emacs-twist / twist.nix

Build an entire Emacs configuration as a Nix package in a pure, reproducible way
GNU General Public License v3.0
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Add a rationale to the readme #3

Closed akirak closed 2 years ago

akirak commented 2 years ago

The goal of this project is to provide a framework with which the user can lock and update individual packages in his/her config. The primary reason behind this goal is security, and the issue has been discussed several times:

(There are more reddit threads on the topic, and you can easily reach them via DuckDuckGo.)

I haven't described it in the README yet. I find it difficult to concisely describe the reason, but I will have to do that.

cbowdon provides the following checklist, and Twist would help with the first criteria:

  • reviewing every single update prior to installing (hardly feasible)
  • code signing (not sure if package.el supports this though)
  • waiting before updating, in hopes that an attack would be discovered before you install
  • installing fewer packages to limit potential exposure
  • generic measures like not running as root and having endpoint protection on Windows
akirak commented 2 years ago

I have briefly explained the intension in README of twist.el. A comprehensive introduction material will be added in the future.