Add tutorial for testing NixOS Calamares installer changes #1196
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tomberek
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Jan 22, 2026
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related: NixOS/nixpkgs#475297 is merged
| ## Introduction | ||
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| The NixOS graphical installer uses [Calamares](https://calamares.io/), a distribution-independent installer framework. | ||
| When contributing changes to the installer configuration in nixpkgs, you need to test that the installation process works correctly. |
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Wait, this sounds like something for the Nixpkgs (or rather NixOS) contributing guide. Why are we adding it here?
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Oh. @fricklerhandwerk Should I re-word it? Or I can remove that line (17) completely
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Yes but then what exactly is the tutorial for (i.e., which skills do NixOS users learn that they can apply when using NixOS day to day)? Why not add those instructions to the contributing guide?
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@fricklerhandwerk Aah, I think I see what you mean. In that case I am proposing I move this to /guides
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Adds documentation on how to test changes to the NixOS graphical installer (Calamares) using QEMU virtual machines.
Covers building the installer ISO, setting up test disk images and testing both BIOS and UEFI boot modes with various filesystem configurations.
This came up while working on NixOS/nixpkgs#475297 and figured it would be useful to have documented for future contributors.