Nix config for MacOS

This is config, it manages my Macbook (Apple silicon) installation, dotfiles and some development packages. It's based on nix-darwin, home-manager and nix-flakes.

This repository keeps a changelog of the most important modifications.

Installation

Install nix using the official docs. Git clone the repository, (recommendation is in) .config, look through, replace usernames / hosts and git email address with your own.

Project Structure

├── configuration.nix
├── darwin # everything related to MacOS
│   ├── brew.nix # brew packages - GUI apps
│   ├── default.nix # system configuration
│   ├── preferences.nix # system preferences
├── home-manager # dotfiles
│   ├── config # all the dotfiles configuration
│   │   ├── alacritty.nix
│   │   ├── git.nix
│   │   ├── starship.nix
│   │   ├── vscode # VSCode configuration
│   │   │   └── default.nix
│   │   └── zsh.nix # zsh configuration
│   └── default.nix

Notes

This repository is focused on Macbooks with Apple silicon aarch64-darwin.

Keep in mind that if you are working with Nix flakes inside of a git repository, nix considers any modifications which are not added as "dirty". To fix this, add the items to the staging area, using git add . before running darwin-rebuild switch.

This repository is inspired by a lot of folks who have taken time to share their personal Nix configurations and knowledge. In no particular order here are some of them:

• https://github.com/phlmn/nix-darwin-config
• https://github.com/nix-community/home-manager
• https://xyno.space/post/nix-darwin-introduction
• https://determinate.systems

Helpful Commands

# remove unused references / old-generations
nix-collect-garbage -d

Rebuilding the System

After making changes to the configuration, you need to rebuild the system to apply these changes. There are two ways to do this:

Manual Rebuild

1. Build the configuration:

   nix build .#darwinConfigurations.robert.system
   

2. Switch to the new configuration:

   ./result/sw/bin/darwin-rebuild switch --flake .#robert
   

Using the Rebuild Script

For convenience, a rebuild script is provided that combines the build and switch steps:

1. Ensure the script is executable:

   chmod +x rebuild.sh
   

2. Run the script:

   ./rebuild.sh
   

Updating Nix

To update Nix to the latest version available in your current Nixpkgs channel:

1. Update your flake inputs:

   nix flake update

2. Rebuild your system:

   ./rebuild.sh

3. Verify the new Nix version:

   nix --version

Specifying a Nix Version

If you want to use a specific version of Nix, modify the darwin/default.nix file: