Pop!_OS 24.04 COSMIC Post-Install Guide: Setup, Tiling, and System Tuning

Pop!_OS 24.04 LTS is powered by the long-awaited COSMIC desktop environment, written completely from scratch in Rust. It delivers a fast, responsive Wayland-native desktop with modular applets and powerful tiling window management built directly into the core compositor.

After completing the initial setup wizard, here are the essential post-install steps to configure Pop!_OS 24.04 for everyday use, development, and gaming.

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1. Update APT Packages and Flatpaks

Bring the underlying Ubuntu 24.04 LTS base and COSMIC components fully up to date:

sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade -y
flatpak update -y

If kernel updates or COSMIC compositor libraries were patched, reboot to ensure you are running on the latest build:

sudo reboot

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2. Configure COSMIC Auto-Tiling and Keybindings

The defining feature of COSMIC is its integrated auto-tiling engine. You can toggle auto-tiling globally or on a per-workspace basis.

• Toggle Tiling On/Off: Click the Tiling icon in the top panel or press Super + Y.
• Navigate Windows: Super + H/J/K/L (or Arrow keys).
• Swap Windows: Super + Shift + H/J/K/L (or Arrow keys).
• Toggle Floating Window: Super + G.
• Application Launcher: Super or Super + /.

To adjust window gap spacing or set exceptions for floating windows (e.g., calculator or password managers):

1. Open Settings > Desktop > Window Management.
2. Adjust Window Gaps (default is 4px).
3. Under Window Exceptions, add applications you want to always open floating.

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3. Manage Hybrid GPU Graphics (For Laptops)

Pop!_OS includes native graphics switching for dual-GPU laptops (Intel/NVIDIA or AMD/NVIDIA) using system76-power.

Check current GPU status:

system76-power graphics

Switch between power profiles as needed:

# Maximum battery life (disables NVIDIA dGPU)
sudo system76-power graphics integrated

# Best balance for everyday work
sudo system76-power graphics hybrid

# Dedicated GPU only (best for external monitors and gaming)
sudo system76-power graphics nvidia

# Compute mode (keeps dGPU powered for CUDA/ML without driving display)
sudo system76-power graphics compute

Note: Switching GPU modes requires a reboot or session logout to take effect.

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4. Install Multimedia Codecs and Microsoft Fonts

Install restricted video and audio decoders (H.264, AAC, proprietary media filters):

sudo apt install -y ubuntu-restricted-extras

To enable hardware video acceleration in Firefox under Wayland:

1. Open Firefox and navigate to about:config.
2. Search for media.ffmpeg.vaapi.enabled and set it to true.
3. Search for media.rdd-ffmpeg.enabled and verify it is true.

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5. Manage Flatpak Permissions with Flatseal

Pop!_OS defaults to Flatpaks for third-party graphical applications inside the COSMIC App Store. Install Flatseal to review and adjust permissions (file system paths, network access, Wayland/X11 sockets):

flatpak install flathub com.github.tchx84.Flatseal -y

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6. Configure Power Profiles

Pop!_OS manages CPU governor states through system76-power. You can toggle performance modes directly from the power applet in the panel or via terminal:

# For maximum performance on AC power
system76-power profile performance

# For balanced everyday use
system76-power profile balanced

# For battery conservation
system76-power profile battery

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7. Enable UFW Firewall

Turn on the firewall to prevent unsolicited incoming network requests:

sudo ufw default deny incoming
sudo ufw default allow outgoing
sudo ufw enable
sudo ufw status

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8. Set Up Recovery Partition and Kernel Maintenance

Pop!_OS uses systemd-boot instead of GRUB and maintains a dedicated recovery partition on your disk.

To refresh the recovery partition with the latest Pop!_OS release image:

sudo pop-upgrade recovery upgrade from-release

To clean up old, unused kernels and cached packages:

sudo apt autoremove --purge -y
sudo apt clean

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9. Install Essential Development Tools

Pop!_OS is widely used for engineering and software development. Install the core build toolchain:

sudo apt install -y \
  build-essential \
  curl \
  wget \
  git \
  htop \
  btop \
  fastfetch \
  micro \
  ripgrep \
  fd-find

If you plan to develop COSMIC applets or Rust applications:

curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh -s -- -y
source "$HOME/.cargo/env"