioning.

Next, format the partitions.

mkfs.ext4 -L nixos /dev/sda3: Format the / partition and give it a label for easier operations.
If there is a swap partition, use the command mkswap -L swap /dev/sda2 to format the swap partition.
mkfs.fat -F 32 -n boot /dev/sda1: Format the /boot partition.

Note: The above partitioning is for the author's setup. If your partitioning is different, modify the partition numbers in the commands accordingly.

Next, mount the partitions.

mount /dev/disk/by-label/nixos /mnt
mkdir -p /mnt/boot
mount /dev/disk/by-label/boot /mnt/boot
swapon /dev/sda2

Enter lsblk, and you should see output similar to the following:

lsblk Output

Generate Files#

Next, generate the NixOS configuration file.

nixos-generate-config --root /mnt

Now, enter nixos-install to start the installation.

The installation process requires internet access, so make sure the network is working properly. The installation process is expected to take 5-10 minutes, depending on factors such as network speed and CPU performance.

In the final step of the installation process, you will be prompted to enter a root password. After entering the password, the installation process will be completed.

Enter reboot to restart the system and then remove the installation media.

(Temporary) Add User#

After rebooting, you will enter the command-line interface. Log in as the root user using the password you set earlier.

nixos login: root
password:

When entering the password, no characters will be displayed, which is normal.

It is recommended to create a new user for everyday operations. The root user should only be used for system administration.

Using a non-root user is a good practice to avoid security risks and destructive mistakes.
However, the operations shown here are not the best practices for NixOS because NixOS's user management is declarative and users should not be created in the command line.
Please refer to the next section for the correct approach to adding a user to the sudoers list.

useradd -c 'admin' -m nk
passwd sh   # Set the password

The parameters for the useradd command are as follows:
-c: User's comment field
-m: Create the user's home directory
nk: Username (can be customized)

Now, you can use the exit command to exit the root user and then log in with the new user.

nk is the username. If your username is not nk, please modify it.

Finally, enter uname -a, and you should see output similar to the following:

Linux nixos 5.15.133 #1-NixOS SMP Wed May 24 16:36:55 UTC 2023 x86_64 GNU/Linux

If the kernel version you see is not 5.15.133, don't panic. This is because the NixOS kernel is dynamically generated, and a new kernel is generated with each installation.

Add User to sudoers List#

To make things easier, add the new user to the sudoers list. You might think of modifying the sudoers list, but in NixOS, there is no need to modify the sudoers list. You just need to add the user to the wheel group. In NixOS, the correct way to do this is by modifying the /etc/nixos/configuration.nix file.

You might want to use vim to modify the configuration file, but NixOS does not have vim installed by default (otherwise, why would you install it?), so you need to temporarily install vim using nix-shell -p vim. More about package management will be explained later.

Here are the steps:

Find the users.users field in the configuration file (in the minimal installation configuration file, this field is commented out).
Create a new user, such as nk, and add them to the wheel group. Write the following configuration:

users.users.nk = {
  isNormalUser = true;
  extraGroups = [ "wheel" ];
};

Save the configuration file and then run the nixos-rebuild switch command to apply the configuration.

Remember to use the passwd command to set the password for the new user.

Installation of Common Tools#

The uniqueness of NixOS lies in the special nature of its package manager. We need to have a basic understanding of the NixOS package manager before proceeding.

NixOS has three ways of installing packages:

nix-env: Installs packages to the user directory, only affecting the current user.
nix-shell: Temporarily installs packages, only affecting the current shell.
Modifying .nix configuration files: Installs packages to the system directory, affecting all users.

Using nix-env like apt is not recommended because it has some drawbacks:

Dependency resolution issues: The nix-env command attempts to automatically resolve package dependencies and install them. However, this automatic resolution can lead to inconsistent or unpredictable results.
Loss of environment isolation and version management: Manually managing package environments with the nix-env command can lead to environment confusion or conflicts.
Loss of shareability and reproducibility: Managing packages with the nix-env command may not be as explicit and readable. Configuration files can contain more detailed documentation and comments, allowing for better recording and sharing of package environment information.

Considering the purpose of using NixOS, modifying .nix configuration files is the preferred way.

Installing by Modifying Configuration Files#

As a server, most people will likely need to install the following common tools:

openssh
vim
wget
curl

Find the environment.systemPackages field in the default NixOS configuration file and add the above packages to it. Make the following modifications:

You might want to use vim to modify the configuration file, but NixOS does not have vim installed by default (otherwise, why would you install it?), so you need to temporarily install vim using nix-shell -p vim.

Add the following content to the environment.systemPackages field:

environment.systemPackages = with pkgs; [
  vim
  wget
  curl
  openssh
];

This part is commented out by default, so you need to uncomment it and add the above content.
environment.systemPackages = with pkgs; is the default syntax and should not be modified.

This will install all the software packages except openssh. Installing openssh requires further modifications to the configuration file.

Configuring openssh#

Add the following content to the services.openssh field:

This part is not present in the minimal installation of NixOS, so you need to add it yourself.

services.openssh = {
  enable = true;
  permitRootLogin = "no";  // Optional: Disable root user login
  passwordAuthentication = true;  // Optional: Enable password authentication
};

After saving the configuration file, run the nixos-rebuild switch command to apply the configuration.

You can run the following command to check the status of openssh:

sudo systemctl status sshd

If the SSH service is running, you should see its status as "active".

Considering that this configuration file may be needed in the future, it has been placed on IPFS for the author and readers to use.

Download Link for the Final Configuration File