[Nix-dev] nix-shell unpackPhase does not work on my system

[Massimo Zaniboni]

Only for reference in case someone is reading this thread: I opened an 
issue at https://github.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/issues/9393



On 20/08/2015 19:05, Massimo Zaniboni wrote:
> Hi,
>
> if I *not install*
>
>    nix-env -i bash
>
> and I execute the command
>
>    nix-shell '<nixpkgs>' -A hello
>
> I don't enter into a nix-shell environment, but there is no error
> message, and also
>
>    echo $?
>    0
>
> signals that it is all ok. But this is not the case, because the
> nix-shell never started: the prompt remain the normal prompt, and not
> the nix-shell special prompt. So this is a bad behaviour of nix-shell
> that at least must signal an error message.
>
> On the contrary if I * first install*
>
>    nix-env -i bash
>
> then
>
>    nix-shell '<nixpkgs>' -A hello
>
> starts correctly, also if I'm calling it from the native bash of Mint,
> and not from the bash of Nix. Probably nix-shell calls the bash of Nix,
> and in this case it finds it because I installed it.
>
> I'm probably in a strange case respect normal Nix usage, because I start
> as normal user, with no Nix profile installed. So the bash shell is
> always the bash of Mint in my case.
>
> A work-around is inserting into the installation manual/wiki, the
> suggested command
>
>   nix-env -i bash
>
> so all nix-shell commands will work as expected.
>
> Can be a proper analysis of the problem?
>
> Regards,
> Massimo
>
>
> On 20/08/2015 18:27, Massimo Zaniboni wrote:
>> Problem fixed :-) But the solution is a little "strange", and I don't
>> know if it is better improving the Wiki.
>>
>> I installed the bash of Nix
>>
>>    nix-env -i bash
>>
>> Then I executed
>>
>>    bash
>>
>> Then nix-shell is working
>>
>>    nix-shell '<nixpkgs>' -A hello
>>    unpackPhase
>>    configurePhase
>>    buildPhase
>>
>> On Nix
>>
>>    which bash
>>    /home/zanibonim/.nix-profile/bin/bash
>>    bash-4.3$ bash --version
>>    GNU bash, versione 4.3.39(1)-release (x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu)
>>
>> On Mint
>>
>>    which bash
>>    /bin/bash
>>    bash --version
>>    GNU bash, versione 4.3.11(1)-release (x86_64-pc-linux-gnu)
>>
>> So is it a requirement of Nix, that the hosting shell must be the same
>> shell shipped with Nix?
>>
>> When I need to run Nix, I manually execute
>>
>>    source /home/zanibonim/.nix-profile/etc/profile.d/nix.sh
>>
>> so by default in my case, the Bash shell is the shell shipped with Mint,
>> because at login/startup, no Nix package is never called.
>>
>> Regards,
>> Massimo
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On 20/08/2015 18:13, Massimo Zaniboni wrote:
>>>> But on my Mint system, the nix-shell does not see the "configurePhase"
>>>> and all other "*Phase" commands.
>>>
>>> I tried also on a Mint system installed from scratch on a distinct VM,
>>> for excluding problems on my system.
>>>
>>>