Updated: May 31, 2023 (November 1, 2021)

  Analyst Report

Leveraging Linux Apps and Tools in Windows with WSL2

My Atlas / Analyst Reports

784 wordsTime to read: 4 min
Barry Briggs by
Barry Briggs

Before joining Directions on Microsoft in 2020, Barry worked at Microsoft for 12 years in a variety of roles, including... more

  • The Windows Subsystem for Linux V2 allows users to run Linux distributions in a lightweight VM on Windows 10 or 11.
  • It simplifies Linux development on Windows workstations, which is particularly valuable for working with containerized cloud applications.
  • WSLg, available for Windows 11, enables Linux graphics applications including window managers, as well as hardware-accelerated machine learning applications.

The Windows Subsystem for Linux V2 (WSL2) allows users to run one or several Linux distributions, such as Ubuntu or SUSE Linux, in a lightweight VM on devices running Windows 10 or 11. The capability could be useful for developers who use Windows workstations to code, test, and run Linux server applications, including containerized applications, allowing them to make use of Linux tools and commands without the overhead of a full VM or dedicated Linux device. This will be an increasingly common scenario for customers who build containerized applications with services such as Azure Kubernetes Service, which favor Linux.

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