Installer
Our installer image simplifies the process of performing remote installations.
Follow our step-by-step guide to create and transfer this image onto a bootable USB drive.
Info
If you already have a NixOS machine you can ssh into (in the cloud for example) you can skip this chapter and go directly to Configure Machines.
Step 0. Prerequisites
- A free USB Drive with at least 1.5GB (All data on it will be lost)
- Linux/NixOS Machine with Internet
Step 1. Identify the USB Flash Drive
-
Insert your USB flash drive into your computer.
-
Identify your flash drive with
lsblk
:NAME MAJ:MIN RM SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINTS sdb 8:0 1 117,2G 0 disk └─sdb1 8:1 1 117,2G 0 part /run/media/qubasa/INTENSO nvme0n1 259:0 0 1,8T 0 disk ├─nvme0n1p1 259:1 0 512M 0 part /boot └─nvme0n1p2 259:2 0 1,8T 0 part └─luks-f7600028-9d83-4967-84bc-dd2f498bc486 254:0 0 1,8T 0 crypt /nix/store
In this case the USB device is
sdb
-
Ensure all partitions on the drive are unmounted. Replace
sdb1
in the command below with your device identifier (likesdc1
, etc.):
Step 2. Flash Custom Installer
Using clan flash enables the inclusion of ssh public keys and wifi access points. It also allows to set language and keymap in the installer image.
clan flash write --flake git+https://git.clan.lol/clan/clan-core \
--ssh-pubkey $HOME/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub \
--keymap us \
--language en_US.UTF-8 \
--disk main /dev/sd<X> \
flash-installer
Note
Replace $HOME/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub
with a path to your SSH public key.
Replace /dev/sd<X>
with the drive path you want to flash
Specifying the wrong device can lead to unrecoverable data loss.
The clan flash
utility will erase the disk. Make sure to specify the correct device
-
SSH-Pubkey Option: To add an ssh public key into the installer image append the option:
If you do not have an ssh key yet, you can generate one withssh-keygen -t ed25519
command. -
List Keymaps: You can get a list of all keymaps with the following command:
-
List Languages: You can get a list of all languages with the following command:
Step 2. Download Generic Installer
For x86_64:
wget https://github.com/nix-community/nixos-images/releases/download/nixos-unstable/nixos-installer-x86_64-linux.iso
For generic arm64 / aarch64 (probably does not work on raspberry pi...)
wget https://github.com/nix-community/nixos-images/releases/download/nixos-unstable/nixos-installer-aarch64-linux.iso
Note
If you don't have wget
installed, you can use curl --progress-bar -OL <url>
instead.
Step 2.5 Flash the Installer to the USB Drive
Specifying the wrong device can lead to unrecoverable data loss.
The dd
utility will erase the disk. Make sure to specify the correct device (of=...
)
For example if the USB device is sdb
use of=/dev/sdb
(on macOS it will look more like /dev/disk1)
On Linux, you can use the lsblk
utility to identify the correct disko
On macos use diskutil
:
Use the dd
utility to write the NixOS installer image to your USB drive.
Replace /dev/sd<X>
with your external drive from above.
Step 3: Boot From USB Stick
- To use, boot from the Clan USB drive with secure boot turned off. For step by step instructions go to Disabling Secure Boot
(Optional) Connect to Wifi Manually
If you don't have access via LAN the Installer offers support for connecting via Wifi.
This will enter iwd
Now run the following command to connect to your Wifi:
# Identify your network device.
device list
# Replace 'wlan0' with your wireless device name
# Find your Wifi SSID.
station wlan0 scan
station wlan0 get-networks
# Replace your_ssid with the Wifi SSID
# Connect to your network.
station wlan0 connect your_ssid
# Verify you are connected
station wlan0 show
If the connection was successful you should see something like this:
State connected
Connected network FRITZ!Box (Your router device)
IPv4 address 192.168.188.50 (Your new local ip)
Press Ctrl+D to exit IWD
.
Important
Press Ctrl+D again to update the displayed QR code and connection information.
You're all set up
What's next?
- Configure Machines: Customize machine configuration