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Development Environments on NixOS

NixOS's reproducibility makes it ideal for building development environments. However, if you're used to other distros, you may encounter problems because NixOS has its own logic. We'll briefly explain this below.

On NixOS, it's recommended to only install common tools in the global environment, such as git, vim, emacs, tmux, zsh, etc. The development environment of each language should be an independent environment for each project.

You should NOT install the development environment of each language in the global environment. The project environment should be completely isolated from each other and will not affect each other.

In the following sections, we'll introduce how the development environment works in NixOS.

Creating a Custom Shell Environment with nix shell

The simplest way to create a development environment is to use nix shell. nix shell will create a shell environment with the specified Nix package installed.

Here's an example:

# hello is not available
› hello
hello: command not found

# Enter an environment with the 'hello' and `cowsay` package
› nix shell nixpkgs#hello nixpkgs#cowsay

# hello is now available
› hello
Hello, world!

# ponysay is also available
› cowsay "Hello, world!"
 _______
< hello >
 -------
        \   ^__^
         \  (oo)\_______
            (__)\       )\/\
                ||----w |
                ||     ||

nix shell is very useful when you just want to try out some packages or quickly create a clean environment.

Creating a Development Environment

nix shell is simple and easy to use, but it's not very flexible, for a more complex development environment, we need to use pkgs.mkShell and nix develop.

We can create a development environment using pkgs.mkShell { ... } and open an interactive Bash shell of this development environment using nix develop.

To see how pkgs.mkShell works, let's take a look at its source code.

{ lib, stdenv, buildEnv }:

# A special kind of derivation that is only meant to be consumed by the
# nix-shell.
{ name ? "nix-shell"
, # a list of packages to add to the shell environment
  packages ? [ ]
, # propagate all the inputs from the given derivations
  inputsFrom ? [ ]
, buildInputs ? [ ]
, nativeBuildInputs ? [ ]
, propagatedBuildInputs ? [ ]
, propagatedNativeBuildInputs ? [ ]
, ...
}@attrs:
let
  mergeInputs = name:
    (attrs.${name} or [ ]) ++
    (lib.subtractLists inputsFrom (lib.flatten (lib.catAttrs name inputsFrom)));

  rest = builtins.removeAttrs attrs [
    "name"
    "packages"
    "inputsFrom"
    "buildInputs"
    "nativeBuildInputs"
    "propagatedBuildInputs"
    "propagatedNativeBuildInputs"
    "shellHook"
  ];
in

stdenv.mkDerivation ({
  inherit name;

  buildInputs = mergeInputs "buildInputs";
  nativeBuildInputs = packages ++ (mergeInputs "nativeBuildInputs");
  propagatedBuildInputs = mergeInputs "propagatedBuildInputs";
  propagatedNativeBuildInputs = mergeInputs "propagatedNativeBuildInputs";

  shellHook = lib.concatStringsSep "\n" (lib.catAttrs "shellHook"
    (lib.reverseList inputsFrom ++ [ attrs ]));

  phases = [ "buildPhase" ];

  # ......

  # when distributed building is enabled, prefer to build locally
  preferLocalBuild = true;
} // rest)

pkgs.mkShell { ... } is a special derivation (Nix package). Its name, buildInputs, and other parameters are customizable, and shellHook is a special parameter that will be executed when nix develop enters the environment.

Here is a flake.nix that defines a development environment with Node.js 18 installed:

{
  description = "A Nix-flake-based Node.js development environment";

  inputs = {
    nixpkgs.url = "github:nixos/nixpkgs/nixos-23.11";
  };

  outputs = { self , nixpkgs ,... }: let
    # system should match the system you are running on
    # system = "x86_64-linux";
    system = "x86_64-darwin";
  in {
    devShells."${system}".default = let
      pkgs = import nixpkgs {
        inherit system;
      };
    in pkgs.mkShell {
      # create an environment with nodejs_18, pnpm, and yarn
      packages = with pkgs; [
        nodejs_18
        nodePackages.pnpm
        (yarn.override { nodejs = nodejs_18; })
      ];

      shellHook = ''
        echo "node `${pkgs.nodejs}/bin/node --version`"
      '';
    };
  };
}

Create an empty folder, save the above configuration as flake.nix, and then execute nix develop (or more precisely, you can use nix develop .#default), the current version of nodejs will be outputed, and now you can use node pnpm yarn seamlessly.

Using zsh/fish/... instead of bash

pkgs.mkShell uses bash by default, but you can also use zsh or fish by add exec <your-shell> into shellHook.

Here is an example:

{
  description = "A Nix-flake-based Node.js development environment";

  inputs = {
    nixpkgs.url = "github:nixos/nixpkgs/nixos-23.11";
  };

  outputs = { self , nixpkgs ,... }: let
    # system should match the system you are running on
    # system = "x86_64-linux";
    system = "x86_64-darwin";
  in {
    devShells."${system}".default = let
      pkgs = import nixpkgs {
        inherit system;
      };
    in pkgs.mkShell {
      # create an environment with nodejs_18, pnpm, and yarn
      packages = with pkgs; [
        nodejs_18
        nodePackages.pnpm
        (yarn.override { nodejs = nodejs_18; })
        nushell
      ];

      shellHook = ''
        echo "node `${pkgs.nodejs}/bin/node --version`"
        exec nu
      '';
    };
  };
}

With the above configuration, nix develop will enter the REPL environment of nushell.

Creating a Development Environment with pkgs.runCommand

The derivation created by pkgs.mkShell cannot be used directly, but must be accessed via nix develop.

It is actually possible to create a shell wrapper containing the required packages via pkgs.stdenv.mkDerivation, which can then be run directly into the environment by executing the wrapper.

Using mkDerivation directly is a bit cumbersome, and Nixpkgs provides some simpler functions to help us create such wrappers, such as pkgs.runCommand.

Example:

{
  description = "A Nix-flake-based Node.js development environment";

  inputs = {
    nixpkgs.url = "github:nixos/nixpkgs/nixos-23.11";
  };

  outputs = { self , nixpkgs ,... }: let
    # system should match the system you are running on
    # system = "x86_64-linux";
    system = "x86_64-darwin";
  in {
    packages."${system}".dev = let
      pkgs = import nixpkgs {
        inherit system;
      };
      packages = with pkgs; [
          nodejs_20
          nodePackages.pnpm
          nushell
      ];
    in pkgs.runCommand "dev-shell" {
      # Dependencies that should exist in the runtime environment
      buildInputs = packages;
      # Dependencies that should only exist in the build environment
      nativeBuildInputs = [ pkgs.makeWrapper ];
    } ''
      mkdir -p $out/bin/
      ln -s ${pkgs.nushell}/bin/nu $out/bin/dev-shell
      wrapProgram $out/bin/dev-shell --prefix PATH : ${pkgs.lib.makeBinPath packages}
    '';
  };
}

Then execute nix run .#dev or nix shell .#dev --command 'dev-shell', you will enter a nushell session, where you can use the node pnpm command normally, and the node version is 20.

The wrapper generated in this way is an executable file, which does not actually depend on the nix run or nix shell command.

For example, we can directly install this wrapper through NixOS's environment.systemPackages, and then execute it directly:

{pkgs, lib, ...}{

  environment.systemPackages = [
    # Install the wrapper into the system
    (let
      packages = with pkgs; [
          nodejs_20
          nodePackages.pnpm
          nushell
      ];
    in pkgs.runCommand "dev-shell" {
      # Dependencies that should exist in the runtime environment
      buildInputs = packages;
      # Dependencies that should only exist in the build environment
      nativeBuildInputs = [ pkgs.makeWrapper ];
    } ''
      mkdir -p $out/bin/
      ln -s ${pkgs.nushell}/bin/nu $out/bin/dev-shell
      wrapProgram $out/bin/dev-shell --prefix PATH : ${pkgs.lib.makeBinPath packages}
    '';)
  ];
}

Add the above configuration to any NixOS Module, then deploy it with sudo nixos-rebuild switch, and you can enter the development environment directly with the dev-shell command, which is the special feature of pkgs.runCommand compared to pkgs.mkShell.

Related source code:

Enter the build environment of any Nix package

Now let's take a look at nix develop, first read the help document output by nix develop --help:

Name
    nix develop - run a bash shell that provides the build environment of a derivation

Synopsis
    nix develop [option...] installable
# ......

It tells us that nix develop accepts a parameter installable, which means that we can enter the development environment of any installable Nix package through it, not just the environment created by pkgs.mkShell.

By default, nix develop will try to use the following attributes in the flake outputs:

  • devShells.<system>.default
  • packages.<system>.default

If we use nix develop /path/to/flake#<name> to specify the flake package address and flake output name, then nix develop will try the following attributes in the flake outputs:

  • devShells.<system>.<name>
  • packages.<system>.<name>
  • legacyPackages.<system>.<name>

Now let's try it out. First, test it to confirm that We don't have c++ g++ and other compilation-related commands in the current environment:

ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in ~
› c++
c++: command not found

ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in ~
› g++
g++: command not found

Then use nix develop to enter the build environment of the hello package in nixpkgs:

# login to the build environment of the package `hello`
ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in ~
› nix develop nixpkgs#hello

ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in ~ via ❄️  impure (hello-2.12.1-env)
› env | grep CXX
CXX=g++

ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in ~ via ❄️  impure (hello-2.12.1-env)
› c++ --version
g++ (GCC) 12.3.0
Copyright (C) 2022 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
This is free software; see the source for copying conditions.  There is NO
warranty; not even for MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in ~ via ❄️  impure (hello-2.12.1-env)
› g++ --version
g++ (GCC) 12.3.0
Copyright (C) 2022 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
This is free software; see the source for copying conditions.  There is NO
warranty; not even for MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

We can see that the CXX environment variable have been set, and the c++ g++ and other commands can be used normally now.

In addition, we can also call every build phase of the hello package normally:

The default execution order of all build phases of a Nix package is: $prePhases unpackPhase patchPhase $preConfigurePhases configurePhase $preBuildPhases buildPhase checkPhase $preInstallPhases installPhase fixupPhase installCheckPhase $preDistPhases distPhase $postPhases

# unpack source code
ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in /tmp/xxx via ❄️  impure (hello-2.12.1-env)
› unpackPhase
unpacking source archive /nix/store/pa10z4ngm0g83kx9mssrqzz30s84vq7k-hello-2.12.1.tar.gz
source root is hello-2.12.1
setting SOURCE_DATE_EPOCH to timestamp 1653865426 of file hello-2.12.1/ChangeLog

ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in /tmp/xxx via ❄️  impure (hello-2.12.1-env)
› ls
hello-2.12.1

ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in /tmp/xxx via ❄️  impure (hello-2.12.1-env)
› cd hello-2.12.1/

# generate Makefile
ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in /tmp/xxx/hello-2.12.1 via ❄️  impure (hello-2.12.1-env)
› configurePhase
configure flags: --prefix=/tmp/xxx/outputs/out --prefix=/tmp/xxx/outputs/out
checking for a BSD-compatible install... /nix/store/02dr9ymdqpkb75vf0v1z2l91z2q3izy9-coreutils-9.3/bin/install -c
checking whether build environment is sane... yes
checking for a thread-safe mkdir -p... /nix/store/02dr9ymdqpkb75vf0v1z2l91z2q3izy9-coreutils-9.3/bin/mkdir -p
checking for gawk... gawk
checking whether make sets $(MAKE)... yes
checking whether make supports nested variables... yes
checking for gcc... gcc
# ......
checking that generated files are newer than configure... done
configure: creating ./config.status
config.status: creating Makefile
config.status: creating po/Makefile.in
config.status: creating config.h
config.status: config.h is unchanged
config.status: executing depfiles commands
config.status: executing po-directories commands
config.status: creating po/POTFILES
config.status: creating po/Makefile

# build the package
ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in /tmp/xxx/hello-2.12.1 via C v12.3.0-gcc via ❄️  impure (hello-2.12.1-env) took 2s
› buildPhase
build flags: SHELL=/run/current-system/sw/bin/bash
make  all-recursive
make[1]: Entering directory '/tmp/xxx/hello-2.12.1'
# ......
ranlib lib/libhello.a
gcc  -g -O2   -o hello src/hello.o  ./lib/libhello.a
make[2]: Leaving directory '/tmp/xxx/hello-2.12.1'
make[1]: Leaving directory '/tmp/xxx/hello-2.12.1'

# run the built program
ryan in 🌐 aquamarine in /tmp/xxx/hello-2.12.1 via C v12.3.0-gcc via ❄️  impure (hello-2.12.1-env)
› ./hello
Hello, world!

This usage is mainly used to debug the build process of a Nix package, or to execute some commands in the build environment of a Nix package.

nix build

The nix build command is used to build a software package and creates a symbolic link named result in the current directory, which points to the build result.

Here's an example:

# Build the package 'ponysay' from the 'nixpkgs' flake
nix build "nixpkgs#ponysay"
# Use the built 'ponysay' command
› ./result/bin/ponysay 'hey buddy!'
 ____________ 
< hey buddy! >
 ------------ 
     \                                  
      \                                 
       \                                
       ▄▄  ▄▄ ▄ ▄                       
    ▀▄▄▄█▄▄▄▄▄█▄▄▄                      
   ▀▄███▄▄██▄██▄▄██                     
  ▄██▄███▄▄██▄▄▄█▄██                    
 █▄█▄██▄█████████▄██                    
  ▄▄█▄█▄▄▄▄▄████████                    
 ▀▀▀▄█▄█▄█▄▄▄▄▄█████         ▄   ▄      
    ▀▄████▄▄▄█▄█▄▄██       ▄▄▄▄▄█▄▄▄    
    █▄██▄▄▄▄███▄▄▄██    ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄█▄▄    
    ▀▄▄██████▄▄▄████    █████████████   
       ▀▀▀▀▀█████▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄██▄█▄▄▀   
            ██▄███▄▄▄▄█▄▄▀  ███▄█▄▄▄█▀  
            █▄██▄▄▄▄▄████   ███████▄██  
            █▄███▄▄█████    ▀███▄█████▄ 
            ██████▀▄▄▄█▄█    █▄██▄▄█▄█▄ 
           ███████ ███████   ▀████▄████ 
           ▀▀█▄▄▄▀ ▀▀█▄▄▄▀     ▀██▄▄██▀█
                                ▀  ▀▀█

Other Commands

There are other commands like nix flake init, which you can explore in New Nix Commands. For more detailed information, please refer to the documentation.

References