Zed/en: Difference between revisions

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[https://zed.dev Zed]<ref>Zed Industries, "Zed", Official Website, Accessed October 2025. https://zed.dev</ref> is a collaborative, GPU-accelerated text editor developed by Zed Industries. It combines fast local editing with real-time multiplayer features and ships with batteries-included tooling for popular programming languages.

The editor provides native builds for Linux, including Nixpkgs packages and a reproducible flake. Hardware acceleration requires a GPU with Vulkan support; systems without Vulkan can fall back to emulation via tools such as [https://github.com/nix-community/nixGL nixGL].<ref>Zed Industries, "Linux", Zed Documentation, Accessed October 2025. https://zed.dev/docs/linux</ref>

== Installation ==

environment.systemPackages = [

   pkgs.zed-editor

];

home.packages = [

   pkgs.zed-editor

];

Build the flake package with <code>nix build .#zed-latest</code> or expose it in your configuration with the appropriate overlay.

== Configuration ==

==== Basic ====

   enable = true;

   extensions = [ "nix" "toml" "rust" ];

     vim_mode = true;

   };

The configuration above enables Zed via Home Manager, installs a small set of extensions, and synchronises the theme with the desktop appearance.

==== Advanced ====

programs.zed-editor = {

   enable = true;

   };

};

This example adds language servers to the FHS sandbox, enables the bundled assistant, configures the terminal, and ensures remote server binaries are provided declaratively.

== LSP support ==

==== Nix-ld (recommended) ====

==== FHS wrapper ====

Use <code>pkgs.zed-editor.fhsWithPackages</code> to extend the FHS environment with additional system libraries when a language server requires them.

==== Bring your own LSP servers ====

Nixpkgs versions of tools may be required for development on NixOS, especially for the C/C++ ecosystem. Check <strong>LSP Logs → Server Info</strong> to see which binaries are running.

If automatic detection doesn't work, specify the path manually in your Zed configuration:

   "lsp": {

     "rust-analyzer": {

   }

}

Adjust the path for each language server you manage. The example above assumes rust-analyzer is installed in your system profile.

== Remote server ==

Zed uploads a versioned remote server binary to <code>~/.zed_server</code> on the target host. The Nixpkgs package exposes the matching binary via the <code>remote_server</code> output.

When you connect to a remote machine, the client either downloads a matching server binary from upstream or pushes a local copy if <code>"upload_binary_over_ssh": true</code> is enabled. Connections fail if the versions diverge.

   source = "${pkgs.zed-editor.remote_server}/bin";

   recursive = true;

The <code>recursive = true;</code> setting keeps the directory writable while symlinking individual binaries, allowing Zed to add new versions when needed. This is necessary because the <code>~/.zed_server</code> folder is also used when external clients connect to the current system as a remote.

Alternatively, use Home Manager's built-in option for simpler setup:

   enable = true;

   installRemoteServer = true;

To restrict remote clients to a specific server version, set <code>recursive = false;</code> to make the entire folder read-only. Zed refuses to connect if it cannot provision the required binary, so document the restriction for collaborators.

==== Preinstall extensions ====

   "extensions": [

     "nix",

   ]

}

Declaratively listing extensions ensures they are installed automatically on new systems while still allowing additional extensions to be added interactively.