Changes between Nix and Determinate Nix

This section lists the differences between upstream Nix 2.31 and Determinate Nix 3.11.2.

• In Determinate Nix, flakes are stable. You no longer need to enable the flakes experimental feature.

• In Determinate Nix, the new Nix CLI (i.e. the nix command) is stable. You no longer need to enable the nix-command experimental feature.

• Determinate Nix has a setting json-log-path to send a copy of all Nix log messages (in JSON format) to a file or Unix domain socket.

• Determinate Nix has made nix profile install an alias to nix profile add, a more symmetrical antonym of nix profile remove.

• nix-channel and channel: url syntax (like channel:nixos-24.11) is deprecated, see: https://github.com/DeterminateSystems/nix-src/issues/34

• Using indirect flake references and implicit inputs is deprecated, see: https://github.com/DeterminateSystems/nix-src/issues/37

• Warnings around "dirty trees" are updated to reduce "dirty" jargon, and now refers to "uncommitted changes".

• nix upgrade-nix is now inert, and suggests using determinate-nixd upgrade -- DeterminateSystems/nix-src#55

• Lazy Trees support has been merged. (DeterminateSystems/nix-src#27, DeterminateSystems/nix-src#56)

• Faster nix store copy-sigs by @edolstra in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#80

• Document how to replicate nix-store --query --deriver with the nix cli by @grahamc in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#82

• nix profile: Replace ε and ∅ with descriptive English words by @grahamc in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#81

• Call out that --keep-failed with remote builders will keep the failed build directory on that builder by @cole-h in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#85

• When remote building with --keep-failed, only show "you can rerun" message if the derivation's platform is supported on this machine by @cole-h in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#87

• Indicate that sandbox-paths specifies a missing file in the corresponding error message. by @cole-h in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#88

• Use FlakeHub inputs by @lucperkins in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#89

• Proactively cache more flake inputs and fetches by @edolstra in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#93

• Fix the link to builders-use-substitutes documentation for builders by @lucperkins in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#102

• Improve caching of inputs in dry-run mode by @edolstra in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#98

• Fix fetchToStore() caching with --impure, improve testing by @edolstra in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#117

• Add lazy-locks setting by @edolstra in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#113

• nix store delete now explains why deletion fails by @edolstra in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#130

• nix flake check: Skip substitutable derivations by @edolstra in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#134

• Address ifdef problem with macOS/BSD sandboxing by @gustavderdrache in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#142

• ci: don't run the full test suite for x86_64-darwin by @grahamc in DeterminateSystems/nix-src#144

• Add an external-builders experimental feature DeterminateSystems/nix-src#141, DeterminateSystems/nix-src#78

• Tab completing arguments to Nix avoids network access DeterminateSystems/nix-src#161

• Importing Nixpkgs and other tarballs to the cache is 2-4x faster DeterminateSystems/nix-src#149

• Adding paths to the store is significantly faster DeterminateSystems/nix-src#162

• Build-time flake inputs DeterminateSystems/nix-src#49

• The default nix flake init template is much more useful DeterminateSystems/nix-src#180

• Multithreaded evaluation support DeterminateSystems/nix-src#125

• Fix some interactions with the registry and flakes that include a ?dir= parameter DeterminateSystems/nix-src#196, DeterminateSystems/nix-src#199

• Only try to substitute input if fetching from its original location fails DeterminateSystems/nix-src#202