lix/doc/manual/src/quick-start.md

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# Quick Start
This chapter is for impatient people who don't like reading
documentation. For more in-depth information you are kindly referred
to subsequent chapters.
1. Install Nix by running the following:
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```console
$ curl -L https://nixos.org/nix/install | sh
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```
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The install script will use `sudo`, so make sure you have sufficient rights.
On Linux, `--daemon` can be omitted for a single-user install.
For other installation methods, see [here](installation/installation.md).
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1. See what installable packages are currently available in the
channel:
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```console
$ nix-env --query --available --attr-path
nixpkgs.docbook_xml_dtd_43 docbook-xml-4.3
nixpkgs.docbook_xml_dtd_45 docbook-xml-4.5
nixpkgs.firefox firefox-33.0.2
nixpkgs.hello hello-2.9
nixpkgs.libxslt libxslt-1.1.28
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```
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1. Install some packages from the channel:
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```console
$ nix-env --install --attr nixpkgs.hello
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```
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This should download pre-built packages; it should not build them
locally (if it does, something went wrong).
1. Test that they work:
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```console
$ which hello
/home/eelco/.nix-profile/bin/hello
$ hello
Hello, world!
```
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1. Uninstall a package:
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```console
$ nix-env --uninstall hello
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```
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1. You can also test a package without installing it:
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```console
$ nix-shell --profile hello
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```
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This builds or downloads GNU Hello and its dependencies, then drops
you into a Bash shell where the `hello` command is present, all
without affecting your normal environment:
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```console
[nix-shell:~]$ hello
Hello, world!
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[nix-shell:~]$ exit
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$ hello
hello: command not found
```
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1. To keep up-to-date with the channel, do:
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```console
$ nix-channel --update nixpkgs
$ nix-env --upgrade '*'
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```
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The latter command will upgrade each installed package for which
there is a “newer” version (as determined by comparing the version
numbers).
1. If you're unhappy with the result of a `nix-env` action (e.g., an
upgraded package turned out not to work properly), you can go back:
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```console
$ nix-env --rollback
```
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1. You should periodically run the Nix garbage collector to get rid of
unused packages, since uninstalls or upgrades don't actually delete
them:
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```console
$ nix-collect-garbage --delete-old
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```