Nix index unpack of nixpkgs is slow under macOs

[vkravets]

Describe the bug

I have two notebooks. Late 2014 acer with nixOs and macbook Pro late 2021 and unpacking nixpkgs while nix os switch is very slow under macos (with new hardware) comparing to old acer later 2014

nix (Nix) 2.18.8

Steps To Reproduce

Just try to update system using the latest nixpkgs (make sure the latest nixpkgs is download while update process)

Expected behavior

The unpack indexes/nixpkgs is fast

nix-env --version output
nix-env (Nix) 2.18.8

Additional context
NA

Priorities

Add 👍 to issues you find important.

[vkravets]

Let me know which details information is need, since I don't know what I can put to description.

[j-baker]

This is definitely a big issue - it takes minutes to unpack nixpkgs on MacOS. It feels like it's doing something very different (and worse) than how NAR packages are downloaded; in the NAR case unpacks of the same directory are super fast. It's the github untar that's slow.

I'm wondering if the cause is that the tar is initially unpacked onto a different filesystem or something.

[vkravets]

while execute nix flake update --flake /Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin --debug got the following debug output:

evaluating file '<nix/derivation-internal.nix>'
using cache entry 'gitRevCount:{"rev":"45a621a549dc4bb74f465f7fd44459de2fb81bda"}' -> '{"revCount":19}'
using cache entry 'gitLastModified:{"rev":"45a621a549dc4bb74f465f7fd44459de2fb81bda"}' -> '{"lastModified":1735899541}'
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"45a621a549dc4bb74f465f7fd44459de2fb81bda","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> '{"storePath":"n70mz96lf60x5bxyrdlgansdc5dm82kc-source"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
acquiring write lock on '/nix/var/nix/temproots/73197'
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"45a621a549dc4bb74f465f7fd44459de2fb81bda","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> 'null', '/nix/store/n70mz96lf60x5bxyrdlgansdc5dm82kc-source'
store path cache hit for '/Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin/Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin/'
performing daemon worker op: 26
got tree '/nix/store/n70mz96lf60x5bxyrdlgansdc5dm82kc-source' from 'git+file:///Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin?ref=refs/heads/main&rev=45a621a549dc4bb74f465f7fd44459de2fb81bda'
evaluating file '/nix/store/n70mz96lf60x5bxyrdlgansdc5dm82kc-source/flake.nix'
performing daemon worker op: 19
old lock file: {
  "nodes": {
    "home-manager": {
      "inputs": {
        "nixpkgs": [
          "nixpkgs"
        ]
      },
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735344290,
        "narHash": "sha256-oJDtWPH1oJT34RJK1FSWjwX4qcGOBRkcNQPD0EbSfNM=",
        "owner": "nix-community",
        "repo": "home-manager",
        "rev": "613691f285dad87694c2ba1c9e6298d04736292d",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "nix-community",
        "ref": "release-24.11",
        "repo": "home-manager",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "nh-darwin": {
      "inputs": {
        "nixpkgs": [
          "nixpkgs-unstable"
        ]
      },
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735816258,
        "narHash": "sha256-7zBiXoC43piFocq0wHvNm5KgzolCi3axD4QhWfsw4DU=",
        "owner": "viperML",
        "repo": "nh",
        "rev": "b7a857066e726dafe9c5f00a8af6ab3f25036ee1",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "viperML",
        "repo": "nh",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "nix-darwin": {
      "inputs": {
        "nixpkgs": [
          "nixpkgs"
        ]
      },
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735685839,
        "narHash": "sha256-62xAPSs5VRZoPH7eRanUn5S5vZEd+8vM4bD5I+zxokc=",
        "owner": "LnL7",
        "repo": "nix-darwin",
        "rev": "6a1fdb2a1204c0de038847b601cff5012e162b5e",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "LnL7",
        "repo": "nix-darwin",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "nix-index-database": {
      "inputs": {
        "nixpkgs": [
          "nixpkgs"
        ]
      },
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735443188,
        "narHash": "sha256-AydPpRBh8+NOkrLylG7vTsHrGO2b5L7XkMEL5HlzcA8=",
        "owner": "nix-community",
        "repo": "nix-index-database",
        "rev": "55ab1e1df5daf2476e6b826b69a82862dcbd7544",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "nix-community",
        "repo": "nix-index-database",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "nixpkgs": {
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735595149,
        "narHash": "sha256-6jNmY7BaooArDpOhT8QbGxR0x8as43AJUoHfm1rJY1M=",
        "owner": "NixOS",
        "repo": "nixpkgs",
        "rev": "464fe85c27bd5761781a2773526ef9c1b0184dda",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "NixOS",
        "ref": "nixpkgs-24.11-darwin",
        "repo": "nixpkgs",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "nixpkgs-unstable": {
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735821806,
        "narHash": "sha256-cuNapx/uQeCgeuhUhdck3JKbgpsml259sjUQnWM7zW8=",
        "owner": "NixOS",
        "repo": "nixpkgs",
        "rev": "d6973081434f88088e5321f83ebafe9a1167c367",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "NixOS",
        "ref": "nixpkgs-unstable",
        "repo": "nixpkgs",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "root": {
      "inputs": {
        "home-manager": "home-manager",
        "nh-darwin": "nh-darwin",
        "nix-darwin": "nix-darwin",
        "nix-index-database": "nix-index-database",
        "nixpkgs": "nixpkgs",
        "nixpkgs-unstable": "nixpkgs-unstable"
      }
    }
  },
  "root": "root",
  "version": 7
}
computing lock file node ''
computing input 'home-manager'
creating new input 'home-manager'
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/home-manager/commits/release-24.11"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"6169bf5cea9cf1febfee3012d0dad7da0abef5941a8b934a8c7ab5bf50843b8e\"","storePath":"lmhcqjii266hp3c0d3zvasfjr9f1s3hh-source","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/home-manager/commits/release-24.11"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/home-manager/commits/release-24.11"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"6169bf5cea9cf1febfee3012d0dad7da0abef5941a8b934a8c7ab5bf50843b8e\"","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/home-manager/commits/release-24.11"}', '/nix/store/lmhcqjii266hp3c0d3zvasfjr9f1s3hh-source'
downloading 'https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/home-manager/commits/release-24.11'...
starting download of https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/home-manager/commits/release-24.11
finished download of 'https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/home-manager/commits/release-24.11'; curl status = 0, HTTP status = 304, body = 0 bytes, duration = 0.50 s
HEAD revision for 'github:nix-community/home-manager/release-24.11' is 613691f285dad87694c2ba1c9e6298d04736292d
using cache entry 'gitRevToTreeHash:{"rev":"613691f285dad87694c2ba1c9e6298d04736292d"}' -> '{"treeHash":"3fb02e5f6ead513556eceede42c60a2b971461e3"}'
using cache entry 'gitRevToLastModified:{"rev":"613691f285dad87694c2ba1c9e6298d04736292d"}' -> '{"lastModified":1735344290}'
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"613691f285dad87694c2ba1c9e6298d04736292d","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> '{"storePath":"pq697d1bkix3hvrjkrxfhsa3zwykxkwb-source"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"613691f285dad87694c2ba1c9e6298d04736292d","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> 'null', '/nix/store/pq697d1bkix3hvrjkrxfhsa3zwykxkwb-source'
store path cache hit for '«github:nix-community/home-manager/613691f285dad87694c2ba1c9e6298d04736292d»/'
performing daemon worker op: 26
got tree '/nix/store/pq697d1bkix3hvrjkrxfhsa3zwykxkwb-source' from 'github:nix-community/home-manager/613691f285dad87694c2ba1c9e6298d04736292d?narHash=sha256-oJDtWPH1oJT34RJK1FSWjwX4qcGOBRkcNQPD0EbSfNM%3D'
evaluating file '/nix/store/pq697d1bkix3hvrjkrxfhsa3zwykxkwb-source/flake.nix'
computing lock file node 'home-manager'
computing input 'home-manager/nixpkgs'
input 'home-manager/nixpkgs' follows 'nixpkgs'
computing input 'nh-darwin'
creating new input 'nh-darwin'
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/viperML/nh/commits/HEAD"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"c8cb3a2d4352ca029eb39dcca22dc70347954a3b05e42f9e3db63d3978f1ac0f\"","storePath":"f0vhw15bmbm0v4lzy64fbffjw2gkkvqk-source","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/viperML/nh/commits/HEAD"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/viperML/nh/commits/HEAD"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"c8cb3a2d4352ca029eb39dcca22dc70347954a3b05e42f9e3db63d3978f1ac0f\"","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/viperML/nh/commits/HEAD"}', '/nix/store/f0vhw15bmbm0v4lzy64fbffjw2gkkvqk-source'
downloading 'https://api.github.com/repos/viperML/nh/commits/HEAD'...
starting download of https://api.github.com/repos/viperML/nh/commits/HEAD
finished download of 'https://api.github.com/repos/viperML/nh/commits/HEAD'; curl status = 0, HTTP status = 304, body = 0 bytes, duration = 0.21 s
HEAD revision for 'github:viperML/nh/HEAD' is b7a857066e726dafe9c5f00a8af6ab3f25036ee1
using cache entry 'gitRevToTreeHash:{"rev":"b7a857066e726dafe9c5f00a8af6ab3f25036ee1"}' -> '{"treeHash":"9ae85c10bd91ca2ff6823d5141672580e0751577"}'
using cache entry 'gitRevToLastModified:{"rev":"b7a857066e726dafe9c5f00a8af6ab3f25036ee1"}' -> '{"lastModified":1735816258}'
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"b7a857066e726dafe9c5f00a8af6ab3f25036ee1","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> '{"storePath":"7a8n1n24xshb27qlrlmmqsyp2ksaq4qr-source"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"b7a857066e726dafe9c5f00a8af6ab3f25036ee1","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> 'null', '/nix/store/7a8n1n24xshb27qlrlmmqsyp2ksaq4qr-source'
store path cache hit for '«github:viperML/nh/b7a857066e726dafe9c5f00a8af6ab3f25036ee1»/'
performing daemon worker op: 26
got tree '/nix/store/7a8n1n24xshb27qlrlmmqsyp2ksaq4qr-source' from 'github:viperML/nh/b7a857066e726dafe9c5f00a8af6ab3f25036ee1?narHash=sha256-7zBiXoC43piFocq0wHvNm5KgzolCi3axD4QhWfsw4DU%3D'
evaluating file '/nix/store/7a8n1n24xshb27qlrlmmqsyp2ksaq4qr-source/flake.nix'
computing lock file node 'nh-darwin'
computing input 'nh-darwin/nixpkgs'
input 'nh-darwin/nixpkgs' follows 'nixpkgs-unstable'
computing input 'nix-darwin'
creating new input 'nix-darwin'
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/LnL7/nix-darwin/commits/HEAD"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"88b533736a417c63c8092bd46b4ece4d50896d9f561016e53a7ff7bf6e43a14c\"","storePath":"kwbxxrg77fg4y2ginxk4gn9qhqvzfk2v-source","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/LnL7/nix-darwin/commits/HEAD"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/LnL7/nix-darwin/commits/HEAD"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"88b533736a417c63c8092bd46b4ece4d50896d9f561016e53a7ff7bf6e43a14c\"","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/LnL7/nix-darwin/commits/HEAD"}', '/nix/store/kwbxxrg77fg4y2ginxk4gn9qhqvzfk2v-source'
downloading 'https://api.github.com/repos/LnL7/nix-darwin/commits/HEAD'...
starting download of https://api.github.com/repos/LnL7/nix-darwin/commits/HEAD
finished download of 'https://api.github.com/repos/LnL7/nix-darwin/commits/HEAD'; curl status = 0, HTTP status = 304, body = 0 bytes, duration = 0.18 s
HEAD revision for 'github:LnL7/nix-darwin/HEAD' is 6a1fdb2a1204c0de038847b601cff5012e162b5e
using cache entry 'gitRevToTreeHash:{"rev":"6a1fdb2a1204c0de038847b601cff5012e162b5e"}' -> '{"treeHash":"090cf15c425241231355eff7ea17be42f5d2a201"}'
using cache entry 'gitRevToLastModified:{"rev":"6a1fdb2a1204c0de038847b601cff5012e162b5e"}' -> '{"lastModified":1735685839}'
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"6a1fdb2a1204c0de038847b601cff5012e162b5e","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> '{"storePath":"7jks15hc1z1kfqzg9a82d0rvscd8s52v-source"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"6a1fdb2a1204c0de038847b601cff5012e162b5e","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> 'null', '/nix/store/7jks15hc1z1kfqzg9a82d0rvscd8s52v-source'
store path cache hit for '«github:LnL7/nix-darwin/6a1fdb2a1204c0de038847b601cff5012e162b5e»/'
performing daemon worker op: 26
got tree '/nix/store/7jks15hc1z1kfqzg9a82d0rvscd8s52v-source' from 'github:LnL7/nix-darwin/6a1fdb2a1204c0de038847b601cff5012e162b5e?narHash=sha256-62xAPSs5VRZoPH7eRanUn5S5vZEd%2B8vM4bD5I%2Bzxokc%3D'
evaluating file '/nix/store/7jks15hc1z1kfqzg9a82d0rvscd8s52v-source/flake.nix'
computing lock file node 'nix-darwin'
computing input 'nix-darwin/nixpkgs'
input 'nix-darwin/nixpkgs' follows 'nixpkgs'
computing input 'nix-index-database'
creating new input 'nix-index-database'
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/nix-index-database/commits/HEAD"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"929dbd589a259b87033c2d2ea58c45bdb3e68d04a0c2c6b5f16aa65d9d2b72a7\"","storePath":"6pnh5qsw14vrzkmmv1cbvrjknvqyhg9k-source","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/nix-index-database/commits/HEAD"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/nix-index-database/commits/HEAD"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"929dbd589a259b87033c2d2ea58c45bdb3e68d04a0c2c6b5f16aa65d9d2b72a7\"","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/nix-index-database/commits/HEAD"}', '/nix/store/6pnh5qsw14vrzkmmv1cbvrjknvqyhg9k-source'
downloading 'https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/nix-index-database/commits/HEAD'...
starting download of https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/nix-index-database/commits/HEAD
finished download of 'https://api.github.com/repos/nix-community/nix-index-database/commits/HEAD'; curl status = 0, HTTP status = 304, body = 0 bytes, duration = 0.36 s
HEAD revision for 'github:nix-community/nix-index-database/HEAD' is 55ab1e1df5daf2476e6b826b69a82862dcbd7544
using cache entry 'gitRevToTreeHash:{"rev":"55ab1e1df5daf2476e6b826b69a82862dcbd7544"}' -> '{"treeHash":"7c729449a0e949836cb801d4323c457d3ce9bae5"}'
using cache entry 'gitRevToLastModified:{"rev":"55ab1e1df5daf2476e6b826b69a82862dcbd7544"}' -> '{"lastModified":1735443188}'
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"55ab1e1df5daf2476e6b826b69a82862dcbd7544","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> '{"storePath":"6bly0ggwa6wch3nq777f2nnprqw1fn7c-source"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"55ab1e1df5daf2476e6b826b69a82862dcbd7544","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> 'null', '/nix/store/6bly0ggwa6wch3nq777f2nnprqw1fn7c-source'
store path cache hit for '«github:nix-community/nix-index-database/55ab1e1df5daf2476e6b826b69a82862dcbd7544»/'
performing daemon worker op: 26
got tree '/nix/store/6bly0ggwa6wch3nq777f2nnprqw1fn7c-source' from 'github:nix-community/nix-index-database/55ab1e1df5daf2476e6b826b69a82862dcbd7544?narHash=sha256-AydPpRBh8%2BNOkrLylG7vTsHrGO2b5L7XkMEL5HlzcA8%3D'
evaluating file '/nix/store/6bly0ggwa6wch3nq777f2nnprqw1fn7c-source/flake.nix'
computing lock file node 'nix-index-database'
computing input 'nix-index-database/nixpkgs'
input 'nix-index-database/nixpkgs' follows 'nixpkgs'
computing input 'nixpkgs'
creating new input 'nixpkgs'
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-24.11-darwin"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"514e04e530e0c00af24bdc641692e91e5256e393e31c6851ec3a53e46fa78ce8\"","storePath":"51p0agbfgd96820hfnina2j8yd705j6a-source","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-24.11-darwin"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-24.11-darwin"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"514e04e530e0c00af24bdc641692e91e5256e393e31c6851ec3a53e46fa78ce8\"","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-24.11-darwin"}', '/nix/store/51p0agbfgd96820hfnina2j8yd705j6a-source'
downloading 'https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-24.11-darwin'...
starting download of https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-24.11-darwin
finished download of 'https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-24.11-darwin'; curl status = 0, HTTP status = 304, body = 0 bytes, duration = 0.20 s
HEAD revision for 'github:NixOS/nixpkgs/nixpkgs-24.11-darwin' is 2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc
did not find cache entry for 'gitRevToTreeHash:{"rev":"2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc"}'
unpacking 'github:NixOS/nixpkgs/2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc' into the Git cache...
downloading 'https://github.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/archive/2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc.tar.gz'...
starting download of https://github.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/archive/2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc.tar.gz
finished download of 'https://github.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/archive/2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc.tar.gz'; curl status = 0, HTTP status = 200, body = 47582037 bytes, duration = 6.90 s
error:
       … while updating the lock file of flake 'git+file:///Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin?ref=refs/heads/main&rev=45a621a549dc4bb74f465f7fd44459de2fb81bda'

       … while updating the flake input 'nixpkgs'

       … while fetching the input 'github:NixOS/nixpkgs/nixpkgs-24.11-darwin'

       error: cannot read file 'nixpkgs-2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc/pkgs/development/python-modules/rns/unvendor-esptool.patch' from tarball
did not find cache entry for 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}'
copying '«github:NixOS/nixpkgs/2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc»/' to the store...
performing daemon worker op: 7
locking path '/nix/store/afj7adcd9zckwx8as77853pvxr2izlcm-source'
lock acquired on '/nix/store/afj7adcd9zckwx8as77853pvxr2izlcm-source.lock'
lock released on '/nix/store/afj7adcd9zckwx8as77853pvxr2izlcm-source.lock'
performing daemon worker op: 26
got tree '/nix/store/afj7adcd9zckwx8as77853pvxr2izlcm-source' from 'github:NixOS/nixpkgs/2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc?narHash=sha256-bRTOYvKO4NQlWSk/v/2ayiPxNv/AqnEkgHPvhnWfkS8%3D'
evaluating file '/nix/store/afj7adcd9zckwx8as77853pvxr2izlcm-source/flake.nix'
computing lock file node 'nixpkgs'
computing input 'nixpkgs-unstable'
creating new input 'nixpkgs-unstable'
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-unstable"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"60e8113e3cbe61924bfe63fe6cee32d506cad115300b3567060afe8055895058\"","storePath":"jhjzya7s6hr5cfj12xfb1y48fbmn22fr-source","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-unstable"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'file:{"name":"source","store":"/nix/store","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-unstable"}' -> '{"etag":"W/\"60e8113e3cbe61924bfe63fe6cee32d506cad115300b3567060afe8055895058\"","url":"https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-unstable"}', '/nix/store/jhjzya7s6hr5cfj12xfb1y48fbmn22fr-source'
downloading 'https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-unstable'...
starting download of https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-unstable
finished download of 'https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/commits/nixpkgs-unstable'; curl status = 0, HTTP status = 304, body = 0 bytes, duration = 0.32 s
HEAD revision for 'github:NixOS/nixpkgs/nixpkgs-unstable' is d6973081434f88088e5321f83ebafe9a1167c367
using cache entry 'gitRevToTreeHash:{"rev":"d6973081434f88088e5321f83ebafe9a1167c367"}' -> '{"treeHash":"3029926772a84e98ffb53a4675a903c555c541de"}'
using cache entry 'gitRevToLastModified:{"rev":"d6973081434f88088e5321f83ebafe9a1167c367"}' -> '{"lastModified":1735821806}'
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"d6973081434f88088e5321f83ebafe9a1167c367","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> '{"storePath":"813bk6hvhfjjjmzlk2cxgxgd25yqq5f8-source"}'
performing daemon worker op: 11
performing daemon worker op: 1
using cache entry 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"d6973081434f88088e5321f83ebafe9a1167c367","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}' -> 'null', '/nix/store/813bk6hvhfjjjmzlk2cxgxgd25yqq5f8-source'
store path cache hit for '«github:NixOS/nixpkgs/d6973081434f88088e5321f83ebafe9a1167c367»/'
performing daemon worker op: 26
got tree '/nix/store/813bk6hvhfjjjmzlk2cxgxgd25yqq5f8-source' from 'github:NixOS/nixpkgs/d6973081434f88088e5321f83ebafe9a1167c367?narHash=sha256-cuNapx/uQeCgeuhUhdck3JKbgpsml259sjUQnWM7zW8%3D'
evaluating file '/nix/store/813bk6hvhfjjjmzlk2cxgxgd25yqq5f8-source/flake.nix'
computing lock file node 'nixpkgs-unstable'
new lock file: {
  "nodes": {
    "home-manager": {
      "inputs": {
        "nixpkgs": [
          "nixpkgs"
        ]
      },
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735344290,
        "narHash": "sha256-oJDtWPH1oJT34RJK1FSWjwX4qcGOBRkcNQPD0EbSfNM=",
        "owner": "nix-community",
        "repo": "home-manager",
        "rev": "613691f285dad87694c2ba1c9e6298d04736292d",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "nix-community",
        "ref": "release-24.11",
        "repo": "home-manager",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "nh-darwin": {
      "inputs": {
        "nixpkgs": [
          "nixpkgs-unstable"
        ]
      },
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735816258,
        "narHash": "sha256-7zBiXoC43piFocq0wHvNm5KgzolCi3axD4QhWfsw4DU=",
        "owner": "viperML",
        "repo": "nh",
        "rev": "b7a857066e726dafe9c5f00a8af6ab3f25036ee1",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "viperML",
        "repo": "nh",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "nix-darwin": {
      "inputs": {
        "nixpkgs": [
          "nixpkgs"
        ]
      },
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735685839,
        "narHash": "sha256-62xAPSs5VRZoPH7eRanUn5S5vZEd+8vM4bD5I+zxokc=",
        "owner": "LnL7",
        "repo": "nix-darwin",
        "rev": "6a1fdb2a1204c0de038847b601cff5012e162b5e",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "LnL7",
        "repo": "nix-darwin",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "nix-index-database": {
      "inputs": {
        "nixpkgs": [
          "nixpkgs"
        ]
      },
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735443188,
        "narHash": "sha256-AydPpRBh8+NOkrLylG7vTsHrGO2b5L7XkMEL5HlzcA8=",
        "owner": "nix-community",
        "repo": "nix-index-database",
        "rev": "55ab1e1df5daf2476e6b826b69a82862dcbd7544",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "nix-community",
        "repo": "nix-index-database",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "nixpkgs": {
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735725507,
        "narHash": "sha256-bRTOYvKO4NQlWSk/v/2ayiPxNv/AqnEkgHPvhnWfkS8=",
        "owner": "NixOS",
        "repo": "nixpkgs",
        "rev": "2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "NixOS",
        "ref": "nixpkgs-24.11-darwin",
        "repo": "nixpkgs",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "nixpkgs-unstable": {
      "locked": {
        "lastModified": 1735821806,
        "narHash": "sha256-cuNapx/uQeCgeuhUhdck3JKbgpsml259sjUQnWM7zW8=",
        "owner": "NixOS",
        "repo": "nixpkgs",
        "rev": "d6973081434f88088e5321f83ebafe9a1167c367",
        "type": "github"
      },
      "original": {
        "owner": "NixOS",
        "ref": "nixpkgs-unstable",
        "repo": "nixpkgs",
        "type": "github"
      }
    },
    "root": {
      "inputs": {
        "home-manager": "home-manager",
        "nh-darwin": "nh-darwin",
        "nix-darwin": "nix-darwin",
        "nix-index-database": "nix-index-database",
        "nixpkgs": "nixpkgs",
        "nixpkgs-unstable": "nixpkgs-unstable"
      }
    }
  },
  "root": "root",
  "version": 7
}
warning: updating lock file '/Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin/flake.lock':
• Updated input 'nixpkgs':
    'github:NixOS/nixpkgs/464fe85c27bd5761781a2773526ef9c1b0184dda?narHash=sha256-6jNmY7BaooArDpOhT8QbGxR0x8as43AJUoHfm1rJY1M%3D' (2024-12-30)
  → 'github:NixOS/nixpkgs/2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc?narHash=sha256-bRTOYvKO4NQlWSk/v/2ayiPxNv/AqnEkgHPvhnWfkS8%3D' (2025-01-01)
warning: Git tree '/Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin' is dirty
using cache entry 'gitLastModified:{"rev":"45a621a549dc4bb74f465f7fd44459de2fb81bda"}' -> '{"lastModified":1735899541}'
source path '/Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin/Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin/' is uncacheable
copying '/Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin/Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin/' to the store...
performing daemon worker op: 7
locking path '/nix/store/8zn595wglql59qsh4lnkzlpwf3isbrz1-source'
lock acquired on '/nix/store/8zn595wglql59qsh4lnkzlpwf3isbrz1-source.lock'
lock released on '/nix/store/8zn595wglql59qsh4lnkzlpwf3isbrz1-source.lock'
performing daemon worker op: 26
got tree '/nix/store/8zn595wglql59qsh4lnkzlpwf3isbrz1-source' from 'git+file:///Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin'
evaluating file '/nix/store/8zn595wglql59qsh4lnkzlpwf3isbrz1-source/flake.nix'
download thread shutting down

More time takes here

starting download of https://github.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/archive/2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc.tar.gz
finished download of 'https://github.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/archive/2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc.tar.gz'; curl status = 0, HTTP status = 200, body = 47582037 bytes, duration = 6.90 s
error:
       … while updating the lock file of flake 'git+file:///Users/vkravets/.config/nix-darwin?ref=refs/heads/main&rev=45a621a549dc4bb74f465f7fd44459de2fb81bda'

       … while updating the flake input 'nixpkgs'

       … while fetching the input 'github:NixOS/nixpkgs/nixpkgs-24.11-darwin'

       error: cannot read file 'nixpkgs-2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc/pkgs/development/python-modules/rns/unvendor-esptool.patch' from tarball
did not find cache entry for 'fetchToStore:{"fingerprint":"2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc","method":"nar","name":"source","path":"/","store":"/nix/store"}'
copying '«github:NixOS/nixpkgs/2dd3254fdc213bc0f3c8f05b6f0c610e0c1b3bdc»/' to the store...

[vkravets]

It seems to have something to do with the file system

[vkravets]

It seems it's related APFS... may be encryption is bottleneck here? Any thoughts?

[nem75]

I have the same Problem on a 2021 M1 Pro Macbook with Sequoia 15.2.

Any nix operation involving unpacking nix packages takes ages, meaning 5 Minutes and up. For example, a simple devbox add ripgrep python@3.10 (which runs nix underneath) took 15 Minutes to complete. Pure nix commands like nix flake update - same picture.

As it stands, this makes nix (and, by extension, devbox) unusable for me.

In addition to the above mentioned specs this machine runs Sophos (centrally managed, I cannot easily remove it) - maybe this has something to do with it, maybe not.

If there's more information needed or things to try, please let me know.

Edit: nix-store was excluded from spotlight indexing when I wrote the above.

[Aaronmacaron]

I have this exact problem as well, and it makes my nix experience a lot worse than it could be. One suspicion I have is that it has something to do with Antivirus. Unfortunately, I cannot disable Antivirus (Microsoft Defender) because it's a company laptop. Can anybody confirm that this problem is not related to Antivirus?

My workaround is to use the same flake.lock in all projects, I only nix flake update when I know I have at least half an hour of time and then copy the new flake.lock to all my other projects. This way I can minimize the amount of times I have to unpack a new version of nixpkgs.

MacBook Pro M3
nix (Nix) 2.24.10 installed through Determinate Systems

[ruigouveiamaciel]

Had the same issue on a MacBook Pro M3 with MacOS 15.1, I also have a company laptop with Microsoft Defender. However after upgrading to MacOS 15.3 the issue went mostly away, I still think it's a bit slow when compared to my other machines running NixOS but at least it's usable now. If I had to guess I would say it's 3-5x slower on MacOS 15.3 than NixOS.

[Aaronmacaron]

Had the same issue on a MacBook Pro M3 with MacOS 15.1, I also have a company laptop with Microsoft Defender. However after upgrading to MacOS 15.3 the issue went mostly away, I still think it's a bit slow when compared to my other machines running NixOS but at least it's usable now. If I had to guess I would say it's 3-5x slower on MacOS 15.3 than NixOS.

Interesting. I'm already on MacOS 15.3, and I don't think it's significantly quicker since I updated. Can you roughly say how long unpacking takes on your machine? I measured it and it took around 14 minutes. Interestingly, the "Windows Defender Antivirus Daemon" (wdavdaemon_unprivileged) has around 65% CPU usage while unpacking and nix only takes around 30% of CPU. For me this looks a lot like this problem is related to Windows Defender.

I will try to somehow disable Windows Defender in the coming days and if I manage to do so I will report back if it makes a difference.

[heimalne]

Same here. Maybe @edolstra @grahamc have an idea.

[ruigouveiamaciel]

@Aaronmacaron what command do you want me to run to test it? I can tell that download new packages still takes a fair bit of time but once it's downloaded it's fast. My neovim config loads faster through neovim than through homebrew. Maybe our companies have different policies on Microsoft Defender.

I also wanted to try installing nix as a single-user install to see if it would be faster but I haven't gotten around to do that yet. My hopes is that building on userspace would be faster than running through nix daemon

[ruigouveiamaciel]

So, my company switched IT systems and I no longer have Microsoft Defender on the new system and this issue has gone away. Nix now runs extremly fast

[cameronraysmith]

Have others ensured the nix store is excluded from spotlight indexing?

This seemed to help, but the experiments I tried so far could be confounded by caching.
It certainly did not resolve the issue but mds_stores is a bit less noisy in the process list.
Upgrading to 15.4 seemed to help as well.