Configuration Management With Nix

One of the most vexing problems that we dealt with when desktop applications were more prevalent is the idea of "DLL Hell". Due to the fact that the Windows OS had no means of validating a particular version of a DLL was in use, people would run into problems due to an upgrade of a totally unrelated piece of software. And, of course, despite the name this issue wasn't limited to C#; it also happened with Java apps too.

Most of us don't worry about DLL Hell these days but if you're doing devops or if you're dealing with a server configuration management is still a very real and very trying problem.

What if we could create signatures of all of our binary components so that if any of them changed we'd know and we could deal with it? Nix (https://nix.dev) is intended to solve just that issue. It allows a developer to specify all of the versions of all infrastructure his/her software depends upon.

Join us for a discussion of how we can use Nix (and similar types of software in the configuration management category) to better ensure we're not surprised by an unexpected upgrade. We are not planning to have a speaker--more of a open discussion about Nix and the problems it solves.

Two extra important details: for the first time in quite a while we'll be meeting in person. Clarity Voice is kind enough to let us use their offices for our meeting (many thanks to them!)

Second we'll provide food but that means we need to know how many people to expect. So if you're planning to attend, please let us know. If you're not sure please pick that option. We want to make sure we have enough food and beverages to cover the event! And we're not charging for the meetup (we never have) but it wouldn't break Mike's heart or mine if you would be willing to contribute a few dollars to help offset the cost of feeding everyone.