## 1. Downloading & Building the Bootable ISO

### Direct ISO Download
You can download the official pre-built NaxOS installation media directly from Gitea:
- **Gitea Release Page**: [https://git.lholz.de/naxos/naxos-os/releases](https://git.lholz.de/naxos/naxos-os/releases)
- **Direct Package Download**: [Download NaxOS Installer ISO](https://git.lholz.de/api/packages/naxos/generic/naxos-installer-iso/1.0.0/naxos-installer-x86_64-linux.iso)

### Building the ISO from Source
To build the streamlined NaxOS installer image from source using Nix on any x86_64 Linux machine:

```bash
# Build directly from the remote flake:
nix build git+https://git.lholz.de/naxos/naxos-os.git#iso

# Or clone and build locally:
git clone https://git.lholz.de/naxos/naxos-os.git
cd naxos-os
nix build .#iso
```

The output bootable ISO will be generated at `./result/iso/naxos-installer-*.iso`.

---

## 2. Writing to USB Flash Drive

Write the ISO image to a USB flash drive (replace `/dev/sdX` with your USB drive device):

```bash
# macOS
sudo dd if=result/iso/naxos-installer-*.iso of=/dev/rdiskX bs=4M status=progress; sync

# Linux
sudo dd if=result/iso/naxos-installer-*.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress oflag=sync
```

---

## 3. Running the Installer Wizard

1. Insert the USB drive into your target hardware and boot in UEFI mode.
2. The Live environment will automatically log in as `root` and start the interactive setup wizard:
   ```bash
   naxos-installer
   ```
3. Follow the guided steps:
   - **Step 1**: System hardware inspection and physical disk discovery.
   - **Step 2**: Storage architecture choice (Create fresh ZFS pool vs. Safe foreign pool import from TrueNAS or `nixos-lukas`).
   - **Step 3**: Target OS disk selection (partitions EFI system partition and ext4 root partition).
   - **Step 4**: Network configuration (appliance hostname and DHCP / static IP).
   - **Step 5**: Administrator credentials and SSH public keys.
   - **Step 6**: Automated installation and deployment.

### What Does the Installer Actually Deploy?
During Step 6, `naxos-installer`:
1. **Installs the NaxOS NixOS Modules**: Deploys declarative appliance modules into `/mnt/etc/nixos/naxos-os`.
2. **Installs the NaxOS Web Dashboard (`naxos-ui`)**: Unpacks the compiled React SPA into `/mnt/opt/naxos/ui/dist`.
3. **Installs the NaxOS Management Daemon (`naxos-api`)**: Deploys the Node.js fastify backend daemon into `/mnt/opt/naxos/api`.
4. **Configures Appliance Systemd Services**: Enables `services.naxos.api` (port 8088), `services.naxos.ui` (Nginx reverse proxy on port 80/443), `services.naxos.perses` (CNCF Perses metrics on 8080), Samba SMB with Time Machine, and OpenZFS automated scrub/snapshots.
5. **Executes `nixos-install`**: Compiles and activates the complete appliance generation running **NixOS 26.05**.

---

## 4. Post-Installation First Boot

After the system reboots:
1. Access the web dashboard by navigating to `http://naxos.local` (or `http://<ip-address>`).
2. Log in using your administrator credentials.
3. The NaxOS dashboard and management daemon are live and ready for operation!