README.md

@@ -45,6 +45,9 @@ nixos-config/
 git clone <this-repo> ~/nixos-config
 cd ~/nixos-config
 
+# Create the host directory (replace <hostname> with your actual hostname)
+mkdir -p hosts/<hostname>
+
 # Replace the placeholder hardware-configuration.nix with your actual one
 cp /etc/nixos/hardware-configuration.nix hosts/<hostname>/
 ```
@@ -60,10 +63,12 @@ Edit the following files and replace these placeholders:
 | `<timezone>` | `America/New_York` | `modules/common.nix` |
 | `<locale>` | `en_US.UTF-8` | `modules/common.nix` |
 
-Also rename `hosts/hostname/` to match your actual hostname.
+Also rename the `hosts/hostname/` directory to match your actual hostname, and ensure the same hostname is used for all `<hostname>` placeholders (including in `flake.nix`).
 
 ### 3. Stage Files in Git
 
+**IMPORTANT:** Flakes require all files to be tracked by git before building.
+
 ```bash
 cd ~/nixos-config
 git add .
@@ -78,11 +83,16 @@ nix flake show
 
 ### 5. Build and Switch
 
+**IMPORTANT:** Ensure all files are staged in git (step 3) before building.
+
 ```bash
 # Build and switch to dev config as main system profile
 sudo nixos-rebuild switch --flake .#dev
 
-# Build gaming config as separate boot profile
+# (Optional) Test gaming config without committing it as a boot option
+sudo nixos-rebuild test --flake .#gaming
+
+# Build gaming config as separate boot profile (available after next reboot)
 sudo nixos-rebuild boot --profile-name gaming --flake .#gaming
 ```
 
@@ -94,20 +104,22 @@ Boot menu should show:
 
 ## Updating
 
-**IMPORTANT:** Always update both profiles together to avoid kernel/Mesa version drift:
+**IMPORTANT:** Always update both profiles together to avoid kernel/Mesa version drift.
+
+### After Configuration Changes
 
 ```bash
 cd ~/nixos-config
-git add .
+git add .  # Stage your configuration changes
 sudo nixos-rebuild switch --flake .#dev
 sudo nixos-rebuild boot --profile-name gaming --flake .#gaming
 ```
 
-To update flake inputs:
+### Updating Flake Inputs Only
 
 ```bash
 nix flake update
-git add flake.lock
+git add flake.lock  # Only stage the lock file, not other changes
 sudo nixos-rebuild switch --flake .#dev
 sudo nixos-rebuild boot --profile-name gaming --flake .#gaming
 ```
@@ -124,19 +136,24 @@ sudo nixos-rebuild boot --profile-name gaming --flake .#gaming
 
 ### Change Password
 
+Generate a password hash and update `modules/common.nix`:
 ```bash
-passwd
+mkpasswd -m sha-512
+# Copy the output and replace <replace-with-password-hash> in common.nix
 ```
 
 ### Setup MangoWC
 
+MangoWC is configured to auto-start via greetd. To customize it:
+
 ```bash
 mkdir -p ~/.config/mango
 cp /etc/mango/config.conf ~/.config/mango/config.conf
 
-# Create autostart script
+# Create autostart script for Noctalia shell
 cat > ~/.config/mango/autostart.sh << 'EOF'
 #!/bin/bash
+# Ensure quickshell is in PATH (it should be as a user package)
 qs -c noctalia-shell &
 EOF
 chmod +x ~/.config/mango/autostart.sh
@@ -147,9 +164,13 @@ Add to `~/.config/mango/config.conf`:
 exec-once="~/.config/mango/autostart.sh"
 ```
 
-### Auto-start MangoWC from TTY
+### Dev Profile: Docker Access
 
-Add to `~/.bash_profile` or `~/.zprofile`:
+After switching to the dev profile for the first time, you must log out and log back in (or reboot) for Docker group membership to take effect.
+
+### Auto-start MangoWC from TTY (Alternative)
+
+If not using greetd, add to `~/.bash_profile` or `~/.zprofile`:
 ```bash
 if [[ -z $WAYLAND_DISPLAY ]] && [[ $(tty) == /dev/tty1 ]]; then
     exec mango

flake.nix

@@ -1,6 +1,9 @@
 {
   description = "NixOS - Isolated Gaming & Dev configurations";
 
+  # SECURITY NOTE: After first build, commit flake.lock to pin inputs to specific
+  # commits. Update via `nix flake update` only from trusted sources.
+  # This protects against supply-chain attacks from upstream changes.
   inputs = {
     nixpkgs.url = "github:NixOS/nixpkgs/nixos-unstable";
 
@@ -24,13 +27,18 @@
   outputs = { self, nixpkgs, mango, quickshell, noctalia, ... }@inputs:
   let
     system = "x86_64-linux";
+    lib = nixpkgs.lib;
     specialArgs = { inherit inputs system; };
 
+    # Verify mango flake exports the expected module
+    mangoModule = assert lib.hasAttrByPath [ "nixosModules" "mango" ] mango;
+      mango.nixosModules.mango;
+
     # IMPORTANT: Replace <hostname> with actual hostname
     commonModules = [
       ./hosts/<hostname>/hardware-configuration.nix
       ./modules/common.nix
-      mango.nixosModules.mango
+      mangoModule
     ];
   in {
     nixosConfigurations = {

hosts/hostname/hardware-configuration.nix

@@ -7,7 +7,8 @@
 # To generate a new hardware configuration, run:
 #   sudo nixos-generate-config --show-hardware-config > hardware-configuration.nix
 #
-# This placeholder will NOT work for actual system builds.
+# This placeholder will NOT work for actual system builds - the UUIDs below
+# are placeholders that must be replaced with your actual disk UUIDs.
 
 { config, lib, pkgs, modulesPath, ... }:
 
@@ -22,20 +23,21 @@
   boot.kernelModules = [ "kvm-amd" ];
   boot.extraModulePackages = [ ];
 
-  # Example filesystem configuration (replace with your actual mounts)
+  # IMPORTANT: Replace these UUIDs with your actual disk UUIDs
-  # fileSystems."/" = {
+  # Find your UUIDs with: lsblk -f
-  #   device = "/dev/disk/by-uuid/YOUR-ROOT-UUID";
+  fileSystems."/" = {
-  #   fsType = "ext4";
+    device = "/dev/disk/by-uuid/REPLACE-WITH-YOUR-ROOT-UUID";
-  # };
+    fsType = "ext4";
-  # 
+  };
-  # fileSystems."/boot" = {
+
-  #   device = "/dev/disk/by-uuid/YOUR-BOOT-UUID";
+  fileSystems."/boot" = {
-  #   fsType = "vfat";
+    device = "/dev/disk/by-uuid/REPLACE-WITH-YOUR-BOOT-UUID";
-  # };
+    fsType = "vfat";
-  # 
+  };
-  # swapDevices = [
+
-  #   { device = "/dev/disk/by-uuid/YOUR-SWAP-UUID"; }
+  swapDevices = [
-  # ];
+    { device = "/dev/disk/by-uuid/REPLACE-WITH-YOUR-SWAP-UUID"; }
+  ];
 
   # CPU microcode updates for AMD
   hardware.cpu.amd.updateMicrocode = lib.mkDefault config.hardware.enableRedistributableFirmware;

modules/common.nix

@@ -21,8 +21,8 @@
   # AMD GPU - RDNA 4 (RX 9060 XT) + Zen 3 CPU (5700G)
   # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
   
-  # CRITICAL: RDNA 4 requires navi44 firmware blobs
+  # RDNA 4 requires navi44 firmware blobs (included in redistributable firmware)
-  hardware.enableAllFirmware = true;
+  hardware.enableRedistributableFirmware = true;
   
   # Use the modern amdgpu NixOS module (cleaner than manual initrd config)
   hardware.amdgpu.initrd.enable = true;
@@ -69,6 +69,16 @@
   # Enable seatd for session management
   services.seatd.enable = true;
 
+  # Use greetd to automatically start a MangoWC session on login
+  services.greetd = {
+    enable = true;
+    settings.default_session = {
+      command = "mango";
+      # IMPORTANT: Replace <username> with actual username
+      user = "<username>";
+    };
+  };
+
   # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
   # USER ACCOUNT
   # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -76,8 +86,9 @@
   users.users.<username> = {
     isNormalUser = true;
     extraGroups = [ "wheel" "networkmanager" "video" "seat" ];
-    # Set initial password or use hashedPassword
+    # IMPORTANT: Generate a password hash with: mkpasswd -m sha-512
-    initialPassword = "changeme";
+    # Then replace the placeholder below with the generated hash
+    hashedPassword = "<replace-with-password-hash>";
     packages = with pkgs; [
       # -- Noctalia Shell --
       inputs.quickshell.packages.${system}.default
@@ -121,9 +132,9 @@
   # FONTS
   # --------------------------------------------------------------------------
   fonts.packages = with pkgs; [
-    # Nerd fonts - syntax changed in nixpkgs after 24.05
+    # Nerd fonts: current syntax for nixos-unstable and NixOS >= 24.05
-    # If using older nixpkgs: (nerdfonts.override { fonts = [ "JetBrainsMono" ]; })
+    # For older nixpkgs (before this change), use:
-    # Current nixpkgs-unstable uses individual packages:
+    #   (nerdfonts.override { fonts = [ "JetBrainsMono" ]; })
     nerd-fonts.jetbrains-mono
     
     # Other fonts
@@ -166,5 +177,5 @@
   # IMPORTANT: Set to the NixOS version of your install media
   # Check with: nixos-version
   # Do NOT change this after initial install
-  system.stateVersion = "25.05";
+  system.stateVersion = "24.11";
 }

modules/dev.nix

@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@
   };
 
   # IMPORTANT: Replace <username> with actual username
+  # NOTE: After first enabling/applying this dev profile, you must log out and
+  # log back in (or reboot) for the docker group membership to take effect.
   users.users.<username>.extraGroups = [ "docker" ];
 
   # --------------------------------------------------------------------------

modules/gaming.nix

@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@
     enableRenice = true;
     settings = {
       general = {
-        renice = 10;
+        renice = -10;  # Negative value = higher priority for games
       };
       gpu = {
         apply_gpu_optimisations = "accept-responsibility";
@@ -48,6 +48,11 @@
     };
   };
 
+  # NOTE: Profile-specific group membership
+  # The user must be in the "corectrl" and "gamemode" groups for these
+  # programs to function correctly. These groups are only added when using
+  # the gaming profile. If you need consistent group membership across
+  # both profiles, add these groups to common.nix instead.
   # IMPORTANT: Replace <username> with actual username
   users.users.<username>.extraGroups = [ "corectrl" "gamemode" ];
 
@@ -91,11 +96,4 @@
     # may crash without this setting due to high mmap requirements.
     "vm.max_map_count" = 2147483642;
   };
-
-  # Additional kernel params for gaming (appends to common.nix params)
-  boot.kernelParams = [
-    "amd_pstate=active"       # Inherited from common, but explicit for clarity
-    "mitigations=off"         # Optional: Disable CPU mitigations for ~5% perf gain
-                              # Remove this line if security is a concern
-  ];
 }