DistroIndependentRolling or fixed
NixOS
A pioneering distribution where entire system configurations are declared in code, enabling reproducible builds and instant rollbacks.
At a glance
NixOS
- Family
- Independent
- First release
- 2003
- Release model
- Rolling or fixed (channels: unstable / stable)
- Package manager
- nix (Nixpkgs ecosystem)
- Init system
- systemd
- Architecture
- x86_64, aarch64, riscv64
- Installer
- Calamares or CLI
- Default desktop
- GNOME (KDE Plasma or custom desktop declared in config)
Overview
NixOS approaches system administration fundamentally differently from traditional distributions. The entire operating system—including packages, services, and kernel parameters—is specified declaratively in configuration files.
Because state changes are transactional and immutable, system updates never overwrite live libraries. If a configuration breaks boot or an application, you can instantly roll back to any earlier working generation.
Is it for you?
Good fit if you…
- want reproducible, version-controlled system configurations across machines
- rely on effortless rollbacks when experimental upgrades cause issues
- enjoy declarative infrastructure and functional package management concepts
Look elsewhere if you…
- need standard FHS filesystem paths for arbitrary binary executables (try Debian or Fedora)
- want a simple traditional distro without learning the Nix configuration language (try Linux Mint or Ubuntu)
Everyday commands
Full cheat sheet →sudo nixos-rebuild switchsudo nixos-rebuild switch --upgradenix-shell -p <package>nix search nixpkgs <query>nix-collect-garbage -dOfficial resources
- NixOS Manual ↗nixos.org
- Nixpkgs Search ↗search.nixos.org
- Download ↗nixos.org