# Unstable Cosmic DE in stable Nixos
**URL:** https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160
**Category:** Help
**Created:** [April 17, 2025, 8:53am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160 "2025-04-17T08:53:11Z")
**Posts on this page:** 13
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@raoul](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/raoul)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 8:53am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/1 "2025-04-17T08:53:12Z")
Cosmic Desktop is now available in Nixos Unstable [NixOS Search](https://search.nixos.org/options?channel=unstable&from=0&size=50&sort=relevance&type=packages&query=cosmic)
I tried it using Nixos unstable, but I have just too much screen tearing issues with my AMD Framework. Tested with other DE’s and still the same issues.
Could I run a Cosmic DE from unstable in Nixos stable through a /etc/nixos/unstable.nix file import in my configuration.nix file, so I don’t have to use flakes?
Thanks!
---
### Author:  [@hustlerone](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/hustlerone)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 9:42am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/2 "2025-04-17T09:42:48Z")
Have you ensured that the kernel is exactly the same?
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### Author:  [@raoul](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/raoul)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 9:52am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/3 "2025-04-17T09:52:24Z")
I use this in my configuration.nix
#Kernel
boot.kernelPackages = pkgs.linuxPackages\_latest;
boot.kernelParams = [“amdgpu.sg\_display=0”];
boot.initrd.kernelModules = [“amdgpu”];
Should a set it to a specific kernel?
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### Author:  [@hustlerone](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/hustlerone)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 10:11am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/4 "2025-04-17T10:11:07Z")
I have had issues within different patches of the same release, so I wouldn’t be surprised.
Try different releases or use `pkgs.linuxPackages_latest` from the stable branch (yes, you can mix and match stuff from an N amount of inputs)
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### Author:  [@drakon](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/drakon)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 10:22am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/5 "2025-04-17T10:22:05Z")
Nightly builds of COSMIC are available for Stable and Unstable NixOS from [GitHub - lilyinstarlight/nixos-cosmic: Flake for using COSMIC on NixOS](https://github.com/lilyinstarlight/nixos-cosmic)
---
### Author:  [@raoul](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/raoul)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 10:25am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/6 "2025-04-17T10:25:12Z")
Can you explain how I should do that in my config?
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### Author:  [@raoul](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/raoul)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 10:26am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/7 "2025-04-17T10:26:00Z")
Thanks, never used flakes and want to prevent that for now…
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### Author:  [@drakon](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/drakon)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 10:27am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/8 "2025-04-17T10:27:16Z")
You’re not required to use Flakes, it’s just not documented.
All you actually have to do to use the ‘Flake’ without Flakes is:
- Download the repository with `builtins.fetchTarball`
- Add the module from the repository to your NixOS `imports`
Everything else is the same as with Flakes.
---
### Author:  [@hustlerone](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/hustlerone)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 10:28am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/9 "2025-04-17T10:28:52Z")
There’s around 3 ways to do it.
Take a look at (without flakes). I used to just have a channel and import the channel.
> [@Installing only a single package from \`unstable\`](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/installing-only-a-single-package-from-unstable/5598):
>
> Hi there. I manage some NixOS machines, which are pinned to a particular stable branch from 2019, and I’m fine with this. However, the version of certbot that this branch offers is 0.31.0, while unstable has 1.0.0. I’d like to upgrade, and do so via the usual environment.systemPackages list. However, I don’t want to update the whole channel (thus bumping everything else on the system), just certbot. Is this possible? Please and thank you.
---
### Author:  [@hustlerone](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/hustlerone)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 10:32am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/10 "2025-04-17T10:32:04Z")
Namely, what you want to do is something similar to this:
In console:
```auto
sudo nix-channel --add https://nixos.org/channels/nixos-${YOUR-RELEASE} ${DESIRED-NAME}
sudo nix-channel --update
```
In configuration.nix:
```auto
{
config,
lib,
...
# blah blah blah
}:
let
stable = import <${DESIRED-NAME}> {};
in
{
# whatever's in your configuration
boot.kernelPackages = pkgs.stable.linuxPackages_latest;
}
```
(Do not copypaste things like `${YOUR-RELEASE}`, you’re supposed to replace them with normal text)
---
### Author:  [@drakon](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/drakon)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 10:38am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/11 "2025-04-17T10:38:37Z")
I’m not really sure it’s worth pulling the kernel from Stable into Unstable, given that 25.05 is due to be released in around a month and therefore Stable and Unstable aren’t going to deviate significantly anymore.
Have you considered using the latest LTS kernel rather than the latest stable?
---
### Author:  [@raoul](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/raoul)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 10:52am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/12 "2025-04-17T10:52:31Z")
Thank you @hustlerone and @drakon ! I will give it a try
---
### Author:  [@hustlerone](https://discourse.nixos.org/u/hustlerone)
#### Post date: [April 17, 2025, 10:54am UTC](https://discourse.nixos.org/t/unstable-cosmic-de-in-stable-nixos/63160/13 "2025-04-17T10:54:08Z")
Well, the latest kernel from 24.11 worked for him, so I’d start from there