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7.7 Wrapping Up

We picked Guile as the running example in this chapter and you can see the result here:

• .guix-channel;
• .guix/modules/guile-package.scm with the top-level guix.scm symlink;
• .guix/manifest.scm.

These days, repositories are commonly peppered with dot files for various tools: .envrc, .gitlab-ci.yml, .github/workflows, Dockerfile, .buildpacks, Aptfile, requirements.txt, and whatnot. It may sound like we’re proposing a bunch of additional files, but in fact those files are expressive enough to supersede most or all of those listed above.

With a couple of files, we get support for:

• development environments (guix shell);
• pristine test builds, including for package variants and for cross-compilation (guix build);
• continuous integration (with Cuirass or with some other tool);
• continuous delivery to users (via the channel and with pre-built binaries);
• generation of derivative build artifacts such as Docker images or Deb/RPM packages (guix pack).

This a nice (in our view!) unified tool set for reproducible software deployment, and an illustration of how you as a developer can benefit from it!