`nix-store --delete` is intended to gc closures and simply does not do that #495

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opened 2024-08-30 05:50:27 +00:00 by jade · 3 comments

jade commented

2024-08-30 05:50:27 +00:00

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If we look at the code for the garbage collector, we observe that it is actually supposed to delete the referrers:

https://git.lix.systems/lix-project/lix/src/370ac940dd7816ad4052fafa4e0f8d17784fa16b/src/libstore/gc.cc#L750-L760

This is also somewhat of a root cause of the UX issue in #282. That UX issue is still real, but it appears that this entire command is actually broken and not working as designed.

If we look at the code for the garbage collector, we observe that it is actually supposed to delete the referrers: https://git.lix.systems/lix-project/lix/src/370ac940dd7816ad4052fafa4e0f8d17784fa16b/src/libstore/gc.cc#L750-L760 This is also somewhat of a root cause of the UX issue in https://git.lix.systems/lix-project/lix/issues/282. That UX issue is still real, but it appears that this *entire command* is actually *broken* and not working as designed.

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2024-08-30 05:50:27 +00:00

jade referenced this issue

2024-08-30 05:56:00 +00:00

nix store delete/nix-store --delete cannot delete paths with self-references #494

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2024-09-09 02:29:24 +00:00

jade commented

2025-01-23 04:52:09 +00:00

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this rings a bell but I'm not sure what about. it might be fixed, but i have no evidence.

lix-bot commented

2025-03-09 15:21:33 +00:00

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This issue was mentioned on Gerrit on the following CLs:

comment in cl/2783 ("libstore/gc: restore deletion of referrers")
commit message in cl/2786 ("libstore/gc: restore deletion of referrers")
commit message in cl/2783 ("libstore/gc: restore deletion of referrers")

This issue was mentioned on Gerrit on the following CLs: * comment in [cl/2783](https://gerrit.lix.systems/c/lix/+/2783) ("libstore/gc: restore deletion of referrers") * commit message in [cl/2786](https://gerrit.lix.systems/c/lix/+/2786) ("libstore/gc: restore deletion of referrers") * commit message in [cl/2783](https://gerrit.lix.systems/c/lix/+/2783) ("libstore/gc: restore deletion of referrers")

lix-project referenced this issue from a commit

2025-03-09 21:42:09 +00:00

libstore/gc: restore deletion of referrers

lix-project closed this issue

2025-03-09 21:42:09 +00:00

lisanna-dettwyler commented

2026-04-24 13:02:35 +00:00

I think this is a misreading of the code, the check that was preventing this was introduced at the same time as the deleteReferrersClosure function, in github.com/NixOS/nix@eab934cb2a (diff-07fc1ace3). I think the function name is meant only that it will try to delete referrers, if they're in the pathsToDelete or you're performing a garbage collection.

@lheckemann

I think this is a misreading of the code, the check that was preventing this was introduced at the same time as the `deleteReferrersClosure` function, in https://github.com/NixOS/nix/commit/eab934cb2a23595a7ac7c8a72373cd8096b606a9#diff-07fc1ace31833e9e15b43ff87b2e44726feba7431c541de3662e77220bb8698fR727. I think the function name is meant only that it will try to delete referrers, if they're in the `pathsToDelete` or you're performing a garbage collection. @lheckemann