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Merge pull request #9017 from fricklerhandwerk/contributing-docs
add contributing guide for documentation
This commit is contained in:
Valentin Gagarin
GitHub
commit
d12fb4b1f1
@ -173,6 +173,10 @@ doc/manual/generated/man1/nix3-manpages: $(d)/src/command-ref/new-cli
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done
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@touch $@
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# the `! -name 'contributing.md'` filter excludes the one place where
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# `@docroot@` is to be preserved for documenting the mechanism
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# FIXME: maybe contributing guides should live right next to the code
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# instead of in the manual
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$(docdir)/manual/index.html: $(MANUAL_SRCS) $(d)/book.toml $(d)/anchors.jq $(d)/custom.css $(d)/src/SUMMARY.md $(d)/src/command-ref/new-cli $(d)/src/contributing/experimental-feature-descriptions.md $(d)/src/command-ref/conf-file.md $(d)/src/language/builtins.md $(d)/src/language/builtin-constants.md
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$(trace-gen) \
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tmp="$$(mktemp -d)"; \
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@ -180,7 +184,7 @@ $(docdir)/manual/index.html: $(MANUAL_SRCS) $(d)/book.toml $(d)/anchors.jq $(d)/
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find "$$tmp" -name '*.md' | while read -r file; do \
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$(call process-includes,$$file,$$file); \
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done; \
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find "$$tmp" -name '*.md' | while read -r file; do \
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find "$$tmp" -name '*.md' ! -name 'documentation.md' | while read -r file; do \
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docroot="$$(realpath --relative-to="$$(dirname "$$file")" $$tmp/manual/src)"; \
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sed -i "s,@docroot@,$$docroot,g" "$$file"; \
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done; \
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@ -106,6 +106,7 @@
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- [Contributing](contributing/contributing.md)
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- [Hacking](contributing/hacking.md)
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- [Testing](contributing/testing.md)
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- [Documentation](contributing/documentation.md)
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- [Experimental Features](contributing/experimental-features.md)
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- [CLI guideline](contributing/cli-guideline.md)
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- [C++ style guide](contributing/cxx.md)
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@ -1 +1,8 @@
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# Contributing
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# Development
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Nix is developed on GitHub.
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Check the [contributing guide](https://github.com/NixOS/nix/blob/master/CONTRIBUTING.md) if you want to get involved.
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This chapter is a collection of guides for making changes to the code and documentation.
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If you're not sure where to start, try to [compile Nix from source](./hacking.md) and consider [making improvements to documentation](./documentation.md).
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181
doc/manual/src/contributing/documentation.md
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181
doc/manual/src/contributing/documentation.md
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@ -0,0 +1,181 @@
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# Contributing documentation
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Improvements to documentation are very much appreciated, and a good way to start out with contributing to Nix.
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This is how you can help:
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- Address [open issues with documentation](https://github.com/NixOS/nix/issues?q=is%3Aissue+is%3Aopen+label%3Adocumentation)
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- Review [pull requests concerning documentation](https://github.com/NixOS/nix/pulls?q=is%3Apr+is%3Aopen+label%3Adocumentation)
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Incremental refactorings of the documentation build setup to make it faster or easier to understand and maintain are also welcome.
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## Building the manual
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Build the manual from scratch:
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```console
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nix-build $(nix-instantiate)'!doc'
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```
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or
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```console
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nix build .#^doc
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```
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and open `./result-doc/share/doc/nix/manual/index.html`.
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To build the manual incrementally, [enter the development shell](./hacking.md) and run:
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```console
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make manual-html -j $NIX_BUILD_CORES
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```
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and open `./outputs/out/share/doc/nix/manual/language/index.html`.
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In order to reflect changes to the [Makefile for the manual], clear all generated files before re-building:
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[Makefile for the manual]: https://github.com/NixOS/nix/blob/master/doc/manual/local.mk
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```console
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rm $(git ls-files doc/manual/ -o | grep -F '.md') && rmdir doc/manual/src/command-ref/new-cli && make manual-html -j $NIX_BUILD_CORES
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```
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## Style guide
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The goal of this style guide is to make it such that
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- The manual is easy to search and skim for relevant information
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- Documentation sources are easy to edit
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- Changes to documentation are easy to review
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You will notice that this is not implemented consistently yet.
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Please follow the guide when making additions or changes to existing documentation.
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Do not make sweeping changes, unless they are programmatic and can be validated easily.
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### Language
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This manual is [reference documentation](https://diataxis.fr/reference/).
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The typical usage pattern is to look up isolated pieces of information.
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It should therefore aim to be correct, consistent, complete, and easy to navigate at a glance.
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- Aim for clarity and brevity.
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Please take the time to read the [plain language guidelines](https://www.plainlanguage.gov/guidelines/) for details.
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- Describe the subject factually.
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In particular, do not make value judgements or recommendations.
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Check the code or add tests if in doubt.
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- Provide complete, minimal examples, and explain them.
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Readers should be able to try examples verbatim and get the same results as shown in the manual.
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Always describe in words what a given example does.
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Non-trivial examples may need additional explanation, especially if they use concepts from outside the given context.
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- Use British English.
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This is a somewhat arbitrary choice to force consistency, and accounts for the fact that a majority of Nix users and developers are from Europe.
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### Links and anchors
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Reference documentation must be readable in arbitrary order.
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Readers cannot be expected to have any particular prerequisite knowledge about Nix.
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While the table of contents can provide guidance and full-text search can help, they are most likely to find what they need by following sensible cross-references.
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- Link to technical terms
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When mentioning Nix-specific concepts, commands, options, settings, etc., link to appropriate documentation.
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Also link to external tools or concepts, especially if their meaning may be ambiguous.
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You may also want to link to definitions of less common technical terms.
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Then readers won't have to actively search for definitions and are more likely to discover relevant information on their own.
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> **Note**
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>
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> `man` and `--help` pages don't display links.
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> Use appropriate link texts such that readers of terminal output can infer search terms.
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- Do not break existing URLs between releases.
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There are countless links in the wild pointing to old versions of the manual.
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We want people to find up-to-date documentation when following popular advice.
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- When moving files, update [redirects on nixos.org](https://github.com/NixOS/nixos-homepage/blob/master/netlify.toml).
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This is especially important when moving information out of the Nix manual to other resources.
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- When changing anchors, update [client-side redirects](https://github.com/NixOS/nix/blob/master/doc/manual/redirects.js)
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The current setup is cumbersome, and help making better automation is appreciated.
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The build checks for broken internal links with.
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This happens late in the process, so [building the whole manual](#building-the-manual) is not suitable for iterating quickly.
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[`mdbook-linkcheck`] does not implement checking [URI fragments] yet.
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[`mdbook-linkcheck`]: https://github.com/Michael-F-Bryan/mdbook-linkcheck
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[URI fragments]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/URI_fragment
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### Markdown conventions
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The manual is written in markdown, and rendered with [mdBook](https://github.com/rust-lang/mdBook) for the web and with [lowdown](https://github.com/kristapsdz/lowdown) for `man` pages and `--help` output.
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For supported markdown features, refer to:
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- [mdBook documentation](https://rust-lang.github.io/mdBook/format/markdown.html)
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- [lowdown documentation](https://kristaps.bsd.lv/lowdown/)
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Please observe these guidelines to ease reviews:
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- Write one sentence per line.
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This makes long sentences immediately visible, and makes it easier to review changes and make direct suggestions.
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- Use reference links – sparingly – to ease source readability.
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Put definitions close to their first use.
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Example:
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```
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A [store object] contains a [file system object] and [references] to other store objects.
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[store object]: @docroot@/glossary.md#gloss-store-object
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[file system object]: @docroot@/architecture/file-system-object.md
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[references]: @docroot@/glossary.md#gloss-reference
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```
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- Use admonitions of the following form:
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```
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> **Note**
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>
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> This is a note.
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```
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### The `@docroot@` variable
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`@docroot@` provides a base path for links that occur in reusable snippets or other documentation that doesn't have a base path of its own.
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If a broken link occurs in a snippet that was inserted into multiple generated files in different directories, use `@docroot@` to reference the `doc/manual/src` directory.
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If the `@docroot@` literal appears in an error message from the [`mdbook-linkcheck`] tool, the `@docroot@` replacement needs to be applied to the generated source file that mentions it.
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See existing `@docroot@` logic in the [Makefile for the manual].
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Regular markdown files used for the manual have a base path of their own and they can use relative paths instead of `@docroot@`.
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## API documentation
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[Doxygen API documentation] is available online.
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You can also build and view it yourself:
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[Doxygen API documentation]: https://hydra.nixos.org/job/nix/master/internal-api-docs/latest/download-by-type/doc/internal-api-docs
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```console
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# nix build .#hydraJobs.internal-api-docs
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# xdg-open ./result/share/doc/nix/internal-api/html/index.html
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```
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or inside `nix-shell` or `nix develop`:
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```
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# make internal-api-html
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# xdg-open ./outputs/doc/share/doc/nix/internal-api/html/index.html
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```
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@ -220,54 +220,3 @@ Configure your editor to use the `clangd` from the shell, either by running it i
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> For some editors (e.g. Visual Studio Code), you may need to install a [special extension](https://open-vsx.org/extension/llvm-vs-code-extensions/vscode-clangd) for the editor to interact with `clangd`.
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> Some other editors (e.g. Emacs, Vim) need a plugin to support LSP servers in general (e.g. [lsp-mode](https://github.com/emacs-lsp/lsp-mode) for Emacs and [vim-lsp](https://github.com/prabirshrestha/vim-lsp) for vim).
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> Editor-specific setup is typically opinionated, so we will not cover it here in more detail.
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### Checking links in the manual
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The build checks for broken internal links.
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This happens late in the process, so `nix build` is not suitable for iterating.
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To build the manual incrementally, run:
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```console
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make manual-html -j $NIX_BUILD_CORES
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```
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In order to reflect changes to the [Makefile], clear all generated files before re-building:
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[Makefile]: https://github.com/NixOS/nix/blob/master/doc/manual/local.mk
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```console
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rm $(git ls-files doc/manual/ -o | grep -F '.md') && rmdir doc/manual/src/command-ref/new-cli && make html -j $NIX_BUILD_CORES
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```
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[`mdbook-linkcheck`] does not implement checking [URI fragments] yet.
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[`mdbook-linkcheck`]: https://github.com/Michael-F-Bryan/mdbook-linkcheck
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[URI fragments]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/URI_fragment
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#### `@docroot@` variable
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`@docroot@` provides a base path for links that occur in reusable snippets or other documentation that doesn't have a base path of its own.
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If a broken link occurs in a snippet that was inserted into multiple generated files in different directories, use `@docroot@` to reference the `doc/manual/src` directory.
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If the `@docroot@` literal appears in an error message from the `mdbook-linkcheck` tool, the `@docroot@` replacement needs to be applied to the generated source file that mentions it.
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See existing `@docroot@` logic in the [Makefile].
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Regular markdown files used for the manual have a base path of their own and they can use relative paths instead of `@docroot@`.
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## API documentation
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Doxygen API documentation is [available
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online](https://hydra.nixos.org/job/nix/master/internal-api-docs/latest/download-by-type/doc/internal-api-docs). You
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can also build and view it yourself:
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```console
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# nix build .#hydraJobs.internal-api-docs
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# xdg-open ./result/share/doc/nix/internal-api/html/index.html
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```
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or inside a `nix develop` shell by running:
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```
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# make internal-api-html
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# xdg-open ./outputs/doc/share/doc/nix/internal-api/html/index.html
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```
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