Linux on Windows 11

Windows ❤️ Linux.

Launched 5 years ago, the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) is a compatibility layer that lets you run Linux binary executables (in ELF format) natively on Windows. This tool makes life easier for developers, system administrators and anyone with a foot in both worlds. The good news about Windows 11 is that it has greatly improved the way WSL works. For one thing, installation is simplified and for another, there’s support for graphical user interfaces and audio thanks to the WSLg architecture. If you’ve been hesitant to upgrade to Windows 11, this new and improved version of WSL might be what you’ve been waiting for.

To install WSL on Windows 11, a simple wsl --install command with no further arguments is enough to get Hyper-V and other WSL underpinnings, as well as the latest version of Ubuntu. If you prefer another Linux distribution, type wsl --list --online for a list of possible distros. This will let you install your choice of distro such as wsl --install -d openSUSE-42. The beauty of it is that you can set up multiple distros, each with its own separate environment. You can run as many installed environments as you want simultaneously, without worrying about one disrupting another.

⇨ Ars Technica, Jim Salter, “The best part of Windows 11 is a revamped Windows Subsystem for Linux.”

2021-10-07