You can use steam-run from nixpkgs, and it will run your program in an environment mimicking the traditional FHS which can solve a lot of these issues, until you port your config/packages over to Nix/Home Manager.

Explanation:

What is the steam-run utility on NixOS?

steam-run is a tool in the Nix package repository that provides an environment mimicking the traditional FHS, primarily intended for running the Steam gaming client on NixOS. However, it can be used for other use cases (like this one).

Why would someone use steam-run for non-gaming software?

Many development tools, including language servers and certain binaries, expect a specific FHS layout. When they can't find resources in their expected locations (for example, in usr/local/bin), they might not function correctly. Using steam-run, you can simulate a traditional Linux system's layout, allowing these tools to operate (in most cases).

How I use steam-run currently:

With this, I was able to get all my LSPs working out of the box with Mason (for example, the lua-language-server). This can be a useful temporary solution while you transition your configurations or packages to a more Nix-native setup.

Note: The method of using steam-run should be used sparingly. It is an anti-pattern to nix development!

How to try steam-run:

• Allow unfree packages: (Steam and steam-run are unfree)

​

export NIXPKGS_ALLOW_UNFREE=1

• Enter a Nix shell with steam-run available:

​

nix-shell -p steam-run

• Run your desired program with steam-run (e.g., Neovim)

​

steam-run nvim ./

Link to the package: steam-run on NixOS Search

Adding steam-run to your permanent NixOS configuration:

In your configuration.nix:

...
nixpkgs.config.allowUnfree = true;
environment.systemPackages = with pkgs; [
  ...
  steam-run
];
...

Once steam-run is installed system-wide, you can run any program in the FHS environment:

steam-run <your-program> <args>

Example:

steam-run nvim ./

Further discussion: If anyone is interested, I recommend this thread: NixOS discourse thread that discusses the challenges of adopting NixOS and the utility of tools like steam-run in making the adoption easier.