NixOS mipsel port (was: Re: [Nix-dev] Stuck on "Install NixOS on Linode" - bootstrap archives download)

[Daniel Clark]

2010/7/1 Lluís Batlle i Rossell <viriketo at gmail.com>:
> Hello,
>
> On Thu, Jul 01, 2010 at 02:11:52PM -0400, Daniel Clark wrote:
>> > About mipsel, I only own a OpenWRT system mipsel, where I cross-built nixpkgs
>> > programs fine. But that machine cannot stand a native build easily :)
>>
>> If that's all that is holding you back, my company has a developer's
>> program; we could send you (or another interested NixOS community
>> member) a faster mipsel box for free - if interested send me your
>> address and phone # (needed by shippers) off-list.
>
> I don't mind the speed that much - the lack of a proper amount of RAM (12MB in
> that machine) disallows the usage of a hungry compilers like GNU's (the only
> ones working fine enough for nixpkgs builds).

Ah. This would be a Lemote Fuloong, a ~800MHz mipsel 64-bit box with
1GB, very small and low power consumption.

> I did the effort for the sheevaplug because:
> - I wanted a server at home, and I wanted it to be low power. And I found the
>  Sheevaplug affordable for my pocket, and I found it quite open, in terms of
>  software running in it; I thank its easy JTAG and openocd.
> - I wanted only to manage NixOS systems.
>
> Now, having the experience, some cross-platform facilities, and cross-build
> facilities in nixpkgs, I think that porting to another platform can be quite
> trivial.
>
> But I don't envise in the next days my willing to do the effort of porting to a
> system that I don't know what I would use it for. If you think I could use that
> "mipsel box" for something, or maybe you think that others will find a good
> benefit of a NixOS port to it, then I may accept that box without remorse. :)

I think the use case would be roughly the same; the mipsel box has
twice the RAM and internal 2.5" hard drive, and also video, and is a
little bit bigger ( about the size of a CD drive -
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/90/Fulong-MiniPC.jpg/250px-Fulong-MiniPC.jpg
)

It needs stuff to be compiled with a specific set of gcc flags to make
full use of its instruction set (I can provide these). So far only
Gentoo has this support; I'd much rather run NixOS than Gentoo, so if
you did use it I could guarantee at least 2 users and 8 machines
running it :)

> In one year there has been zero other users of the Nixos armv5tel port. :) But
> I'm very happy with it - it works great at home.

That's good to hear.

Also usually when a developer accepts a free machine the time frame to
do something useful with it before we bug them is more in the order of
months.

-- 
        \|/      Daniel JB Clark | Activist; Owner
FREEDOM -+-> INCLUDED ~ http://freedomincluded.com
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