Channel branches: Difference between revisions

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* Stable/unstable:

** Stable channels (<code>nixos-23.11</code>) only provide conservative updates for fixing bugs and security vulnerabilities, but do not receive major updates after the initial release. New stable channels are released every six months.

** Stable channels (<code>nixos-24.05</code>) only provide conservative updates for fixing bugs and security vulnerabilities, but do not receive major updates after the initial release. New stable channels are released every six months.

** Unstable channels (<code>nixos-unstable</code>, <code>nixpkgs-unstable</code>) follow the <code>master</code> branch of Nixpkgs, delivering the latest tested updates on a rolling basis.

* Large/small:

** Large channels (<code>nixos-23.11</code>, <code>nixos-unstable</code>) are updated only after Hydra has finished building the full breadth of Nixpkgs.

** Large channels (<code>nixos-24.05</code>, <code>nixos-unstable</code>) are updated only after Hydra has finished building the full breadth of Nixpkgs.

** Small channels (<code>nixos-23.11-small</code>, <code>nixos-unstable-small</code>) are identical to large channels, but are updated as soon as Hydra has finished building a defined set of commonly-used packages. Thus, users following these channels will get faster updates but may need to build any packages they use from outside the defined set themselves. These channels are intended to be used for server setups, for example.

** Small channels (<code>nixos-24.05-small</code>, <code>nixos-unstable-small</code>) are identical to large channels, but are updated as soon as Hydra has finished building a defined set of commonly-used packages. Thus, users following these channels will get faster updates but may need to build any packages they use from outside the defined set themselves. These channels are intended to be used for server setups, for example.

Most users will want the stable/large channel, currently <code>nixos-23.11</code>.

Most users will want the stable/large channel, currently <code>nixos-24.05</code>.

NixOS uses [https://nixos.org/manual/nix/stable/command-ref/files/profiles Nix profiles] for the <code>root</code> user to refer different versions of the system-wide configuration. Profiles set for other users only control the user environment for that user.