Provided by: nix-bin_2.24.9+dfsg-2ubuntu2_amd64 
Name
nix run - run a Nix application
Synopsis
nix run [option…] installable args…
Examples
• Run the default app from the blender-bin flake:
# nix run blender-bin
• Run a non-default app from the blender-bin flake:
# nix run blender-bin#blender_2_83
Tip: you can find apps provided by this flake by running nix flake show blender-bin.
• Run vim from the nixpkgs flake:
# nix run nixpkgs#vim
Note that vim (as of the time of writing of this page) is not an app but a package. Thus, Nix runs
the eponymous file from the vim package.
• Run vim with arguments:
# nix run nixpkgs#vim -- --help
Description
nix run builds and runs installable, which must evaluate to an app or a regular Nix derivation.
If installable evaluates to an app (see below), it executes the program specified by the app definition.
If installable evaluates to a derivation, it will try to execute the program <out>/bin/<name>, where out
is the primary output store path of the derivation, and name is the first of the following that exists:
• The meta.mainProgram attribute of the derivation.
• The pname attribute of the derivation.
• The name part of the value of the name attribute of the derivation.
For instance, if name is set to hello-1.10, nix run will run $out/bin/hello.
Flake output attributes
If no flake output attribute is given, nix run tries the following flake output attributes:
• apps.<system>.default
• packages.<system>.default
If an attribute name is given, nix run tries the following flake output attributes:
• apps.<system>.<name>
• packages.<system>.<name>
• legacyPackages.<system>.<name>
Apps
An app is specified by a flake output attribute named apps.<system>.<name>. It looks like this:
apps.x86_64-linux.blender_2_79 = {
type = "app";
program = "${self.packages.x86_64-linux.blender_2_79}/bin/blender";
};
The only supported attributes are:
• type (required): Must be set to app.
• program (required): The full path of the executable to run. It must reside in the Nix store.
Options
Common evaluation options
• --arg name expr
Pass the value expr as the argument name to Nix functions.
• --arg-from-file name path
Pass the contents of file path as the argument name to Nix functions.
• --arg-from-stdin name
Pass the contents of stdin as the argument name to Nix functions.
• --argstr name string
Pass the string string as the argument name to Nix functions.
• --debugger
Start an interactive environment if evaluation fails.
• --eval-store store-url
The URL of the Nix store to use for evaluation, i.e. to store derivations (.drv files) and inputs
referenced by them.
• --impure
Allow access to mutable paths and repositories.
• --include / -I path
Add path to search path entries used to resolve lookup paths
This option may be given multiple times.
Paths added through -I take precedence over the nix-path configuration setting and the NIX_PATH
environment variable.
• --override-flake original-ref resolved-ref
Override the flake registries, redirecting original-ref to resolved-ref.
Common flake-related options
• --commit-lock-file
Commit changes to the flake’s lock file.
• --inputs-from flake-url
Use the inputs of the specified flake as registry entries.
• --no-registries
Don’t allow lookups in the flake registries.
DEPRECATED
Use --no-use-registries instead.
• --no-update-lock-file
Do not allow any updates to the flake’s lock file.
• --no-write-lock-file
Do not write the flake’s newly generated lock file.
• --output-lock-file flake-lock-path
Write the given lock file instead of flake.lock within the top-level flake.
• --override-input input-path flake-url
Override a specific flake input (e.g. dwarffs/nixpkgs). This implies --no-write-lock-file.
• --recreate-lock-file
Recreate the flake’s lock file from scratch.
DEPRECATED
Use nix flake update instead.
• --reference-lock-file flake-lock-path
Read the given lock file instead of flake.lock within the top-level flake.
• --update-input input-path
Update a specific flake input (ignoring its previous entry in the lock file).
DEPRECATED
Use nix flake update instead.
Logging-related options
• --debug
Set the logging verbosity level to ‘debug’.
• --log-format format
Set the format of log output; one of raw, internal-json, bar or bar-with-logs.
• --print-build-logs / -L
Print full build logs on standard error.
• --quiet
Decrease the logging verbosity level.
• --verbose / -v
Increase the logging verbosity level.
Miscellaneous global options
• --help
Show usage information.
• --offline
Disable substituters and consider all previously downloaded files up-to-date.
• --option name value
Set the Nix configuration setting name to value (overriding nix.conf).
• --refresh
Consider all previously downloaded files out-of-date.
• --repair
During evaluation, rewrite missing or corrupted files in the Nix store. During building, rebuild
missing or corrupted store paths.
• --version
Show version information.
Options that change the interpretation of installables
• --expr expr
Interpret installables as attribute paths relative to the Nix expression expr.
• --file / -f file
Interpret installables as attribute paths relative to the Nix expression stored in file. If file is
the character -, then a Nix expression will be read from standard input. Implies --impure.
Note
See man nix.conf for overriding configuration settings with command line flags.
nix3-run(1)