[Submitted on 13 Apr 2026 (v1), last revised 10 Jul 2026 (this version, v2)]

View PDF

Abstract:Software deployment suffers from numerous problems pertaining, for example, to reproducibility and dependency resolution. Many of these problems have been successfully solved by the purely functional approach to package management implemented in the Nix project. However, Nix does not solve all issues, and it does introduce some novel problems of its own. Therefore, the aim of this thesis is to conduct a literature review on the current state of research on Nix and to determine the direction of future research.
The first part of this paper explores the problems historically faced in different areas of software deployment, e.g., irreproducibility and dependency resolution issues. The main four categories of software deployment tools analyzed are build systems, package managers, configuration management, and development environments. Popular software from each category serve as case studies to illustrate the problems. The second part introduces Nix and explains the methods utilized to solve some of the problems introduced in the earlier part.
Because Nix is the first large project to utilize the purely functional approach, it is far from a perfect solution. Thus, the third part is dedicated to analyzing the new problems that Nix introduces, as well as old problems, which Nix has been unable to solve, such as trust and granular incremental builds. Furthermore, some proposed state of the art solutions put forth by the Nix community are discussed.

Submission history

From: Matias Zwinger [view email]
[v1] Mon, 13 Apr 2026 12:41:00 UTC (1,295 KB)
[v2] Fri, 10 Jul 2026 16:44:37 UTC (1,295 KB)

Current browse context:

cs.SE

Bookmark

Bibliographic and Citation Tools

Code, Data and Media Associated with this Article

Demos

Recommenders and Search Tools

arXivLabs: experimental projects with community collaborators

arXivLabs is a framework that allows collaborators to develop and share new arXiv features directly on our website.

Both individuals and organizations that work with arXivLabs have embraced and accepted our values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. arXiv is committed to these values and only works with partners that adhere to them.

Have an idea for a project that will add value for arXiv's community? Learn more about arXivLabs.