mirror of
https://github.com/privatevoid-net/nix-super.git
synced 2024-11-16 03:06:17 +02:00
eb7d7780b1
This is needed to avoid this https://github.com/mesonbuild/meson/issues/13774 when we go back to making our subproject directory `src`.
68 lines
3.1 KiB
Markdown
68 lines
3.1 KiB
Markdown
# Release 1.0 (2012-05-11)
|
||
|
||
There have been numerous improvements and bug fixes since the previous
|
||
release. Here are the most significant:
|
||
|
||
- Nix can now optionally use the Boehm garbage collector. This
|
||
significantly reduces the Nix evaluator’s memory footprint,
|
||
especially when evaluating large NixOS system configurations. It can
|
||
be enabled using the `--enable-gc` configure option.
|
||
|
||
- Nix now uses SQLite for its database. This is faster and more
|
||
flexible than the old *ad hoc* format. SQLite is also used to cache
|
||
the manifests in `/nix/var/nix/manifests`, resulting in a
|
||
significant speedup.
|
||
|
||
- Nix now has an search path for expressions. The search path is set
|
||
using the environment variable `NIX_PATH` and the `-I` command line
|
||
option. In Nix expressions, paths between angle brackets are used to
|
||
specify files that must be looked up in the search path. For
|
||
instance, the expression `<nixpkgs/default.nix>` looks for a file
|
||
`nixpkgs/default.nix` relative to every element in the search path.
|
||
|
||
- The new command `nix-build --run-env` builds all dependencies of a
|
||
derivation, then starts a shell in an environment containing all
|
||
variables from the derivation. This is useful for reproducing the
|
||
environment of a derivation for development.
|
||
|
||
- The new command `nix-store --verify-path` verifies that the contents
|
||
of a store path have not changed.
|
||
|
||
- The new command `nix-store --print-env` prints out the environment
|
||
of a derivation in a format that can be evaluated by a shell.
|
||
|
||
- Attribute names can now be arbitrary strings. For instance, you can
|
||
write `{ "foo-1.2" = …; "bla bla" = …; }."bla
|
||
bla"`.
|
||
|
||
- Attribute selection can now provide a default value using the `or`
|
||
operator. For instance, the expression `x.y.z or e` evaluates to the
|
||
attribute `x.y.z` if it exists, and `e` otherwise.
|
||
|
||
- The right-hand side of the `?` operator can now be an attribute
|
||
path, e.g., `attrs ?
|
||
a.b.c`.
|
||
|
||
- On Linux, Nix will now make files in the Nix store immutable on
|
||
filesystems that support it. This prevents accidental modification
|
||
of files in the store by the root user.
|
||
|
||
- Nix has preliminary support for derivations with multiple outputs.
|
||
This is useful because it allows parts of a package to be deployed
|
||
and garbage-collected separately. For instance, development parts of
|
||
a package such as header files or static libraries would typically
|
||
not be part of the closure of an application, resulting in reduced
|
||
disk usage and installation time.
|
||
|
||
- The Nix store garbage collector is faster and holds the global lock
|
||
for a shorter amount of time.
|
||
|
||
- The option `--timeout` (corresponding to the configuration setting
|
||
`build-timeout`) allows you to set an absolute timeout on builds —
|
||
if a build runs for more than the given number of seconds, it is
|
||
terminated. This is useful for recovering automatically from builds
|
||
that are stuck in an infinite loop but keep producing output, and
|
||
for which `--max-silent-time` is ineffective.
|
||
|
||
- Nix development has moved to GitHub
|
||
(<https://github.com/NixOS/nix>).
|