2022/11/09/Nix issue

the Nix upgrade script issue: Day Two

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Jacob Helwig suggested that I look at user groups. My user (woozle, i.e. my usual login on this machine) is indeed not in the nix-users group -- but adding myself to the nix-users group doesn't seem to help:

woozle@SamEagle:~/nextcloud/statler/woozle/projects/web/Mastodon/TootCat/nixos-config$ nix develop --extra-experimental-features nix-command
error: getting status of /nix/var/nix/daemon-socket/socket: Permission denied

Permissions Problem [SOLVED]

Invoking sudo does at least produce a different result:

woozle@SamEagle:~/nextcloud/statler/woozle/projects/web/Mastodon/TootCat/nixos-config$ sudo nix develop --extra-experimental-features nix-command
error: experimental Nix feature 'flakes' is disabled; use '--extra-experimental-features flakes' to override

I don't recall needing to jump through these hoops when I first ran this script, successfully, some months ago... but maybe it makes a difference that I'm now using a distro (Linux Mint 21) that is a little bit behind the distro I was using then (Ubuntu-MATE 22.04). Maybe Nix can be used to update itself to the most recent version?

A Nixpert (I don't know if she wants credit/identification) in the TootCat Discord is providing me with some more information, as is shadow!admin. The following command should override the error messages:

nix --extra-experimental-features 'nix-command flakes' develop

Explanation for why "develop" is outside the single-quotes: "develop is a subcommand. this is just nix develop but with some features enabled." I don't entirely understand that, but maybe it will make sense later, and it gives me a bit more context.

error: experimental Nix feature 'nix-command' is disabled; use '--extra-experimental-features nix-command' to override
woozle@SamEagle:~/nextcloud/statler/woozle/projects/web/Mastodon/TootCat/nixos-config$ nix --extra-experimental-features 'nix-command flakes' develop
error: getting status of /nix/var/nix/daemon-socket/socket: Permission denied

/sidetrack: why won't usermod work. [SOLVED]

Working Here

Take 1:

woozle@SamEagle:~/nextcloud/statler/woozle/projects/web/Mastodon/TootCat/nixos-config$ nix develop --extra-experimental-features nix-command
error: experimental Nix feature 'flakes' is disabled; use '--extra-experimental-features flakes' to override

Take 2:

woozle@SamEagle:~/nextcloud/statler/woozle/projects/web/Mastodon/TootCat/nixos-config$ nix --extra-experimental-features 'nix-command flakes' develop
warning: Git tree '/mnt/teralap/home/woozle/nextcloud/statler/woozle/projects/web/Mastodon/TootCat/nixos-config' is dirty
error: flake 'git+file:///mnt/teralap/home/woozle/nextcloud/statler/woozle/projects/web/Mastodon/TootCat/nixos-config' does not provide attribute 'devShells.x86_64-linux.devShell.x86_64-linux', 'packages.x86_64- linux.devShell.x86_64-linux', 'legacyPackages.x86_64-linux.devShell.x86_64-linux', 'devShell.x86_64-linux' or 'defaultPackage.x86_64-linux'

Hmm...

woozle@SamEagle:~/nextcloud/statler/woozle/projects/web/Mastodon/TootCat/nixos-config$ git pull origin
Already up to date.
woozle@SamEagle:~/nextcloud/statler/woozle/projects/web/Mastodon/TootCat/nixos-config$ git status
"git-crypt" clean: 1: git-crypt: not found
error: external filter '"git-crypt" clean' failed 127
error: external filter '"git-crypt" clean' failed
fatal: secrets/mastodon/aws-secret-access-key: clean filter 'git-crypt' failed

Well, that obviously means something.

After installing git-crypt on the local system (which feels a bit like whacking the side of the TV, as opposed to knowing what I'm doing), it's now this:

woozle@SamEagle:~/nextcloud/statler/woozle/projects/web/Mastodon/TootCat/nixos-config$ git status
On branch main
Your branch is up to date with 'origin/main'.

Changes not staged for commit:
  (use "git add <file>..." to update what will be committed)
  (use "git restore <file>..." to discard changes in working directory)
	modified:   update.sh

no changes added to commit (use "git add" and/or "git commit -a")

...but the nix command still gives the same error.