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Add meeting-notes/2025-01-30nixos_deploy_session.md

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Koen de Jonge 2025-01-31 12:45:56 +01:00
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***Deployment workflow knowledge sharing (disguised as a usability test for our project documentation)***
***Attendees:*** Koen, Kiara, Valentin, Nicolas, Kevin
***Notes&moderation:*** Valentin
* Kevin drives, Nicolas navigates
* Task: deploy some program to an unsed VM
* Start at Fediversity/Fediversity: README.md
* Need to add public key to ./keys/contributors/keys
* TODO: no docs there why we need the keys and how to add them:
* keys used to decrypt secrets stored in the repo
* https://git.fediversity.eu/Fediversity/Fediversity/issues/84
* TODO: document that review process needs rekeying https://git.fediversity.eu/Fediversity/Fediversity/issues/85
* TODO: use keys for machine access, too https://git.fediversity.eu/Fediversity/Fediversity/issues/83
* Inspecting ./services
* TODO: Rewrite the introduction https://git.fediversity.eu/Fediversity/Fediversity/issues/86
* TODO: update Pixelfed service to use an actual secret https://git.fediversity.eu/Fediversity/Fediversity/issues/87
* Added an SSH public key and re-keyed
* Tried redeploying the VM to provide the newly added contributor with machine access
* TODO: check NixOps4 interfaces in a test https://git.fediversity.eu/Fediversity/Fediversity/issues/90
* A machine was not available any more and NixOps4 broke for us after an update
* Workaround: https://git.fediversity.eu/Fediversity/Fediversity/pulls/91
* TODO: https://git.fediversity.eu/Fediversity/Fediversity/issues/90
* Adding cowsay to a VM
* Tested if it's already in the VM's environment: no
* Added it to the VM's config
* Ran into a code organisation issue that prevents the change as is
* TODO: https://git.fediversity.eu/Fediversity/Fediversity/issues/93
* Had some trouble getting `nixops4` to run
* TODO: https://git.fediversity.eu/Fediversity/Fediversity/issues/94
* For some reason NixOps4 is building Nix, takes a while
* Ran cowsay after a successful deployment
* Finished in 2:20h!
* Debrief:
* Koen: There were a lot of moving parts. Would like this to be more of a linear run-through guided by documentation.
* Eventually I want to be able to do this myself, I'm exactly the target audience of this tooling
* Target should be about 30 min to get from nothing to the deployment given solid Linux experience
* Kiara: Learned the overall flow, should be able to get there a lot faster on Monday
* I might be close to the target audience, but it's still very geared towards somewhat experienced Nix users
* Kevin:
* Most frustrating: Didn't know what I was doing, just following arbitrary-sounding instructions
* Surprisingly easy: Applying the configuration to the deployment just worked (although getting there was hard)
* What to change (assuming roadblocks removed): Nothing, seems about right. The problem were the roadblocks and lack of written sequential instructions
* Nicolas:
* Process felt painful; may be biased from having it working on my end.
* Documentation is pretty much lacking, this is the biggest issue; far from being content with the current state
* Part of it will be NixOps4 docs, part Nix docs
* Leaking errors from any of those will confuse users not intimately familiar with both
* Need to figure out how to factor those workflows in documentation; e.g. adding keys, factoring configurations are independent problems, can't put them in a meaningful sequence
* Valentin:
* Not surprised it took so long; the whole point was to reveal implicit assumptions
* Since this project is largely a big integrator, we probably have to (co-)own the UX for each of the underlying tools our users interact with
* Have to strike a balance with things we can fix upstream or where we have to paper over them with a custom wrapper/interface or documentation
* We should probably map the entire user story starting with essentially two bare machines (client and deployment target), and then work through and iterate on it until it's smooth
* Client: Freshly installed Debian machine with one user on it
* Server: Empty machine
* Decision: Do this once a week to derive tasks for the following days. Record the process and outcomes.
* Next week:
* Start with two fresh machines: Client (Debian) and server (empty)
* Install Nix and configure a user environment on the client
* Pull the Fediversity repo and create a minimal NixOS ISO
* Install NixOS with Proxmox-nix on the server:
* Boot the installer ISO
* Deploy to the machine via NixOps4 from a config in Fediversity repo