diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index a365cdf3..5b8b5804 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@
 # along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 SHELL = /usr/bin/env bash
-.PHONY: all art cleanart version program lang path deps run race bindata generate build build-debug crossbuild clean test gofmt yamlfmt format docs rpmbuild mkdirs rpm srpm spec tar upload upload-sources upload-srpms upload-rpms upload-releases copr tag release funcgen
+.PHONY: all art cleanart version program lang path deps run race bindata generate build build-debug crossbuild clean test gofmt yamlfmt format docs rpmbuild mkdirs rpm srpm spec tar upload upload-sources upload-srpms upload-rpms upload-releases copr tag mkosi mkosi_rpm mkosi_deb mkosi_pacman release releases_path release_rpm release_deb release_pacman funcgen
 .SILENT: clean bindata
 
 # a large amount of output from this `find`, can cause `make` to be much slower!
@@ -165,6 +165,7 @@ clean: ## clean things up
 	$(MAKE) --quiet -C bindata clean
 	$(MAKE) --quiet -C lang/funcs clean
 	$(MAKE) --quiet -C lang clean
+	$(MAKE) --quiet -C misc/mkosi clean
 	rm -f lang/funcs/core/generated_funcs.go || true
 	rm -f lang/funcs/core/generated_funcs_test.go || true
 	[ ! -e $(PROGRAM) ] || rm $(PROGRAM)
@@ -343,11 +344,36 @@ copr: upload-srpms ## build in copr
 tag: ## tags a new release
 	./misc/tag.sh
 
+#
+#	mkosi
+#
+mkosi: mkosi_rpm mkosi_deb mkosi_pacman ## builds distro packages via mkosi
+
+mkosi_rpm: releases/$(VERSION)/.mkdir
+	@echo "Generating: rpm via mkosi..."
+	./misc/mkosi/make.sh rpm mkosi.default.fedora-29 `realpath "releases/$(VERSION)/"`
+
+mkosi_deb: releases/$(VERSION)/.mkdir
+	@echo "Generating: deb via mkosi..."
+	./misc/mkosi/make.sh deb mkosi.default.debian-10 `realpath "releases/$(VERSION)/"`
+
+mkosi_pacman: releases/$(VERSION)/.mkdir
+	@echo "Generating: pacman via mkosi..."
+	./misc/mkosi/make.sh pacman mkosi.default.archlinux `realpath "releases/$(VERSION)/"`
+
 #
 #	release
 #
 release: releases/$(VERSION)/mgmt-release.url ## generates and uploads a release
 
+releases_path:
+	@#Don't put any other output or dependencies in here or they'll show!
+	@echo "releases/$(VERSION)/"
+
+release_rpm: $(RPM_PKG)
+release_deb: $(DEB_PKG)
+release_pacman: $(PACMAN_PKG)
+
 releases/$(VERSION)/mgmt-release.url: $(RPM_PKG) $(DEB_PKG) $(PACMAN_PKG) $(SHA256SUMS_ASC)
 	@echo "Creating github release..."
 	hub release create \
@@ -362,7 +388,7 @@ releases/$(VERSION)/mgmt-release.url: $(RPM_PKG) $(DEB_PKG) $(PACMAN_PKG) $(SHA2
 		|| rm -f releases/$(VERSION)/mgmt-release.url
 
 releases/$(VERSION)/.mkdir:
-	mkdir -p releases/$(VERSION)/{deb,rpm,pacman}/ && touch releases/$(VERSION)/.mkdir
+	mkdir -p releases/$(VERSION)/{rpm,deb,pacman}/ && touch releases/$(VERSION)/.mkdir
 
 releases/$(VERSION)/rpm/changelog: $(PROGRAM) releases/$(VERSION)/.mkdir
 	@echo "Generating: rpm changelog..."
diff --git a/misc/fpm-pack.sh b/misc/fpm-pack.sh
index a4f2d96c..4e2f9236 100755
--- a/misc/fpm-pack.sh
+++ b/misc/fpm-pack.sh
@@ -43,11 +43,37 @@ if [ "$VERSION" != "$TAG" ]; then
 fi
 
 # make sure the package type is valid
-if [ "$1" != "deb" ] && [ "$1" != "rpm" ] && [ "$1" != "pacman" ]; then
+if [ "$1" != "rpm" ] && [ "$1" != "deb" ] && [ "$1" != "pacman" ]; then
 	echo "invalid package type"
 	exit 1
 fi
 
+# don't run if the file already exists (bad idempotent implementation)
+if [ -d "${DIR}/${VERSION}/${1}/" ]; then
+	if [ "$1" = "rpm" ]; then
+		if ls "${DIR}/${VERSION}/${1}/"*.rpm &>/dev/null; then
+			# update timestamp so the Makefile is happy =D
+			touch "${DIR}/${VERSION}/${1}/"*.rpm
+			echo "a .rpm already exists"
+			exit 0	# don't error, we want to be idempotent
+		fi
+	fi
+	if [ "$1" = "deb" ]; then
+		if ls "${DIR}/${VERSION}/${1}/"*.deb &>/dev/null; then
+			touch "${DIR}/${VERSION}/${1}/"*.deb
+			echo "a .deb already exists"
+			exit 0
+		fi
+	fi
+	if [ "$1" = "pacman" ]; then
+		if ls "${DIR}/${VERSION}/${1}/"*.tar.xz &>/dev/null; then
+			touch "${DIR}/${VERSION}/${1}/"*.tar.xz
+			echo "a .tar.xz already exists"
+			exit 0
+		fi
+	fi
+fi
+
 # there are no changelogs for pacman packages
 if [ "$1" != "pacman" ]; then
 	CHANGELOG="--${1}-changelog=${DIR}/${VERSION}/${1}/changelog"
@@ -58,6 +84,11 @@ for i in "${@:3}"; do
 	DEPS="$DEPS -d $i"
 done
 
+# in case the `fpm` gem bin isn't in the $PATH
+if which ruby >/dev/null && which gem >/dev/null && ! command -v fpm 2>/dev/null; then
+	PATH="$(ruby -r rubygems -e 'puts Gem.user_dir')/bin:$PATH"
+fi
+
 # build the package
 fpm \
 	--log error \
diff --git a/misc/make-deps.sh b/misc/make-deps.sh
index b386e7b7..1900d899 100755
--- a/misc/make-deps.sh
+++ b/misc/make-deps.sh
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ if [ ! -z "$YUM" ]; then
 	$sudo_command $YUM install -y ruby-devel rubygems
 	$sudo_command $YUM install -y time
 	# dependencies for building packages with fpm
-	$sudo_command $YUM install -y gcc make rpm-build libffi-devel bsdtar || true
+	$sudo_command $YUM install -y gcc make rpm-build libffi-devel bsdtar mkosi || true
 	$sudo_command $YUM install -y graphviz || true # for debugging
 fi
 if [ ! -z "$APT" ]; then
diff --git a/misc/mkosi/.gitignore b/misc/mkosi/.gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..1d1f9458
--- /dev/null
+++ b/misc/mkosi/.gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+mkosi.cache/
+mkosi.builddir/
+mkosi.output/
+image.raw.cache-pre-dev
+image.raw.cache-pre-inst
diff --git a/misc/mkosi/Makefile b/misc/mkosi/Makefile
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ad47e5ea
--- /dev/null
+++ b/misc/mkosi/Makefile
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+# Mgmt
+# Copyright (C) 2013-2019+ James Shubin and the project contributors
+# Written by James Shubin <james@shubin.ca> and the project contributors
+#
+# This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+# it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
+# the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
+# (at your option) any later version.
+#
+# This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+# but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+# MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+# GNU General Public License for more details.
+#
+# You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
+# along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+
+SHELL = /usr/bin/env bash
+.PHONY: all clean
+
+default: all
+
+all:
+	@echo "This Makefile is used for cleaning."
+
+clean:
+	@rm -rf mkosi.{builddir,cache,output}
diff --git a/misc/mkosi/make.sh b/misc/mkosi/make.sh
new file mode 100755
index 00000000..326cf870
--- /dev/null
+++ b/misc/mkosi/make.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,61 @@
+#!/bin/bash -e
+
+echo running "$0"
+set -o errexit
+set -o pipefail
+
+# Run it the directory this script is in.
+ROOT=$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE}")
+cd "${ROOT}"
+#pwd
+
+if [ "$3" = "" ]; then
+	# output should be an absolute path
+	echo "Usage: ./$0 <type> <input> <output>"
+	exit 1
+fi
+
+# The type should be one of these.
+if [ "$1" != "rpm" ] && [ "$1" != "deb" ] && [ "$1" != "pacman" ]; then
+	echo "Error: build type sanity check failure."
+	exit 1
+fi
+
+# The input should start with this format string.
+if [[ $2 != mkosi.default.* ]]; then
+	echo "Error: build input sanity check failure."
+	exit 1
+fi
+
+# Make sure we're on a tagged commit.
+TAG=$(git tag -l --points-at HEAD)
+if [ "$TAG" == "" ]; then
+	echo "Error: fpm cannot handle an untagged commit."
+	exit 1
+fi
+
+mkdir -p mkosi.{cache,builddir,output}
+
+# Speed up builds significantly.
+if mountpoint mkosi.output/; then
+	echo "The output directory is already a mountpoint."
+	exit 1
+fi
+echo "Mounting 5G tmpfs in 3 seconds, press ^C to cancel if you are low on RAM."
+sleep 3s
+sudo mount -t tmpfs -o size=5g tmpfs mkosi.output/	# zoom!
+trap 'echo Unmounting tmpfs... && sudo umount mkosi.output/' EXIT	# Unmount on script exit.
+
+echo "Running mkosi (requires root)..."
+time sudo mkosi --default="$2" build	# Test with `summary` instead of `build`.
+
+# FIXME: workaround bug: https://github.com/systemd/mkosi/issues/366
+u=$(id --name --user)
+g=$(id --name --group)
+echo "Running chown (requires root)..."
+sudo chown -R $u:$g mkosi.{cache,builddir}
+
+# Move packaged build artifact into our releases/ directory.
+mv mkosi.builddir/${1}/ "$3"	# mv mkosi.builddir/rpm/ /.../releases/$(VERSION)/
+
+echo "Done $0 run!"
diff --git a/misc/mkosi/mkosi.build b/misc/mkosi/mkosi.build
new file mode 100755
index 00000000..390fe1c9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/misc/mkosi/mkosi.build
@@ -0,0 +1,87 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+# If mkosi.builddir/ exists mkosi will set $BUILDDIR to it, let's then use it as
+# out-of-tree build dir. Otherwise, let's make up our own builddir.
+[ -z "$BUILDDIR" ] && BUILDDIR=build
+
+# After some inspection, we've noticed that:
+# `pwd` is: /root/src
+# $SRCDIR is: /root/src
+# $DESTDIR is: /root/dest
+
+# TODO: Can we use misc/make-path.sh here instead?
+# The default that will get used automatically.
+export GOPATH=~/go/
+
+# The golang bins are stored here.
+export GOBIN="${GOPATH}bin/"
+
+# Needed so that golang build tools will get found.
+export PATH="${GOBIN}:${PATH}"
+
+# Define the golang dir for mgmt.
+MGMTDIR="${GOPATH}src/github.com/purpleidea/mgmt/"
+
+# Make the parent dir.
+mkdir -p $(dirname $MGMTDIR)
+
+# Move our code into it so that golang works.
+mv "$SRCDIR" "$MGMTDIR"
+
+# Work from that directory.
+cd "$MGMTDIR"
+
+# Arch mirror fixes.
+if [ -e "/etc/arch-release" ]; then
+	cp /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist.backup
+	# Enable all mirrors.
+	sed -i 's/^#Server/Server/' /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist.backup
+	#rankmirrors -n 6 /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist.backup > /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist	# SLOW
+	echo 'Server = http://mirror.rackspace.com/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch' > /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist
+	cat /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist.backup >> /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist
+	pacman -Syu --noconfirm pacman-mirrorlist
+	pacman -Syyu
+fi
+
+# Get all the dependencies for mgmt.
+make deps
+
+# Build it!
+make || exit 1
+
+# Store the output.
+# TODO: is this required?
+mv mgmt $BUILDDIR
+
+# Get the releases directory path.
+releases_path=$(make releases_path)	# It captures any other output, careful!
+if [ "$releases_path" = "" ]; then
+	echo "Releases path is unknown."
+	exit 1
+fi
+mkdir -p "$releases_path"	# Ensure it exists.
+
+echo "The releases_path is: ${releases_path}."
+
+# Build the package for the distribution that we're in.
+if [ -e "/etc/redhat-release" ]; then
+	# TODO: differentiate between Fedora and CentOS
+	make release_rpm
+	typ='rpm'
+elif [ -e "/etc/debian_version" ]; then
+	# TODO: differentiate between Debian and Ubuntu
+	make release_deb
+	typ='deb'
+elif [ -e "/etc/arch-release" ]; then
+	make release_pacman
+	typ='pacman'
+else
+	echo "OS family is unknown."
+	exit 1
+fi
+echo "The release type is: ${typ}."
+
+# Store releases.
+mv "$releases_path${typ}/" $BUILDDIR	# mv releases/$(VERSION)/rpm/ $BUILDDIR
+
+echo "Done mkosi build!"
diff --git a/misc/mkosi/mkosi.default.archlinux b/misc/mkosi/mkosi.default.archlinux
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..4e56d9c6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/misc/mkosi/mkosi.default.archlinux
@@ -0,0 +1,53 @@
+[Distribution]
+Distribution=arch
+#Mirror=http://mirror.rackspace.com/archlinux/
+
+[Output]
+Format=raw_btrfs
+Bootable=yes
+
+# This can be a ramdisk to improve performance.
+OutputDirectory=mkosi.output
+
+[Partitions]
+# 1G isn't enough for the base distros.
+RootSize=5G
+
+[Packages]
+# We need to download sources from the internet.
+WithNetwork=true
+
+# The packages to appear in both the build and the final image.
+Packages=
+	pacman
+	pacman-contrib
+	pacman-mirrorlist
+	make
+	git
+	go
+	tree
+# The packages to appear in the build image, but absent from the final image.
+#BuildPackages=
+#	pacman
+#	pacman-contrib
+#	pacman-mirrorlist
+#	make
+#	git
+#	go
+#	tree
+
+# Store our build artifacts here. This makes them accessible to the outside.
+BuildDirectory=mkosi.builddir
+
+# Cache some of our package manager downloads.
+Cache=mkosi.cache
+
+# Pull the parent git repository into the image.
+BuildSources=../..
+
+# Use this transfer mode for the git sources.
+# XXX: Does auto-detect even work if BuildSources is not the current dir? Bug?
+SourceFileTransfer=copy-git-cached
+
+# Skip the (second) final build phase, since we only need the build artifact.
+SkipFinalPhase=true
diff --git a/misc/mkosi/mkosi.default.debian-10 b/misc/mkosi/mkosi.default.debian-10
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..14fcdf26
--- /dev/null
+++ b/misc/mkosi/mkosi.default.debian-10
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+[Distribution]
+Distribution=debian
+Release=stable
+
+[Output]
+Format=raw_btrfs
+Bootable=yes
+
+# This can be a ramdisk to improve performance.
+OutputDirectory=mkosi.output
+
+[Partitions]
+# 1G isn't enough for the base distros.
+RootSize=5G
+
+[Packages]
+# We need to download sources from the internet.
+WithNetwork=true
+
+# The packages to appear in both the build and the final image.
+Packages=
+	apt
+	make
+	git
+	golang
+	tree
+# The packages to appear in the build image, but absent from the final image.
+#BuildPackages=
+#	apt
+#	make
+#	git
+#	golang
+#	tree
+
+# Store our build artifacts here. This makes them accessible to the outside.
+BuildDirectory=mkosi.builddir
+
+# Cache some of our package manager downloads.
+Cache=mkosi.cache
+
+# Pull the parent git repository into the image.
+BuildSources=../..
+
+# Use this transfer mode for the git sources.
+# XXX: Does auto-detect even work if BuildSources is not the current dir? Bug?
+SourceFileTransfer=copy-git-cached
+
+# Skip the (second) final build phase, since we only need the build artifact.
+SkipFinalPhase=true
diff --git a/misc/mkosi/mkosi.default.fedora-29 b/misc/mkosi/mkosi.default.fedora-29
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..18c7b3d9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/misc/mkosi/mkosi.default.fedora-29
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+[Distribution]
+Distribution=fedora
+Release=29
+
+[Output]
+Format=raw_btrfs
+#Format=gpt_btrfs
+Bootable=yes
+
+# This can be a ramdisk to improve performance.
+OutputDirectory=mkosi.output
+
+[Partitions]
+# 1G isn't enough for the base distros.
+RootSize=5G
+
+[Packages]
+# We need to download sources from the internet.
+WithNetwork=true
+
+# The packages to appear in both the build and the final image.
+Packages=
+	dnf
+	make
+	git
+	golang
+	tree
+# The packages to appear in the build image, but absent from the final image.
+#BuildPackages=
+#	dnf
+#	make
+#	git
+#	golang
+#	tree
+
+# Store our build artifacts here. This makes them accessible to the outside.
+BuildDirectory=mkosi.builddir
+
+# Cache some of our package manager downloads.
+Cache=mkosi.cache
+
+# Pull the parent git repository into the image.
+BuildSources=../..
+
+# Use this transfer mode for the git sources.
+# XXX: Does auto-detect even work if BuildSources is not the current dir? Bug?
+SourceFileTransfer=copy-git-cached
+
+# Skip the (second) final build phase, since we only need the build artifact.
+SkipFinalPhase=true