+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ title = "Skynet: Nix" date = 2023-10-08 slides = true +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ # *nix, Nix and Nixos ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ## *nix ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Skynet runs on a flavor of Linux called NixOS ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Normal linux commands apply (basic primer) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ``cd`` - change directory ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ``mkdir`` - make directory ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ``ls`` - list directory ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ``touch {filename}`` - create file named {filename} ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ``nano {filename}`` - edit {filename} ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ``history`` - view history of previous commands ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ``grep "{query}" {filename/path}`` - find {query} in a file ------------------------------------------------------------------------- There is also piping where: The output of one command is piped into another command ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Often called [Unix philosophy][1] ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Can make really powerful programs from smaller simple programs. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ``history | grep "nano"`` - search the history for any mention of ``nano`` ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ## Nix ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nix is a (lazy) functional language ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ```nix a = 1 # int b = 1.001 # float c = /path/to/thing # path d = "42" # string e = true # boolean ``` ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ```nix double = x: x*2 mul = a: b: a*b double 2 mul 2 3 ``` ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ```nix s = { foo = "bar"; biz = "baz"; } s.foo # bar s.biz # baz ``` ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Info: 1. [Offical guide][2] 2. [Nix Pills][3] ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ## NixOS ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Some crazy person saw Nix and thought "I want to make an OS with that" ------------------------------------------------------------------------- In essence a giant function is created with an OS as the output ------------------------------------------------------------------------- This does have quite a few advantages ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Config as Code * Deterministic * Reproducible ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Skynet 2.0 had its config spread across different servers. Making it hard to get a good overview ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Skynet 3.0 is fully source controlled on [forgejo.skynet.ie][4] ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Deterministic and Reproducible go hand in hand. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Deterministic means that for the same inputs you get the same output. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reproducible is that you are able to create the same output from the source code. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- We use Flakes, which adds a lockfile, reduces hassle for the dev. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Questions? ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unix_philosophy [2]: https://nix.dev/tutorials/first-steps/ [3]: https://nixos.org/guides/nix-pills/# [4]: https://forgejo.skynet.ie/Skynet/nixos