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+# Motivation
+
+We use Nix to package all of the dependencies for our dev environment. It does several things for us:
+
+- Enables new devs on macOS or Linux to set up our dev environment with just one command
+- Makes sure that everybody on the team is using the same versions of all the tools
+- Allows us to isolate development dependencies from affecting the host system
+
+For how Nix package management works, please refer to the official [how Nix works guide](https://nixos.org/guides/how-nix-works.html).
+
+# Requirements
+
+To set up a dev environment using Nix, you will need a macOS or Linux machine.
+
+# Prerequisites
+
+## Nix package manager
+
+Go to the NixOS website to install the Nix package manager for [macOS](https://nixos.org/download.html#nix-install-macos) or [Linux](https://nixos.org/download.html).
+
+Nix manages all packages within the Nix store which needs to be located at `/nix`. The store location in integral to how Nix is able to determine the location of packages, and cannot be moved. In addition, `/nix` cannot be a symlink because of the requirement to mount paths for builds. The installation script guides you through the setup process of creating the Nix store and other requirements with minimal interaction.
+
+If you’d like to audit the script to alleviate any security concern, you can view it [here](https://nixos.org/nix/install).
+
+# Configuration
+
+## Nix Flakes
+
+[Nix Flakes](https://nixos.wiki/wiki/Flakes) are the new canonical way to expose Nix packages. The [exposed packages](https://nixos.wiki/wiki/Flakes#Output_schema) can be normal Nix packages, [overlays](https://nixos.wiki/wiki/Overlays), [modules](https://nixos.wiki/wiki/Module), or even [entire systems](https://nixos.wiki/wiki/Flakes#Using_nix_flakes_with_NixOS). The `flake.nix` file is used to communicate what is exposed and the `flake.lock` file is used to ensure that all dependencies are captured in an immutable fashion.
+
+You will need to edit the Nix configuration file to enable Nix Flakes.
+
+```
+sudo vim /etc/nix/nix.conf
+```
+
+Add the following line to the file:
+
+```
+experimental-features = nix-command flakes
+```
+
+# Development Environment
+
+Run `nix develop` to create a dev environment.
+
+## How Nix Introduces Dependencies to a Development Environment
+
+Nix installs packages in the Nix store at package-specific paths (e.g. `/nix/store-x7kdiasp...-clang/bin/clang`). When you run `nix develop`, Nix sets environment variables such as `PATH` to expose the binary dependencies to your shell. This model can be extended through shell hooks to support other build toolchains such as `pkg-config`, `cmake`, and many other language specific package managers by simply adding the repective toolchain to `nativeBuildInputs`.