Tracking: Bump Lua dependencies #570322

Lua 5.2 was released in 2011, and had its last patch released in 2015. It was the default behind pkgs.lua before #569839.

#569839 has landed: lua and lua5 are now convenience aliases for lua5_5_compat, and luaPackages aliases lua55Packages. Existing package dependencies were made explicit as lua5_2_compat or lua52Packages, so changing the aliases did not migrate those consumers.

This tracker covers those remaining package migrations, unused-input removals, and Lua module compatibility fixes. Completion can also mean deliberately following another interpreter, or removing an obsolete package; it does not mean every package must use Lua 5.5. Check a box only when the corresponding Nixpkgs change has landed. An upstream fix or a prerequisite module fix alone does not complete a consumer migration.

The suggestions listed here (ex. "lua (5.2) → drop") were generated by AI; please do not blindly accept the written conclusions

It’s just meant to be a starting point for the package maintainers. Anyone making a PR must test the code and understand the changes made.

Status and remaining-work descriptions were reconciled on 2026-10-27 against Nixpkgs master 847a58f3686a, live PR states, upstream PRs and commits, and LuaRocks releases. These tracker updates were assisted by Codex (GPT-6.1) and Claude Code (Claude Opus 5.5); no package builds or runtime tests were rerun for the tracker edits.

Remove the Lua input

These are unused-input candidates, not automatic drops. The before/after output and dependency-history audit covers x86_64-linux only. Per-package verification is still needed, especially for optional features, system-versus-vendored Lua, and other platforms.

• alephone (lua (5.2) → drop): Builds its vendored Lua 5.2. no maintainer alephone: drop unused lua input #571424
• animeko (lua5_2 → drop (verify)): Only for autoPatchelf of VLC libs that get deleted; meta.broken. cc @pokon548
• bam (lua5_3 → drop): Builds its vendored Lua 5.3. cc @7c6f434c
• desmume (lua (5.2) → drop): Lua is disabled in the meson build. no maintainer
• duckmarines (lua (5.2) → drop): LÖVE game; runs on LuaJIT. no maintainer
• ete-unwrapped (lua5_4 → drop): No Lua in the source. cc @ashleyghooper @drupol fix in ete-unwrapped: 0-unstable-2025-08-17 -> 0-unstable-2026-06-21 #570416
• freeciv (lua5_3 → lua5_4 + --enable-sys-lua=yes (lua5_5 with Freeciv 3.3)): 3.2 wants exactly 5.4, else silently builds its bundled copy. cc @nbp
• fsuae (lua (5.2) → drop): Uses its own Lua 5.2; off by default. cc @c4patino
• hawkthorne-journey (lua (5.2) → drop): LÖVE game; runs on LuaJIT. cc @liberodark {skyemu,hawkthorne-journey,pdns-recursor}: drop unused lua input #570799
• libresprite (lua (5.2) → drop): No Lua in the source. cc @fgaz
• lutris (lua (5.2) → investigate): Removing Lua changes the FHS runtime environment. The DeSmuME runner checked in the output-comparison audit has no Lua in DT_NEEDED, but runtime loading is unverified; test the runner before choosing a drop or another ABI. cc @Steinhagen
• mrrescue (lua (5.2) → drop): LÖVE game; runs on LuaJIT. no maintainer
• openscenegraph (lua (5.2) → drop or restore system Lua): luaSupport is off by default; even when enabled, OSG_USE_LOCAL_LUA_SOURCE selects bundled Lua 5.2.3. Decide whether to use system Lua, and preserve or explicitly migrate the override interface. cc @aanderse @7c6f434c
• oxwm (lua5_4 → drop): Builds its vendored Lua 5.4.8. cc @tonybanters
• pdns-recursor (lua (5.2) → drop lua): Uses LuaJIT, also in buildInputs. cc @rnhmjoj {skyemu,hawkthorne-journey,pdns-recursor}: drop unused lua input #570799
• pktgen (lua5_3 → drop): enable_lua is off. cc @abuibrahim @stepbrobd pktgen: fix gcc16 build and drop unused inputs #570823
• proxmark3 (lua (5.2) → lua5_4): Only finds lua5.4, else builds its bundled copy. cc @nyanotech @emilytrau
• radare2 (lua (5.2) → drop unused input): radare2 6.x has no Lua bindings. Removing luaBindings/lua also changes the override and config.radare interfaces; preserve compatibility or document the migration. cc @NixOS/redis
• skyemu (lua (5.2) → drop): Builds its vendored Lua 5.4.7. cc @liberodark {skyemu,hawkthorne-journey,pdns-recursor}: drop unused lua input #570799
• swiften (lua (5.2) → drop): Only Sluift uses Lua, and it is not installed. The before/after installed outputs were equivalent apart from build nondeterminism; patching out Sluift is not required for this drop. cc @Twey
• teeworlds (lua5_3 → drop): The CMake build doesn't use Lua. cc @Luflosi
• the-powder-toy (lua5_2 (+ luajit) → drop lua5_2): Uses LuaJIT, also in buildInputs. cc @siraben
• unvanquished (lua (5.2) → drop): Only the game logic uses Lua, and it isn't built. cc @NixOS/redis
• widelands (lua (5.2) → drop): Builds its vendored Eris (a Lua 5.3 fork). cc @7c6f434c @jcumming
• wordgrinder (lua52Packages → drop unused refs or restore system Lua): The current Makefile ignores LUA_INCLUDE/LUA_LIB and uses bundled Lua 5.1. Choose whether to drop those inputs or select system Lua through LUA_PACKAGE; the latter changes the output and needs testing. The LUA_CPATH wrapper is also unused. cc @matthiasbeyer

Fix the Lua version used today

These are already wrong, independent of Lua 5.5.

• dit (lua (5.2) → lua5_3): Only uses a system Lua ≤ 5.3, else builds its bundled copy. cc @davidak
• ibus-engines.pinyin (lua (5.2) → patch lua/base.lua, then lua5_5): Already broken on 5.3+; ibus-libpinyin has the fix. cc @azuwis ibus-engines.pinyin: use lua 5.5 #571975
• icesl (lua (5.2) → update to 2.5.3 and switch to lua5_1): Tested. Current hashes fail; the binary needs the 5.1 ABI. cc @mgttlinger

Ready for Lua 5.5

Upstream supports 5.5 in the packaged version, or it was tested working.

• deps-fnl (luaPackages (5.2) → newer Lua/Fennel): Covered by the separate Fennel packaging in treewide: Package fennel separately from luarocks packages, replacing luaPackages.fennel #572037; the PR still needs a rebase and fixes for dependent packages that lose the propagated interpreter. cc @emily-lavender
• doublecmd (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): 1.2.9 supports 5.5. no maintainer doublecmd: use Lua 5.5 #570599
• expat (luaPackages (5.2) → lua55Packages): Only for a passthru test; luaexpat supports 5.5. no maintainer expat: test against lua55Packages.luaexpat #571435
• fcitx5-lua (lua5_3 → lua5_5): 5.0.18 supports 5.5. cc @poscat0x04 fcitx5-lua: use Lua 5.5 #570587
• fennel-ls (luaPackages (5.2) → lua5_5 + lua55Packages): Tested. Upstream tests pass. cc @luftmensch-luftmensch @yisraeldov fennel-ls: use Lua 5.5 #570705
• fnlfmt (luaPackages (5.2) → lua5_5 + lua55Packages): Tested. Upstream tests pass. cc @chiroptical fnlfmt: use Lua 5.5 #570704
• haproxy (lua5_4 → lua5_5): 3.4.0 supports 5.5; also update LUA_LIB/LUA_INC. cc @vifino haproxy: use Lua 5.5 #570529
• imapfilter (lua (5.2) → lua5_5) imapfilter: upgrade lua version #570522
• kakounePlugins.quickscope-kak (lua5_3 → lua5_5): Tested. Identical output. cc @eraserhd kakounePlugins.quickscope-kak: use Lua 5.5 #570976
• libmodsecurity (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): 3.0.15 supports 5.5. cc @Izorkin libmodsecurity: use Lua 5.5 #570589
• lighttpd (lua5_1 → lua5_5): 1.4.83 supports 5.5; the 5.1 pin is obsolete. cc @bjornfor @brechtcs lighttpd: use Lua 5.5 for mod_magnet #570531
• luarocks / luarocks-nix (luaPackages (5.2) → lua55Packages): 3.13.0 supports 5.5, but the top-level tools still use lua52Packages. Changing the updater's default interpreter can downgrade or stop resolving CSV rows without luaversion; compare a full regeneration before switching. cc @mrcjkb @teto
  • luarocks: luarocks: use Lua 5.5 by default #574651
  • luarocks-nix: Switch the generator only after all 189 CSV rows regenerate with no failed rows, fallback output, invalid Nix or version downgrades, while preserving support in older Lua package sets and LuaJIT.
    • Updater validation and failed-row reporting: luarocks-packages-updater: reject invalid output and report failed updates #574856
    • cqueues interpreter-specific installation: luaPackages.cqueues: install for the selected Lua interpreter #574857
    • Upstream source-fetch error handling: nix: propagate source fetch failures nix-community/luarocks-nix#43; Nixpkgs still pins luarocks-nix at 3a9f4bf (2026-03-31) and needs a bump to include it.
    • ldbus Lua 5.5 compatibility and rockspec: daurnimator/ldbus@0af5e5b; Nixpkgs now packages source that includes it (75de901, luaPackages: update on 2026-10-24 #578168), but the scm-0 rockspec published on LuaRocks still requires lua < 5.5, so ldbus stays disabled on Lua 5.5 until the rockspec is re-uploaded.
    • stdlib callable-environment regression: debug: preserve call-backed functable environments lua-stdlib/lua-stdlib#111 (41.x branch, not released yet); canonical std.normalize fix: fix: preserve call function environments in functors lua-stdlib/normalize#2, included in std.normalize 3-1, which Nixpkgs now packages (luaPackages: update on 2026-10-24 #578168). stdlib 42-1 requires std.normalize 4 and moves several modules into separate packages; the CSV pins stdlib to 41.2.2.
    • markdown loop-variable fix: Fix incompatibility with Lua 5.5 mpeterv/markdown#8
    • vstruct loop-variable fix: lua 5.5 - for loop variables are now const ToxicFrog/vstruct#42; release backport: Backport lua 5.5 support, for loop variables are now const ToxicFrog/vstruct#43
    • Other rockspec and release blockers still need resolving before the generator switch.
• luarocks-packages-updater (lua5_1 … lua5_4 → add lua5_5): Puts every interpreter on PATH. cc @teto luarocks-packages-updater: make Lua 5.5 available #574650
• lux-cli (lua5_4 → lua5_5): lux-lib 0.32.0 supports 5.5. cc @mrcjkb @ALameLlama lux-cli: move lua to checkInputs, bump lua to 5.5 #570643
• mask (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Only used in a trivial test. cc @Defelo mask: use lua 5.5 #570541
• mpvScripts.mpv-webm (luaPackages (5.2) → lua55Packages): Tested. Identical output. cc @pbsds mpvScripts.mpv-webm: build with Lua 5.5 MoonScript #570974
• nvimpager (lua51Packages.busted → neovim-unwrapped.lua.pkgs.busted): Keep tests aligned with Neovim's interpreter, including its Lua 5.1 fallback, rather than migrating them to Lua 5.5. cc @lucc nvimpager: use lua version from neovim for tests #570635
• osrm-backend (lua (5.2) → lua5_5, drop luabind): 26.4.0 supports 5.5; luabind is unused. cc @erictapen
• pragtical (lua5_4 → lua5_5): Only ppm uses PUC Lua, and it prefers 5.5. cc @suhr @TomaSajt pragtical: build ppm with Lua 5.5 #574008
• python3Packages.hyprland-config (lua5_4 → lua5_5): Prefers 5.5, like hyprland. cc @sophronesis python3Packages.hyprland-config: use Lua 5.5 #570973
• rehex (lua53Packages → lua55Packages): 0.64.0 supports 5.5 (rehex: 0.63.4 -> 0.64.0 #506702). cc @markus1189 @wegank rehex: use Lua 5.5 #573039
• rspamd (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): 4.2.1 supports 5.5; only affects non-LuaJIT builds. cc @avnik @fpletz @nlewo rspamd: use Lua 5.5 for non-LuaJIT builds #570975
• sanjuuni (passthru test) (lua5_2 → lua5_5): The test can't fail; use assert(loadfile(…)). cc @tomodachi94
• slade (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): 3.2.12 supports 5.5. cc @Gliczy slade: use Lua 5.5 #570588
• slade-unstable (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Same as slade. cc @Gliczy slade: use Lua 5.5 #570588
• ultrastardx (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): 2026.9.0 supports 5.5. cc @diogotcorreia @philocalyst ultrastardx: use lua 5.5 #570535
• urn (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Tested. Self-compiles on 5.5. no maintainer; test-only upstream MR: https://gitlab.com/urn/urn/-/merge_requests/114
• vim-full (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): 9.2.1001 supports 5.5. cc @equirosa @philiptaron vim-full: use Lua 5.5 #570530
• vtm (lua5_4 → lua5_5): 5.4 is a minimum; upstream vendors 5.5. cc @3JlOy-PYCCKUi vtm: use Lua 5.5 #570706
• wireplumber (lua5_4 → lua5_5): 0.5.14 supports 5.5. cc @K900 @qweered wireplumber: use Lua 5.5 #570527
• wireshark (lua5_4 → lua5_5): 4.6.9 supports 5.5. cc @bjornfor @fpletz wireshark: use Lua 5.5 #570528
• xournalpp (lua5_3 → lua5_5): Supports 5.5; plugins pass luac -p. cc @iedame @sikmir xournalpp: use Lua 5.5 #570707
• z-lua (lua52Packages → lua55Packages): 1.8.25 supports 5.5; un-hardcode lib/lua/5.2. no maintainer z-lua: use Lua 5.5 #574007

Supported upstream in a newer version

Some entries need a package update or backport before switching to Lua 5.5; see each entry for the remaining work.

• conky (lua5_4 → update + lua5_5): Now at 1.25.3 with Lua 5.5; the 5.4 assert and pin were removed. cc @dguibert conky: 1.22.3 -> 1.25.3, use Lua 5.5 #571361
• corsix-th (lua (5.2) → bump ≥ 0.70, then lua5_5): 0.70.0 supports 5.5. cc @hughobrien @matteo-pacini corsix-th: 0.69.2 -> 0.70.1, use Lua 5.5 #571365
• fityk (lua (5.2) → lua5_5 + backport): 1.3.2's configure excludes 5.5; backport the upstream Lua discovery fix. no maintainer fityk: use Lua 5.5 #574005
• g3proxy (lua5_4 → keep pending upstream support): Neither the packaged 1.12.3 nor 1.12.4 (g3proxy: 1.12.3 -> 1.12.4 #547818) has a lua55 Cargo feature; it exists only on upstream master, so switching requires a future release or a backport, not just switching the input. cc @RaitoBezarius
• ibus-engines.libpinyin (lua (5.2) → bump ≥ 1.16.6, then lua5_5): Fixed in 1.16.6. cc @linsui ibus-engines.libpinyin: 1.16.5 -> 1.16.6, use Lua 5.5 #571364
• ipe (lua (5.2) → lua5_5 + backported script fixes): 7.2.30 now uses Lua 5.5; the loop-variable fix is backported and extended to update-styles.lua, without requiring a 7.3.1 update. no maintainer ipe: fix build with GCC 16, use Lua 5.5 #571362
• luastatus (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): 0.6.0 already finds the generic Lua pkg-config name; a version update is not required for the tested switch. cc @kashw2 luastatus: use Lua 5.5 #571359
• mle (lua5_4 → lua5_5): The existing postPatch removes the lua5.4 header prefix and versioned linker name; those substitutions do not need changing for the current 1.8.1 source. cc @adsr mle: use Lua 5.5 #571360
• modsecurity_standalone (lua (5.2) → bump ≥ 2.9.13, then lua5_5): 2.9.13 supports 5.5; off by default. no maintainer modsecurity_standalone: 2.9.12 -> 2.9.15, use Lua 5.5 #571363
• unnethack (lua5_4 → update to 6.0.16, then lua5_5): The release includes upstream's Lua 5.5 fix; no backport is needed. Save/bones compatibility changes are documented in the PR. no maintainer unnethack: 6.0.14 -> 6.0.16, use Lua 5.5 #574006
• vis (lua (5.2) → backport support lua 5.5... martanne/vis#1300, then lua5_5): Fixed by the linked PR. cc @RamKromberg vis: 0.9 -> 0.9-unstable-2026-10-03, modernize, use Lua 5.5 #569960 (includes the Lua 5.5 switch)
• vlc (keep lua5_2_compat for 3.0.x): The HTTP interface calls math.pow; the fmc.lua fix is not relevant because that script is not installed. Track newer Lua through VLC 4 (vlc4: init at 3.0.24-unstable-2026-10-07 #558714, using lua5_5_compat). cc @nick-linux8

Likely works: test-build with Lua 5.5

These were candidates from source review. Builds and checks of the actual Lua integration are still required; package-specific blockers and upstream fixes are noted below.

• apacheHttpd (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.1; off by default. cc @arcayr
• apk-tools (lua5_3 → lua5_5 + -Dlua_version=5.5): lua-zlib now supports newer Lua; retain the optional Lua integration and verify it with the matching module set. no maintainer (lua-zlib fixed in luaPackages.lua-zlib: unmark broken on Lua 5.4 and newer #571063)
• asc (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): No upper bound; scripts pass luac -p. cc @7c6f434c
• asterisk (all variants) (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): No upper bound. cc @auntieNeo @DerTim1 @yorickvP
• bozohttpd (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): NetBSD builds it with 5.4. cc @liclac
• cadzinho (lua5_4 → lua5_5): Installed scripts pass luac -p. cc @sikmir
• celestia (lua (5.2) → lua5_5 (or lua5_4)): Unversioned find_package(Lua). cc @returntoreality @pancaek
• collectd (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.1. cc @bjornfor
• devilspie2 (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Falls back to the generic lua. no maintainer devilspie2: use lua5_5 #571430
• dnsdist (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.1. cc @jojosch
• domino-chain (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Themes pass luac -p. cc @fgaz
• domoticz (lua5_3 → lua5_4 (5.5 plausible)): 5.3 is a minimum. cc @nuxeh @LennyPenny
• eiskaltdcpp (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Unversioned find_package(Lua). no maintainer
• elinks (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): No version restriction. cc @iblech
• emacsPackages.lua (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Follows lua.luaversion. cc @nagy
• flycast (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): 5.2 is a minimum. cc @tallesCoelho
• freeswitch (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Falls back to the generic lua. cc @MikaelFangel
• frr (lua53Packages.lua → lua5_4 (then 5.5)): Any Lua ≥ 5.3; docs say 5.3. cc @woffs @thillux
• geeqie (lua5_3 → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.3. cc @pSub @markus1189
• gittyup (lua5_4 → lua5_5): Unversioned find_package(Lua). cc @FliegendeWurst @phijor
• gnuplot (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Tries lua.pc first; off by default. no maintainer
• gpick (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.2. cc @VergeDX
• grafx2 (lua (5.2) → lua5_5 + upstream fixes): The Lua discovery and installed sample-script fixes are upstream; a Nixpkgs backport/update and runtime verification are still pending. no maintainer; upstream https://gitlab.com/GrafX2/grafX2/-/merge_requests/396
• gravit: Removed rather than migrated to Lua 5.5. no maintainer gravit: drop #571717
• grilo-plugins (lua5_4 → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.3. cc @NixOS/gnome grilo-plugins: use lua 5.5 #583191
• gswatcher (lua5_4 → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.4. cc @pluiedev
• highlight (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): All files pass luac -p; big rebuild. no maintainer
• librime-lua (lua (5.2) → lua5_4 (or 5.5)): User scripts make 5.4 safer. cc @jian-lin @xddxdd
• libtas (lua5_4 → lua5_5): Falls back to the generic lua. cc @skyrina
• libucl (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): No upper bound; off by default. cc @jpotier
• luabind (lua5_1 → test-build): Move with soi and icesl. no maintainer
• lunarml (lua5_3 → lua5_4 (then 5.5)): Check phase only. cc @toastal @ratsclub
• lutok (lua (5.2) → update to 0.6.3 + lua5_4): 0.4 is stale; gates atf and kyua. cc @reckenrode
• lxi-tools (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.1. cc @vq
• megaglest (lua (5.2) → test-build): CMake already lists 5.5. cc @matejc
• mgba (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): CMake's FindLua knows 5.5. cc @Gliczy
• midimonster (lua5_4 → lua5_5): Falls back to the generic lua. cc @keldu
• mmex (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): 5.5.0 reported working. no maintainer
• monotone (lua (5.2) → lua5_5 + test patch): A test assigns to a for variable. cc @7c6f434c
• mympd (lua5_4 → lua5_5): 5.4 is a minimum. cc @doronbehar mympd: use Lua 5.5 #572508 mympd: 26.0.0 -> 26.1.0 #572884; upstream Lua dump callback fix: Fix: Handle the empty final Lua dump callback jcorporation/myMPD#1573
• nbfc-linux (lua5_4 → lua5_5): Falls back to the generic lua. cc @Celibistrial @bohanubis
• neomutt (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Tries the generic lua first; off by default. cc @erikryb @RaitoBezarius @ethancedwards8
• onscripter (lua5_1 → test-build / keep): Games target 5.1. cc @midchildan
• orthanc (lua (5.2) → lua5_4 (or 5.5)): Upstream uses 5.4. no maintainer
• osm2pgsql (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Unversioned find_package(Lua). cc @NixOS/geospatial osm2pgsql,tilemaker: use lua5_5 #571454
• owntracks-recorder (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Uses pkg-config lua. cc @aionescu
• pdns (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.1. cc @Mic92 @NickCao
• pinsel (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Uses pkg-config lua. no maintainer
• roccat-tools (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.1. no maintainer
• rocqPackages.mathcomp (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Only for a doc script. cc @vbgl @jwiegley @CohenCyril
• rpm (lua5_4 → lua5_5): 5.2 is a minimum. no maintainer
• rtorrent (lua5_4_compat → lua5_5): No upper bound; off by default. cc @thiagokokada
• slurm (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Any Lua ≥ 5.1. cc @markuskowa @edwtjo
• snis-unwrapped (lua5_2 → lua5_5 (or lua5_4)): Falls back to the generic lua. cc @cyclic-pentane
• texworks (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): CMake's FindLua knows 5.5. cc @dotlambda
• tilemaker (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Upstream already builds against 5.5 headers. cc @NixOS/geospatial osm2pgsql,tilemaker: use lua5_5 #571454
• tio (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Falls back to the generic lua. no maintainer tio: use Lua 5.5 #572513
• tym (lua5_3 → lua5_5 (or lua5_4)): Tries the generic lua first. cc @wesleyjrz @kashw2
• uhttpd (lua5_1 → test-build / keep): LuCI scripts need 5.1. cc @haylinmoore
• weechat (lua5_3 → lua5_4 safe, lua5_5 likely): Verify scripting with the selected interpreter; weechat-matrix-bridge was removed in weechatScripts.weechat-matrix-bridge: drop #570683 and no longer needs a coordinated migration. cc @wahjava
• weston (lua5_4_compat → lua5_5): 5.4 is a minimum; _compat is unneeded. cc @alyssais
• xmoto (lua (5.2) → lua5_5): Bundled levels pass luac -p. cc @7c6f434c @pSub

Move up to Lua 5.4

The packaged versions have Lua 5.5 blockers. Some now have upstream fixes linked below; a Nixpkgs update or backport and verification are still needed.

• diod (lua5_1 → lua5_4): configure caps below 5.5. cc @rnhmjoj; upstream Lua 5.5 support: build: support Lua 5.5 configuration files chaos/diod#174
• dovecot (lua5_3 → lua5_4 now, or lua5_5 + backport/update): 2.4.5 still calls 2-arg lua_newstate; upstream fixed Lua 5.5 state creation in dovecot/core@e74cf9d, which is not in a release yet. A Nixpkgs backport/update and verification of the enabled Lua integration are still pending. cc @dasJ @fpletz @helsinki-Jo @Jappie3 @Prince213
• freebsd.libifconfig (lua (5.2) → lua5_4): FreeBSD uses 5.4; a template breaks on 5.5. cc @rhelmot @artemist (upstream libifconfig: Fix SFP table generation with Lua 5.5 freebsd/freebsd-src#2473)
• instead (lua (5.2) → lua5_4): stead.lua breaks on 5.5. The upstream fix targets 3.6.0, so the packaged 3.5.2 needs an update before it can be backported. cc @pSub; upstream Lua 5.5 support: lua: fix lua 5.5 engine compatibility instead-hub/instead#117
• ja2-stracciatella (lua5_3 → lua5_4): sol2 blocks 5.5; meta.broken. Upstream patched its vendored sol2 (sol: fix compilation with lua 5.5 ja2-stracciatella/ja2-stracciatella#2431), but Nixpkgs builds against the system sol2, so the fix belongs there. no maintainer
• llvmPackages.lldb (lua5_3 → lua5_4): Docs support 5.3 and 5.4. cc @NixOS/llvm
• lsyncd (lua5_2_compat → lua5_4): lsyncd.lua breaks on 5.5. cc @bobvanderlinden; upstream Lua 5.5 support: Fix build with Lua 5.5 lsyncd/lsyncd#745
• notion (lua (5.2) → lua5_4, or lua5_5 + backport/update): The packaged 4.0.4 needs upstream's Lua 5.5 detection and manual-generation fixes, which are not in a release yet (4.0.5 predates them). cc @raboof @NotAShelf; upstream fix: support Lua 5.5 detection and manual generation raboof/notion#392
• openmw (lua (5.2) → lua5_4 or lua5_1): Only aarch64-linux; elsewhere LuaJIT. cc @marius851000 @SigmaSquadron
• openrussian-cli (lua5_3 → lua5_4): openrussian.lua breaks on 5.5. cc @vs49688
• prosody (lua (5.2) → lua5_4): 13.0.x caps at 5.4; drop luabitop. cc @toastal @mirror230469 @SuperSandro2000
• qosmic (lua (5.2) → backport, then lua5_4): 1.6.0 breaks on 5.3+. Upstream master has the Lua 5.1 to 5.4 compatibility fix (bitsed/qosmic@0da980d1601d) and Lua 5.5 discovery, but there has been no release since 1.6.0 in 2017. cc @raboof (upstream build: support Lua 5.5 discovery bitsed/qosmic#48)
• sol2 (lua (5.2) → lua5_4 (or patch)): Hard-errors on 5.5. cc @mrcjkb

Still on Lua 5.2, with no newer Lua upstream

These packages use Lua 5.2 today, and their packaged versions support only Lua 5.2 or older, or LuaJIT, so none of them can move to Lua 5.5 without patching. Completion means a deliberate choice: keep Lua 5.2, switch to LuaJIT where upstream accepts it, or patch the package. Together with VLC 3.0.x, these decide whether Lua 5.2 can be removed from Nixpkgs; mpv-unwrapped is likely the most widely used. Neovim is not listed: it uses LuaJIT, or Lua 5.1 where LuaJIT is unavailable, so it does not depend on Lua 5.2. These entries were checked against the packaged sources at Nixpkgs master 0657ebd01dc3; no packages were built.

• cardpeek (lua5_2 → keep, or lua5_3_compat (untested)): 0.8.4 (2015), the latest release, calls luaL_checkint, which Lua 5.3 keeps only in compatibility mode, and its EMV script calls bit32, which Lua 5.4 removed. Unreleased upstream master ports the C calls to Lua 5.3 (L1L1/cardpeek@d0653e73af) but still uses bit32. cc @liclac
• enlightenment.efl (lua5_2_compat → keep, or luajit): 1.28.1's lua-interpreter option is luajit or lua, and the lua path accepts only Lua 5.1 or 5.2. Nixpkgs enables elua and the Lua bindings. cc @matejc @romildo @NixOS/enlightenment
• lite (lua52Packages.lua → keep, or patch for newer Lua): Nixpkgs replaces the vendored Lua 5.2 with system Lua. On Lua 5.3 and newer, data/core/statusview.lua passes a float to string.format("%d%%", …), which raises an error whenever the file-position percentage is not a whole number. This was found by reading the source; lite itself was not run on newer Lua. 1.11 (2020) is the latest release, with no upstream commits since 2021; the maintained fork lite-xl already uses lua5_4. no maintainer
• mpv-unwrapped (lua5_2_compat → keep, or luajit): 0.41.0 accepts the generic lua.pc only at >=5.1.0, <5.3.0, the lua52/lua51 names, or LuaJIT; Lua 5.3 and newer are not accepted. LuaJIT follows Lua 5.1 semantics with some 5.2 extensions, so user scripts and mpvScripts need testing before a switch. cc @uninsane @fpletz @SchweGELBin
• pioneer (lua5_2 → keep): Upstream master still requires exactly Lua 5.2 for system Lua (find_package(Lua 5.2 EXACT)) and otherwise builds its bundled Lua 5.2.2. Building the bundled copy would remove the Nixpkgs dependency, not Lua 5.2 itself. no maintainer

Consumer migrations after Lua module fixes

• awesome (lua5_2_compat → investigate newer Lua): lgi is fixed, but ldoc pulls in markdown, which is disabled for Lua ≥ 5.4. Preserve the generated documentation while resolving that build-tool dependency; the consumer migration remains unverified. no maintainer (lgi fixed in luaPackages.lgi: support Lua 5.4 and 5.5 #571064); upstream Markdown source fix: Fix incompatibility with Lua 5.5 mpeterv/markdown#8 (a compatible release/rockspec is still needed)
• nelua (lua52Packages.luacheck → lua55Packages.luacheck): The luacheck startup blocker is fixed; switch and verify the check dependency. no maintainer (luacheck fixed in luaPackages.luacheck: fix startup with Lua 5.5 #571062)
• weechatScripts.weechat-matrix-bridge: Removed rather than migrated; its former interpreter mismatch is no longer actionable. no maintainer weechatScripts.weechat-matrix-bridge: drop #570683
• writers.writeLua / writeLuaBin (lua5_2_compat + lua52Packages → newer Lua): The luacheck blocker is fixed, but the helper still binds Lua 5.2. Update the interpreter and library-set bindings together, or deliberately split the API; verify library loading and rejection of invalid Lua. cc @NixOS/lua (luacheck fixed in luaPackages.luacheck: fix startup with Lua 5.5 #571062); default migration writers.writeLua: use Lua 5.5 #574652; library loading writers.makeLuaWriter: honor libraries #574653

Lua ecosystem

• lua55Packages.luacheck: Backported the unreleased Lua 5.5 loop-variable fix, resolving standards.lua:134: attempt to assign to const variable 'field_name' (Release with Lua 5.5 Support lunarmodules/luacheck#140, attempt to assign to const variable 'field_name' when lua55 lunarmodules/luacheck#147). cc @NixOS/lua luaPackages.luacheck: fix startup with Lua 5.5 #571062
• sol2 3.5.0 hard-errors on LUA_VERSION_NUM > 504 (upstream PR Add lua 5.5 support ThePhD/sol2#1723 is still open). cc @NixOS/lua
• Resolve newer-Lua module blockers: cc @NixOS/lua
  • lgi (≥ 5.4; blocks awesome, libpeas2) luaPackages.lgi: support Lua 5.4 and 5.5 #571064
  • lua-zlib (≥ 5.4) luaPackages.lua-zlib: unmark broken on Lua 5.4 and newer #571063
  • luaffi: correct the legacy broken marker and package luaffi-tkl separately luaPackages.luaffi: fix broken marker #571428 luaPackages.luaffi-tkl: init at 1.0.5-2 #571427; upstream luaffi-tkl parser/test fixes: fix(parser): pop only the constants table after a constant assignment Tekenlight/luaffifb#6, fix(test): only check __ipairs when the interpreter honors it Tekenlight/luaffifb#7, test: run the native int64 test on Lua 5.4 and later Tekenlight/luaffifb#8
  • cqueues (≥ 5.5; blocks pinnacle) luaPackages.cqueues: 20200726.52-0 -> 20261006.52-0 #571065
  • luaposix (≥ 5.5): 37.0-1 supports Lua 5.5 luaPackages.luaposix: 36.3-1 -> 37.0-1 #573037; bit32 dependency fix: luaPackages.luaposix: propagate bit32 only on Lua 5.1 #572340; upstream support: Advertise support for lua 5.5 luaposix/luaposix#402
  • luadbi/luadbi-sqlite3 (≥ 5.5; blocks prosody with DBI) luaPackages.luadbi*: support Lua 5.5 #572339; drop the allowLua55 override once upstream publishes rockspecs allowing 5.5: Upload 0.7.5-2 rockspecs allowing Lua 5.5 mwild1/luadbi#85
• luaffi segfaults on interpreter exit (also on 5.2 and 5.3): Legacy luaffi remains distinct from luaffi-tkl. Nixpkgs now packages luaffi-tkl 1.0.5-3, which includes the upstream parser/test fixes; validating a replacement/alias and its consumers remains a follow-up. cc @NixOS/lua luaPackages.luaffi: fix broken marker #571428 luaPackages.luaffi-tkl: init at 1.0.5-2 #571427 luaPackages: update on 2026-10-19 #574101