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Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)

Prerequisite

  • Windows 10 (version 2004) or later.

Windows Subsystem for Linux is a feature that allows you to utilise some Linux commands and command line tools.

WSL is enabled by default on later versions of Windows 10.

Tip

WSL1 has been superseded by WSL2, which is an improvement in several areas.

You can see what version is installed by opening 'Windows PowerShell' and typing wsl --version.

If you are still using WSL1, see Upgrade version from WSL1 to WSL2

Installing WSL

Microsoft provides setup instructions for installing both WSL and a WSL distribution. You will need administrative access on your computer if WSL was not preinstalled.

To check if WSL is already installed on your Windows PC, open Windows Command Prompt, Terminal, or Powershell and run wsl --list --online. This should return a list of available WSL distributions.

Installing a Distribution

In order to make use of WSL features, you will also need to install a Linux distribution.

Distributions can be obtained through the Microsoft Store, or using command line.

  • Open the Microsoft store, search for 'Ubuntu', find and install the latest version of the Ubuntu LTS it should look something like 'Ubuntu 20.04 LTS' , though you may find a later version.

MS store MS store

  • Close the “Add your Microsoft account.. dialogue box as you do not need an account for the installation.You may have to click “Install” for a second time (If the above dialogue box reappears, close as before and download/install will begin).

MS store MS store

  • Open 'Windows Power Shell' and type
wsl --install -d Ubuntu-20.04

  • When it has finished downloading, the Ubuntu Terminal will appear and prompt you to “Enter new UNIX username” and press Enter.

    This can be anything you want, although we reccomend using the same as your Windows username. ubuntu1.png

  • Now, type in a new password for the username you picked and press Enter (this password can be anything you want, although you shouldn't need to enter it again). Then retype the password to confirm and press Enter. ubuntu2.png

You may find having a symbolic link to your Windows filesystems useful.

Within Ubuntu terminal run the following command replacing c with the name of your Windows filesystems found in /mnt/.

ln -s /mnt/c/Users/YourWindowsUsername/ WinFS

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