Windows Subsystem for Linux

Runs unmodified Linux command-line tools and applications directly on Windows, without a virtual machine or dual boot.

FreeOpen sourceWindows
Official websitelearn.microsoft.comDownload pagegithub.comSource codegithub.comDocumentationlearn.microsoft.com

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About Windows Subsystem for Linux

WSL lets you run a Linux distribution on Windows and use its tools as if they were native. Files are shared between the two systems, Windows commands can be run from inside Linux and the other way round, and there is none of the overhead or context switching of a traditional virtual machine or a dual-boot setup.

WSL 2 runs a real Linux kernel, which Microsoft maintains and publishes, in a lightweight managed VM. WSLg adds support for Linux graphical applications appearing as ordinary Windows windows, and GPU compute is supported for machine learning workloads.

It became open source in 2025, with the source published on GitHub. Installation is a single command in a Windows command prompt, though you install the distribution separately and the required Windows virtualisation features must be enabled.

Strengths

  • Runs Linux command-line tools unmodified, with no virtual machine overhead or dual boot
  • WSLg lets Linux graphical applications appear as ordinary Windows windows
  • Files and commands cross between Windows and Linux in both directions
  • Open source since 2025, with the kernel published separately

Limitations

  • Requires Windows virtualisation features to be enabled, which conflicts with some other software
  • Filesystem performance across the Windows and Linux boundary is poor; keep files on the correct side
  • systemd support arrived late and some services still behave differently
  • Windows only, obviously

Details

Pricing
FreeFree and open source under the MIT licence, published by Microsoft. Included with Windows.
License
MIT
Developer
microsoft
Platforms
Windows
How it runs
Downloadable app
Account
Not required
Works offline
Yes
Best suited for
Using Linux tooling on a Windows machine without giving up Windows
Last verified
Added
Provenance
Selected from the TechWalrus downloads catalog (Virtualization); facts checked against the developer's own pages, 3 sources on file.

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