feat(themes): wallpapers split — 94 MB of runtime-only images leave the flake source

The split line is consumption time: palette JSONs, previews and
per-theme overrides are read at Nix eval and stay in-repo (~3 MB);
wallpapers are runtime-only (swww via nomarchy-state-sync, never read
at eval) and move to the pinned nomarchy-wallpapers non-flake input
(git.bemagri.xyz/bernardo/Nomarchy-Wallpapers @ 803b48d, all 24 slugs).

New overlay drv nomarchy-default-themes merges the two: repo themes
copied, <slug>/backgrounds symlinked from the input, build FAILS if any
theme JSON lacks non-empty backgrounds — the drift guard for the
two-repo dance. nomarchy-state-sync's wrapper now points straight at
the merged store path (no in-package copy): the package drops from
~94 MB to 32.6 KiB and the wallpapers source appears exactly once in
any system closure, ISO included — offline promise intact. Downstream
custom wallpapers still win ($NOMARCHY_PATH/themes is checked first),
and an explicit state.json wallpaper path still works.

checks re-pointed at the merged tree (theme-wholeswap,
state-sync-validate, auto-theme); theme-contrast and airplane stay on
./themes (JSON/text only). import-palettes.py + README updated;
ROADMAP § Faster switches marked shipped; LATER now carries only the
pre-built-variants follow-on. Also files #151 (v1 launch plan, [human])
with measured history numbers: the 107 MiB pack is 94 MB wallpaper
blobs; all 848 text commits pack to ~15-20 MiB — recommendation
recorded to filter-repo at the GitHub move, not fresh-start.

Verification: V2 — nix flake check --no-build green; theme-wholeswap,
state-sync-validate, auto-theme VM check, downstream-template-home all
green; wallpapers store path exactly once in the state-sync closure;
`list` works from a scratch state dir. V3 queued: live wallpaper render
+ bg-next + custom-override precedence after next pull (HARDWARE-QUEUE).
Lock gained exactly the one input node. Implementation by a Sonnet
subagent; design and review on Fable.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>

README.md

@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ Flat on purpose. Two module trees, one options file each, no hidden layers.
 ├── themes/                        # 24 presets: <slug>.json + optional <slug>/ assets
 │   ├── nord.json                  #   palette (required, works alone)
 │   └── nord/                      #   assets (optional, fixed filenames)
-│       ├── backgrounds/           #     wallpapers (auto-picked, SUPER+SHIFT+T cycles)
+│       ├── backgrounds/           #     wallpapers (pinned nomarchy-wallpapers input, not this repo)
 │       ├── btop.theme             #     hand-made config drop (else generated)
 │       └── waybar.css             #     whole-swap: replaces the generated bar style
 ├── modules/
@@ -434,7 +434,7 @@ per theme — a single place to look, unlike the old distro's split:
 
 | Asset | Mechanism |
 |---|---|
-| `backgrounds/` | wallpapers; empty `wallpaper` in the state means "first one"; `bg next` cycles |
+| `backgrounds/` | wallpapers; empty `wallpaper` in the state means "first one"; `bg next` cycles. Pinned in a separate `nomarchy-wallpapers` flake input, not this repo (ROADMAP § "Faster switches") — merged in at build time |
 | `btop.theme` | baked into the generation (generated from the palette when absent) |
 | `waybar.css` | **whole-swap**: replaces the generated bar style entirely (probed at eval time, self-contained) |
 | `waybar.jsonc` | whole-swap for the bar *layout* (must be plain JSON) |
@@ -443,7 +443,9 @@ per theme — a single place to look, unlike the old distro's split:
 Four themes ship a `waybar.css` identity (summer-day, summer-night,
 executive-slate, boreal). Custom user themes can live in
 `$NOMARCHY_PATH/themes/` (preset lookup) and `nomarchy.themesDir` (eval-time
-asset probe).
+asset probe) — including their own `backgrounds/`, which wins over the
+pinned `nomarchy-wallpapers` input (checked first); an explicit `wallpaper`
+path in `state.json` works too.
 
 ## 5. Day-to-day
 

agent/BACKLOG.md

@@ -89,12 +89,43 @@ rofi#2317, and take the fix when a release carries it. If it is still open at
 the next lock bump, that is fine — nothing here rots meanwhile.
 *Last checked 2026-07-17: open, no maintainer response, no linked PR.*
 
+### 151. `[human]` v1 launch plan — devise with Bernardo (includes the GitHub move)
+
+Bernardo, 2026-07-17: before tagging v1, sit down and devise the launch plan.
+Known ingredients, so that session starts concrete:
+- **The repo moves to GitHub.** Everything baking the Gitea URL follows: the
+  downstream template's `inputs.nomarchy.url`, the `nomarchy-wallpapers`
+  input URL (baked 2026-07-17 — sweep it in the same move), README/docs
+  links, and CI (eval CI runs on Gitea act_runner — decide GitHub Actions
+  vs keeping Gitea CI on a mirror).
+- The move is the natural moment for the **history-rewrite decision**, and
+  it is now measured (2026-07-17): the 107 MiB pack is 94.2 MB wallpaper
+  blobs + 9.9 MB preview generations; all 848 commits of *text* pack to
+  ~15–20 MiB. So the history is not long-heavy, it is image-heavy.
+  Recommendation on the table: **filter, don't reset** —
+  `git filter-repo` stripping only `themes/*/backgrounds/` keeps every
+  commit's diffs/blame/`log -S` (load-bearing: it diagnosed #147) at a
+  ~15–20 MiB clone. Cost: all SHAs change, and ROADMAP/journal cite them —
+  mitigate by freezing the Gitea repo as a read-only archive (old SHAs
+  resolve there; stash filter-repo's commit-map in it) + one ROADMAP note.
+  Argue against a full mirror (ships 94 MB of deleted images to every
+  clone forever) and against fresh-start (burns the archaeology to save
+  ~15 MiB).
+- The existing v1 bar (VISION § v1.0): HARDWARE-QUEUE burn-down, install P0
+  re-verify before the `v1` fast-forward, visual ritual. LICENSE shipped
+  (MIT, 2026-07-17).
+- Adjacent calls that may fold in: cachix/public binary cache (#120's
+  prerequisite), the netinstall decision itself, release notes/announce.
+
+`v1` stays human-only throughout — agents prepare evidence and checklists,
+never the tag or branch.
+
 ## LATER
 
-- **Wallpapers artifact split** (ROADMAP § Faster switches — decided,
-  deferred): pinned `Nomarchy-wallpapers` input so a state write stops
-  re-copying 86 MB. Follow-on: pre-built theme variants if switches are
-  still slow after.
+- **Pre-built theme variants** (ROADMAP § Faster switches follow-on): if
+  `home-manager switch` itself is still the theme-switch bottleneck now
+  that the wallpapers split shipped (2026-07-17), pre-build each theme's
+  generation so a switch just activates a cached one. Measure first.
 - **Installer round 2** (ROADMAP § Installer): multi-disk BTRFS RAID,
   impermanence, BIOS/legacy boot.
 - **Boot-from-snapshot**: a systemd-boot equivalent of grub-btrfs.

agent/HARDWARE-QUEUE.md

@@ -39,6 +39,12 @@ Everything else below stays open; order is convenience, not a gate.
       toast appears. Same relogin answers #149's question (does the Waybar
       unit still race Hyprland IPC on a cold relogin without linger?).
       **Fail:** the panel stays lit inside the shut lid (the #148 symptom).
+- [ ] **Wallpapers-split live smoke (dev box)** — after the next
+      `nomarchy-pull` + `nomarchy-home`: wallpaper still renders at session
+      start; `SUPER+SHIFT+T` (bg next) cycles; `readlink` of the applied
+      image resolves into the `nomarchy-wallpapers` store path, not the
+      repo. **Pass:** all three. A custom wallpaper dropped in
+      `~/.nomarchy/themes/<slug>/backgrounds/` must still win.
 - [ ] **#115 suspend-then-hibernate (laptop with hibernate/resume wired)** —
       after system rebuild: Preferences shows **Suspend then hibernate (on)**
       (hidden if `CanHibernate=no`). Confirm:

agent/JOURNAL.md

@@ -19,6 +19,26 @@ Template:
 
 ---
 
+## 2026-07-17 — Wallpapers split shipped: 94 MB out of the flake source
+- **Task:** LATER "Wallpapers artifact split" (promoted by Bernardo live —
+  he created the Nomarchy-Wallpapers repo mid-session). Also filed #151
+  (v1 launch plan, [human]) with measured history numbers.
+- **Did:** all 24 themes' backgrounds → Nomarchy-Wallpapers (803b48d,
+  pushed); new `nomarchy-wallpapers` non-flake input; overlay drv
+  `nomarchy-default-themes` merges repo themes (~3 MB) + input backgrounds
+  with a build-failing drift guard; state-sync wrapper points at the
+  merged store path (package 94 MB → 32.6 KiB); checks re-pointed;
+  `themes/*/backgrounds/` git-rm'd. Split line: eval-time assets stay
+  in-repo, runtime-only wallpapers move. Sonnet implemented; design +
+  review here.
+- **Verified:** V2 — flake check green; theme-wholeswap, state-sync-validate,
+  auto-theme VM check, template HM build all green; wallpapers source
+  exactly once in the closure; `list` works from a scratch state dir.
+- **Pending:** V3 queued (wallpaper renders + bg-next after next pull;
+  custom-wallpaper override precedence). History rewrite decision folded
+  into #151.
+- **Next suggestion:** #151 planning session with Bernardo.
+
 ## 2026-07-17 — v1-prep hygiene sweep: repo is clean; LICENSE was the real gap
 - **Task:** Bernardo asked for a structure/necessity audit + full docs sweep
   ahead of v1. Three Sonnet passes (structure, docs-vs-code, mechanical

docs/ROADMAP.md

@@ -193,7 +193,7 @@ Design/decision records and a running log of shipped work (items marked
   rendered + captured); real-hardware capture was chosen for fidelity +
   simplicity, with the VM route as a documented fallback if hand-capturing all
   themes gets tedious.)
-- **Faster switches:** move `backgrounds/` out of the flake source. Diagnosis
+- ✓ **Faster switches:** move `backgrounds/` out of the flake source. Diagnosis
   (confirmed): `themes/` is 86 MB and `backgrounds/` is **all** of it — the
   palette JSONs + per-theme overrides are only ~208 KB, and the wallpapers are
   **never read at Nix eval** (only the Python `swww` path uses them). But
@@ -213,6 +213,17 @@ Design/decision records and a running log of shipped work (items marked
   Follow-on if `home-manager switch` itself is still the bottleneck after the
   copy is gone: **pre-built theme variants** (build each theme's generation
   ahead of time so a switch just activates a cached one).
+  **Shipped (2026-07-17):** Option 1, exactly as decided. New `nomarchy-wallpapers`
+  flake input (`flake = false`, its own repo, `<slug>/backgrounds/*`); a new
+  overlay derivation `nomarchy-default-themes` copies this repo's `./themes`
+  (now ~3 MB — JSONs, previews, btop/waybar/rofi overrides) and symlinks in
+  `backgrounds/` per slug from the input, failing the build if a theme JSON
+  has no matching non-empty backgrounds (drift guard, belt to
+  `check-theme-wholeswap.py`'s same assertion). `nomarchy-state-sync`'s
+  `themesDir` now points straight at that merged store path (no more
+  in-package `cp -r`) — its own closure dropped from ~94 MB to a few hundred
+  KB. `themes/*/backgrounds/` removed from this repo's working tree going
+  forward (existing git history still carries the old blobs — not rewritten).
 - Greeter (tuigreet/SDDM) theming from the same JSON (Plymouth ships since
   v1: `nomarchy.system.plymouth.*`, background tinted from the state file)
 - Installer round 2: multi-disk BTRFS RAID, impermanence, BIOS/legacy

flake.lock

@@ -212,6 +212,23 @@
         "type": "github"
       }
     },
+    "nomarchy-wallpapers": {
+      "flake": false,
+      "locked": {
+        "lastModified": 1784302860,
+        "narHash": "sha256-nQ+eLEggLxDcbKks3Ui6rbJ4P24H2JXenLLg9si007M=",
+        "ref": "main",
+        "rev": "803b48ddf35aeff08999c8c7f563457181105cf5",
+        "revCount": 2,
+        "type": "git",
+        "url": "https://git.bemagri.xyz/bernardo/Nomarchy-Wallpapers.git"
+      },
+      "original": {
+        "ref": "main",
+        "type": "git",
+        "url": "https://git.bemagri.xyz/bernardo/Nomarchy-Wallpapers.git"
+      }
+    },
     "nur": {
       "inputs": {
         "flake-parts": [
@@ -243,6 +260,7 @@
         "nixos-hardware": "nixos-hardware",
         "nixpkgs": "nixpkgs",
         "nixpkgs-unstable": "nixpkgs-unstable",
+        "nomarchy-wallpapers": "nomarchy-wallpapers",
         "stylix": "stylix"
       }
     },

flake.nix

@@ -30,9 +30,20 @@
       url = "github:NixOS/nixos-hardware/master";
       inputs.nixpkgs.follows = "nixpkgs";
     };
+
+    # Wallpapers only — split out of this repo (ROADMAP § "Faster
+    # switches") so a `state.json` write stops re-copying ~94 MB of
+    # backgrounds/ before Nix can evaluate a 1 KB change. Runtime-only:
+    # never read at eval, only by nomarchy-state-sync's Python (swww
+    # path) via NOMARCHY_DEFAULT_THEMES. `flake = false` — it's just a
+    # content tree (`<slug>/backgrounds/*`), not a flake.
+    nomarchy-wallpapers = {
+      url = "git+https://git.bemagri.xyz/bernardo/Nomarchy-Wallpapers.git?ref=main";
+      flake = false;
+    };
   };
 
-  outputs = { self, nixpkgs, nixpkgs-unstable, home-manager, stylix, nixos-hardware, ... }:
+  outputs = { self, nixpkgs, nixpkgs-unstable, home-manager, stylix, nixos-hardware, nomarchy-wallpapers, ... }:
     let
       system = "x86_64-linux";
       username = "nomarchy"; # reference host only; downstream picks its own
@@ -95,10 +106,43 @@
           inherit (prev.stdenv.hostPlatform) system;
           config.allowUnfree = true;
         };
+        # The default themes root: this repo's ./themes (JSONs, previews,
+        # btop/waybar/rofi overrides — ~3 MB post wallpaper-split) merged
+        # with backgrounds/ symlinked in from the pinned nomarchy-wallpapers
+        # input. One tree so nomarchy-state-sync (baked-in fallback) and
+        # the theme-wholeswap check both see slug/backgrounds/ in the same
+        # place a downstream machine would via NOMARCHY_DEFAULT_THEMES.
+        nomarchy-default-themes =
+          let
+            wallpaperSlugs = builtins.attrNames
+              (nixpkgs.lib.filterAttrs (n: t: t == "directory")
+                (builtins.readDir nomarchy-wallpapers));
+            linkBackgrounds = slug: ''
+              if [ -d ${nomarchy-wallpapers}/${slug}/backgrounds ]; then
+                mkdir -p $out/${slug}
+                ln -s ${nomarchy-wallpapers}/${slug}/backgrounds $out/${slug}/backgrounds
+              fi
+            '';
+          in
+          final.runCommand "nomarchy-default-themes" { } ''
+            cp -r ${./themes} $out
+            chmod -R u+w $out
+
+            ${nixpkgs.lib.concatMapStringsSep "\n" linkBackgrounds wallpaperSlugs}
+
+            for j in $out/*.json; do
+              slug=$(basename "$j" .json)
+              if [ ! -d "$out/$slug/backgrounds" ] || [ -z "$(ls -A "$out/$slug/backgrounds" 2>/dev/null)" ]; then
+                echo "nomarchy-default-themes: $slug has no non-empty backgrounds/ (drift vs nomarchy-wallpapers)" >&2
+                exit 1
+              fi
+            done
+          '';
         nomarchy-state-sync = final.callPackage ./pkgs/nomarchy-state-sync {
           # Presets baked into the package, so `nomarchy-state-sync list`
-          # works on machines that don't check out this repo.
-          themesDir = ./themes;
+          # works on machines that don't check out this repo. Already a
+          # store artifact (nomarchy-default-themes) — no copy needed.
+          themesDir = final.nomarchy-default-themes;
         };
         nomarchy-doctor = final.callPackage ./pkgs/nomarchy-doctor { };
         nomarchy-battery-notify = final.callPackage ./pkgs/nomarchy-battery-notify { };
@@ -336,11 +380,13 @@
           # Whole-swap waybar.css is read raw (no palette prepend) — every
           # @color it references must be @define-color'd in the same file
           # (neon-glass shipped zero defines; BACKLOG #62). Also gate
-          # preview.png + non-empty backgrounds/ per preset.
+          # preview.png + non-empty backgrounds/ per preset — run against
+          # the merged tree (pkgs.nomarchy-default-themes) so this doubles
+          # as the drift guard between this repo and nomarchy-wallpapers.
           theme-wholeswap = pkgs.runCommand "nomarchy-theme-wholeswap"
             { nativeBuildInputs = [ pkgs.python3 ]; }
             ''
-              python3 ${./tools/check-theme-wholeswap.py} ${./themes}
+              python3 ${./tools/check-theme-wholeswap.py} ${pkgs.nomarchy-default-themes}
               touch $out
             '';
 
@@ -389,7 +435,7 @@
             ''
               set -eu
               tool=${./pkgs/nomarchy-state-sync/nomarchy-state-sync.py}
-              export NOMARCHY_DEFAULT_THEMES=${./themes}
+              export NOMARCHY_DEFAULT_THEMES=${pkgs.nomarchy-default-themes}
 
               mkdir good && cp ${./templates/downstream/state.json} good/state.json
               chmod +w good/state.json
@@ -2180,7 +2226,7 @@
               )
 
               env = ("NOMARCHY_PATH=/root/.nomarchy "
-                     "NOMARCHY_DEFAULT_THEMES=${./themes} "
+                     "NOMARCHY_DEFAULT_THEMES=${pkgs.nomarchy-default-themes} "
                      "NOMARCHY_REBUILD=/root/rebuild ")
 
               # Pair + schedule (setup writes only, no rebuild).

pkgs/nomarchy-state-sync/default.nix

@@ -7,6 +7,10 @@
 , git
   # Shipped theme presets, baked into the package as a fallback so
   # `list`/`apply` work even when $NOMARCHY_PATH has no themes/ dir.
+  # Already a store artifact (nomarchy-default-themes merges the repo's
+  # ./themes with backgrounds/ symlinked from nomarchy-wallpapers) — the
+  # wrapper points straight at it, no copy, so it stays in the closure
+  # without duplicating it into $out.
 , themesDir ? null
 }:
 
@@ -25,17 +29,12 @@ stdenvNoCC.mkDerivation {
     install -Dm755 nomarchy-state-sync.py $out/bin/nomarchy-state-sync
     patchShebangs $out/bin/nomarchy-state-sync
 
-    ${lib.optionalString (themesDir != null) ''
-      mkdir -p $out/share/nomarchy
-      cp -r ${themesDir} $out/share/nomarchy/themes
-    ''}
-
     # Stdlib-only Python. home-manager is deliberately NOT wrapped in —
     # the rebuild must use the user's own home-manager from their PATH.
     wrapProgram $out/bin/nomarchy-state-sync \
       --prefix PATH : ${lib.makeBinPath [ awww libnotify git ]} \
       ${lib.optionalString (themesDir != null)
-        "--set NOMARCHY_DEFAULT_THEMES $out/share/nomarchy/themes"}
+        "--set NOMARCHY_DEFAULT_THEMES ${themesDir}"}
 
     # #107: old CLI name kept as a symlink so muscle memory and scripts
     # survive a pull (drop after the next stable release notes say so).

tools/import-palettes.py

@@ -13,7 +13,12 @@ Old format (per theme directory):
 
 Output, per theme:
     <slug>.json            the palette (Nomarchy theme schema)
-    <slug>/backgrounds/    wallpapers, copied verbatim
+    <slug>/backgrounds/    wallpapers, copied verbatim — NOTE: this repo's
+                           own themes/ no longer carries backgrounds/ (moved
+                           to the Nomarchy-Wallpapers repo, ROADMAP § "Faster
+                           switches"); if <output-themes-dir> is this repo's
+                           themes/, move the copied backgrounds/ over there
+                           instead of committing them here
     <slug>/btop.theme      copied from apps/ when present
 
 Hierarchy vs ANSI (#70):
@@ -166,12 +171,16 @@ def main() -> None:
         slug = theme["slug"]
         (out / f"{slug}.json").write_text(json.dumps(theme, indent=2) + "\n")
 
-        # Assets: wallpapers and hand-made per-app theme files.
+        # Assets: wallpapers and hand-made per-app theme files. Wallpapers
+        # land in <out>/<slug>/backgrounds/ here for convenience, but if
+        # <out> is this repo's themes/, move them to the Nomarchy-Wallpapers
+        # repo instead of committing them (ROADMAP § "Faster switches") —
+        # this repo's themes/*/backgrounds/ was removed on purpose.
         extras = []
         if (theme_dir / "backgrounds").is_dir():
             shutil.copytree(theme_dir / "backgrounds", out / slug / "backgrounds",
                             dirs_exist_ok=True)
-            extras.append(f"{len(list((theme_dir / 'backgrounds').iterdir()))} wallpapers")
+            extras.append(f"{len(list((theme_dir / 'backgrounds').iterdir()))} wallpapers — move to Nomarchy-Wallpapers")
         if (theme_dir / "apps" / "btop.theme").is_file():
             (out / slug).mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
             shutil.copyfile(theme_dir / "apps" / "btop.theme", out / slug / "btop.theme")