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Nix Installation

Install Velaclaw declaratively with nix-velaclaw — a batteries-included Home Manager module.
The nix-velaclaw repo is the source of truth for Nix installation. This page is a quick overview.

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What You Get

  • Gateway + macOS app + tools (whisper, spotify, cameras) — all pinned
  • Launchd service that survives reboots
  • Plugin system with declarative config
  • Instant rollback: home-manager switch --rollback

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Quick Start

1

Install Determinate Nix

If Nix is not already installed, follow the Determinate Nix installer instructions.
2

Create a local flake

Use the agent-first template from the nix-velaclaw repo:
3

Configure secrets

Set up your messaging bot token and model provider API key. Plain files at ~/.secrets/ work fine.
4

Fill in template placeholders and switch

5

Verify

Confirm the launchd service is running and your bot responds to messages.
See the nix-velaclaw README for full module options and examples.

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Nix Mode Runtime Behavior

When VELACLAW_NIX_MODE=1 is set (automatic with nix-velaclaw), Velaclaw enters a deterministic mode that disables auto-install flows. You can also set it manually:
On macOS, the GUI app does not automatically inherit shell environment variables. Enable Nix mode via defaults instead:

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What changes in Nix mode

  • Auto-install and self-mutation flows are disabled
  • Missing dependencies surface Nix-specific remediation messages
  • UI surfaces a read-only Nix mode banner

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Config and state paths

Velaclaw reads JSON5 config from VELACLAW_CONFIG_PATH and stores mutable data in VELACLAW_STATE_DIR. When running under Nix, set these explicitly to Nix-managed locations so runtime state and config stay out of the immutable store.