Elements of the draft text are still causing much discussion The European Union will place its current emission-cutting pledges inside the legally-binding Kyoto Protocol, a key demand of developing countries. Talks on a new legal deal covering all countries will begin next year and end by 2015, coming into effect by 2020.
Management of a fund for climate aid to poor countries has also been agreed, though how to raise the money has not.
Talks ran nearly 36 hours beyond their scheduled close, with many delegates saying the host government lacked urgency and strategy.
Nevertheless, there was applause in the main conference hall when South Africa\'s International Relations Minister, Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, brought down the long-awaited final gavel.
Impassioned arguments
The conclusion was delayed by a dispute between the EU and India over the precise wording of the \"roadmap\" for a new global deal.
Eventually, it was agreed that the deal must \"have legal force\".
The roadmap originated with the EU, the Alliance of Small Island States (Aosis) and the Least Developed Countries bloc (LDCs).
They are concerned that without a new legal agreement eventually covering emissions from all countries - particularly fast-growing major emitters such as China - the global average temperature since pre-industrial times will rise by more than 2C, the internationally-agreed threshold.
\"If there is no legal instrument by which we can make countries responsible for their actions, then we are relegating countries to the fancies of beautiful words,\" said Karl Hood, Grenada\'s Foreign Minister, speaking for Aosis.
\"While they develop, we die; and why should we accept this?\"
Action that helps cope with the effects of climate change - for example construction of barriers to protect against rising sea levels, or conversion to crops capable of surviving high temperatures and drought.
Glossary in full
UK Climate Secretary Chris Huhne agreed the weaker text and the longer timeline were not acceptable.
\"The UK, as part of the EU, will continue to push for the most credible deal that meets the needs of the science,\" he said.
Green fund
The tight timescale and legally-binding ambitions were criticised by the Basic group - Brazil, South Africa, India and China - and the US.
\"I stand firm on my position of equity,\" said an impassioned Jayanthi Natarajan, India\'s Environment Minister.
\"This is not about India, it is about the entire world.\"
India believes in maintaining the current stark division where only countries labelled \"developed\" have to cut their greenhouse gas emissions.
Western nations, she said, have not cut their own emissions as they had pledged; and China\'s Xie Zhenhua agreed.
Apparently trembling with rage, he berated the established developed world: \"We are doing things you are not doing... we want to see your real actions\".
However, Bangladesh and some other developing countries weighed in on the side of Aosis, saying a new legally-binding deal was needed.
Aosis and the LDCs agree that rich countries need to do more.
But they also accept analyses concluding that fast-developing countries such as China will need to cut their emissions several years in the future if governments are to meet their goal of keeping the rise in global average temperature since pre-industrial times below 2C.
The final agreement sets out a management framework for the Green Climate Fund, which will eventually gather and disburse finance amounting to $100bn (£63.8bn) per year to help poor countries develop cleanly and adapt to climate impacts.
There has also been significant progress on a Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (Redd).