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fix(ci/nix): export USER before Nix steps so cachix runs in act_runner #2

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claude-ceo-assistant wants to merge 1 commits from fix/nix-cachix-user-env into main
pull from: fix/nix-cachix-user-env
merge into: molecule-ai:main
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claude-ceo-assistant commented 2026-05-08 01:37:52 +00:00
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Summary

Nix / nix (ubuntu-latest) was the remaining red after PR #1 fixed Tests/setup-uv. Diagnosis:

$USER must be set. If running in a container, try setting USER=root.
Error: The process '/home/runner/.nix-profile/bin/cachix' failed with exit code 1

cachix-action (called from .github/actions/nix-setup/action.yml) shells out to nix-env -iA cachix and cachix use hermes-agent. Both require HOME + USER set on the caller (Nix uses USER to scope per-user profile directories). The act_runner job container propagates HOME=/tmp/... but not USER, so cachix exits 1 on a fresh container.

The cachix step has continue-on-error: true, but act_runner appears to bubble the failure to the job result anyway — possibly an act_runner deviation from github-actions semantics, possibly a step-exit-before-catch race. Either way the proper fix is to make cachix not fail in the first place.

What changed

.github/actions/nix-setup/action.yml — adds a one-time pre-step that exports USER before any Nix invocation:

- name: Ensure USER is set (act_runner / container compat)
  shell: bash
  run: |
    if [ -z "${USER:-}" ]; then
      echo "USER=$(id -un 2>/dev/null || echo root)" >> "$GITHUB_ENV"
    fi

id -un resolves to whatever user the container runs as (root, on our act_runners). Falls back to root if id -un is unavailable. The if guard avoids overriding USER when it IS set (e.g., on a properly-configured GitHub.com runner) so this PR doesn't regress github-hosted CI.

Test plan

  • Re-run Nix / nix (ubuntu-latest) against this branch's HEAD
  • Expect cachix-action to install + cachix use hermes-agent successfully
  • Job result: pass

Tracked separately from PR #1

PR #1 fixes Tests/setup-uv (a different rate-limit-on-api.github.com pattern). Same overall theme — act_runner compat with GitHub-style actions — but distinct concerns. One PR per concern.

Class

CI / runner-environment compatibility. Not a regression of any code change in this repo; the failure mode is post-2026-05-06-org-suspension fallout (act_runner became the canonical runner once GitHub-hosted actions stopped being viable).

Generated with Claude Code.

## Summary `Nix / nix (ubuntu-latest)` was the remaining red after PR #1 fixed Tests/setup-uv. Diagnosis: ``` $USER must be set. If running in a container, try setting USER=root. Error: The process '/home/runner/.nix-profile/bin/cachix' failed with exit code 1 ``` `cachix-action` (called from `.github/actions/nix-setup/action.yml`) shells out to `nix-env -iA cachix` and `cachix use hermes-agent`. Both require `HOME + USER` set on the caller (Nix uses `USER` to scope per-user profile directories). The act_runner job container propagates `HOME=/tmp/...` but not `USER`, so cachix exits 1 on a fresh container. The cachix step has `continue-on-error: true`, but act_runner appears to bubble the failure to the job result anyway — possibly an act_runner deviation from github-actions semantics, possibly a step-exit-before-catch race. Either way the proper fix is to make cachix not fail in the first place. ## What changed `.github/actions/nix-setup/action.yml` — adds a one-time pre-step that exports `USER` before any Nix invocation: ```yaml - name: Ensure USER is set (act_runner / container compat) shell: bash run: | if [ -z "${USER:-}" ]; then echo "USER=$(id -un 2>/dev/null || echo root)" >> "$GITHUB_ENV" fi ``` `id -un` resolves to whatever user the container runs as (root, on our act_runners). Falls back to `root` if `id -un` is unavailable. The `if` guard avoids overriding USER when it IS set (e.g., on a properly-configured GitHub.com runner) so this PR doesn't regress github-hosted CI. ## Test plan - Re-run `Nix / nix (ubuntu-latest)` against this branch's HEAD - Expect cachix-action to install + `cachix use hermes-agent` successfully - Job result: pass ## Tracked separately from PR #1 PR #1 fixes Tests/setup-uv (a different rate-limit-on-api.github.com pattern). Same overall theme — act_runner compat with GitHub-style actions — but distinct concerns. One PR per concern. ## Class CI / runner-environment compatibility. Not a regression of any code change in this repo; the failure mode is post-2026-05-06-org-suspension fallout (act_runner became the canonical runner once GitHub-hosted actions stopped being viable). Generated with Claude Code.
claude-ceo-assistant added 1 commit 2026-05-08 01:37:53 +00:00
fix(ci/nix): export USER before Nix steps so cachix runs in act_runner
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079383e63b 
Nix workflow on ubuntu-latest fails at the cachix-action step:

  $USER must be set. If running in a container, try setting USER=root.
  Error: The process /home/runner/.nix-profile/bin/cachix failed
  with exit code 1

cachix shells out to nix-env + cachix use, both of which require
HOME + USER set on the caller. On act_runner the job container does
not propagate USER from the host (it propagates HOME from /tmp/...
but not USER), so cachix exits 1 on a fresh container.

Although cachix-action has continue-on-error: true at the step
level, act_runner appears to bubble the failure up to the job
result anyway — possibly because the step exits before
continue-on-error catches it, or an act_runner deviation from
github-actions semantics. Either way the proper fix is to make
cachix not fail in the first place.

Add a pre-step to the composite action that exports USER for every
subsequent step. id -un resolves to root (the runner runs as root)
or whatever non-root user the container is configured for; falling
back to root if id -un is unavailable.

Test plan: re-run Nix / nix (ubuntu-latest) on the next push to
this branch; expect cachix-action to install + use the cache
successfully, and the job to pass overall.

Tracked next to fix/setup-uv-pin-version (PR #1) — separate concern,
separate PR.
Some checks failed
Tests / e2e (pull_request) Successful in 3m42s
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Nix / nix (ubuntu-latest) (pull_request) Failing after 7m20s
Details
Tests / test (pull_request) Failing after 14m15s
Details
Nix / nix (macos-latest) (pull_request) Has been cancelled
Details
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Reference: molecule-ai/hermes-agent#2
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