chrisanthropic/nixos-raspi4.md

## nixos-raspi4.md

      
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              nixos-raspi4.md
            
          
    Download the image builder


git clone git@github.com:Robertof/nixos-docker-sd-image-builder.git
cd nixos-docker-sd-image-builder

Configure for Raspi4


modify /config/rpi4/default.nix to increase size of boot partition

this step is optional but I ran out of space in /boot pretty quickly with the default setting since I'm still learning and rebuilding a lot. Let's leave some room for trial & error.
sdImage.firmwareSize = 1024;


modify /config/sd-image.nix

./rpi3 becomes ./rpi4
"ssh-ed25519 ..." becomes your public key


modify /docker/docker-compose.yml

#DISABLE_ZFS_IN_INSTALLER: "y" becomes uncommented


Disables ZFS support in the installer. This can significantly reduce build times of the Raspberry Pi 4 image.


Build image


./run.sh

Cleaup


./run.sh down --rmi all -v

Burn image to sdcard


lsblk
dd bs=4M if=nixos-sd-image-20.03post-git-aarch64-linux.img of=/dev/sdX status=progress oflag=sync

/dev/sdX should be your sdcard listed in lsblk


SSH in


put the sdcard in your pi, plug your pi in to ethernet, plug in the power
wait a minute or so for the pi to boot and get an IP
I checked my router for the IP that was assigned
ping $IP
ssh -i ~/.ssh/$YOUR_PRIVKEY nixos@$IP

Generate base config


this will write a custom hardware config and the default configuration.nix file.

sudo su
nixos-generate-config
exit

Working Examples

Review your hardware config


cat /etc/nixos/hardware-configuration.nix

{ config, lib, pkgs, ... }:

{
  imports =
    [ <nixpkgs/nixos/modules/installer/scan/not-detected.nix>
    ];

  boot.initrd.availableKernelModules = [ ];
  boot.initrd.kernelModules = [ ];
  boot.kernelModules = [ ];
  boot.extraModulePackages = [ ];

  fileSystems."/" =
    { device = "/dev/disk/by-uuid/44444444-4444-4444-8888-888888888888";
      fsType = "ext4";
    };

  fileSystems."/boot" =
    { device = "/dev/disk/by-uuid/2178-694E";
      fsType = "vfat";
    };

  swapDevices = [ ];

  nix.maxJobs = lib.mkDefault 4;
  powerManagement.cpuFreqGovernor = lib.mkDefault "ondemand";
} 

Review and modify your system config


sudo su
vi /etc/nixos/configuration.nix

You'll want to update the username ($USERNAME), and ssh key ($YOUR_PUBLIC_KEY)


{ config, libs, pkgs, ... }:

{
  environment.systemPackages = with pkgs; [
    vim
  ];
  
  system.stateVersion = "20.03";
  imports =
    [ 
      ./hardware-configuration.nix
    ];

  boot = {
    loader.grub.enable = false;
    loader.raspberryPi.enable = true;
    loader.raspberryPi.version = 4;
    kernelPackages = pkgs.linuxPackages_rpi4;
  };

  console = {
    font = "Lat2-Terminus16";
    keyMap = "us";
  };
  
  # i18n.defaultLocale = "en_US.UTF-8";
  # time.timeZone = "America/Los_Angeles";
  
  networking = {
    hostName = "nixos";
    useDHCP = false;
    interfaces.eth0.useDHCP = true;
  };

  services.openssh = {
    enable = true;
    permitRootLogin = "yes";
    passwordAuthentication = false;
    challengeResponseAuthentication = false;
  };
  
  systemd.services.sshd.wantedBy = pkgs.lib.mkForce [ "multi-user.target" ];
  
  users.users.$USERNAME = {
    isNormalUser = true;
    home = "/home/$USERNAME";
    extraGroups = [ "wheel" "networkmanager" ];
    openssh.authorizedKeys.keys = [ "$YOUR_PUBLIC_KEY" ];
  };
  
}

Rebuild your system with your new config


nixos-rebuild switch

Create password for your new user

You'll need this to be able to use sudo

passwd $USERNAME

Replace $USERNAME with the actual username you created above


Test it


Reboot and SSH in

reboot
ssh -i ~/.ssh/$YOUR_KEY $YOUR_USERNAME@$PI_IP


test sudo

sudo su


Continue with basic configuration


locale
timzeone
hostname

(Optional) Setup Home Manager


https://nixos.wiki/wiki/Home_Manager

(Optional) Graphics / Desktop Environment


xorg
alsa/pulse
graphics card driver
kde/plasma5

Useful links


Building your base image: https://github.com/Robertof/nixos-docker-sd-image-builder
ALL the options avilable to configure your new system:

List: https://nixos.org/nixos/manual/options.html
Searchable: https://nixos.org/nixos/options.html#


Nest Steps


How to run Docker containers the declarative nix way: https://www.breakds.org/post/declarative-docker-in-nixos/
I erase my systems at every boot: https://grahamc.com/blog/erase-your-darlings