Tools for running builds using Nix in a monorepo.

Goal: Using one coherent build tool, I can develop multiple projects with common dependencies.

Background

Requirements

• select the toolchains and versions thereof for the project
• configure cross-compilation
• allow multiple languages
• co-exist with language ecosystems. For example, rust-analyzer needs cargo in order to understand Cargo.toml. However, it should be easier to fully build the project with Nix
• every module is compiled into a derivation that downstream modules can import. Each module derivation is cached separately so that Nix only rebuilds the changed module.
• Nix can generate a closure for an executable, even a cross-compiled one, to copy to the remote system

Languages and Bindings

Languages:

• C
• Rust
• Typescript
• Javascript

Bindings:

• C -> Rust
• Rust -> Typescript
• Rust -> Javascript

Backends

	Linux x86	Linux ARM	WASM	AVR	ESP32
C	yes	yes		yes
Rust	yes	yes	yes	yes	yes
Typescript			yes
Javascript			yes

• Mononix, C library
• Mononix, Rust library

Build targets

• build
• run
• tests
• code coverage profiling
• linting
• performance testing

Each of these is a separate Nix command that builds or runs the desired result.

---

• Nix Monorepos
• Nix For Development
• Cross-compiling
• Scaling Rust Builds with Bazel
• Makefiles and Monorepos