nixman

A Nix-inspired package manager for Arch Linux, designed to make system package management reproducible, auditable, and scriptable—without overstepping into areas you want to control yourself.

Features

• Track and manage installed packages using a simple YAML file (packages.yml)
• Install, remove, and list packages with pacman or paru from the command line
• Freeze your current package state to YAML (optionally with versions)
• Apply a YAML configuration to synchronize installed packages
• Update all packages and update the YAML
• Library API: Use as a Rust library to programmatically manipulate pacman packages

Why?

Arch Linux is powerful, but keeping your package list in sync across machines is tedious. nixman lets you:

• Reproduce your package set on a new install by copying your YAML file and running nixman apply --pacstrap
• Track your package state in version control
• Share your package list with others
• Script package management tasks in Rust

Unlike NixOS, nixman does not automate partitioning, timezones, or other system setup—just package management. You keep full control over your install process.

Quickstart

1. Install

You can install nixman using Cargo, either from crates.io or from your local clone:

From crates.io:

cargo install nixman

From a local clone:

git clone https://github.com/ofluffydev/nixman.git
cd nixman
cargo install --path .

2. Track Your Packages

Freeze your current package list to YAML:

nixman freeze

This creates (or updates) ~/.config/nixman/packages.yml.

3. Apply on a New System

Copy your packages.yml to the new system, then run:

nixman apply --pacstrap

This will install all packages listed in the YAML using pacstrap (for initial installs) or pacman/paru.

4. Install/Remove Packages

Install a package and update your YAML:

nixman -S htop

Remove a package and update your YAML:

nixman -R htop

5. Update All Packages

nixman update

YAML Format

The YAML file is simple and versioned:

packages:
  - name: htop
    version: 3.2.2-1
  - name: neovim
    version: 0.9.5-2
  - git

You can edit this file by hand and/or keep it in git.

Paru and AUR Packages

If you want to use the --paru flag (for installing/removing AUR packages), paru must be installed on your system. If your YAML file contains AUR packages and you do not have paru installed, nixman will fail to install or remove those packages.

Note: Bootstrapping a new system (e.g., with --pacstrap) that includes AUR packages in your YAML is currently unsupported. You can use the --continue flag to ignore failed packages and circumvent this limitation, but you will need to manually install AUR packages or rerun with --paru after the initial bootstrap.

Library Usage

You can use nixman as a Rust library to programmatically manage packages:

use nixman::{ensure_yml, write_package_list_to_yaml, parse_explicit_packages};
let yml_path = ensure_yml().unwrap();
let pkgs = parse_explicit_packages("htop 1.0.0-1", true);
write_package_list_to_yaml(&pkgs, &yml_path).unwrap();

Philosophy

• Reproducibility: Track your package state in a single YAML file
• Transparency: No magic—just a thin wrapper over pacman/paru
• Manual is good: You still handle partitioning, timezones, and dotfiles
• Scriptable: Use as a CLI or as a Rust library

FAQ

Q: Does this replace Nix or NixOS?

A: No. This is for Arch users who want reproducible package management, not full system declarativity.

Q: Can I use this with AUR packages?

A: Yes! Use the --paru flag to install/remove AUR packages with paru. Note: If your YAML contains AUR packages, you must have paru installed, or those packages will not be handled.

Q: What about dotfiles, system config, etc?

A: nixman only manages packages. Use your favorite dotfile manager for the rest, optionally including your packages.yml in version control.

Contributing

PRs and issues welcome! See the issues tab for more.

License

MIT OR Apache-2.0