RE: Using a shared Guix store (was RE: [Bio-packaging] testing out guix)

[Cook, Malcolm]

Ludovic, and Ricardo,

> Yes, one way to help would be by trying a simple setup using Guix as it
> currently exists, coupled with socat:
> 
>   http://debbugs.gnu.org/cgi/bugreport.cgi?bug=20381
> 
> If you could test this and provide feedback about the other options discussed
> there, that would be great (please email
> address@hidden)

Excellent.  That definitely looks testable by me, once I'm done with my basic 
site deployment.  I've been moving rather slowly but might be ready to contrast 
such approach with simply calling guix on guix-master over ssh.  I'll plan on 
it.  Maybe a week or two out.

Reading the thread, it sounds like Ricardo has today already had good success 
with socat.  Yay!

In that thread, you suggested "What about installing Guix in /gnu/bin (say) and 
sharing it over NFS?".  Is there a way to `./bootstrap ./configure ` this?  
Something like -- exec_prefix=/gnu --localstatedir=/gnu/var?  

Also, you discussed need for setting NIX_STATE_DIR.  This should not be needed 
if guix was already installed with configuration of --localstatedir=/guix/var   
(with /guix being nfs mounted), right?

Ricardo also wrote "For ‘guix package’ to work, /gnu/var/guix/profiles/per-user 
must be shared read-write (over NFS) with correct UID mapping." - I really 
don't understand this and tried to elicit feedback in 
http://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/guix-devel/2015-07/msg00216.html -   Can 
anyone give me clarification on this.  I though the guix daemon is going to 
manage these profiles.

Honestly, much of my understanding of the above comes from reading the manual, 
archived IRC chats and mail threads, FOSDEM vids, and blog posts - which has 
been great.  But,  I've yet to succeed in my own site deploy, which will give 
me testbed to stretch my own understanding.  Today, I had the following 
failure....

Ricardo, et. al.,  would you mind sharing some details on your network sharing 
configuration as regards users/groups and privileges, for I seem to have 
painted myself into a corner with the following
          
        /gnu  is an NFS mount, owned by network user 'guix', group-owned by  
guix-builder with mod of 1775 
 
        guix is being built from git configured with -- exec_prefix=/gnu 
--localstatedir=/gnu/var 

        `make check`  results are

============================================================================
Testsuite summary for GNU Guix 0.8.3
============================================================================
# TOTAL: 42
# PASS:  32
# SKIP:  0
# XFAIL: 0
# FAIL:  10
# XPASS: 0
# ERROR: 0

With details below....   I can submit all this to address@hidden, but I suspect 
(1) there is something fundamentally wrong with the way I am setting things up 
(2) your are reading this anyway ;)

Can you see any gotchas I haven't got yet?  Can you see the error in my ways 
and suggest a way through?

FWIW, I try to `make install` anyway, and, I pause.... I cannot complete a make 
install without "changing hats".  I find that it works to do the following

                sudo make install-data # as root on localhost
                sudo -u guix make install-exec ## since root on localhost is 
squashed on the NFS mount point, 

But I don't know if this is complete or not (the Makefile is complex!).

Anyway, "changing hats" feels very wrong, and I can feel more trouble coming 
when I want to run the daemon....

Thanks so much everyone, and, keep on guixing,

~Malcolm


PS - in case it helps - below are test results and tarred logs are at 
http://research.stowers.org/mec/guixtests.tar

 I have not yet taught myself how to read them with understanding.... - (have a 
great weekend!)
        
PASS: tests/base32.scm
PASS: tests/base64.scm
FAIL: tests/cpio.scm
PASS: tests/hash.scm
PASS: tests/pk-crypto.scm
PASS: tests/pki.scm
PASS: tests/sets.scm
PASS: tests/substitute.scm
FAIL: tests/builders.scm
FAIL: tests/derivations.scm
PASS: tests/ui.scm
PASS: tests/records.scm
PASS: tests/utils.scm
PASS: tests/build-utils.scm
FAIL: tests/packages.scm
PASS: tests/snix.scm
PASS: tests/hackage.scm
PASS: tests/elpa.scm
FAIL: tests/store.scm
PASS: tests/monads.scm
PASS: tests/gexp.scm
FAIL: tests/nar.scm
FAIL: tests/union.scm
PASS: tests/profiles.scm
FAIL: tests/syscalls.scm
PASS: tests/gremlin.scm
PASS: tests/lint.scm
PASS: tests/publish.scm
PASS: tests/size.scm
PASS: tests/guix-build.sh
PASS: tests/guix-download.sh
PASS: tests/guix-hash.sh
PASS: tests/guix-package.sh
FAIL: tests/guix-package-net.sh
PASS: tests/guix-system.sh
PASS: tests/guix-archive.sh
PASS: tests/guix-authenticate.sh
FAIL: tests/guix-environment.sh
PASS: tests/guix-lint.sh
PASS: tests/guix-register.sh
PASS: tests/guix-gc.sh
PASS: tests/guix-daemon.sh



> So no ETA, but once we have feedback from you, Ricardo, and other
> interested parties, it will be easier to make a choice and implement it.
> :-)
> 
> Thanks,
> Ludo’.