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This guide describes various ways of installing NixOS. The [https://nixos.org/nixos/manual/index.html#ch-installation official manual] should cover most usual use-cases.
<languages/>
<translate>
<!--T:1-->
This guide serves as a companion guide for the [https://nixos.org/nixos/manual/index.html#ch-installation official manual]. It describes installation of [[NixOS]] as a complete operating system. For instructions on installing [[Nix]] within an existing operating system, refer to the [[Nix Installation Guide]].


== Installing from USB ==
<!--T:2-->
In addition to covering the steps from the official manual, it provides known good instructions for common use cases. When there is a discrepancy between the manual and this guide, the supported case is the one described in the manual.


Since NixOS 14.11 the installer ISO is hybrid. This means it is bootable on both CD and USB drives. It also boots on EFI systems, like most modern motherboards and Mac* systems. Please read the [[#Hybrid image]] section on how to burn the ISO.
== Installation target == <!--T:4-->


For NixOS 14.04 and earlier, please read [[#Using Unetbootin]] and the other sections below.
<!--T:5-->
NixOS can be installed on an increasing variety of hardware:


=== Hybrid image ===
<!--T:6-->
{{Note|This section applies to NixOS 14.11. For NixOS 14.04, please refer to [[#Using Unetbootin]].}}
* regular (Intel or AMD) desktop computers, laptops or physically accessible servers, covered on this page
* SBCs (like the Raspberry Pis) and other ARM boards, see [[NixOS on ARM]]
* cloud and remote servers, see [[NixOS friendly hosters]]


First, download a [http://nixos.org/nixos/download.html NixOS ISO image] or [[Creating a Nix OS live CD|create a custom ISO]]. Then plug in a USB stick large enough to accomodate the image. Then follow the platform instructions:
== Installation method == <!--T:7-->


On Linux:
<!--T:8-->
# Find the right device with <code>fdisk -l</code>, let's say <code>/dev/sdb</code>.
NixOS, as with most Linux-based operating systems, can be installed in different ways.
# Burn with: <code>cp nixos-xxx.iso /dev/sdb</code>
{{Note|do not use /dev/sdb1 or partitions of the disk, use the whole disk /dev/sdb.}}


On OS X:
<!--T:9-->
# Find the right device with <code>diskutil list</code>, let's say <code>disk<b>2</b></code>.
# The classic way, booting from the installation media. (Described below.)
# Unmount with <code>diskutil unmountDisk disk<b>2</b></code>.
# [[Installing from Linux|Booting the media from an existing Linux installation]]
# Burn with: <code>sudo dd if=<b>path_to_nixos.iso</b> of=/dev/<b>r</b>disk<b>2</b> bs=64k</code>
# Note the use of rdisk instead of disk, this makes a large speed difference. You can check the write speed with <code>iostat 2</code> in another terminal.


You could use Disk Utility to write the image but then you'd need to convert it first to a compatible format somehow.
== Making the installation media == <!--T:10-->


On Windows:
<!--T:11-->
Since NixOS 14.11 the installer ISO is hybrid. This means it is bootable on both CD and USB drives. It also boots on EFI systems, like most modern motherboards and apple systems. The following instructions will assume the standard way of copying the image to a USB drive. When using a CD or DVD, the usual methods to burn to disk should work with the iso.
 
=== "Burning" to USB drive === <!--T:12-->
 
<!--T:13-->
First, download a [https://nixos.org/download.html#nixos-iso NixOS ISO image] or [[Creating a NixOS live CD|create a custom ISO]]. Then plug in a USB stick large enough to accommodate the image. Then follow the platform instructions:
 
==== From Linux ==== <!--T:14-->
 
<!--T:15-->
# Find the right device with <code>lsblk</code> or <code>fdisk -l</code>. Replace <code><i>/dev/sdX</i></code> with the proper device in the following steps.
# Copy to device: <code>cp nixos-xxx.iso <em>/dev/sdX</em></code>
 
<!--T:16-->
{{note|do not use /dev/sdX1 or partitions of the disk, use the whole disk /dev/sdX.}}
 
<!--T:17-->
Writing the disk image with <code>dd if=nixos.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress conv=fdatasync</code> also works.
 
==== From macOS ==== <!--T:18-->
 
<!--T:19-->
# Find the right device with <code>diskutil list</code>, let's say <code><i>diskX</i></code>.
# Unmount with <code>diskutil unmountDisk <i>diskX</i></code>.
# Burn with: <code>sudo dd if=<b>path_to_nixos.iso</b> of=/dev/<i>diskX</i></code>
 
<!--T:20-->
{{tip|Using <code>rdiskX</code> instead of <code>diskX</code> can makes a large speed difference. You can check the write speed with <code>iostat 2</code> in another terminal.}}
 
==== From Windows ==== <!--T:21-->
 
<!--T:22-->
# Download [http://sourceforge.net/projects/usbwriter/ USBwriter].
# Download [http://sourceforge.net/projects/usbwriter/ USBwriter].
# Start USBwriter.
# Start USBwriter.
Line 33: Line 68:
# When USBwriter has finished writing, safely unplug the USB drive.
# When USBwriter has finished writing, safely unplug the USB drive.


This should suffice to boot the installer. Otherwise look for other alternatives below.
=== Alternative installation media instructions === <!--T:23-->
 
<!--T:24-->
The previous methods are the supported methods of making the USB installation media.
 
<!--T:25-->
Those methods are also documented, they can allow using the USB drive to boot multiple distributions. This is not supported, your mileage may vary.


=== UEFI note ===
<!--T:26-->
* [[NixOS_Installation_Guide/Unetbootin|Using Unetbootin]]
* [[NixOS_Installation_Guide/Manual USB Creation|Manual USB Creation]]
* [[NixOS_Installation_Guide/multibootusb|multibootusb]]


The below is for BIOS installation. For UEFI installation see [http://nixos.org/nixos/manual/#sec-uefi-installation the manual].
<!--T:27-->
== Booting the installation media ==
{{expansion|Troubleshooting steps, and details are lacking.}}


=== Using Unetbootin ===
<!--T:28-->
The installation media is hybrid and is capable of booting in both legacy BIOS mode and [[UEFI]] mode.


It is possible to install NixOS from a USB stick, rather than from a CD.  This is useful if you want to install NixOS on a machine that doesn't have a CD-ROM drive (such as most netbooks), or if you don't want to waste a blank CD. Here is how to do it:
<!--T:29-->
Whatever mode is used to boot the installation media, your motherboard or computer's configuration may need to be changed to allow booting from a Optical Disk Drive (for CD/DVD) or an external USB drive.


<ol>
=== Legacy bios boot === <!--T:30-->


<li>Download a [http://nixos.org/nixos/download.html NixOS ISO image] or [[#Build a custom installation image]].</li>
<!--T:31-->
This is the only boot possible on machines lacking EFI/UEFI.


<li>Obtain a USB stick formatted with the VFAT/FAT32 filesystem with enough free disk space to hold the contents of the ISO image.  {{Note|It's not necessary to erase the USB stick.}}</li>
=== UEFI boot === <!--T:32-->


<li>Install [http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/ UNetbootin], a tool that allows you to create a bootable USB stick from an ISO image.  UNetbootin runs on both Linux and Windows.  If you already have Nix/NixOS, you can install it by running <tt>nix-env -i unetbootin</tt>. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tools_to_create_Live_USB_systems Other tools] may also work.</li>
<!--T:33-->
The EFI bootloader of the installation media is not signed and is not using a signed shim to boot. This means that Secure Boot will need to be disabled to boot.


<li>Insert the USB stick, start UNetbootin, select the ISO file and target USB drive, and press Ok.  This copies the contents of the ISO to the USB stick and installs the GRUB boot loader.</li>
== Connecting to the internet == <!--T:34-->


<li>You should now be able to boot NixOS from the USB stick, and perform the installation as usual.</li>
<!--T:35-->
The installation will '''definitely''' need a working internet connection. It is possible to install without one, but the available set of packages is limited.


</ol>
=== Wired === <!--T:36-->


{{Note|For EFI support you may need to change the label of the FAT filesystem. You can do this on Linux with mlabel, and on OS X with diskutil: `sudo diskutil rename OLDNAME NIXOS_ISO`.}}
<!--T:37-->
For network interfaces supported by the kernel, DHCP resolution should already have happened once the shell is available.


=== Using syslinux ===
==Tethered (Internet Sharing)== <!--T:38-->


==== Using syslinux.cfg ====
<!--T:39-->
If you can not connect to the internet via cable or wifi, you may use smartphone's tethering capability to share internet. Depending on your smartphones capabilities, only stock kernel drivers may be required which can help providing a working network connection.


If you have trouble booting from a USB drive or sdcard with Unetbootin (I just got a blinking cursor instead of a bootloader on an Asus eee 1000) the procedure described on http://knoppix.net/wiki/Bootable_USB_Key should work. After preparing the sdcard with mkdiskimage and syslinux you can mount it and copy all the content from the NixOS iso:
=== Wireless === <!--T:40-->


<syntaxhighlight lang="console">
<!--T:41-->
$ mount -o loop ~/Downloads/nixos-graphical-0.1pre27337-i686-linux.iso /media/iso
[[NetworkManager]] is installed on the graphical ISO, meaning that it is possible to use <code>nmtui</code> on the command line to connect to a network.
$ rsync -av --progress /media/iso/ /media/sd-card/
</syntaxhighlight>


The syslinux.cfg needs to be created manually, but the details can easily be derived from the grub.cfg on the NixOS install cd.
<!--T:42-->
Using the "Applications" tab at top
left or the launcher bar at bottom, choose a terminal application and from there launch <code>nmtui</code>. This will allow you to 'activate' a (wireless) connection - your local SSIDs should be visible in the list, else you can add a new connection.  When the wireless connection is active and you have tested it, it is likely the install app which launched on startup has not detected the new connection.  Close down the install app, and reopen it from the launcher bar at the bottom of the screen. This should then find the new connection and proceed.


I specified the root device by UUID, to get the UUID:
<!--T:43-->
On the minimal ISO, or if you are more familiar with [[wpa_supplicant]] then you can also run <code>wpa_passphrase ESSID | sudo tee /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf</code>, then enter your password and <code>systemctl restart wpa_supplicant</code>.


<pre>
== Partitioning == <!--T:44-->
blkid /dev/mmcblk0p1
</pre>


The relevant section from the live cd: /media/sd-card/boot/grub/grub.cfg
<!--T:45-->
To partition the persistent storage run <code>sudo fdisk /dev/diskX</code> and follow instructions for MBR or (U)EFI. To determine which mode you are booted into, run:


<pre>
<syntaxhighlight lang="console">
menuentry "NixOS Installer / Rescue" {
$ [ -d /sys/firmware/efi/efivars ] && echo "UEFI" || echo "Legacy"
  linux /boot/bzImage init=/nix/store/r7xhnzymi1ll49r4glf1dwr5y1alx0bl-system/init root=LABEL=NIXOS_INSTALL_CD_0.1pre27337 splash=verbose vga=0x317
</syntaxhighlight>
  initrd /boot/initrd
}
</pre>


can be used in the syslinux config file: /media/sd-card/syslinux.cfg (you should just need to update the init path and the root UUID / LABEL or device path)


<pre>
A very simple example setup is given here.
DEFAULT linux
LABEL linux
  SAY Now booting the kernel from SYSLINUX...
  KERNEL /boot/bzImage
  APPEND init=/nix/store/r7xhnzymi1ll49r4glf1dwr5y1alx0bl-system/init root=UUID=509C-63E2 ro initrd=/boot/initrd splash=verbose
</pre>


'''Note''': in place of using mkdiskimage, you can simply format your SDCard as a fat32 system and install syslinux on it:
=== Legacy Boot (MBR) === <!--T:46-->


<pre>
<!--T:47-->
mkdosfs -F32 /dev/mmcblk0p1
* o (dos disk label)
syslinux -s /dev/mmcblk0p1
* n new
</pre>
* p primary (4 primary in total)
* 1 (partition number [1/4])
* 2048 first sector (alignment for performance)
* +500M last sector (boot sector size)
* rm signature (Y), if ex. => warning of overwriting existing system, could use wipefs
* n
* p
* 2
* default (fill up partition)
* default (fill up partition)
* w (write)


=== Using Command-line Tools ===
=== UEFI === <!--T:48-->


<ol>
<!--T:49-->
<li>Download the ISO image from http://nixos.org/nixos/download.html.</li>
* g (gpt disk label)
* n
* 1 (partition number [1/128])
* 2048 first sector
* +500M last sector (boot sector size)
* t
* 1 (EFI System)
* n
* 2
* default (fill up partition)
* default (fill up partition)
* w (write)


<li>Prepare your USB stick. If it isn't yet partitioned to your liking, create a bootable partition on <code>/dev/sdb1</code>:
=== Format partitions === <!--T:50-->


<pre>
<!--T:51-->
fdisk /dev/sdb
The example below uses the [[ext4]] filesystem format. If you wish to use other filesystem formats such as [[Btrfs]] or [[ZFS]]:
</pre>


And format it with:
* [[Bcachefs#NixOS installation on bcachefs]]
* [[Btrfs#Installation of NixOS on btrfs]]
* [[LVM#Basic Setup]]
* [[ZFS#Simple NixOS ZFS on root installation]]


<pre>
This is useful for having multiple setups and makes partitions easier to handle<syntaxhighlight lang="console">
mkdosfs /dev/sdb1
$ lsblk # lists current system block devices
</pre>
# mkfs.fat -F 32 -n boot /dev/sdX1
# mkfs.ext4 /dev/sdX2 -L nixos
# mount /dev/disk/by-label/nixos /mnt
# mkdir -p /mnt/boot
# mount /dev/disk/by-label/boot /mnt/boot
</syntaxhighlight>


Add ext2 partitions if you like. If you want both 32-bit and 64-bit NixOS, you need at least two partitions.  You can directly use the entire disk without partition if that's what you like.  Once you have your VFAT (dosfs) block device, you should give it a label, within a 11-character limit, e.g.:
<!--T:53-->
== NixOS configuration ==


<pre>
NixOS is configured through a [[Overview of the NixOS Linux distribution#Declarative Configuration|declarative configuration]] file. To generate a default config file, run [[nixos-generate-config]]:
dosfslabel /dev/sdb1 NIXBOOT
</pre>
</li>


<li>Mount the bootable USB partition with:
<syntaxhighlight lang="console">
# nixos-generate-config --root /mnt
# nano /mnt/etc/nixos/configuration.nix
</syntaxhighlight>


<pre>
For information on working with a system configuration, see [[NixOS system configuration]]. For desktop-specific configurations, see [[NixOS as a desktop]].
mkdir -p /media/NIXBOOT
mount /dev/sdb1 /media/NIXBOOT
</pre>
</li>


<li>Mount the ISO image with:
Most essential changes:


<pre>
<!--T:54-->
mkdir -p /media/iso
* keyboard layout, ie <code>[[Keyboard Layout Customization|services.xserver.xkb.layout]]</code>
mount -o loop ~/Downloads/nixos-graphical-0.2pre4463_5e88e9b-c877f45-x86_64-linux.iso /media/iso
* [[networking]] (wifi), see below for fix if it breaks
</pre>
* install [[:Category:Text Editor|editor]] to edit the configuration
</li>


<li>Copy the contents of the NixOS ISO (<code>/media/iso</code>) to your USB stick (<code>/media/NIXBOOT</code>) with:
<!--T:55-->
The self-documenting NixOS options can be searched with [https://search.nixos.org/options NixOS options search].


<pre>
<!--T:52-->
rsync -av --progress /media/iso/ /media/NIXBOOT/
=== Swap file ===
</pre>
</li>


<li>Install a complete and recent GRUB to the USB stick with:
For additional methods of configuring swap, see [[Swap]]. The following example demonstrates how to create and enable a [[Swap#Swap file|swap file]]:


<pre>
{{file|/mnt/etc/nixos/configuration.nix|nix|
grub-install /dev/sdb --root-directory=/media/NIXBOOT/
<nowiki>
</pre>
  swapDevices = [{
</li>
    device = "/var/lib/swapfile";
    size = 16*1024; # 16 GB
  }];
</nowiki>
}}


<li>Edit the file <code>/media/NIXBOOT/boot/grub/grub.cfg</code>. Start from an existing grub.cfg, say from your hard drive or from another working bootable USB stick (e.g., from GRML.org). Then, merge in the entry for NixOS from <code>/media/iso/boot/grub/grub.cfg</code>, modifying the LABEL to be that of your VFAT partition:
=== Bootloader ===


<pre>
NixOS supports multiple [[Bootloader|bootloaders]] such as [[GNU GRUB]] and [[Systemd/boot]].
menuentry "NixOS Installer / Rescue" {
  linux /boot/bzImage init=/nix/store/p94ckcksmhj90cr868cpcajrqgzwy57w-nixos-0.2pre4463_5e88e9b-c877f45/init root=LABEL=NIXBOOT
  initrd /boot/initrd
}
</pre>
</li>


<li>To share your USB stick with other distributions (e.g., GRML, or both 32- and 64- bit NixOS), you can move NixOS's bzImage and initrd to different location (e.g., <code>/boot/nix32/</code> and <code>/boot/nix64/</code>), and you appropriately edit the entries in your grub.cfg. If you have both nix32 and nix64, only one can have its <code>nix-store.squashfs</code> in the root of any given partition.  That's where you can use a second partition, for the second one.  For instance, copy the contents of your 64-bit NixOS to the first partition, with label <code>NIX64</code>, and copy the nix-store.squashfs of your 32-bit NixOS to the second partition with label <code>NIX32</code> (and create an empty nix/store). Copy the 32-bit kernel and initrd to <code>/boot/nix32/</code> on the bootable partition, and edit the grub.cfg of the bootable partition accordingly.</li>
Systemd-boot is the recommended bootloader. The following example demonstrates how to enable systemd-boot in your configuration:


<li>There you go: you have a bootable NixOS USB drive, possibly allowing you to boot NixOS 64-bit, NixOS 32-bit, GRML 64-bit, GRML 32-bit, FreeBSD, FreeDOS, boot-sector-tetris, etc. Just you convince your BIOS to let you boot off it.</li>
{{file|/mnt/etc/nixos/configuration.nix|nix|
</ol>
<nowiki>
  boot.loader.systemd-boot.enable = true;
</nowiki>
}}


== Build a custom installation image ==
You may also wish to configure [[Secure Boot]].


NixOS provides an easy way to build a custom variant of the installation image. This might be useful to embed your own ssh key or enable additional features like zfs support. It allows to specify a custom <code>configuration.nix</code> which is used to build the image
=== Users ===
This is explained in [[Creating a NixOS live CD]].


== Installing on VPS & Cloud Providers ==
For information on creating and managing users, see [[User management]] and the {{NixOS Manual|name=NixOS Manual: Chapter - Package Management|anchor=#sec-user-management}}. See an example below:


→ See [[NixOS friendly hosters]]
{{file|/mnt/etc/nixos/configuration.nix|nix|
<nowiki>
  users.users.alice = {
    isNormalUser = true;
    initialPassword = "pw123";
  };
</nowiki>
}}


== Installing from Linux ==
== NixOS installation ==
<syntaxhighlight lang="console">
# cd /mnt
# nixos-install
</syntaxhighlight>after installation: Run <code>passwd</code> to change user password.
 
<!--T:57-->
if internet broke/breaks, try one of the following:<syntaxhighlight lang="console">
# nixos-rebuild switch --option substitute false # no downloads
# nixos-rebuild switch --option binary-caches "" # no downloads
</syntaxhighlight>
* wpa_supplicant flags to connect to wifi
 
<!--T:58-->
<hr />


→ See [[Installing from Linux]]
== Additional notes for specific hardware == <!--T:59-->


== Special hardware ==
<!--T:60-->
These are collected notes or links for specific hardware issues.


<!--T:61-->
* Blog post how to install NixOS on a [http://grahamc.com/blog/nixos-on-dell-9560 Dell 9560]
* Blog post how to install NixOS on a [http://grahamc.com/blog/nixos-on-dell-9560 Dell 9560]
* for embedded Hardware like the Raspberry Pi2 see [[NixOS on ARM]]
* Brand servers may require extra kernel modules be included into initrd (<code>boot.initrd.extraKernelModules</code> in configuration.nix) For example HP Proliant needs "hpsa" module to see the disk drive.
* Brand servers may require extra kernel modules be included into initrd (boot.initrd.extraKernelModules in configuration.nix) For example HP Proliant needs "hpsa" module to see the disk drive.
 


<!--T:62-->
[[Category:Guide]]
[[Category:Guide]]
 
[[Category:Deployment]]
[[Category:Installation]]
[[Category:NixOS]]
</translate>

Latest revision as of 16:50, 20 August 2025

Other languages:

This guide serves as a companion guide for the official manual. It describes installation of NixOS as a complete operating system. For instructions on installing Nix within an existing operating system, refer to the Nix Installation Guide.

In addition to covering the steps from the official manual, it provides known good instructions for common use cases. When there is a discrepancy between the manual and this guide, the supported case is the one described in the manual.

Installation target

NixOS can be installed on an increasing variety of hardware:

  • regular (Intel or AMD) desktop computers, laptops or physically accessible servers, covered on this page
  • SBCs (like the Raspberry Pis) and other ARM boards, see NixOS on ARM
  • cloud and remote servers, see NixOS friendly hosters

Installation method

NixOS, as with most Linux-based operating systems, can be installed in different ways.

  1. The classic way, booting from the installation media. (Described below.)
  2. Booting the media from an existing Linux installation

Making the installation media

Since NixOS 14.11 the installer ISO is hybrid. This means it is bootable on both CD and USB drives. It also boots on EFI systems, like most modern motherboards and apple systems. The following instructions will assume the standard way of copying the image to a USB drive. When using a CD or DVD, the usual methods to burn to disk should work with the iso.

"Burning" to USB drive

First, download a NixOS ISO image or create a custom ISO. Then plug in a USB stick large enough to accommodate the image. Then follow the platform instructions:

From Linux

  1. Find the right device with lsblk or fdisk -l. Replace /dev/sdX with the proper device in the following steps.
  2. Copy to device: cp nixos-xxx.iso /dev/sdX
Note: do not use /dev/sdX1 or partitions of the disk, use the whole disk /dev/sdX.

Writing the disk image with dd if=nixos.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress conv=fdatasync also works.

From macOS

  1. Find the right device with diskutil list, let's say diskX.
  2. Unmount with diskutil unmountDisk diskX.
  3. Burn with: sudo dd if=path_to_nixos.iso of=/dev/diskX
🟆︎
Tip: Using rdiskX instead of diskX can makes a large speed difference. You can check the write speed with iostat 2 in another terminal.

From Windows

  1. Download USBwriter.
  2. Start USBwriter.
  3. Choose the downloaded ISO as 'Source'
  4. Choose the USB drive as 'Target'
  5. Click 'Write'
  6. When USBwriter has finished writing, safely unplug the USB drive.

Alternative installation media instructions

The previous methods are the supported methods of making the USB installation media.

Those methods are also documented, they can allow using the USB drive to boot multiple distributions. This is not supported, your mileage may vary.

Booting the installation media

☶︎
This article or section needs to be expanded. Further information may be found in the related discussion page. Please consult the pedia article metapage for guidelines on contributing.

The installation media is hybrid and is capable of booting in both legacy BIOS mode and UEFI mode.

Whatever mode is used to boot the installation media, your motherboard or computer's configuration may need to be changed to allow booting from a Optical Disk Drive (for CD/DVD) or an external USB drive.

Legacy bios boot

This is the only boot possible on machines lacking EFI/UEFI.

UEFI boot

The EFI bootloader of the installation media is not signed and is not using a signed shim to boot. This means that Secure Boot will need to be disabled to boot.

Connecting to the internet

The installation will definitely need a working internet connection. It is possible to install without one, but the available set of packages is limited.

Wired

For network interfaces supported by the kernel, DHCP resolution should already have happened once the shell is available.

Tethered (Internet Sharing)

If you can not connect to the internet via cable or wifi, you may use smartphone's tethering capability to share internet. Depending on your smartphones capabilities, only stock kernel drivers may be required which can help providing a working network connection.

Wireless

NetworkManager is installed on the graphical ISO, meaning that it is possible to use nmtui on the command line to connect to a network.

Using the "Applications" tab at top left or the launcher bar at bottom, choose a terminal application and from there launch nmtui. This will allow you to 'activate' a (wireless) connection - your local SSIDs should be visible in the list, else you can add a new connection. When the wireless connection is active and you have tested it, it is likely the install app which launched on startup has not detected the new connection. Close down the install app, and reopen it from the launcher bar at the bottom of the screen. This should then find the new connection and proceed.

On the minimal ISO, or if you are more familiar with wpa_supplicant then you can also run wpa_passphrase ESSID | sudo tee /etc/wpa_supplicant.conf, then enter your password and systemctl restart wpa_supplicant.

Partitioning

To partition the persistent storage run sudo fdisk /dev/diskX and follow instructions for MBR or (U)EFI. To determine which mode you are booted into, run: 

$ [ -d /sys/firmware/efi/efivars ] && echo "UEFI" || echo "Legacy"


A very simple example setup is given here.

Legacy Boot (MBR)

  • o (dos disk label)
  • n new
  • p primary (4 primary in total)
  • 1 (partition number [1/4])
  • 2048 first sector (alignment for performance)
  • +500M last sector (boot sector size)
  • rm signature (Y), if ex. => warning of overwriting existing system, could use wipefs
  • n
  • p
  • 2
  • default (fill up partition)
  • default (fill up partition)
  • w (write)

UEFI

  • g (gpt disk label)
  • n
  • 1 (partition number [1/128])
  • 2048 first sector
  • +500M last sector (boot sector size)
  • t
  • 1 (EFI System)
  • n
  • 2
  • default (fill up partition)
  • default (fill up partition)
  • w (write)

Format partitions

The example below uses the ext4 filesystem format. If you wish to use other filesystem formats such as Btrfs or ZFS:

This is useful for having multiple setups and makes partitions easier to handle

$ lsblk # lists current system block devices
# mkfs.fat -F 32 -n boot /dev/sdX1
# mkfs.ext4 /dev/sdX2 -L nixos
# mount /dev/disk/by-label/nixos /mnt
# mkdir -p /mnt/boot
# mount /dev/disk/by-label/boot /mnt/boot

NixOS configuration

NixOS is configured through a declarative configuration file. To generate a default config file, run nixos-generate-config: 

# nixos-generate-config --root /mnt
# nano /mnt/etc/nixos/configuration.nix

For information on working with a system configuration, see NixOS system configuration. For desktop-specific configurations, see NixOS as a desktop.

Most essential changes:

The self-documenting NixOS options can be searched with NixOS options search.

Swap file

For additional methods of configuring swap, see Swap. The following example demonstrates how to create and enable a swap file:

❄︎ /mnt/etc/nixos/configuration.nix
  swapDevices = [{
    device = "/var/lib/swapfile";
    size = 16*1024; # 16 GB
  }];

Bootloader

NixOS supports multiple bootloaders such as GNU GRUB and Systemd/boot.

Systemd-boot is the recommended bootloader. The following example demonstrates how to enable systemd-boot in your configuration:

❄︎ /mnt/etc/nixos/configuration.nix
  boot.loader.systemd-boot.enable = true;

You may also wish to configure Secure Boot.

Users

For information on creating and managing users, see User management and the NixOS Manual: Chapter - Package Management. See an example below:

❄︎ /mnt/etc/nixos/configuration.nix
  users.users.alice = {
    isNormalUser = true;
    initialPassword = "pw123";
  };

NixOS installation

# cd /mnt
# nixos-install

after installation: Run passwd to change user password. if internet broke/breaks, try one of the following:

# nixos-rebuild switch --option substitute false # no downloads
# nixos-rebuild switch --option binary-caches "" # no downloads
  • wpa_supplicant flags to connect to wifi

Additional notes for specific hardware

These are collected notes or links for specific hardware issues.

  • Blog post how to install NixOS on a Dell 9560
  • Brand servers may require extra kernel modules be included into initrd (boot.initrd.extraKernelModules in configuration.nix) For example HP Proliant needs "hpsa" module to see the disk drive.
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