lix/doc/manual/rl-next/registry-add-shorthand-only.md

---
synopsis: "`nix registry add` now requires a shorthand flakeref on the 'from' side"
cls: 1494
credits: delan
category: Improvements
---

The 'from' argument must now be a shorthand flakeref like `nixpkgs` or `nixpkgs/nixos-20.03`, making it harder to accidentally swap the 'from' and 'to' arguments.

Registry entries that map from other flake URLs can still be specified in registry.json, the `nix.registry` option in NixOS, or the `--override-flake` option in the CLI, but they are not guaranteed to work correctly.
Reject fully-qualified URLs in 'from' argument of `nix registry add` We previously allowed you to map any flake URL to any other flake URL, including shorthand flakerefs, indirect flake URLs like `flake:nixpkgs`, direct flake URLs like `github:NixOS/nixpkgs`, or local paths. But flake registry entries mapping from direct flake URLs often come from swapping the 'from' and 'to' arguments by accident, and even when created intentionally, they may not actually work correctly. This patch rejects those URLs (and fully-qualified flake: URLs), making it harder to swap the arguments by accident. Fixes #181. Change-Id: I24713643a534166c052719b8770a4edfcfdb8cf3 2024-06-22 15:00:59 +00:00			`---`
			synopsis: "`nix registry add` now requires a shorthand flakeref on the 'from' side"
			`cls: 1494`
			`credits: delan`
			`category: Improvements`
			`---`

			The 'from' argument must now be a shorthand flakeref like `nixpkgs` or `nixpkgs/nixos-20.03`, making it harder to accidentally swap the 'from' and 'to' arguments.

			Registry entries that map from other flake URLs can still be specified in registry.json, the `nix.registry` option in NixOS, or the `--override-flake` option in the CLI, but they are not guaranteed to work correctly.