How to configure and install Windows Subsystem for Linux in Windows 11

This tip is about the how to configure and install Windows Subsystem for Linux in Windows 11. So read this free guide, How to configure and install Windows Subsystem for Linux in Windows 11 step by step. If you have query related to same article you may contact us.

How to configure and install Windows Subsystem for Linux in Windows 11 – Guide

Microsoft first provided some degree of Linux compatibility through the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) notified with the Windows 10 Anniversary Update in 2016. This primary version of the utility was not perfect, mainly because it used an advanced Linux-compatible kernel by Microsoft instead of the actual article. WSL 2 modified this in June 2019, assimilating the entire Linux kernel directly into Windows 10 via the operating system’s built-in Hyper-V hypervisor.

Installing WSL used to be a complicated process that involved activating various services, downloading the utility, and manually installing Windows without much assistance. This has changed with later versions of Windows 10, however, and Windows 11 still makes it easier to get started with a variety of Linux distributions in a lightweight virtual machine environment. Here it is how to start using the Windows subsystem for Linux on Windows 11.

Install WSL on Windows 11

To install the Windows subsystem for Linux on Windows 11 with Command Prompt, use these steps:

1. Open Start in Windows 11.
2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click on the top result and select the Run as administrator option.
3. Type the following command to install WSL on Windows 11 and press Enter: wsl –install
4. Restart your computer to complete WSL installation on Windows 11.
5. Proceed with configuring the Linux distribution as needed.

After completing the steps, the necessary Linux components will automatically install on Windows 11 as well as the latest version of the Ubuntu Linux distribution.

Install WSL with specific distro on Windows 11

If you prefer another type of Linux, the WSL2 command includes an option to view and select a different distro.

To install WSL with a specific distribution on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Open Start.
2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click on the top result and select the Run as administrator option.
3. Type the following command to see a list of available WSL distros you can install on Windows 11 and press Enter: wsl –list –online
4. Type the following command to install WSL with a specific distro on Windows 11 and press Enter: wsl –install -d DISTRO-NAME In the command, remember to replace “DISTRO-NAME” with the name of the distro you want to install, such as Debian .
5. Restart your computer to complete WSL installation on Windows 11.
6. Proceed with configuring the Linux distribution as needed.

After completing the steps, the Windows subsystem components for Linux 2 will be installed along with the Linux distro you specified.

Update WSL kernel on Windows 11

To update the WSL kernel to the latest version using the command prompt, use these steps:

1. Open Start.
2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click on the top result and select the Run as administrator option.
3. Type the following command to update the WSL kernel on Windows 11 and press Enter:

   wsl -update

4. After completing the steps, if an update is available, it will be downloaded and installed on your computer.

Install WSL from Microsoft Store

In addition to installing WSL with a single command, you can now also download all components as an app from the Microsoft Store. The advantage of using this approach is that feature will run isolated from Windows 11 and updates will be available from the Microsoft Store without waiting for the next OS version to install the latest version.

To install WSL from the Microsoft Store, use these steps:

1. Enable the virtual machine platform

1. Open Start.
2. Search Turn Windows Features on or off and click on the top result to open the page.
3. Check the Virtual Machine Platform option.
4. Click on OK button.
5. Click Restart button.

After completing the steps, you can proceed with downloading the app from the Microsoft Store.

2. Download the Windows Subsystem app for Linux

1. Open the Windows Subsystem application page for Linux.
2. Click on the Get button button.
3. Click on the Open button button.
4. Click on the Get button button again.

After completing the steps, WSL will be installed on Windows 11, including support for Linux GUI applications.

Final note

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